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Oi Windmill Hill, near Avebury, Wiltshire. Reported 2nd August. Image M. J. Fussell © 2002 the concept of the circles in any light suddenly became exposed to the existence of the real thing. Cerealogical interest from the States became intense, and circle websites saw the effect as hit- rates rapidly increased. A positive documentary movie, Crop Circles: Quest For Truth, by award-winning US filmmaker William Gazecki, was planned for release in late [northern] summer, too, to set straight any Hollywood misconceptions about the real phenomenon. A 45- minute excerpt was premiered at this year's Glastonbury Symposium crop circle conference (in its new, bigger venue) and was well received. With all this newfound interest, there was a suspicious rise in the number of US formations, though those who believe the phe- nomenon to be psychically interactive defended this development as inevitable and positive. The debunkers were also on hand to capitalise on the newfound interest. As the movie-inspired circle coverage increased, their claims that all crop circles are man-made became more prominent, as spokespersons for the rather sinister Inquisition-like elite organ- isation CSICOP (Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal) found louder voices, and the usual human circlemaking teams found new platforms from which to dispense their scepticism. One thing the film does not do is debunk the circles—which would have been a dramatic let-down. So the sceptics have had to find even louder voices this year, with probably a major debunking still on its way at the time of writing, courtesy of a conglomeration of known UK human circlemakers promising something spectacular, probably timed to coincide with the UK release of Signs in September. Elsewhere in the world, aside from Hollywood's intervention, crop circles increased their profile in a number of places—notably Germany, which, for a time until July, had more crop circles than the UK, with a series of intriguing if less ambitious designs, some of which utilised more unusual crops than the routine grain-types. A formation on the Isle of Ruegen at Mecklenburg—Vorpommern, for instance, appeared in a field of white clover and purple phacelia flowers, creating a rather beautiful effect. Canada also continued its increased sightings, and The Netherlands was again a contender in the numbers stakes. But by the middle of August, the UK had caught up from its late start and was producing some extraordinary patterns, though some feared a deliberate increase in man-made formations as a result of Nursteed, near Devizes, Wiltshire. Reported 11th August. Image M. J. Fussell © 2002 ton, near Avebury, Wiltshire. Reported 2 Image M. J. Fussell © 2002 Crooked Soley, nr Hungerford, Berkshire. Reported 28th August Image M. J. Fussell © 201 60 ¢ NEXUS www.nexusmagazine.com OCTOBER — NOVEMBER 2002