The Scottish A70 UFO & Alleged Abductions Of Gary Wood & Colin Wright

[Paul_Exeter]

Have been meaning to post about the case for some time. In represents one of the last great British 20th Century UFO cases (sadly thus far the 21st Century has yet to provide with another such 'classic' multiple-witness UFO and abduction incident).

This event took place on the night of 17th August 1992 on a dark, lonely road in central Scotland:

"Strange But True - S04E04 - The Falkirk Triangle / Beast of Durham – The Fishburn Puma"​

[starts at 5:28]

The principal authority on the case is Scottish UFO researcher Malcolm Robinson and you can buy his short book on the incident from just £1.99 for the Kindle edition:

https://amzn.eu/d/339lkgd

This case has attracted a lot of attention and in 2019 featured on BBC's 'The One Show'

"The A70 UFO Incident. Here is a piece from the BBC One Show from 2019 which discusses one of Scotland’s most famous UFO Incidents ‘The A70 UFO Incident’ Featuring researchers Malcolm Robinson and Ron Halliday."

Essentially there are three distinct elements to the incident:

1. The encounter with a "shimmering black, three-tiered" unidentified object "floating" at just 20-feet above the road (around a blind corner thats ent down a "shimmering curtain" of light as they had no choice but to drive under it, everything went black and then "seconds later" they were careering down the road having passed under it. The two witnesses are consistent in this account.
2. The hypnosis and timings: the information gained through hypnosis - which took place months after the event - seem to be plagued with inconsistencies and heavily influenced by contemporary UFO literature and the recently released 'Fire in the Sky' Travis Walton UFO movie. Likewise, the timings around which the claimed "missing time" is construed are at best vague and often contradictory. Malcolm himself is prone to asking leading questions and ignoring evidence tat doesn't fit with his own personal viewpoint.
3. Neither of them can remember how they got back to Edinburgh that night after the UFO encounter and the stop at Tabrax. Not even under hypnosis it would seem. This seems distinctly odd given it is a 20-odd mile journey and they had earlier encounter a "UFO"and hints at there being more to this incident than we have been told, but what...?

Despite the inconsistencies it remains a perplexing case and neither witness has ever gone back on their conscious recollection of what happened that night. I would urge you to read Malcolm's short book and would love to know members thoughts on this case.

 

[SimonBurchell]

Have been meaning to post about the case for some time. In represents one of the last great British 20th Century UFO cases (sadly thus far the 21st Century has yet to provide with another such 'classic' multiple-witness UFO and abduction incident).

This event took place on the night of 17th August 1992 on a dark, lonely road in central Scotland:

"Strange But True - S04E04 - The Falkirk Triangle / Beast of Durham – The Fishburn Puma"​

[starts at 5:28]

The principal authority on the case is Scottish UFO researcher Malcolm Robinson and you can buy his short book on the incident from just £1.99 for the Kindle edition:

https://amzn.eu/d/339lkgd

This case has attracted a lot of attention and in 2019 featured on BBC's 'The One Show'

"The A70 UFO Incident. Here is a piece from the BBC One Show from 2019 which discusses one of Scotland’s most famous UFO Incidents ‘The A70 UFO Incident’ Featuring researchers Malcolm Robinson and Ron Halliday."

Essentially there are three distinct elements to the incident:

1. The encounter with a "shimmering black, three-tiered" unidentified object "floating" at just 20-feet above the road (around a blind corner thats ent down a "shimmering curtain" of light as they had no choice but to drive under it, everything went black and then "seconds later" they were careering down the road having passed under it. The two witnesses are consistent in this account.
2. The hypnosis and timings: the information gained through hypnosis - which took place months after the event - seem to be plagued with inconsistencies and heavily influenced by contemporary UFO literature and the recently released 'Fire in the Sky' Travis Walton UFO movie. Likewise, the timings around which the claimed "missing time" is construed are at best vague and often contradictory. Malcolm himself is prone to asking leading questions and ignoring evidence tat doesn't fit with his own personal viewpoint.
3. Neither of them can remember how they got back to Edinburgh that night after the UFO encounter and the stop at Tabrax. Not even under hypnosis it would seem. This seems distinctly odd given it is a 20-odd mile journey and they had earlier encounter a "UFO"and hints at there being more to this incident than we have been told, but what...?

