Pennan is a small village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 consisting of a small harbour and a single row of homes, including a hotel. It is located on the north-facing coast and is approximately one hour's drive from Aberdeen

Aberdeen

Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....

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Area history

Pennan seems to have come into existence as a fishing village in the 18th century. Until the 1930s, the population of the village seems to have come under three main surnames - Watt, Gatt and West. The people of Pennan were dependent on the sea. Most families had small boats for their own personal use. Where the men would catch the fish, it was usually down to the women and children to try to sell it to clients in the country. In the last 50 years, most of the native families have moved out and most of the houses have been bought as holiday homes.
Pennan became famous in the 1980s for being used as one of the main locations for the film Local Hero

Local Hero

Local Hero is a 1983 Scottish comedy-drama film starring Peter Riegert and Burt Lancaster. It was directed by Bill Forsyth and produced by David Puttnam....

, and representing the fictional village of Ferness. Film enthusiasts have come from all over the world to make a phone call in the red telephone box

Red telephone box

The red telephone box, a public telephone kiosk designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, is a familiar sight on the streets of the United Kingdom, Malta, Bermuda and Gibraltar, and despite a reduction in their numbers in recent years, red boxes can still be seen in many places and in current or former...

 which featured in the film. The phone box was in fact originally put there only as a prop for the film, and then removed, but as a result of public demand a genuine telephone box was installed a few metres from the original spot (44 3466 210), and has been a listed building since 1989.

Landslips, especially one in 2007, have been damaging the village. In 2009 a 25 foot crack appeared on the cliff side, sparking calls for the village to be evacuated.

This part of Aberdeenshire was inhabited by prehistoric peoples since at least the Bronze Age

Bronze Age

The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...

. One of the most ancient extant monuments is the long barrow

Long barrow

A long barrow is a prehistoric monument dating to the early Neolithic period. They are rectangular or trapezoidal tumuli or earth mounds traditionally interpreted as collective tombs...

 at Longman Hill

Longman Hill

Longman Hill is a prehistoric monument in northern Aberdeenshire, Scotland near Banff Bay. Due to the low lying coastal plain characteristics, the elevation of Longman Hill affords a long distance view as far as the Moray Firth....

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External links

• Pennan Tourism Tourist attractions in Pennan
• Panorama of Pennan Harbour (QuickTime required)
• Parish churches Website for Aberdour and Pennan churches
• The Pennan Inn The famous hotel in Pennan