Things you didn't know about Caithness

Caithness is home to Britain's most northerly settlement

John O'Groats is largely believed to be Britain's most northerly point. But it's actually another place in Caithness—Dunnet Head, also known as Easter Head—11 miles further north that is officially the UK mainland's northern-most spot.

The Queen Mother often retreated to Caithness

The Castle of Mey—originally called Barrogill Castle but renamed after she bought it in 1952 while grieving for her husband, King George VI—was known as the Queen Mother's favourite property. Frequented by Prince Charles during his school holidays from Scottish boarding school Gordonstoun, it's now open to the public and available in part for holiday lets. Prince Charles visits regularly, having taken on many of the Queen Mother's charitable interests in Caithness.

The Mastermind trophy is made of Caithness glass

Caithness is renowned for its beautiful hand-blown glass, and especially its paperweights. The official Caithness Glass company was granted a royal warrant by the Queen mother in 1968.

Caithness has the world's shortest street

Ebenezer Place in the Caithness town of Wick is just 2 yards and 9 inches long. There is a reference to Ebenezer Place in Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island.

Caithness was home to the UK's most high security POW camp

Camp 165 at Watten, near the Caithness town of Wick, and grimly nicknamed "Little Belsen", has only recently been revealed as the camp that held some of the most notorious Nazi figures from World War II.

Monica Lewinsky once lived in Caithness

The world's most famous White House intern lived for four years at Thurso as a child in the 1970s. Her parents were working at the nearby American naval base.

Caithness is home to the largest blanket bog in Europe

Known as "The Flow Country", Caithness and the neighbouring region of Sutherland have 1,500 sq miles of peatland. It's now a proposed Unesco World Heritage Site.

Caithness is Planet Surf

Thurso, in particular, is famed for its great surf, and has hosted the European Surfing Championships.

Fax you very much, Caithness

Alexander Bain, the Scottish instrument inventor who gave us the electric clock and the fax, was born in the Caithness town of Watten.