Despite the inconsistencies it remains a perplexing case and neither witness has ever gone back on their conscious recollection of what happened that night. I would urge you to read Malcolm's short book and would love to know members thoughts on this case.

It turns out that I bought the Kindle book a year ago, and got no further than finishing the introduction. I shall have to revisit it.

 

[Paul_Exeter]

It turns out that I bought the Kindle book a year ago, and got no further than finishing the introduction. I shall have to revisit it.

Would be great to hear your thoughts. I will add to this thread again tomorrow.

There are also some questions as to why in 1992 they were taking a satellite TV system to a mother of four young kids late on a Sunday night (Malcolm believes after 23.00). Neither of them states they worked for a satellite TV provider so how legal was this and again, why so late at night?

Satellite TV was still very new to Britain in 1992, a history here:

https://www.scienceandmediamuseum.o...One hour of entertainment a,in the UK in 1983.

 

[Paul_Exeter]

The two witnesses Gary Wood and Colin Wright on 'We The Jury (Part 6) A live TV Discussion on UFOs, are they fact or fiction?':

"We The Jury (Part 6) A live Scottish TV Discussion on UFOs, from the mid 1990's are they fact or fiction? Features UFO researcher Malcolm Robinson, A70 Abductees Garry Wood and Colin Wright. Held between UFO witnesses and believers, and UFO sceptics, professors and Astronomers"

Have to say there conscious* recall of these events is compelling and consistent. The object above the road and the shimmering curtain they drove into seem to come straight out of the pages of jenny Randles' 'Time Storms' time-slip book in that there are other UK cases that describe a similar experience.

There are, however, inconsistencies over timings that night, their reason for being out that late and what happened on the way back.


* i.e. memories not obtained under hypnosis

 

[Paul_Exeter]

"The Mysterious north. The A70 UFO Incident. Malcolm Robinson & Garry Wood"​

The Mysterious north. The A70 UFO Incident. UFO researcher Malcolm Robinson, along with UFO witness Garry Wood, discuss one of Scotland's biggest UFO abduction cases, the A70 UFO Incident.

Also:


Witness Gary Wood in more recent times:

[starts at 02:57]

From researcher Malcolm Robinson's YouTube page:

https://www.youtube.com/@malcolmrobinsonufoparanorm9006

 

[Paul_Exeter]

2012 Article in "The Scotsman"

"MoD took alien abduction of Scots duo seriously, according to secret file​

IT WAS hailed two decades ago as the most bizarre and incredible tale of abduction by aliens ever told in Scotland."

"Garry Wood and Colin Wright made headlines across the globe when they revealed their extraordinary story of being taken prisoners by extraterrestrials in a flying saucer as they were driving towards a village in Lanarkshire to deliver a satellite TV system to a friend.
After being hypnotically regressed they recalled, in 
astonishing detail, how they were taken on board the craft, stripped and examined by strange creatures before being returned to their vehicle on the A70 Edinburgh to Lanark road on the outskirts of the capital."

Today, newly declassified secret government “X-files” reveal that a two-page report on what became known as the “A70 incident” was sent to the Ministry of Defence’s UFO desk in 1996 – four years after the mysterious encounter on 17 August, 1992, near the Harperrig reservoir.

https://www.scotsman.com/news/mod-t...uo-seriously-according-to-secret-file-1618160

 

[Paul_Exeter]

THE A70 ABDUCTION CASE, by Brian Allan​

"My special and unreserved thanks goes to my friend, colleague, and paranormal researcher Malcolm Robinson for supplying invaluable original research material used in this article, particularly a transcript of Colin Wrights original hypnotic regression session.

I also wish to express my thanks to Garry Woods for his willingness to be interviewed, recorded and once again relive this remarkable series of events.

This particular incident unlike so many others is in some way ‘different’. There is an indefinable sense of ‘rightness’ about it, a feeling that something utterly bizarre and unearthly actually did happen.

This case like no other was a catalyst for many people, particularly for those who chose to sit on the fence refusing commitment to the idea of beings from other worlds visiting ours. That the purpose of these visits is totally altruistic is highly debatable, indeed, that the beings are from another world even more so.

