Doug Bower
Doug Bower (born 1934) is a British artist and the primary architect of the crop circle phenomenon that dominated UFO discourse in the 1970s and 1980s. Together with his friend Dave Chorley, Bower created hundreds of crop circle formations across southern England over approximately fifteen years, beginning around 1976, before confessing publicly in 1991. Their confession resolved the central mystery behind what had briefly become one of the most discussed alleged paranormal phenomena in the world.
| Role | Crop circle hoaxer |
|---|
Background
Bower was inspired by the "saucer nests" — flattened circular patches in crops — reported in Australia in 1966. During an evening drink with Chorley, he proposed recreating the effect in English wheat fields as a prank. The two men spent subsequent years refining their technique, initially creating simple circles and later complex geometric patterns.
Technique
Bower and Chorley's method used simple tools: a plank of wood, rope, and a baseball cap with a wire sight attached for navigating straight lines. One end of a rope was anchored at a central point; the other was attached to the plank, which was used to flatten crops in a controlled arc. They worked at night and were never caught over the many years of their activity.
Confession
In 1991, Bower and Chorley came forward to the British press, demonstrating their technique live. Their confession, while explaining the initial wave of formations, did not eliminate the broader phenomenon — other hoaxers worldwide had independently adopted the practice, and a small community of "circlemakers" continued the tradition as an art form. However, the confession effectively ended the credibility of crop circles as potential evidence of extraterrestrial activity.