THE hidden stories of life beneath our feet in Scotland have been revealed in fascinating detail at an event in Largs.

Author and historian L. Bruce Keith has written three books, one on his study of milestones called 'Are We Nearly There Yet?' which he had previously spoken on, another on Scottish Bridges and now the fascinating story of Scotland Beneath the Surface, which was the subject of his talk.

Bruce has a fascination with the man-made and natural world beneath Scotland’s surface, from the 1.25 million miles of telecommunication cables and quarter of a million miles of sewers, to the 'Cave of True Wonders' at Applecross and the sea caves in Shetland.

He highlighted the human side, such as the Tinkers’ Cave in Wick where 24 families lived in the 1900s, and the fact that in 1917 some 55 people claimed to live in a cave.

He drew attention to the situation in Edinburgh, where there were 120 vaults under the South Bridge, each providing accommodation for 20 to 30 people, and the use of tunnels under castles to aid smuggling.

Granite quarrying at Rubislaw in Aberdeen created the largest man-made hole in western Europe and, as well as providing granite for Marischal College, Union Street and Parliament, some 50,000 tons were exported worldwide.

It was interesting to note that the slate quarry at Luing had restarted to serve conservation projects in Scotland, with the waste used to protect beaches.

Bruce provided lots of facts on the miles of sewers serving us, the hydroelectric pump storage system at Pitlochry, offshore and on land windfarms, coalmining, and the excavation of the Glasgow Metro.

He concluded his thoroughly entertaining talk with a look at the future of geothermal power, undersea turbines, and shale oil extraction should fracking ever be acceptable.

Bernie Rafferty gave a vote of thanks referring to the many historic photographs Bruce used to illustrate his talk and the informative and light-hearted way it was delivered.