In this article I will attempt - based on new research into particle physics coupled with a highly controversial psychic experiment - to show that rather than being extraterrestrial, these humanoid creature are extradimensional and exploit this ability at will."

Full report at:

https://www.ufocasebook.com/a70abduction.html

 

[Paul_Exeter]

A lot of detail in this BEAMS Investigation of the case that includes witness sketches obtained under hypnosis:

August 17, 1992:
The A70 UFO/Abduction Case of Gary Wood And Colin Wright


Documents that were kept secret for 20 years have shed new light on an amazing story of alien abduction in Scotland.

Garry Wood and Colin Wright claim they were knocked out and examined by extra terrestrials after their van was ambushed by a flying saucer near Edinburgh.

But it has emerged that rather than being dismissed as Holywood fantasy, the 1992 incident was taken seriously enough to be investigated by the Ministry of Defence’s UFO desk.

... and witness Garry Wood at the scene of the incident:

"November 19, 1995, U. K. Sunday Express interview with Garry Wood (above) about his A70 abduction with Colin Wright near Tarbrax, Scotland, southwest of Edinburgh that occurred three years earlier on August 17, 1992."

More at:

http://www.beamsinvestigations.org/A70 abduction with Colin Wright near Tarbrax, Scotland, southwest of Edinburgh that occurred August 17, 1992.htm


This case is arguably the UK's own 'Betty and Barney Hill' - and happened a lot more recently - and yet it rarely ever gets mentioned on this forum

 

[SimonBurchell]

A lot of detail in this BEAMS Investigation of the case that includes witness sketches obtained under hypnosis:

August 17, 1992:
The A70 UFO/Abduction Case of Gary Wood And Colin Wright


Documents that were kept secret for 20 years have shed new light on an amazing story of alien abduction in Scotland.

Garry Wood and Colin Wright claim they were knocked out and examined by extra terrestrials after their van was ambushed by a flying saucer near Edinburgh.

But it has emerged that rather than being dismissed as Holywood fantasy, the 1992 incident was taken seriously enough to be investigated by the Ministry of Defence’s UFO desk.

View attachment 73928
... and witness Garry Wood at the scene of the incident:

View attachment 73929

"November 19, 1995, U. K. Sunday Express interview with Garry Wood (above) about his A70 abduction with Colin Wright near Tarbrax, Scotland, southwest of Edinburgh that occurred three years earlier on August 17, 1992."

More at:

http://www.beamsinvestigations.org/A70 abduction with Colin Wright near Tarbrax, Scotland, southwest of Edinburgh that occurred August 17, 1992.htm


This case is arguably the UK's own 'Betty and Barney Hill' - and happened a lot more recently - and yet it rarely ever gets mentioned on this forum

Those drawings look more than a little bit Spielberg.

 

[Paul_Exeter]

Those drawings look more than a little bit Spielberg.

Doesn't it look rather like ET The Extraterrestrial drawn from memory?

[https://ettheextraterrestrial.fandom.com/wiki/E.T.]

Researcher Malcolm Robinson doesn't even allude this and yet in 1992 the ET movie was still fresh in our minds. Notice too the date of the session in 1994, some two years after the actual incident took place and after the witnesses had, by their own admission, immersed themselves in UFO books and films to try to understand what had happened to them.

These drawings were by Colin Wright and his whole narrative as retrieved under hypnosis are distinctly lacking in detail (what detail there is seems borrowed from UFO-related sci-fi) and he is vague about timings. He actively seeks to put the focus on Garry, even claiming that the aliens had come for Garry and not himself, and his account of the abduction is essentially the same as that of Travis Walton in the recently released 'Fire in the Sky' movie - even down to having an instrument inserted into his eye and finding himself and many other humans in strange pods that freeze over.

Yet Colin's conscious recall of the encounter with the 'thing' above the road that night is consistent in every sense (except his estimated time of departure) and that is why I personally believe something extraordinary happened to them both that night but also that the details recalled under hypnosis are unfortunately a mis-mash of UFO literature and movies.

