LEWIS Capaldi has weighed in on the UFO phenomenon known as the "Falkirk Triangle" – after being quizzed by a US podcaster on the subject.
Capaldi joined podcast host Theo Von in New York to talk about his return to touring after taking two years off, give an update on his mental health, and "why so many UFOs are showing up in Scotland".
The local sensation – which includes Bonnybridge and Camelon – first began to gain attention in 1992 with the area laying claim to around 300 sightings a year.
Reported sightings became so prolific that councillor Billy Buchanan lobbied several UK prime ministers over the years, asking that an investigation be launched.
A family out for a walk on a March evening in 1992 spoke of witnessing a basketball-sized blue light hovering on the back road from Hallglen to Bonnybridge and claimed to hear a sound similar to a "door opening" followed by a "howl".
A video of an orange oval light above Falkirk, changing shape to becoming a white disc – the classic "flying saucer" shape – then disappearing suddenly was captured in October 1996. The clip went viral worldwide.
Von was astonished that Capaldi was not aware of the accounts, stating: "The Falkirk Triangle is a region in central Scotland renowned as one of the world's most active UFO hotspots.
"You didn't know that?" Von asked.
Capaldi responded: "I didn't know that. People haven't like ... it's not become a real ... it's not as famous as ...", while looking lost as to what to say.
The Scots star added: "You'd think you'd be able to catch them. If 300 are happening a year in the area, you'd be able to wait out and be like, OK, they're coming at some point, do you know what I mean? That's mad though. I never knew that."
The pair went on to theorise on what was drawing the supposed UFOs to the area, with Von saying: "I wonder if there's something in Scotland that leads to it. Is it the diet?"
Capaldi laughs, before telling the host about the controversial "Glasgow effect" – a term which refers to the lower life expectancy of residents of Glasgow compared to the rest of the UK – art project.
The project, which sparked a row in 2016 when an artist was awarded £15,000 from Creative Scotland to deliberately stay within the confines of the city while monitoring its impact on her art, was at the time described as "a poverty safari", Capaldi states.
While many of the eerie accounts in the Falkirk area– which range from seeing "big, black and cigar-shaped" objects to "a bright light criss-crossed by stripes of different colours" – are thought to be misidentifications caused by planes, satellites, weather balloons or planets, some simply can't be explained.
One theory posited by ufologists is that the Falkirk Triangle could contain a window into another dimension, other worlds, the past or the future.
