'Awestruck' Donegal-born BBC journalist recalls 'Brocken spectre' on Errigal

Donegal-born BBC reporter Kevin Sharkey has told of how he captured a rare ‘Brocken spectre’ after climbing Errigal mountain.

A reporter with BBC Newsline and BBC News, Sharkey, who hails from Annagry and is now based in Belfast, bagged the prized picture earlier in 2023.

Named after the German mountain on which is was first noted, a Brocken spectre is a large shadow of an observer cast onto cloud or mist.

The Met Office says: “When an observer stands on a hill which is partially enveloped in mist and in such a position that their shadow is thrown on to the mist, they may get the illusion that the shadow is a person seen dimly through the mist.

“The illusion is that this person or 'spectre' is gigantic and at a considerable distance away from them.”

Writing on the BBC website about the experience after climbing the 751m peak, Sharkey said: “It felt other worldly as I observed what looked like my own shadow inside this circular rainbow.

“I was awestruck  There were clear views to the front and a Brocken spectre at the back of the mountain. It was nature delivering two very different kinds of beauty, side by side.”