 

[SimonBurchell]

Doesn't it look rather like ET The Extraterrestrial drawn from memory?

View attachment 73930


[https://ettheextraterrestrial.fandom.com/wiki/E.T.]

Researcher Malcolm Robinson doesn't even allude this and yet in 1992 the ET movie was still fresh in our minds. Notice too the date of the session in 1994, some two years after the actual incident took place and after the witnesses had, by their own admission, immersed themselves in UFO books and films to try to understand what had happened to them.

These drawings were by Colin Wright and his whole narrative as retrieved under hypnosis are distinctly lacking in detail (what detail there is seems borrowed from UFO-related sci-fi) and he is vague about timings. He actively seeks to put the focus on Garry, even claiming that the aliens had come for Garry and not himself, and his account of the abduction is essentially the same as that of Travis Walton in the recently released 'Fire in the Sky' movie - even down to having an instrument inserted into his eye and finding himself and many other humans in strange pods that freeze over.

Yet Colin's conscious recall of the encounter with the 'thing' above the road that night is consistent in every sense (except his estimated time of departure) and that is why I personally believe something extraordinary happened to them both that night but also that the details recalled under hypnosis are unfortunately a mis-mash of UFO literature and movies.

Yes, and the end of Close Encounters of the Third Kind. I think anything "recovered" under hypnosis is worthless - I'm far more interested in what the witnesses directly recall.

 

[Paul_Exeter]

Yes, and the end of Close Encounters of the Third Kind. I think anything "recovered" under hypnosis is worthless - I'm far more interested in what the witnesses directly recall.

This echoes my sentiments, the conscious recall of the object, the shimmering curtain of light, the black void and then finding themselves on the road again is standout case alone. Malcom Robinson defends the use of hypnosis but he was already a fervent believer in alien abductions by gray aliens in metallic crafts from other worlds. Personally, I believe they encountered a type of Plasma or 'time storm' that caused them to enter an altered state of consciousness for a brief moment of time and this alone is worthy of our attention dnd further investigation.

 

[Carse]

... and witness Garry Wood at the scene of the incident:

View attachment 73929

"November 19, 1995, U. K. Sunday Express interview with Garry Wood (above) about his A70 abduction with Colin Wright near Tarbrax, Scotland, southwest of Edinburgh that occurred three years earlier on August 17, 1992."

Using all my powers of deduction and Google Maps skills I managed to find the location of the press photo above in Streetview (it only took about 20 seconds!) -

https://maps.app.goo.gl/TNCotKAA5228DBQV9

And the aerial view here -

https://maps.app.goo.gl/4LH1e8kJjAGHjEDe6

Notably the camera in the 1995 photo is facing towards Edinburgh, the direction from which the two men had come. Assuming Garry took the photographer to the actual spot where it came into view, if you spin the Streeview round you'll be looking towards where the UFO/dark shape was over the road. That's unless he's standing on the exact spot it was hovering over; it's worth clicking round anyway to get a feel for the topography. The moorland is quite open there and I'm surprised the thing apparently wasn't visible against the night sky from a good distance away.

I've driven this section of the A70 many times over the years and this encounter always comes to mind when I get near the reservoir or the junction for Tarbrax. Articles on the abduction often describe it as a 'lonely' road and that's true, although it isn't far from civilisation at all. I have always felt that the whole area around West Calder/Addiewell/Fauldhouse/Shotts/Forth etc has a bit of an odd and creepy atmosphere.

It's perhaps also worth recording the fact that it's only 6.7 miles as the crow flies from the site of the 1979 Bob Taylor UFO encounter/abduction on Dechmont Law, Livingston -

**Edited to correct grammar**

 

[BS3]

This echoes my sentiments, the conscious recall of the object, the shimmering curtain of light, the black void and then finding themselves on the road again is standout case alone. Malcom Robinson defends the use of hypnosis but he was already a fervent believer in alien abductions by gray aliens in metallic crafts from other worlds. Personally, I believe they encountered a type of Plasma or 'time storm' that caused them to enter an altered state of consciousness for a brief moment of time and this alone is worthy of our attention dnd further investigation.

