The Rampant Scotland Newsletter - your weekly insight into what has been happening in Scotland, snipped from the Scottish media, for Scots in Scotland and abroad, bringing you news, events plus a Scottish magazine section. Printed with 100% recycled electrons.Previous editions of this Newsletter are available in the Archive> and the Index to the other pages of the Rampant Scotland site is available here>.
The Scottish Snippets Newsletter in its original format began in April 1997 and continued in an unbroken series for 591 issues. Although no longer produced in that format there is now a regular update on the new and updated pages on the Rampant Scotland site and also "Scottie's Diary" on an intermittent basis, To receive this, kust send an e-mail to Scottie with "Subscribe Newsletter" in the subject line.
Current Affairs
Historical Affairs - Topical Items from Scotland's Past
Entertainment
Scots Abroad
Sport
Magazine Section
Where else would you like to go in Scotland?
Years of Delay If Forth Bridge Cable Replaced
Engineers have reported that the corroded cables supporting the Forth Road Bridge "could" be replaced, but to do so would cause major disruption to the road network in the east of Scotland. Only 90 of the 23,236 five millimetre thick steel strands have snapped but an unspecified number of "others" are showing signs of corrosion. 24 strands were found to be broken when the protective seals were removed for the first-ever inspection in 2004, when the bridge was 40 years old. It has been stressed that the bridge is absolutely safe, despite carrying 5,000 tonnes, when the design load was only 2,800 tonnes. There are a number of replacement options, all involving many years of complete closure at weekends and contra-flows with one lane only in each direction for a total of over 50 weeks. The bridge is currently reduced to one lane at weekends for resurfacing and that has produced delays of 60/90 minutes with 30% less traffic than usual. Traffic on the bridge should start to flow more freely for a while once vehicles no longer have to stop at the tollbooths later this year when charges are being removed. But making the crossing free will also increase the traffic levels.
Audit Scotland to Review Edinburgh Tram Project
Before the election for the Scottish Parliament last month, the Scottish National Party had pledged to scrap the planned project to build a tramway system in Edinburgh and to replace the railway terminal at Edinburgh airport with a cheaper alternative. They argued that the two projects do not represent "value for money" and indeed they can point to the citizens of Edinburgh who voted in national and local elections against the previous Labour administration in part because they too are concerned about the potential for costs escalating (as they tend to do in government-funded projects). But the political parties who approved the schemes in the last parliament, want them to continue - and as the current Scottish Executive does not have an overall majority in Parliament, the opposition may be able to still force it through. So the Scottish Executive has asked the government spending watchdog Audit Scotland to "review the process used to assess costs and risks to delivery" and to report by 20 June. The organisation will not have time to examine the actual costs, just the way they were formulated.
Rise in Legal Age for Tobacco Sales
The Public Health Minister Shona Robison has announced that the legal age at which cigarettes can be bought in Scotland is to be increased from 16 to 18 in October this year. There will also be a wide package of measures to ensure stricter enforcement of the age limits by shopkeepers and greater assistance for those wanting to give up smoking. There is evidence that the number of young people smoking has reduced, helped by the ban on smoking in public buildings which was implemented over a year ago.
Reprieve for Accident and Emergency Services
The new Scottish Executive has reversed the decision made by their predecessors to close the Accident and Emergency (A&E) services at Ayr and Monklands hospitals. Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing Nicola Sturgeon told MSPs that she had instructed the Health Boards to produce revised proposals by the end of the year which will enable A&E services to continue at all three sites in Lanarkshire and both sites in Ayrshire. She said that in her view the two Boards did not give sufficient weight to the concerns expressed by local people about the planned withdrawal of A&E services. She went on to say: "Many of these concerns were not based on an emotional attachment to bricks and mortar - as some people have alleged - but on a critical analysis of the needs of local communities now and in the future.... We must never forget that the NHS is a public service used by the public and paid for by the public." In future, an independent scrutiny panel will review Health Board proposals. The panels will have access to expert clinical and financial advice in order to fully evaluate any proposals.
Antonine Centre Opens in Cumbernauld
The original shopping facilities in Cumbernauld have been a major contributory factor in the North Lanarkshire town being voted top place in the "Most Dismal Town in Scotland." The mall building also won a public nomination to be bulldozed in the Channel 4 series "Demolition" and was voted" The Worst Building in Britain." Now a new centre, named after the Roman Antonine Wall, the remains of which pass close by, opened its doors this week. The Antonine Centre has a modern design with a glass roof - perhaps not the most exciting of buildings, but anything would have been a big improvement on the original centre. It houses 42 stores and also displays the clock which once stood in Glasgow's St Enoch Square. That became famous as the meeting place for John Gordon Sinclair and Clare Grogan in the Cumbernauld-set film "Gregory's Girl." The old, unloved, shopping mall is still open and there is a corridor linking the two buildings. There are currently no plans to demolish it.
