An aerial photo taken during the recent flooding shows a hidden haven in the heart of the Broads that is the rumoured site of a secret Second World War airfield.

Heigham Holmes nature reserve, near Martham, is accessible only by a floating bridge and open only one day a year.

But the photo, taken by Mike Page during the flooding that followed Storm Ciaran, reveals the remote marshland island from a rare and breathtaking birds-eye view. 

Great Yarmouth Mercury: Heigham Holmes is 500 acres of grazing marshland, managed by the National Trust, in the Norfolk Broads. Heigham Holmes is 500 acres of grazing marshland, managed by the National Trust, in the Norfolk Broads. (Image: Nick Butcher)

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Heigham Holmes is managed by the National Trust and surrounded by river channels, drainage ditches and wetland.

It consists of 500 acres of grazing marshes on the River Thurne and is home to wildlife including wading birds such as the redshank and the lapwing, as well as the common crane, swallowtail butterfly and the Norfolk hawker dragonfly.

During winter, it provides a sanctuary for thousands of wintering wildfowl such as pink footed geese from Iceland and white fronted geese from Siberia.

Perhaps it is Heigham Holmes' isolation - but the reserve has also been the subject of persistent rumours that it was once a secret RAF base.

According to local lore, the island was used by the Special Operations Executive as a clandestine airfield between 1940 and 1944, flying Lysander aircraft and ferrying agents to occupied Europe.

Great Yarmouth Mercury: Cattle grazing on Heigham Holmes, a secluded grazing area near Martham in the Norfolk Broads. Cattle grazing on Heigham Holmes, a secluded grazing area near Martham in the Norfolk Broads. (Image: Nick Butcher)

Two men who farmed in Martham at the time said the airplanes always arrived at night to pick up agents who had been transported to Heigham Holmes by car.

Some claimed the agents stayed in a hotel in Great Yarmouth, while others insisted they spent the night in the local pub at Martham. 

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The story goes that after the war, the landing strip was demolished and all evidence was destroyed.

In 2010, the BBC included Heigham Holmes as one of the locations featured in their 'Secret Britain' programme.

Despite the rumours, no clear evidence of an airfield has been found in any records, maps or on aerial photographs.