Why is Scotland the home of the finest malt whisky? Why is Harris famous for its tweed and Devon for its cream teas? Why is East Anglia flat and Scotland mountainous? Richard Fortey peels away the top layer of Britain's land to reveal the hidden landscape. This work examines the rocks which contain the answers to many questions about the geology of Britain. The reader learns how the rocks not only dictate the personality of the landscape, the soil, the plants and the character of buildings, but how they hold the key to the understanding of man's origins and overall sense of time and place. Richard Fortey is the author of Fossils - A Key to the Past.