Litter Police Patrol Glasgow Streets
A force of 30 uniformed enforcement officers are now patrolling the streets of Glasgow to crack down on litter louts by imposing £50 on-the-spot fines. With body armour under their smart tunics (just in case...), they issued 120 fines in the first week - and the publicity got many others to think twice before dropping litter. Many of those accosted were embarrassed to find that they had been picked up for such anti-social behaviour. Those who refuse to pay up could end up in court. The enforcement officers are also fighting back on graffiti and "fly posting" by painting out illegal adverts, claiming they can do that faster than the posters can put them up. Where events are being advertised, the officers have their own "posters" with "cancelled", making it less worthwhile for advertisers to put them up in the first place. There have been complaints by some people who have bought tickets for an event and been alarmed by the "cancellation", but the City Council says that it is "only the advert that has been cancelled." Quite.
Royal Bank Network Fails
For my sins, I used to be responsible for the ATM network in the bank for which I worked. I always knew when the machine in Inverness was down at the weekend - the bank's chief executive lived there and would phone me on Monday morning if he couldn't get his cash from the one and only machine there. So I felt sorry for the IT manager responsible for the Royal Bank's ATM and on-line and telephone banking network last weekend. The entire system across the UK had crashed, leaving customers with no way of getting cash or accessing their on-line bank accounts. The failure occurred on Friday evening and it took to the end of Saturday to fix the ATM network. Engineers were still working to bring the on-line and telephone banking services back up late on Saturday night. Surprisingly, some customers were able to get cash from the machines at other banks, but apparently that was not always the case.
University of Strathclyde Genealogy Course
In just two weeks time, the first intake of students at the University of Strathclyde's Postgraduate Certificate in Genealogical Studies will finish their formal lectures for this year's course. The university is already looking for applicants for the next run, which will commence in January 2008. The course, the only one offered at this level at a British university, is very much geared towards those seeking a career as a professional genealogist, or in other fields where such information may be of vital use. Upon its completion, successful candidates can progress further, if they wish, to study a Postgraduate Diploma in the field, and then on to a Masters. Unlike this year's course, which was solely based in Glasgow, the next certificate will be offered both at the university campus and as a distance learning course for students from all over the world. Covering British genealogy, with a strong leaning towards the records and techniques necessary for working within the industry in Scotland, the course covers Genealogy and Heraldry, Family and Social History, Records & Archives, Law and Language, and Methodologies and Practice. For more information, prospective students can visit University of Strathclyde.
24-Hour Bus Link from Airport to City
Air travellers will now be able to jump on a round the clock bus service between Glasgow Airport and the city centre, regardless of the time their plane lands. The "GlasgowFlyer" service will be operated by a fleet of high specification coaches with fares priced at just under £4, with a return fare costing under £6. Regular fliers can buy a 10-journey ticket for just £28. There will be eight buses every hour during peak times.
Glasgow's New Flexible Friend
A new type of bus has been on display in Glasgow's George Square recently. Described as a "flexi-bus" it is so named because its conventional layout can be easily altered so that it can act as a school bus and then be quickly adapted in less than 20 minutes to running normal services or accommodating wheelchairs to take patients to hospital. The low-slung, 60-seater single deck vehicles are made by the Falkirk company Alexander Dennis and the internal seating layout can be varied for different requirements. Each bus costs £120,000, but utilising such assets for more hours in the day could be cost-effective.
£100 Million Shopping Centre Upgrade
The first major upgrade of the St Enoch Centre in Glasgow since it opened 18 years ago, began this week. The £100 million project will transform the shopping and leisure centre and expand it by over 250,000 square feet to over a million square feet of retail space, with an additional 40 new shops. The adjacent St Enoch Square will be enhanced with a new plaza and pavement cafes, plus a giant multimedia screen for broadcasting sports and music events. The St Enoch Centre was the first of the major retail developments in Glasgow and it was built on the site of a former railway station.
