UFOs

Thanks to Stephen Mera of "MAPIT" for his help in compiling this page.

The case of the "Winter Hill MIB UFO" sighting is one of the great mysteries of Winter Hill. In 1999, a farm worker by the name of Murphy spotted a strange object hanging over his cattle field. When he came out to investigate, the object seemed to move away towards Preston. So odd was the sighting that Mr. Murphy decided to telephone the police and report the incident.

He then returned to the field to check on the cattle, only to find the object return and hover over the area for several more minutes. He became very distressed and, the story goes, called the number for MAPIT (the Manchester Aerial Phenomena Investigation Team) - apparently provided by the police. He left a disturbing message stating that he had witnessed a UFO and was scared.

MAPIT spent weeks investigating the incident, during which time they found themselves being followed by a man in a 4x4 jeep and later discovered that Mr. Murphy had been warned off by officials who claimed to be from the MAFF (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food). Mr. Murphy disappeared and has never been traced, making it impossible to corroborate the story. The farm still remains, although the owner has always been reluctant to speak out on the issue.

So famous is the incident that television companies from Britain, America and Japan have all visited MAPIT's HQ to interview the organisation's president, Stephen Mera. He is yet to uncover the full story, although he has also investigated the use of high-tech military equipment - including so-called "black helicopters" which can regularly be seen in the area.

MAPIT's Winter Hill website