COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

It certainly proved to be a talking point



Coventry residents were left amazed - and slightly confused - last night as a mystery beam of light was spotted high above the city.

Social media exploded into life following the strange sighting, shortly after 8pm on Saturday night.

There was plenty of speculation as to the cause of the eye-catching beam, ranging from an open air cinema event in Stoneleigh to UFOs.

The confusion increased with the light seeming to change colour from blue, to purple, and then to green.

What's more, the shape of the beam appeared to alter from time to time.

There are unconfirmed reports that the presence of the light so high in the sky required planes heading to and from Birmingham Airport to travel on an alternative flight path.

But, while the source of the beam has since been revealed, its purpose still remains a mystery.

Pictures and video show that the light was originating from Coventry city centre, seemingly from inside or next the ruins of the original Coventry Cathedral.

At this time, the reason for the impressive light show - which was visible for many miles around the city, remains unclear.

Earlier this month, a similar laser beam was sighted in the skies above nearby Leicester.

In that instance, the mystery was solved - as a local theatre organised the beam to mark 100 days of lockdown.

The truth behind the mysterious laser beam that dominated Coventry's sky



Mat Lawrence, of Kvant Lasers, was actually behind the intriguing visual display that got the whole city talking on Saturday night (October 17).

And far from being a stunt to create awareness for a cause, he was actually just testing to see how effective the "world's most powerful display laser" was and how far it could be seen from.

Mat said: "We were testing out the world's most powerful display laser and getting some photographs from around the city.

"We have been doing it in various cities, but I cannot help but think people would rather read we were talking to aliens or something!"

Mat told CoventryLive the laser could be seen for up to 20 miles in good weather conditions.

It certainly lit up social media in the city, and further afield. You could see the light clearly from Coventry Airport.

Given the height that the laser can reach, Mat and the company had taken steps before firing it up - including warning those in the aviation world.

Coventry Airport was made aware of the display, to make sure that any flights in the area were routed safely away.

What's more, West Midlands Police were even made aware as a precaution, to avoid any public panic - easing fears of an alien invasion.

"It was a case of testing and taking photographs. I drove around the city to get various viewpoints," Mat added.

"It requires a The Notice to Airmen from the Civil Aviation Authority for us to turn on a laser outside unterminated (e.g. into the sky).

"This approval was in place prior to Saturday and informs aircraft of what we are doing.

"We also informed the police as we know from experience it can create interest from locals."

Though there was some speculation that the beam was coming from Coventry Cathedral, it has been confirmed that though close by, it had instead come from the courtyard of Bayley Lane Kitchen.