A BLAST from the past has been dug up by a family from Birkenhead while they were doing some DIY their back garden.

Janet Meadows, of Beryl Road, Noctorum, had been digging up the ground to put up new fencing when her two sons ran to show her a time capsule they had just discovered buried in the ground.

James, eight, and six-year-old Ben found the 40-year-old capsule among old bottles, cans and bits of paper and were eager to see what was inside.

Drawings of a hippy, and a schoolgirl, some ha’pennies and a Bazooka Joe chewing gum joke were among the things inside as well as a letter from its creator, Susan J Taylor, dated October 15, 1969.

Janet said: "The boys just ran in to show me and I knew what it was. I think I was more excited than they were!

“We know that she went to Noctorum then to Bidston schools and from her drawings and handwriting, we think she was probably around ten years old at the time."

Janet contacted the previous owners of the house who would have lived there at the time, but they could not recollect the name or any time capsule being made, although it is thought that it could have been a friend of the family.

The boys are now hoping to bury a capsule of their own in the hope that years from now another family will be able to gain an insight into their lives.

Janet added: "I don't think they've really thought about what they would put in but I can imagine it would be some money, maybe a toy.

“I just can't believe that we haven't found it until now in the eight years that we've lived here."