Things you didn't know about... Banffshire

Thanks to his creator, Captain WE Johns, who wrote more than 15 of the Biggles books while living on the Ballindalloch Castle estate in Banffshire.

Well, almost. Known as "Scotch" or "Smoky" Topaz, the semi-precious stone found in Banffshire's Cairngorm mountains has been used to decorate traditional Scottish weaponry and sporrans throughout history. It's popular in modern jewellery design too.

Glenfiddich whisky is the only Scotch whisky to use a single source of natural spring water—Banffshire's Robbie Dhu springs.

Fraserburgh, 40 miles north of Aberdeen is also one of Europe's largest whitefish ports.

Count Dracula's creator often holidayed in Cruden Bay and cited Banffshire's Slains Castle as the inspiration for the vampire's famous home in Transylvania. In fact, early versions of the novel even have Dracula landing at Cruden Bay after a shipwreck, rather than Whitby in Yorkshire where later versions of the novel say the Count was washed up.

The Banffshire town of Pennan was the location for the fictional town of Furness in the 1983 film Local Hero, and the film's key prop—a red phone box. It was only a prop, but due to popular demand a phone box has since been installed on the site and is now one of Banffshire's most popular tourist attractions.

Cullen Skink—skink being the Gaelic word for "essence"—is a delicious smoked haddock, potato and onion soup named after the Banffshire town of Cullen.

The Banffshire village of Crovie is perched on so narrow a cliffside shelf that driving is literally impossible. Instead, residents leave their cars at the south end of the village and walk to their houses along the very narrow footpath.