General Chat

On BBC Scotland tonight at 10pm, there is an interesting documentary about this Scottish island that was used for experiments during WW2.It was said the island contained Anthrax and was closed to visitors for years.

Not sure in England if it is BBC1 or a different channel.

Florence in the hebrides

Unfortunately, it's only on BBC Scotland - and on i player.
I've just read up about it - fascinating!

May watch it later on i player :-D

I have just read about it too and have to say it is typical of the sort of thing that is developed, no thought to long term consequences nor an antidote and always painful.

Oh I thought so Maggie. Well it was very interesting and learnt a lot by watching. Was a refreshing change from the usual soaps etc...

ZZzzz no they didn't think of the future or the consequences of their actions!

Florence in the hebrides

The first and only time I have heard about the ‘anthrax island’ was when it was mentioned in a series I was watching. It have been a detective series I think - something like Shetland or similar - and definitely well before this year.

I was quite surprised not to have heard about it before not least because conflict formed part of my degree subject many years ago.

So they kept that quiet didn’t they! Perhaps it was embargoed for fifty years or so?

The programme’s available on Catch Up if you have it on your telly.

I've just watched it.
Was that the legendary Fyfe Robinson at the beginning?

Weird how they didn't test the village on the mainland, considering people found sheep and cattle dead, isn't it?

I've known about the island for many years, possibly even before 1990 which is the round which it was declassified, but I'm not sure how, except that we knew several virologists and even 1 or 2 who had connections with Portadown (now called Porton Down.

But there have been other tests with viruses and bacteria that have gone way wrong.

Remember myxomatosis??

Things were very different in days gone by.

That show sounds very interesting, for some reason I did know there was an island closed to everyone because of Anthrax it must have been on a show years ago can't remember now. I seem to remember pictures of it with barbed wire and notices telling people to stay away. Sadly in times of war you have to do things you'd never dream of doing in peace time and this was one of them I believe.

I was aware of it too.

added: Maybe this is why:
The secret wartime experiments left the tiny island uninhabitable for decades - until in 1981 a group known as the Dark Harvest commandos launched a move to focus attention on the deadly contamination.
from:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-60483849

Yes they never identified The Dark Harvest people and the locals I think they knew but they never saId. But as some animals across the bay in the village of Laide had lost some sheep, cattle etc, why wasn't their soil tested?

The Anthrax had obviously blown across in the wind and it was less than a mile.

Joy I am an avid watcher of Shetland and I think you may be correct as before this programme was advertised, I too had heard about this island more recently but couldn't recall. Si it may well of been mentioned in an episode.

I do recall the Conservative party conference in Blackpool and the incident where a box was left with soil. Seeing that clip in the programme suddenly woke my brain up and it all came back.

I have seen a short video made by explorers who managed to get underground in Porton Down a few years ago. The tunnels went for miles. There was all sorts of things left abandoned from the war even unopened food and bottles of water.
They eventually found a flight of steps and managed to get out but it is heavily guarded by security cameras everywhere even around the old deserted buildings.

Florence in the hebrides

The programme is worth a watch if you have Catch Up and, yes, Florence it mentioned wind carrying the virus and the Dark Harvest people. We were living overseas for some of the seventies and most of the eighties where Maralinga loomed more in memories.

Oh my just seen on my local news that the island is completely on fire!!

We have had a local moor not far from me on fire all weekend and the smoke visible just over the hill opposite me! Firefighters are still tackling it after it blew up again today and the wind changed its direction. The moor is tinder dry after no proper rain for days.

Florence in the hebrides

That's a huge fire...........

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-60892350

Knew about it a long time ago.

Yes Gwyn its huge!!

Is that going to an arson???

It wouldn’t surprise me, Sylvia.

What do you think - government, NGO or individual?

It was suggested that some kayakers may have been wild camping on the island! The ground is so tinder dry, it only takes a spark to get it burning!

The fire service are leaving it as no wildlife or people on the island. so nobody will be investigated or charged and probably the wild campers are long gone.

Florence in the hebrides

JoyLlouise. Thought it was a well known fact. Featured on TV and in papers many times over years