42 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK

A look back at how The Sunday Post reported the world through the years. This week: August 31, 1980. A mystery above Dumfries, fans throw a googly at cricket, and grizzly bear still on the loose in the Hebrides

“Experts were baffled by a UFO which hovered over Dumfries for an hour early yesterday,” read The Sunday Post.

“The oblong-shaped cluster of lights, just below cloud level, was seen by dozens of people, including duty policemen. The UFO vanished only seconds before a CID photographer arrived. First sightings were shortly after 1am. Police HQ in Dumfries received numerous calls about the mystery object over Lochside, the town’s biggest council housing estate. Several officers were sent to investigate.

“PC James Smith said: ‘I never believed in UFOs up to now, but there seems no explanation for this.’ He said the lights were stationary 20 minutes before suddenly vanishing over the hills to the west. But, for some reason it was impossible to estimate size or distance. Policewoman Pamela Brown said: ‘I just don’t know what to think.’

“Mary Blythe and her 19-year-old sister, Vicky, said: ‘The lights were red and yellow. At one they were going round and round. Prestwick Air Control was informed. An aircraft was sent to check, but their findings were negative.”

Scotland has long been associated with UFO sightings, with Bonnybridge known as the UFO capital of the country.

I never believed in UFOs...until now: Eyewitness on mysterious lights in the sky