Loch Ness Monster Videos

Initially tales of strange sights and stories of monsters in Loch Ness were passed on by word of mouth. Later photographic evidence and Loch Ness Monster videos lent considerable weight to the words of those who said they had seen the monster.

Dick Raynor, LNIB team investigating Nessie, 1971

Dick Raynor, a member of the LNIB team, in 1971. In 1967 he had recorded film footage of what might have been Nessie's wake.

Actually seeing a photograph or a still from a Loch Ness Monster video, even one of perhaps poor quality and showing only blurred or indistinct outlines of a somewhat vague shape, made the many claims of Loch Ness Monster sightings much more credible. Despite the fact that some photos were eventually proved not to have been of the real Loch Ness Monster, the images which were published were of course indelibly imprinted in the public's mind. Some pictures and the stills from Loch Ness Monster videos have become world famous and are instantly recognised around the globe as the Loch Ness Monster.

Then, as photographic technology advanced, it was only to be expected that soon images of Nessie would also be caught on moving film, and later on video.

In December 1933 three men from the company Scottish Film Productions set out to film the Loch Ness Monster. Their film, which lasts less than a minute, was taken near Inverfarigaig and shows two humps travelling through the water at a speed of 4 metres/second and leaving a foamy wake. Unfortunately it is not known where this film is now,which would have made for a very interesting Loch Ness Monster video. The surge of interest in the Loch Ness Monster during the 1930s, itself prompted by an increased number of sightings of the Loch Ness Monster and by newspaper articles, led to a great number of cine films being taken of the loch at that time. It is unfortunate that many of these films have been lost in the intervening years or are not available for viewing for a number of reasons. Often no conclusive explanation of what had been filmed could be given at the time, and it would be scientifically interesting to re-examine the footage now.

Tim Dinsdale, Loch Ness Monster researcher, on location in the 1960s.

The first colour film footage of the monster was taken in 1938 by G E Taylor, using 16mm film. A dark-coloured body with a tapering neck was filmed twice on the same day and appeared to have moved in the time between the shots being taken. The film was shown to experts at the National Institute for Oceanography who eventually concluded that it showed only an inanimate object floating on the water.

In 1960 Tim Dinsdale, an aeronautics engineer and dedicated Loch Ness Monster researcher, filmed footage of an object, larger than any already known to live in Loch Ness, travelling across the loch, changing direction and leaving a powerful wake. This piece of film footage remains some of the most convincing evidence that the Loch Ness Monster is real.

In 1967 on 13th June, a member of the Loch Ness Investigation Bureau (LNIB), Dick Raynor, succeeded in filming an object in the loch, this time creating a clear wash and a wake. The object's speed was estimated to be about 2.2 metres/second. Many experts agreed that this piece of film was indeed genuine and proof of a large animal living in Loch Ness. Other members of the LNIB (which was originally set up in 1962), also took film footage of unknown objects moving in Loch Ness. Most of these films show dark shapes, humps or wakes. (For more about what sort of creature the Loch Ness Monster may be, please see the facts page.)

Another significant piece of film footage was taken in 1997 by Peter and Gwen Smith whose video of the Loch Ness Monster showed what looked like a neck rising out of the water about 160 metres out from the shore opposite Urquhart Castle. The neck, and possible head, rose and submerged several times during the afternoon of 22 August. Two boys out fishing corroborated what the Smiths had seen and insisted that the object was animate and unlike anything they had seen in the loch before. The truth behind this Loch Ness Monster video remains unknown.

In 1983 John Erik Beckford, an American, set up two video cameras with zoom lenses and polaroid filters overlooking Urquhart Bay in the hope of producing a credible video of the Loch Ness Monster. One of the cameras filmed something about 200 metres from the shore. It appeared to be two or more dark objects heading towards Urquhart Castle, one of which created a splash more than 21 metres long and is believed to be a reliable video of the Loch Ness Monster.

A still, possibly of the Loch Ness Monster from Tim Dinsdale's film taken in 1960.

In 1992 an anonymous tourist produced a video of the Loch Ness Monster showing what appeared to be a creature swimming and rolling in the water in Urquhart Bay. The film footage was broadcast by the BBC news but experts were undecided about what exactly had caused the commotion and were unable to comment further on the film. Enthusiasts however believe this to be a bona fide Loch Ness Monster video.

Another Loch Ness Monster video taken in May 2007 by Gordon Holmes, a lab technician from Yorkshire, was also broadcast by BBC Scotland and by STV's North Tonight programme. The film shows what Holmes himself described as a "jet black thing, about 45 feet long, moving fairly fast in the water". Unfortunately there is no other object in the footage which could give viewers a sense of the scale of the "thing", but there is no reason to believe this is not a genuine video of the Loch Ness Monster.

Technology continues to progress rapidly and today the internet contains many video clips supposedly showing the Monster of Loch Ness. They provide entertainment and are certainly worth looking at, although some would appear to be rather more plausible than others.

We welcome you to the Nessieland Castle Monster Centre on your visit to the Highlands of Scotland.

We BELIEVE in the monster.

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