I spent a night on the world’s deadliest island—here’s what almost killed me before sunrise

Gruinard Island, charmingly nicknamed ‘Anthrax Island,’ might sound like the punchline to a twisted joke, but trust me—it’s anything but funny. This small, oval speck off the coast of Scotland has a past that reads like a horror novel mixed with a dash of wartime espionage. Once a top-secret British biological warfare test site during World War II, Gruinard was left so toxic that it was sealed off for nearly fifty years—talk about an extreme quarantine! Fast forward to 2023, when YouTuber Dara Tah and his mate Matt James, suited up in hazmat gear like some kind of viral explorers, dared to spend a night on this notorious patch of land. Did they find a ghost town or the remnants of a deadly past? And more importantly, did they live to tell the tale without turning into anthrax souvenirs? Buckle up, because this story blends history, science, and a pinch of YouTube bravado into one heck of a wild ride. LEARN MORE

The so-called ‘Anthrax Island’ of Scotland was once visited by a YouTuber and his friend, but what happened after their night’s stay?

Real name Gruinard Island – located close by Ullapool and Gairlock – this oval stretch of land was used by the British government in 1942 for ‘Operation Vegetarian’ bacterial testing three years into the war against Nazi Germany, but the tainted livestock and soil meant it was closed off from the public for almost half a century.

Geared up in full hazmat suits, Dara Tah and Matt James went on to ‘risk their lives’ as they investigated this deadly place in 2023, all for the pleasure of the former’s YouTube subscribers.

Gruinard Island was a breeding ground for anthrax for close to 50 years (Chip HIRES/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

What is the mystery of Gruinard Island?

Uninhabited since the late 1880s, Gruinard was selected to be a key biological warfare test site during World War II, with Porton Down meteorologist Sir Oliver Graham Sutton in charge of a 50-strong group of scientists that designed and released anthrax spore bombs close to specially-placed sheep.

Britain’s initial plan was to disperse linseed cakes spiked with anthrax across Germany’s countryside, hence the need for a sacrificial zone on home turf to do testing.

“Eighty-odd sheep were tethered at various stages downwind of the likely explosion,” University of Leeds professor Edward Spiers would later explain in the 2022 documentary The Mystery of Anthrax Island.

“It isn’t a great bang, a draught of highly potent spores moving down on the wind and causing infection and death wherever it goes.”

The sheep succumbed to the disease within days, but so did the islandscape itself, which forced the Ministry of Supply to announce it ‘too hazardous’ for humans.

Why is Gruinard Island so dangerous?

Anthrax bacteria typically enters the body via a wound, but you can also contract an infection by eating contaminated meat or inhaling spores.

Skin sores, shock, and vomiting are the signs and symptoms, although prompt antibiotic treatment cures most anthrax issues.

Livestock, on the other hand, will be killed by its affects in a matter of days.

Anthrax bacteria is deadly to livestock (Chip HIRES/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Is Gruinard Island still contaminated?

The truth of Gruinard was protected from public scrutiny by the UK government until 1997, following years of ‘Operation Dark Harvest’ commando demands that wanted a military film released for general consumption.

A decade earlier, the soaking of the island in a mixture of seawater and formaldehyde, and the removal and incineration of original soil was the way they went about decontaminating it once and for all, before a flock of sheep was used for confirmation.

Gruinard was deemed safe enough for visitation in 1990 and is no longer contaminated with anthrax.

In 2022, the entire island caught fire, with eye-witnesses calling the scene ‘apocalyptic’ and like a ‘hell fire’ at the time.

A spokesperson on behalf of the estate told The Scotsman: “It hasn’t caused any damage. It has done good. The island was totally impenetrable and the sea eagles killed any wildlife there. In around two months, there will be green shoots. It will certainly have done the island a lot of good. It didn’t go out of control. It looked dramatic.”

What happened when YouTuber Dara Tah visited Gruinard Island?

Fascinated by the island, YouTuber Dara wanted to see whether the killer spores really were gone for good, so in 2023 him and Matt went there to test soil samples over a 24-hour period.

A flock of sheep were using in the testing (Chip HIRES/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Upon entering the waters on a speedboat, the social media star donned a white hazmat suit before plunging in and swimming to the island.

After disinfecting themselves and making camp, the pair went exploring.

“There seems to be absolutely nothing on the island, everything is just burnt. I can’t see a single bit of wildlife. I’m only seeing skulls, there is no living wildlife here,” said Dara.

The pair proceeded to visit different locations to test for any possible traces of anthrax. After digging up 10 soil samples, the lads sent them to a lab for further testing before staying overnight in their tent. The next morning, Dara and Matt took down their ‘safe zone’ and waited in anticipation for the speedboat to pick them back up.

“I was beginning to question whether coming to the island was too reckless,” the social media star confessed. “But thinking about what we’d learned so far it was clear someone needed to get answers and it might as well be me.”

Eventually, the explorers were picked up from the deadly island and transported back to the mainland where they later discovered the results of their soil samples.

“Anthrax Island is Anthrax free,” Dara declared.