Transformation Plan for Ayrshire Town
Plans have been announced to create a new £30 million Ailsa Craig Centre to transform the South Ayrshire coastal town of Girvan, opposite the famous rock in the Firth of Clyde. There is no doubt that Girvan has seen better days - most tourists drive through as quickly as possible (not easy, with the main road clogged with traffic). An iconic building is being proposed, with a curved roof "to form an extension of the coastal landscape" near the town's harbour. Built in partnership with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, it would mirror the successful Scottish Seabird Centre at North Berwick, which has the Bass Rock off its coast. As at the centre on the east of the country, the Ailsa Craig Centre would have video cameras beaming back pictures of birds on the island. Of course, as with all such expensive projects, progress will be dependent on obtaining financial support from the Heritage Lottery Fund. Already there are optimistic estimates of the new tourist attraction having 500,000 visitors a year. If so, the roads to Girvan (already overloaded with traffic going to the ferry terminal at Starnraer) had better be upgraded too!
A Strike Everyone Will Welcome?
The parking wardens in Edinburgh have voted to go on strike on 20 June, claiming that their colleagues in Glasgow are paid 50% more than they are. Edinburgh parking attendants, who are privately employed by contractors, earn £6.26 an hour, while those in Glasgow (employed directly by the city council) receive £9.19 an hour. While many motorists might welcome a day with no parking charges, it may lead to traffic chaos, if too many additional car drivers take advantage of the parking "holiday".
Hill Falls Short
Peaks in Scotland that are over 3,000 feet above sea level are classified as "Munros" - after Sir Hugh Munro (1856-1919), who produced the first attempt at an exhaustive catalogue of such hills and mountains. From time to time, the list has been updated as a result of more accurate measurements. The last revision, published in 1997, listed 284 Munro peaks. They are all in the Scottish Highlands, north of the Highland Boundary Fault Line. Mountaineers and hill walkers in the UK and from around the world, become enthusiastic "Munro Baggers", attempting to climb them all. Recently, there had been speculation that Foinaven in Sutherland might meet the requirements - a number of amateur surveyors claimed that it was above the required level. But this week surveyors commissioned by the Munro Society, using new satellite technology, checked the mountain - and found it was 12 feet short of 3,000 feet. Even though it's not a Munro, but a "Corbett" (between 2,500 and 2,999 feet), it's still great mountain to climb (or so I'm told).
Picture via Wikipedia.
"Flying Scotsman" Train a Year Late
A shortage of specialist copper has delayed a major overhaul of the "Flying Scotsman" steam train. The £750,000 overhaul was expected to be completed by the end of this year. Now the locomotive will not be ready for special trips on railway lines around Britain until January 2009. The Flying Scotsman entered service in 1862 on the east coast route between London and Edinburgh and was the first steam engine to reach 100mph. The 390 mile journey between the two capitals took over 10 hours (though that included a 30 minute stop at York). It completed the first non-stop journey between London and Edinburgh in 1928.
Takeover of Scottish Garden Centre Chain
Supermarket giant Tesco stunned analysts and shoppers alike when it announced this week that it had made an offer of £156 million for the Scottish-based Dobbies Garden Centre chain. The company was originally founded in 1865 in Renfrew by James Dobbie, an award-winning gardener. The company relocated to Lasswade, south of Edinburgh, in 1934 and still has its HQ there. After a management buy-out in 1994, the company expanded rapidly and now operates 21 stores across the UK, many of them large-scale operations. The Dobbies board has recommended acceptance of the bid. Tesco say that they will retain the Dobbies name and management and will invest in the company, particularly expanding on affordable energy saving and environmental products. The takeover is also aimed at improving the supermarket's "green" image - something that all supermarkets are trying to do these days.
Loch Ness Monster Captured on Video?
A lab technician from Yorkshire has claimed that he has shot a video of a black object, about 45 feet long, swimming at about 6mph in a straight line across Loch Ness. Described by a marine biologist and "Nessie" watcher as "some of the best footage ever seen", the video is to undergo analysis in the coming months. There have been over 4,000 purported incidents in which the Loch Ness monster has been sighted - mainly since an object was caught on camera in the 1930s. While the experts may consider this latest video to be the "best yet," I must say that the version on display at YouTube is most unconvincing! Loch Ness is being proposed as a "World Heritage" site by a group of local businessmen. But the case is being based on its natural beauty, not Nessie.