I feel there are a few similarities with the Alan Godfrey incident: an undoubted 'real experience' (whether that was a misperceived bus, a whirlwind or something stranger) overlaid with hypnotic regression that brings out a whole host of submerged images from whatever source (in Godfrey's case including a large dog, a bearded man and deep-pile carpet in the UFO).

I'm wondering whether there was any cultural precursor to the 'shimmering curtain' imagery (there were certainly banks of illuminated fog, as per the Aveley abduction). Did Close Encounters include such an image?

 

[Paul_Exeter]

Using all my powers of deduction and Google Maps skills I managed to find the location of the press photo above in Streetview (it only took about 20 seconds!) -

View attachment 73948
https://maps.app.goo.gl/TNCotKAA5228DBQV9

And the aerial view here -
View attachment 73947
https://maps.app.goo.gl/4LH1e8kJjAGHjEDe6

Notably the camera in the 1995 photo is facing towards Edinburgh, the direction from which the two men had come. Assuming Garry took the photographer to the actual spot where it came into view, if you spin the Streeview round you'll be looking towards where the UFO/dark shape was over the road. That's unless he's standing on the exact spot it was hovering over; it's worth clicking round anyway to get a feel for the topography. The moorland is quite open there and I'm surprised the thing apparently wasn't visible against the night sky from a good distance away.

I've driven this section of the A70 many times over the years and this encounter always comes to mind when I get near the reservoir or the junction for Tarbrax. Articles on the abduction often describe it as a 'lonely' road and that's true, although it isn't far from civilisation at all. I have always felt that the whole area around West Calder/Addiewell/Fauldhouse/Shotts/Forth etc has a bit of an odd and creepy atmosphere.

It's perhaps also worth recording the fact that it's only 6.7 miles as the crow flies from the site of the 1979 Bob Taylor UFO encounter/abduction on Dechmont Law, Livingston -
View attachment 73950

**Edited to correct grammar**

The visibility of the black shimmering craft with no windows, lights, exhaust etc against the night sky has been a red flag for me, too. In this respect, Gary comes out with a lot of detail whereas Colin states he saw it for a brief moment as they approached and rounded the corner at 35-40mph. The shape described is not unlike a cloud and skeptics might argue they ran into an isolated fog bank perhaps generated by the nearby reservoir, but this doesn't explain the black void they experience

 

[Bigphoot2]

I feel there are a few similarities with the Alan Godfrey incident: an undoubted 'real experience' (whether that was a misperceived bus, a whirlwind or something stranger) overlaid with hypnotic regression that brings out a whole host of submerged images from whatever source (in Godfrey's case including a large dog, a bearded man and deep-pile carpet in the UFO).

I'm wondering whether there was any cultural precursor to the 'shimmering curtain' imagery (there were certainly banks of illuminated fog, as per the Aveley abduction). Did Close Encounters include such an image?

The Fifties Ray Harryhausen movie Earth Vs The Flying Saucers had UFOs that had a sort of shimmering curtain effect. It also had scenes of alien abductions and a car being buzzed by a low flying saucer.

 

[Bigphoot2]

Found a pic of the alien from Earth Vs The Flying Saucers

 

[Carse]

Has it ever been explained why they were out so late in the evening? Given the missing time element is a vital part of the case, the timeline is very important. They are said to have set off from Edinburgh around 22:00 and expected to arrive at Tarbrax at about 22:30, though they actually arrived at nearly 01:00 the next morning. My understanding is that they were going to Tarbrax to do something involving a TV set (dropping off a Sky box or something like that?) but I don't recall ever reading a reason why they set off from Edinburgh so late in the first place. Perhaps I'm out of touch with how other people live but I would not be happy if someone turned up at my house to carry out some mundane task at 22:30 when it could easily wait till the next day or perhaps the weekend.

I have also never read an account of their drive home - presumably returning back on the A70 the way they had came - or an interview with the person they were visiting. Is there any of this detail available online?

 

[BS3]

Here's an article from a 2001 BUFORA Journal which suggests another hypothesis based on similarities to another case discussed elsewhere on this board:

 

[BS3]

Note I'm not saying it's a particularly convincing hypothesis. It does mention Jenny Randles' Time Storms though!

