Nessie and the Monster-Hunter Extraordinary
Frank Searle ( 18th March 1921 – 26th March 2005 ) was a photographer who studied the disputed existence of the Loch Ness Monster. He took up residence at Loch Ness in 1969 living a frugal existence in a tent looking for definitive proof of the monster's existence. Eventually photographs began to appear from 1972 onwards and earned Frank a degree of fame as a monster hunter.
However, as the detail of the pictures increasingly improved with time, people began to suspect they were fakes. The matter was finally exposed in 1976 when the Scottish Sunday Mail carried a centre page article proving that one of his photographs was taken from a postcard showing a brontosaurus. Another picture was also proven to be a wooden post at a pier which was covered with cloth to make it monster-like.
As his reputation declined, he was involved in some skirmishes with other monster researchers which eventually led to a failed molotov cocktail attack on one of their boats. Searle denied any involvement in the matter and was never charged over it. Eventually he left the loch for good in the early 1980s to allegedly embark on a treasure hunting expedition.
Some years later he was eventually tracked down by Andrew Tullis for his documentary "The Man who Captured Nessie". He had been living in a bedsit in Fleetwood, Lancashire , but had died only a few weeks before.
We met Frank Searle in 1976 and it was obvious then that the photographs of "Nessie" that he had on display were fraudulent , but he was still receiving lots of visitors , particularly young foreign females who he was happy to entertain . I had a certain degree of sympathy for him because he was always under pressure to produce more photographs so it wasn't surprising that he resorted to trickery . I believe that one of his photographs stretched his credibility a bit too far when it was shown to feature "Nessie" and a UFO ! Whether that was true or not , there's little doubt that Frank Searle was quite a character .
Nessie and the Monster-Hunter Extraordinary
Frank Searle ( 18th March 1921 – 26th March 2005 ) was a photographer who studied the disputed existence of the Loch Ness Monster. He took up residence at Loch Ness in 1969 living a frugal existence in a tent looking for definitive proof of the monster's existence. Eventually photographs began to appear from 1972 onwards and earned Frank a degree of fame as a monster hunter.
However, as the detail of the pictures increasingly improved with time, people began to suspect they were fakes. The matter was finally exposed in 1976 when the Scottish Sunday Mail carried a centre page article proving that one of his photographs was taken from a postcard showing a brontosaurus. Another picture was also proven to be a wooden post at a pier which was covered with cloth to make it monster-like.
As his reputation declined, he was involved in some skirmishes with other monster researchers which eventually led to a failed molotov cocktail attack on one of their boats. Searle denied any involvement in the matter and was never charged over it. Eventually he left the loch for good in the early 1980s to allegedly embark on a treasure hunting expedition.
Some years later he was eventually tracked down by Andrew Tullis for his documentary "The Man who Captured Nessie". He had been living in a bedsit in Fleetwood, Lancashire , but had died only a few weeks before.
We met Frank Searle in 1976 and it was obvious then that the photographs of "Nessie" that he had on display were fraudulent , but he was still receiving lots of visitors , particularly young foreign females who he was happy to entertain . I had a certain degree of sympathy for him because he was always under pressure to produce more photographs so it wasn't surprising that he resorted to trickery . I believe that one of his photographs stretched his credibility a bit too far when it was shown to feature "Nessie" and a UFO ! Whether that was true or not , there's little doubt that Frank Searle was quite a character .