The National:

AS well as being treated to four hours of testimony from Dominic Cummings, we in Scotland got another special surprise this week.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge came north to open Balfour Hospital in Kirkwall, Orkney.

The visit was billed as part of a “royal charm offensive” to stop us pesky Scots from trying to manage our own affairs.

Headed by the Queen, the strategy was kicked off when William described the "special place" Scotland has in his heart during an earlier visit to Edinburgh.

Unfortunately, news coverage of the Orkney event left locals feeling far from charmed.

Sky News, sharing a video of the visit on social media, posted: “Prince William and Kate have visited the Orkney Islands – their first official trip to the remote Scottish archipelago.”

READ MORE: The Queen to head royal 'charm offensive' to stop Scottish independence

Amazingly, the people who actually live in those “remote” lands weren’t too chuffed by the description.

“‘Remote’ depends on where you are starting from,” one replied. “Glad you think that those of who are living in the Scottish islands are nowhere near the centre of your concerns.”

Another quipped: “It’s really not that remote. We even have electricity and running water too.”

Others turned the tables on the London media.

“Can only have been written by someone on the banks of the remote River Thames in the wilds of south-east England,” one comment read.

Another social media user wrote: “The Orkneys are only 10 miles off the Scottish mainland. It’s actually London that's remote from Scotland.”

Seems Sky News would be wise to keep its distance from Orkney for the foreseeable.