James Naughtie puts Scottishness to the test

Today presenter James Naughtie is putting his Scottishness to the test by letting scientists check his DNA.

The journalist, who grew up in a small village in north east Scotland and went to Aberdeen University, admitted he was worried what the test might reveal.

Speaking on Radio 4's Today programme, he said: "What if I turn out to be Portuguese, or something? My whole life would be in ruins."

The test is part of a project run by historians Alistair Moffat and Jim Wilson from the University of Edinburgh to trace the roots of modern-day Scots.

Mr Moffat told Naughtie the research could be "a dangerous business".

He said: "What you get is a certificate that tells you about your Y chromosome DNA, which you got from your dad and the mitochondrial DNA that you got from your Mum.

"I got a tremendous surprise because it turns out my DNA is not Scottish and I'm actually an Englishman."