New augmented reality app exposes the hidden history of Wirral


A new app has been launched that reveals the hidden stories of Wirral which can be viewed and explored using a mobile phone.

The project has been led by artist Alan Dunn, who designed the iconic Ray and Julie chairs sculpture on London Road.

By visiting www.fourwordswirral.com on a mobile phone, people can use the free digital art app to place augmented reality sculptures on their travels that reveal stories and hidden connections to where they find themselves.

READ MORE:Tiny 200-year-old prison that people unknowingly pass on the street every day

The project is designed to explore Wirral’s contemporary folklore and social history through stories which have been condensed down to just four words.

It was created with the help of seven artists, including Alan, visiting three locations – Port Sunlight, New Ferry and Spital – with the aim of uncovering the hidden history of those towns.

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Alan said the idea started in lockdown when he began walking his dog Lulu and began to explore in more detail the Spital neighbourhood on his own doorstep.

He discovered that Italian prisoners of war were once housed in scout huts on the edge of Dibbinsdale Nature Reserve woods in Spital, not far from where Harold Wilson lived.

The paths through the woods were built by those prisoners of war, which is now a nature reserve and park filled with birdsong.

The final result is that thirty hidden stories have been unearthed – all distilled down to four words each – that reveal connections with slavery, a community in transformation after a massive explosion, hidden viruses and the power of nature and wildlife during a pandemic.

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Weirdly, the project also unearthed other unexpected links to ‘A Clockwork Orange’, Batman and even the Beach Boys.

Alan said: “I had the idea for this project…

Read the full article by Lee Grimsditch

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