Knutsford wood sculptor carves Alice in Wonderland characters

But, thanks to Mobberley wood sculptor Andy Burgess, they are a lot closer to home for Knutsford residents.

After two very long days of chainsaw carving 15 feet in the air, the 50-year-old finished his latest project in Toft Road.

Now passing motorists on the way into the town centre will be able to get a glimpse of the beloved characters, albeit from the back, near the junction of Glebelands Road.

Andy said: "The homeowners had to remove a dying Oak tree for safety reasons and were sad to see it go so they decided to keep the bottom section and make a tree sculpture.

"Their love of Alice in Wonderland inspired the sculpture and the fact that the trunk split into two at the top meant they needed two characters to have some interaction and a bit of fun.

The sculpture taking shape (Image: Andy Burgess)

"I was really pleased with the end result. It’s always a compromise to make things as big as possible especially at this height so you have to strike a happy balance between size and scale and detail and complexity of pose."

Andy was grateful to 'fantastic' scaffold company Cheshire Roof Repairs Ltd, which provided him with a safe working environment - 'crucial', he says, when wielding chainsaws.

Despite only being able to see the back of the sculpture from the road, the feedback from passing drivers, as well as the homeowners themselves, has been positive.

The Mad Hatter (Image: Andy Burgess)

Andy added: "The feedback has been fantastic. The homeowners were really pleased which is my top priority.

"So many people were beeping and tooting their horns as it is in such a visible location on the main road.

The March Hare (Image: Andy Burgess)

"Lots had worked out what the imagery was but it mainly faces into the garden and house with its back to the road, so it’s a little more difficult to see."

Self-taught Andy has always loved working with his hands and transforms windblown, diseased and fallen trees into carvings of various animals, birds and figures.

The finished sculpture (Image: Andy Burgess)

Recently he also carved a beautiful stag's head into a stump at Toft Cricket Club.