 

[Paul_Exeter]

Has it ever been explained why they were out so late in the evening? Given the missing time element is a vital part of the case, the timeline is very important. They are said to have set off from Edinburgh around 22:00 and expected to arrive at Tarbrax at about 22:30, though they actually arrived at nearly 01:00 the next morning. My understanding is that they were going to Tarbrax to do something involving a TV set (dropping off a Sky box or something like that?) but I don't recall ever reading a reason why they set off from Edinburgh so late in the first place. Perhaps I'm out of touch with how other people live but I would not be happy if someone turned up at my house to carry out some mundane task at 22:30 when it could easily wait till the next day or perhaps the weekend.

I have also never read an account of their drive home - presumably returning back on the A70 the way they had came - or an interview with the person they were visiting. Is there any of this detail available online?

Spot on and Malcolm Robinson gives them a free pass on this. I have never met these guys but I suspect the "tv satellite set" may have been a cover story for other activities that night, especially given how little sense it makes (as you rightly point out). Another red flag is that when they got back to Edinburgh in the early hours they didn't go straight home but Colin tells us they went to an area of the city* where people hang out in cars and there is a high crime rate etc. (every city has one) to find a mate of theirs and "get pizza". I find this so suspicious and it is interesting that only Colin mentions this. Why didn't they go straight home to their loved ones? After all Garry was a married father of three. I actually do believe they had an extraordinary experience that night but it should be remembered that they didn't go to the Police or the local newspapers etc and it wasn't for well over a year until Malcolm Robinson was contacted.

Incidentally, and on a completely unrelated note, someone on YouTube flagged up that one of the lay-by areas close to the Harperrig reservoir and woods is, *ahem*, a notorious dogging** site...

* will look this up when I get back later today ut I did check it out and it is essentially a 'red light' area

** for our foreign members: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=dogging

 

[Bigphoot2]

I'm wondering whether there was any cultural precursor to the 'shimmering curtain' imagery (there were certainly banks of illuminated fog, as per the Aveley abduction). Did Close Encounters include such an image?

Yes, it did. Dreyfus' character's first encounter was in misty conditions.

 

[BS3]

Spot on and Malcolm Robinson gives them a free pass on this. I have never met these guys but I suspect the "tv satellite set" may have been a cover story for other activities that night, especially given how little sense it makes (as you rightly point out). Another red flag is that when they got back to Edinburgh in the early hours they didn't go straight home but Colin tells us they went to an area of the city* where people hang out in cars and there is a high crime rate etc. (every city has one) to find a mate of theirs and "get pizza". I find this so suspicious and it is interesting that only Colin mentions this. Why didn't they go straight home to their loved ones? After all Garry was a married father of three. I actually do believe they had an extraordinary experience that night but it should be remembered that they didn't go to the Police or the local newspapers etc and it wasn't for well over a year until Malcolm Robinson was contacted.

Incidentally, and on a completely unrelated note, someone on YouTube flagged up that one of the lay-by areas close to the Harperrig reservoir and woods is, *ahem*, a notorious dogging** site...

* will look this up when I get back later today ut I did check it out and it is essentially a 'red light' area

** for our foreign members: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=dogging

One thing I'd throw into the pot is that I found an account from someone who'd seen one of the A70 witnesses turn up years later at a UFO group meeting - not as a speaker but as part of the audience - and proceed to angrily correct a speaker at length who stated aliens were "benevolent". They were left convinced that the witness completely believed, at least, their experience.

In fairness this doesn't necessarily preclude a hoax, but I'd say that if you were consciously fabricating your story then going to UFO events in your free time and heckling the speakers is a very odd way of going about it.

 

[Carse]

Spot on and Malcolm Robinson gives them a free pass on this. I have never met these guys but I suspect the "tv satellite set" may have been a cover story for other activities that night, especially given how little sense it makes (as you rightly point out). Another red flag is that when they got back to Edinburgh in the early hours they didn't go straight home but Colin tells us they went to an area of the city* where people hang out in cars and there is a high crime rate etc. (every city has one) to find a mate of theirs and "get pizza". I find this so suspicious and it is interesting that only Colin mentions this. Why didn't they go straight home to their loved ones? After all Garry was a married father of three. I actually do believe they had an extraordinary experience that night but it should be remembered that they didn't go to the Police or the local newspapers etc and it wasn't for well over a year until Malcolm Robinson was contacted.

