A great, green blob suddenly sprouted in the middle of Stonehaven, sparking fury and fuss akin to the arrival of alien invaders.

But there was no need for Steve McQueen to break out the CO2 fire extinguishers (those of a certain vintage will know what I mean; the rest of you can Google it).

Nope, the amorphous shape that appeared overnight was nothing more sinister than the much-touted – and planning-approved, by the way – cover for the town’s tennis courts.

It’s a nifty way to keep tennis folk – especially the young ‘uns – playing all year round and mibbe even get more people involved in pretending they’re Andy Murray.

So, what was all the fury about? Well, said Blob is by the seafront, smack bang beside the caravan site where some folk woke up to look out their window and discover they had a close-up........

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