Was it the royal baby wot won it?

Some Yes voters have turned to conspiracy theories to help explain why they lost. Here are some outlandish explanations.

The Royal Baby: Prince George’s brother or sister, not due until April, is the baby that saved the Union. Theorists say the Royal Family announced Kate’s pregnancy to encourage pro-Union sentiment. But with Kate suffering morning sickness, could aides have kept it quiet?

McSpy: A YouGov poll last week discovered one in four Scots believed MI5 were working to stop a Yes vote. The story was even backed by former SNP deputy leader Jim Sillars. He reportedly told interviewers he knew of a spy who had arrived in Glasgow for shadowy operations to sway the vote.

The pen is mightier than the pencil: Some paranoid voters believed by using the designated pencils at polling stations they risked having their cross “nobbled” or rubbed out. The Electoral Commission told them they could bring their own pens.

British Biased Corporation: Some Yes voters claim the BBC were against a Yes vote. The proof? Technical difficulties experienced by Nicola Sturgeon on Newsnight, questionable editing and university research that claimed of “evidence of bias”.

Oil’s Well: Has a secret oilfield been discovered off the coast of Shetland worth billions? Some Nats think the discovery was hushed up for fear of giving Yes a massive boost.

Russian around: Can a room be too big to count votes in? Russian voting observers, in the capital for the count, said the conduct of the referendum “did not meet international standards”. The reason? The Royal Highland Centre was too big! An official said: “It was difficult to see what was going on. The hangar is 100m by 300m. There are tables, with voting papers stacked on them, but the observers are stuck around the perimeter. Even if you want to, it’s impossible to tell what’s happening. It’s also unclear where the boxes with ballot papers come from.”