Incidentally, and on a completely unrelated note, someone on YouTube flagged up that one of the lay-by areas close to the Harperrig reservoir and woods is, *ahem*, a notorious dogging** site...

* will look this up when I get back later today ut I did check it out and it is essentially a 'red light' area

** for our foreign members: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=dogging

That's very interesting and certainly provides much food for thought. I had also been wondering if the trip to Tarbrax late on a Monday night was to do with avoiding the police when doing something dodgy (I was thinking drugs...), or if it was in fact a cover for some other activity entirely. Perhaps they were just out cruising and looking for a 'good time'. Do we know much, or anything at all, about the people they were alledged to have been meeting? Their testimony about the two men's late arrival, behaviour and conversation would be very valuable.

The dogging site is presumably the secluded layby named Little Vantage car park which is located about 2 miles northeast, towards Edinburgh, from the spot where Garry was photographed in the newspaper article you posted:

Another aspect that occurred when thinking about this case is that, although the A70 couldn't be described as busy late at night, it is still a main trunk road and even between 10pm and 11pm you could expect a few cars to pass in each direction. The statistics on this website show that an average of around 1500 vehicles per 24 hours were using this section of the road in 2000, which is unfortunately as far back as the data goes. There are houses dotted along the stretch of road in question. As far as I know no one else has ever come forward publicly to say they saw anything in the sky - or on/near the road - that could tie in with the encounter.

The information about the early hours pizza is new to me; Garry and Colin could easily have found a late night takeaway in Leith and much else besides. From the early 1980s Edinburgh City Council and Lothian & Borders Police took a pretty sanguine approach to the sex trade in the city; the council even had an inspection and licensing scheme for brothels and massage parlours. In 1992 the city's red light district was the area around Coburg Street in Leith, although the hoors were subsequently given their marching orders and the street was cleaned up and gentrified in the late 1990s. These days the council is much less relaxed about prostitution and strip clubs, and has tried to eradicate it altogether.

I think I need to buy Malcolm Robinson's book...

 

[catseye]

Looking at those road views, where is the 'blind corner' that they allegedly went around, necessitating them 'having' to drive under the hovering object?

 

[BS3]

Looking at those road views, where is the 'blind corner' that they allegedly went around, necessitating them 'having' to drive under the hovering object?

This is a good point and one I'd wondered about, but next to the Harperrig Reservoir there does seem to be a stretch of the road with two sharper bends on it in quick succession.

 

[Carse]

Looking at those road views, where is the 'blind corner' that they allegedly went around, necessitating them 'having' to drive under the hovering object?

There is a blind corner about three quarters of a mile in the Edinburgh direction from the spot where the photo was taken, however it is only a blind bend because the view of the road ahead is blocked by the two houses on it... The other sharp corner before it is quite open and they should have been able to see an object hovering 20ft above the road well before approaching it, even in darkness.

Of course this assumes that the photo location is the actual location of the sighting/encounter rather than just a bit of the road where a bored press photographer thought "this'll do".

 

[BS3]

There is a blind corner about three quarters of a mile in the Edinburgh direction from the spot where the photo was taken, however it is only a blind bend because the view of the road ahead is blocked by the two houses on it... The other sharp corner before it is quite open and they should have been able to see an object hovering 20ft above the road well before approaching it, even in darkness.

Of course this assumes that the photo location is the actual location of the sighting/encounter rather than just a bit of the road where a bored press photographer thought "this'll do".

Another key point in your post that's worth emphasising: there are several houses and a farm on this stretch of road - not just near the road but right on it. We're in the countryside but it's hardly isolated.

I find myself wondering if there's anything at all connected with the reservoir which could explain some of the things the men thought they saw.

 

[catseye]

This is a good point and one I'd wondered about, but next to the Harperrig Reservoir there does seem to be a stretch of the road with two sharper bends on it in quick succession.

So it could have happened near a large body of water?

 

[BS3]

So it could have happened near a large body of water?

Yes, it pretty much did.