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National
Jane Corscadden

Laichtown: Inside Northern Ireland's miniature town outside Coleraine

Close to Northern Ireland's North Coast there is a secret village that one man built over his lifetime.

In episode two of Hidden NI, Sara O'Kane visited Laichtown, a miniature town near Coleraine that was built in the 1980s and early 1990s.

The exact location of the town is closely guarded by the family living there and many people don't know it's there or that it even exists.

Read more: New UTV series to uncover NI's Hidden gems including inside the Albert Clock

John Lynn's grandfather, JK, started building the tiny town after unearthing foundations underground.

John said: "This was a bit of shrub land and my grandfather wanted to dig a pond in the early 80's. When he did that, they had a digger down and they found some old stones.

John Lynn's grandfather built the miniature village (UTV)

"He probably always knew there was something here, but looked up an old map from the early 40s and saw there was a small village here. He rebuilt one of the cottages where it actually stood."

On these old maps, the settlement was called 'Laichtown', which is related to the Ulster Scots for 'low lying.' There were originally 14 terraced cottages in the village, with John's grandfather rebuilding one of them.

The original cottages had been in place in the 1800s and JK was able to rebuild one back exactly as it was back then.

"He always had a connection with history. He grew up on this farm, he was a modern farmer but always looked to the past as well. He was interested in old machinery and horses, and the old ways of doing things," John added.

John Lynn at Laichtown (UTV)

The self-sustained village has stables, a dairy, community hall, church, shop, school, blacksmith, and even it's very own pub.

John said the family like to showcase the work his grandfather did, but the site is so special they wish to keep its location under wraps.

You can watch Hidden NI on UTV on Tuesdays at 8.30pm and catch up online.

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