Pladda () is an uninhabited island off the south coast of the

Isle of Arran The Isle of Arran (; ) or simply Arran is an island off the west coast of Scotland. It is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde and the seventh-largest Scottish island, at . Counties of Scotland, Historically part of Buteshire, it is in the ...

in the

Firth of Clyde The Firth of Clyde, is the estuary of the River Clyde, on the west coast of Scotland. The Firth has some of the deepest coastal waters of the British Isles. The Firth is sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre, Kintyre Peninsula. The ...

at , western Scotland. It is home to the automated Pladda Lighthouse. The island is privately owned, having been put up for sale by Arran Estate in 1990. The island was put on sale in 2022 for £350,000, and bought shortly after.

Geography

Pladda is a small, flat, teardrop-shaped island, long and rising to just above sea level. Unusually for such a small island, it has its own source of fresh water. Pladda shares its name with Pladda Island, a tiny islet situated in the Lynn of Lorne between Lismore and Ardmucknish Bay.

Lighthouse

Pladda Lighthouse and its ancillary buildings stand at the southern end of Pladda.

Church

There appears to have been a church or chapel on Pladda.

John of Fordun John of Fordun (before 1360 – c. 1384) was a Scottish chronicler. It is generally stated that he was born at Fordoun, Mearns. It is certain that he was a secular priest, and that he composed his history in the latter part of the 14th ...

and other chroniclers from 1400 to 1500 speak of the isle of St Blase of Pladda. Nothing now remains to mark its site, and its whereabouts are unknown.

In popular culture

Pladda and its lighthouse feature extensively in Peter Hill's 2003 book '' Stargazing: Memoirs of a Young Lighthouse Keeper''. They were also filming locations for "Queen Victoria Syndrome", the first episode of season 5 of ''

The Crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...

''.

References

External links

Northern Lighthouse Board site on the history of Pladda Lighthouse
Islands of the Clyde Uninhabited islands of North Ayrshire Firth of Clyde {{NorthAyrshire-geo-stub