The mystery surrounding the creature that inhabits Loch Ness is one that's known around the world, with many making it their life mission to be the first to find irrefutable proof that the Loch Ness Monster exists.
With the first recorded sighting of a monster in Scotland's most famous loch dating all the way back to the sixth century AD and the times of St Columba, there have been hundreds of accounts of encounters with a fantastical beast.
The first recorded modern sighting took place back in May 1933 when a local couple claimed to have seen “an enormous animal" rolling and plunging on the surface of the loch, and many sceptics have done their best to disprove other sightings ever since.
Capturing the imagination of people for generations, here are five of the best sightings of the enigmatic creature in recent times.
1. Amateur photographer David Elder (Aug 2013)
Amateur photographer David Elder believes he snapped the monster in 2013.
The snapper, of East Kilbride, said: “Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a black area of water about 15ft long which developed into a kind of bow wave.
“Water was definitely going over something solid and making a wave."
2. NHS Consultant Dipak Ram (Sep 2018)
33-year-old Dipak spotted the dark shadow in the water near Dores beach and assumed it was a wave, but when he zoomed in on his pic he zoomed in with his camera he found a "stationary object".
He said: "When I zoomed in using my camera phone, it became much more apparent that the stationary object was indeed Nessie's hump or long neck."
"After 30 to 35 seconds, the shadow disappeared downwards into the water. Unfortunately, we didn't film it as we were in shock."
3. Tourist Steve Challice (2020)
Steve Challice, from Southampton, was on holiday in Scotland in September with his brother last year, when they decided to visit Urquhart Castle on the banks of the famous loch.
Steve spotted what he assumed at the time was some sort of fish, he said: "I started taking a couple of shots and then this big fish came to the surface and then went back down again.
"It only appeared in one shot and to be honest that was something of a fluke. I watched for a while as you can see from the last picture but didn't see it again."
He estimated that it was 30 feet away and about 8 feet long.
4. Cruise Loch Ness director Ronald Mackenzie (2020)
Compelling evidence for the existence of something beneath the loch was provided by a sonar image captured by Cruise Loch Ness director Ronald Mackenzie.
Showing a huge white shape - estimated to be 33ft long - 500ft below the surface of the loch, the sonar image was captured by Ronald while he was skippering a catamaran.
Ronald said: “It was right in the middle of the loch at about 170m (558ft) down. It was big – at least 10m (33ft). The contact lasted 10 seconds while we passed over.
“I’ve been on the loch since I was 16 years old and I have never seen anything like it.
“We have real state-of-the-art sonar on the new boat. It doesn’t lie. It captures what’s there."
5. The Things that Happen (1936)
First in a series of monthly film reviews of Scotland from the 1930s, this incredible clip, which has been posted on Youtube by the National Library of Scotland (which you can view here), claims to be the first filmed "first sighting" of the Loch Ness Monster.
The 32-second film is shot in black and white and shows what appears to be a moving shape under the water.
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