Video: It was North Yorkshire's largest quake since 1780, but did the earth move for you?

The earthquake, which measured 3.6 on the Richter scale and struck near the centre of Ripon, was felt up to 100km away in West Yorkshire, Newcastle and Cumbria.

Despite causing tremors strong enough to shake entire houses and send people dashing out into the street, there were no injuries or damage.

The British Geological Society says it was the biggest earthquake to hit the area since a tremor measuring 4.8 on the Richter Scale in Wensleydale on December 9, 1780.

Ripon's cathedral still bears the scars from an even stronger quake in 1450.

Canon Paul Greenwell said: "It is obviously still the talk of the area and we had a very good crowd in the cathedral the morning after with people having come to offer their thanks that not any more serious damage was done.

"I was at home when it happened. I heard a low rumbling noise that sounded like a lorry going past but I have two house rabbits which went absolutely wild.

"It only lasted for about four or five seconds and was nothing like the quake that struck the cathedral back in 1450.

"That one caused tremors that knocked down two 12th century Norman arches and half of the cathedral tower fell down as well.

"You can still see where the repairs were made and it still looks a bit higgledy piggledy to this day."

The epicentre was in a field close to the village of Kirkby Malzeard.

Local butcher Timothy Stothard claims the exact location was right under his business in the village centre and he was celebrating with an Earthquake Special – three brace of oven-ready pheasants for 13.50.

Mr Stothard, who runs Highside Butchers, said: "It was like just a great big engine going past.

"The house shook for about four or five seconds.

"There were quite a few people out in the street after. It's not often this village is the centre of anything, never mind an earthquake."

Mr Stothard added: "Everyone's been talking about it. The place is buzzing." He said nothing in his house was broken although the force was enough to shake up the coal in his bunker.

Several residents have reported fleeing outside when the rumbling started as they believed their homes could be caving in.

Chris Allinson, a 17-year-old student at Giggleswick School, said: "I heard a loud rumbling like the sound of a big tractor passing the house outside.

"Things started shaking and the dogs started barking. It got louder and louder and I jumped up to get outside. Then there was just this rush of sound like a snowdrift falling from a tiled roof, and after that, silence.

"We stood outside and stared at each other."

North Yorkshire Police said they received 14 calls from members of the public following the tremor.

It is the second earthquake to hit the North in the past fortnight after a tremor of magnitude 3.5 struck in Coniston in the Lake District on December 21.

But experts have moved to reassure residents that there is nothing to worry about.

Professor Robert Holdsworth, Head of the Department of Earth Sciences at Durham University, said: "There is nothing particularly unusual about the occurrence of the two small earthquakes in northern England, which happened over the Christmas period.

"The Ripon earthquake was a magnitude 3.6 event and occurred at approximately 11km depth, whilst a magnitude 3.5 event occurred in the Coniston area on December 21.

"By global standards, the UK is not particularly prone to earthquakes, but it does experience between 20-30 events every year that are sufficiently large to be felt by people.

"Very few of these cause significant damage, although they often make a significant and long-lasting impression on people who experience them."

Similar event once a year in the uk

EXPERTS claim that an earthquake the size of the one that shook Ripon hits the UK on average about once a year.

In February 2008, a major tremor centred on Lincolnshire and was felt around much of Britain, causing damage to buildings and leaving at least one person injured.

The tremor – which measured 5.2 on the Richter scale – struck at around 1am on February 27 at Market Rasen, Lincs.

And in Kent in April 2007, another tremor measured 4.3 on the Richter scale.

Homes were damaged as chimneys toppled, walls cracked and masonry fell as the tremor hit Folkestone.