[Harry!]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/

Fans of indie band the Kaiser Chiefs have given a mixed response to the announcement of three gigs in the north of Scotland.

Gigs at Strathpeffer in Ross-shire and Oban in Argyll in May will act as a warm up for a stadium performance at Elland Road stadium in Leeds.

Messages posted on band's official website by fans included questions on how to reach the venues.

One complained that no-one would be able to go.

The warm ups should have been held nearer Leeds - the band's home city - said a posting.

And another said that the town of Dingwall, near Strathpeffer, was called "Dinkle or whatever".

Others totted up the cost and pondered the logistics of travelling to the Highlands.

Followers who live closer to the venues have welcomed the dates and have happily passed on tips on how to get to there.

Royal visitors

Oban's Corran Halls could not be more different from Elland Road, the home ground of Leeds United football club.

Set in picturesque gardens, it has views across the bay to the islands of Kerrera and Mull.

The Strathpeffer Spa Pavilion, meanwhile, has its roots in the village's Victorian past.

Visitors, including royalty and members of high society - dubbed "the Quality" by locals - came to Strathpeffer to drink its water, which was said to have health benefits.

It was officially opened by the Duchess of Sutherland - a favourite of Queen Victoria - in 1881.

Built at a cost of £2,769, it was a focal point for the village and bands played there.

It would go on to host performances and lectures delivered by Irish dramatist and political thinker George Bernard Shaw, Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton and Suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst.

The outbreak of World War I cast a shadow over the former Victorian holiday resort and the pavilion was used as a hospital for US Navy sailors.

Buildings in the village were again requisitioned by the military during World War II.

'Smelly water'

Years later, the pavilion set the stage for gigs by the Bay City Rollers, the Fortunes, Nashville Teens and Brian Poole and the Tremeloes.

However, regular use of the property waned by 1978 and lay almost unused for 25 years before a fund-raising effort led to its restoration.

Kaiser Chiefs - whose hits include Oh My God, I Predict A Riot, Ruby and Everything is Average Nowadays - look set to write another entry in its history.

But Strathpeffer and the hall's past appear to be known to a number of Kaiser Chiefs fans, though one described the village as a place where "posh people" went to drink its "smelly water".

If the water is not to their taste, another fan has helpfully suggested visiting a nearby Belgian shop for a cup of its rich hot chocolate.