Report from Chris Smith

Extract from The terrible secret is out . . . the Beast of Keith is on the prowl

by Hilbre White and Stephen McGinty in Sunday Times January 23 rd 2000

FOR years it was spoken of in whispered tones. In the pubs and shops of Keith, the locals would fall silent when visitors entered in case the story leaked out. For in the wooded hillsides of the small Highland town, something sinister was on the prowl.

Despite numerous sightings of large wild cats over the years, the locals have until now kept the news secret for fear that their town might become the Bodmin of the north.

The world's press has regularly descended on Bodmin, in Cornwall, in pursuit of the "beast". But incidents of mysteriously slaughtered sheep and the discovery of large marks in the snow around Keith have gone unreported.

The large cats, variously described as panther or puma types, have been spotted by a range of people including farmers, policemen and even RAF officers. Locals believe that the cats regularly roam across the farming communities of Moray and Banffshire.

At the Gordon Arms Hotel, a few miles outside Keith, the local barman said people were reluctant to talk about it in front of strangers. "People tend to keep it to themselves or try and shrug it off and pretend it's a big domestic cat," he said.

Another local who has remained silent in the past is Tanya Gilbert. The advertising officer was driving near the village of Garmouth when she spotted a cat walking across the road in front of her. "The cat was as large as a cheetah and had a creamy beige colour. It stood and assessed me for a moment before disappearing into the trees.

"It was lean and its coat was rough, almost wolf-like, but it was definitely a cat."

© The Sunday Times, January 23 rd 2000

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