Calvine Photo Incident — The Witnesses: Kevin Russell and the Identity Mystery
| Incident Name: | The Calvine Photo |
|---|---|
| Incident Date: | August 4, 1990 |
| Location: | Scottish Highlands |
| City/Town : | Calvine |
| Country : | Scottland |
| Shape : | Diamond-shaped |
| Case Files : | Calvine Photo Incident Case Files |
Calvine Photo Incident — The Witnesses: Kevin Russell and the Identity Mystery
[edit | edit source]The Name on the Print
[edit | edit source]The back of the original Calvine print held by Craig Lindsay bears a name written in red chinagraph pencil — the standard marking tool used by newspaper picture editors in 1990. The name written is Kevin Russell. This name appears to have been written by someone at the Daily Record — likely picture editor Andy Allen — presumably as the photographer's identity or copyright attribution.
The name's presence on the print should, in principle, make identifying the witness straightforward. In practice, it has led to one of the most sustained and ultimately inconclusive witness searches in UK UFO research history.
The Daily Record Search
[edit | edit source]Clarke contacted the Scottish Daily Record as part of his investigation. The paper stated that:
- No one named Kevin Russell had ever worked at the Daily Record as a staff or freelance photographer
- The paper had no knowledge as to why the name might be on the rear of the image
This finding is significant in two ways: it confirms the name was not the Daily Record's own photographer, and it leaves open the question of who wrote the name and why. The most likely explanation — that the name was written by the picture editor as the external contributor's name provided by the witnesses when they submitted the film — is consistent with standard newspaper practice. The witnesses submitted the photographs; the paper logged the photographer's name on the back of the print before sending it to the RAF.
The Global Search
[edit | edit source]Clarke's team conducted an intensive search for Kevin Russell:
- Contacted more than 400 people named Kevin Russell worldwide
- Specifically sought individuals who might have worked in a hotel in Pitlochry in summer 1990
- The search was conducted over approximately two years following the 2022 publication of the photograph
Richard Grieve's Account
[edit | edit source]In July 2022, a former colleague named Richard Grieve came forward — initially contacting UFO researcher Philip Mantle, and subsequently speaking with Clarke. Grieve stated:
- The two people who took the photograph were chefs at Fisher's Hotel in Pitlochry — he stated this as a definite fact, saying he knew it because he had worked there at the same time
- Both men were working in the hotel kitchen at the time of the sighting
- A former co-worker of Grieve's provided a photograph of someone he identified as Kevin Russell, who had worked as a kitchen porter at a hotel in Pitlochry in summer 1990
Grieve also told the Daily Mail that the two witnesses were "terrified by what they saw" and that people "wearing black suits came in a black car" after the photographs became known. He said after this visit the witnesses "started showing up at work less and less often and eventually seemed to disappear off the face of the earth."
This account — of official visitors in black suits visiting the witnesses at their workplace — mirrors similar accounts from other high-profile UFO cases and has been taken seriously by Clarke as potentially consistent with an official effort to manage the witnesses.
The 2023 Photo Identification
[edit | edit source]In March 2023, the Daily Record published a photograph of a person identified as Kevin Russell who had worked as a kitchen porter at a hotel in Pitlochry in summer 1990. This photograph was provided by a former co-worker.
The 2024 Denial
[edit | edit source]When this identified individual was finally located and contacted in 2024, the person denied any knowledge of the UFO sighting. Whether this denial reflects genuine non-involvement, a desire for privacy, concerns about official pressure, or post-traumatic avoidance of the subject is not known.
Nick Pope and the February 2025 Guardian
[edit | edit source]In a Guardian investigation published in February 2025, Nick Pope — who had access to the Calvine files at the MoD — acknowledged being aware of the name Kevin Russell in connection with the case. However, he refused to comment on this or any other specific names from the case.
This refusal is itself significant: if Kevin Russell were entirely irrelevant to the case, or if the identified individual had definitively been excluded as a witness, Pope's acknowledgment and refusal to comment would make little sense. The refusal suggests Pope has specific knowledge about the witness identity that he has chosen, or been asked, not to disclose.
