Pladda ( gd, Pladaigh) is an uninhabited island off the south coast of the
Isle of Arran in the
Firth of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde is the mouth of the River Clyde. It is located on the west coast of Scotland and constitutes the deepest coastal waters in the British Isles (it is 164 metres deep at its deepest). The firth is sheltered from the Atlantic ...
at , western Scotland. It is home to the automated
Pladda Lighthouse
Pladda Lighthouse is an active 18th century lighthouse situated at the southern end of the island of Pladda in western Scotland. The lighthouse dates from 1790 and was designed by Thomas Smith. It was the first light on the Clyde to be commissio ...
. The island is privately owned, having been put up for sale by Arran Estate in 1990. As of 2022, the island is again for sale.
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 ce ...
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 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 the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...
''.
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