Tom Hanks donates “generous” sum to Rosslyn Chapel

By Rory Reynolds

HE famously cracked one of movie history’s most famous mysteries in its medieval crypt.

But now Hollywood legend Tom Hanks has put up a chunk of his own fortune to help to renovate the 15th-century Rosslyn Chapel.

The star was on set at the Midlothian landmark for the blockbuster hit The Da Vinci Code, where crews filmed for a week in 2005.

In message to the staff at the chapel, which is currently being renovated, Hanks described his time there as “delightful”, adding that it was “all one could imagine or hope for”.

The 53-year-old said: “My fondness for dear Rosslyn Chapel, that dear little place of history.

Da Vinci Code author “twisting history” claims Scots masonic expert

By Alexander Lawrie

A SCOTTISH masonic expert has blasted Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown for “twisting history” in his new book.

The plot of Brown’s new book has been one of the most guarded secrets in publishing history, but is widely expected to use Scotland as his source material.

The Lost Symbol is released on Tuesday and the cover of the US edition features various Scottish masonic symbols.

But author Ashley Cowie, whose own book The Rosslyn Templar sheds new light on the chapel’s many secrets, has slammed Brown for writing “fiction not fact” concerning the world-famous church.

Brown’s new book features the symbol of the 33rd degree of the Scottish rite of Freemasonry, the highest rank within the craft in this country, and is widely expected to condemn the first US President George Washington as a traitor.