According to the study there has been 23 unexplained sighting since 1961 including one on the M6 in May last year when a motorist saw two bright objects in the sky above the road which changed from white to blue and appeared to follow the car along part of its journey.

The research, conducted by Virgin Media to mark a month-long Sci-Fi extravaganza on its TV service is supported by the former head of the Government's UFO project, Nick Pope.

He said: "It's fantastic to see local folk taking an interest in UFO activity and keeping an eye on the sky!

"While we currently have no explanation why certain places in the UK are alien hot spots, as the research reveals, there are areas where mysterious objects are repeatedly witnessed, so people who want to alien-spot should definitely head to Wigan."

But locals won't be too surprised by the findings.
Wigan has one of the best vantage points in the North West with Billinge Hill rising 600ft above sea level – there's panoramic views of the whole North Western skyline from Liverpool docks to Manchester.

West Yorkshire takes first place in the poll with an out-of-this-world 34 UFOs witnessed, while just making it into the top 10 is Devon with 15 extra terrestrial spots.

Have you encountered a UFO or seen anything unusual in the sky.
E-mail david.taylor@lancspublications.co.uk

The top 10 areas are:
1. West Yorkshire (34)
2. Nottinghamshire (29)
3. Lancashire (23)
4. Shropshire (22)
5. North Somerset and Avon (22)
6. Suffolk (19)
7. South Wales (18)
8. Co. Durham (17)
9. Lanarkshire (15)
10. Devon (15)