THE head of one of Greek mythology’s most fearsome creatures is casting a beady eye over Oxford, thanks to the imagination of a Cumnor schoolboy.

Thomas Lydford-Brace, pictured, a pupil at Chandlings School, Bagley Wood, came up with the winning design of Medusa for this year’s Wicker Man sculpture.

The head of Medusa, a fearsome gorgon whose hair was a nest of snakes, was winched onto the Malmaison Hotel yesterday in time for the Oxford Castle Flower and Gardening Festival this weekend.

The giant creation is trailed around Oxford’s festivals and public events before being burnt at the city’s biggest fireworks display to mark Guy Fawkes night, at South Park.

Wicker man creators Dan Barton and Alan Hambridge invited county children to compete for the best ‘mythical design’, and picked eight-year-old-Thomas’ sketchings from hundreds of submissions.

Mr Barton, who restores historic buildings, said: “The idea is that as many people as possible can see it and be inspired by it, and this year we estimate that more than 600 people have already been involved in some way in its creation, and around 2,500 will have done so by November.”

This year money raised by the Wicker Man project will go towards the Oxford Maggie’s Cancer Caring centre.

• Dan Barton and Alan Hambridge, masterminds of the Wicker Man Project, will be at Oxford Castle Flower and Gardening Festival throughout the weekend.

At 5.30pm on Saturday and Sunday Mr Hambridge will be giving a talk on the Wicker Man Project and Mr Barton will be demonstrating the ancient craft of wicker making in Castle Gardens.