Work of yarn bombers is returned to lion statues outside City Hall in Norwich

A group calling themselves the Norfolk Ninja Knitters took credit for some woollen additions to City Hall over the weekend.

The group had added some colour to bins, lamp-posts and the lion statues as part of the yarn bombing craze, which is similar to graffiti but less destructive and permanent.

Initially the additions to the lions were removed on Saturday, to the dismay of the Norfolk Ninja Knitters, who had said they wanted to make the additions to coincide with the Norfolk and Norwich Festival.

But the colourful wool was returned at the start of this week after bosses at Norwich City Council decided to see the fun side of the craze.

A spokesman for the city council said: 'People often put things on the lions, which we remove, but we're happy to let the lions be used for cultural events as long as people contact us and ask permission.

'We didn't know anything about the guerrilla-style Norfolk Ninja Knitters, but when they got in touch with us, we were more than happy to put the knitting back.'

Unfortunately it has not been all good news for the Norfolk Ninja Knitters though, after the decorations on one of the lion statues were stolen. Now just one of the statues is adorned in the style of the growing craze.

A spokesman for the group said they have eight members ranging in age from early-20s to mid-60s.

They said: 'It's quite sad really because one of us made it and it has been pinched. We just wanted to brighten things up during the Norfolk and Norwich Festival.

'It's good that we've got the support from the council and they have asked if we want to do something for the Lord Mayor's Celebrations, we're not sure what yet though.'

This is not the first example of guerilla knitting to have been spotted in Norwich either, as lamp-posts and bus stop cosies have previously been discovered at the St Giles end of the Grapes Hill footbridge, in Chapelfield Gardens and Unthank Road.