Why's it called the Black Isle?' - 80s kids TV icon spots dolphins at Chanonry Point after cycling from Fearn

Why's it called the Black Isle? Timmy Mallet's Highlands tour ties the peninsula's name to a seaside moment as he waits for dolphins at Chanonry Point. The 1980s Wacaday star is cycling through Easter Ross to the Black Isle, sharing the journey after arriving by train at Fearn with his bicycle. A ScotRail conductor named Graeme helped him navigate the platform before he headed toward the Moray Firth coast.

At Chanonry Point, between Rosemarkie and Fortrose, bottlenose dolphins began surfacing offshore, attracting a waiting crowd alongside Mallet himself. He posted a watercolour from the scene and a caption about waiting for dolphins, while his Highland paintings are on sale at mallettspallette.co.uk/shop/scotland, which features depictions of a Highland Coo, a Highland fishing boat, the North Coast 500, Cape Wrath, Dunrobin Castle and Cromarty Bay. Chanonry Point is regarded as one of Scotland's best land-based dolphin-watching spots, especially around the tides.