A SMALL earthquake has been felt Cumbria tonight.

The tremor, measuring 3.6 on the Richter scale, happened just before 11pm, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

Susan Potter, geophysicist at the US Geological Society, said that in the last 40 years, six earthquakes had been recorded within 50km of the latest quake.

Of those two have been of a magnitude of 3.7 - in 1988 and 2009.

This general region has had earthquakes of the same magnitude in the past, Ms Potter said.

Data from the British Geological Survey showed the location of the quake as Coniston, Cumbria, with a depth of 8.9 miles.

Peter Kelly, owner of the Yewdale Hotel in Coniston, said: "We felt the earthquake. It probably lasted about 30 seconds. It was quite noticeable.

"We were just closing up the bar with a few residents in and we just felt like a bang and then a rumbling but we couldn't decide what it was.

"There's no damage but there was a heavy rumbling."

Alan Piper, the landlord of The Sun hotel and pub in Coniston, said: "We felt something move but we didn't know what it was.

"I'd just got back from the pub and we thought it was snow falling off the roof."