Weather in Scotland This Week
There was very much an east/west split in the weather with the east of Scotland experiencing mist and thick cloud on most days as a "cloudy high" blew moisture in from the North Sea. Aberdeen, for example, saw hardly any sun all week while Stornoway in the Western Isles had at least some sunshine every day in the week and sometimes all day. Edinburgh had cloud and some drizzle and didn't brighten up with some sunshine until Saturday. Glasgow was on the edge of the cloud rolling in from the east and on a number of days started out overcast and cloudy but sunshine then broke through later in the day. Aberdeen's cloud and mist kept the temperatures down to around 13/15C (55/59F) although the thermometer reached 18C (64F) on Saturday. The sun breaking through in the afternoons meant that Glasgow enjoyed 20/21C (68/70F) on Wednesday to Friday and a sultry 23C (73F) on Saturday.
This Week's Colour Supplement
This week's large format photographs taken in Scotland to show the current season and its flora and fauna include Great Crested Grebe (see thumbnail here), another Grebe with a fish and a young Grebe; yellow wild iris; female "Variable" damselfly and a male "Common Blue"; Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus), sometimes known in Scotland as "Stinking Billy". See This Week's Colour Supplement
Church With 6th Century Links to Close
There was an outcry this week when the Church of Scotland announced that it was to close Govan Old Parish Church and move the congregation to Govan New Parish Church. The original building was opened in 1888, but it stands on a religious site that traces its history back to the 6th century. A former minister of the church described the move as "unprincipled, illogical, indefensible and unforgivable." The Reverend Tom Davidson Kelly said that Govan Old Parish Church was "possibly the most significant church in Glasgow, including the Cathedral." He added that the site had been a centre of worship long before the formation of Scotland as a nation. The building houses 31 pre-Christian and Christian sculptures, which were found at various times in the grounds of the church. Some of the Celtic monuments had been adapted by later generations as gravestones for Christian burials. A campaign to save the church has been launched and deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has pledged support, describing the decision as an "act of vandalism." Of course, if the church can no longer afford to pay for the upkeep of the building, it may be possible for it to be taken over by a preservation body such as the government agency, Historic Scotland.
Efforts to Buy Dumfries House Fail
Last minute efforts were made to save historic Dumfries House and its contents from being sold to a private owner. The owner, the Marquis of Bute, was at one time a Formula One racing driver under the name Johnny Dumfries. He announced his intention to sell Dumfries House three years ago, so there has been plenty of time for conservation efforts to produce results. He said that he needed to restructure his family's finances and concentrate on Mount Stuart, his family home on the Isle of Bute in the Firth of Clyde. Dumfries House was built in 1759 in Cumnock and has a valuable collection of original furnishings, including one of the world's leading accumulations of Thomas Chippendale furniture. The National Trust for Scotland failed to reach agreement to acquire the property and a campaign was started to raise funds to buy the property and contents, estimated to be worth as much as £20 million. In total, the campaign managed to raise £7 million from various sources, but that was far short of what was required. The house and contents will now be auctioned on July 12/13.
Bronze Age Cemetery Found on Barra
Researchers on the TV Channel 4 archaeology programme "Time Team" have uncovered a Bronze Age cemetery on the island of Barra in the Western Isles. Over 50 archaeologists and a television crew undertook a three-day dig at the Allasdale sand dunes and uncovered 4000-year-old burial kists (small stone boxes used as coffins), some containing perfectly preserved skeletons. They also discovered the foundations of a stone wheel house (so named as its internal walls resemble the spokes of a wheel) and two Iron Age round houses, as well as whale, seal and sheep bones. The site was initially highlighted after storms in 2005 had moved sand dunes, exposing some relics. Post-excavation tests in the next few months are expected to reveal all kinds of details about life and death on Barra as far back as 2000BC.
Photograph courtesy of the Photonet> © Web site.
Aberdeen's Maritime History
The fine clippers and elegant steamships of 19th century Aberdeen are the focus of a new exhibition at Aberdeen’s Maritime Museum which runs until 26 August. On display are exhibits from the museum’s collection of items relating to George Thompson Junior, whose Aberdeen White Star Line ships built a worldwide reputation for speed and comfort. The shipping line was first established in 1825 and expanded to sail to Canada, the Baltic, the Mediterranean and South America. In the 1840s White Star's fast sailing vessels made regular sailings to Australia. The exhibition also marks the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Thermopylae, one of the most famous ships ever built in Aberdeen and a great rival of the Cutty Sark. She gained a reputation for speed, breaking records on her maiden voyage to Melbourne - 63 days, still the fastest trip under sail. It remains unclear whether she or the Cutty Sark was faster.
Next Week in Scottish History
Bigger and Better
Every year when the programme for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival is announced, the organisers always manage to produce an event that is bigger and better than the last. And this year is no exception. The world-famous festival starts this year on 5 August and in the following three weeks there will be 2,050 shows involving music, theatre, comedy - and a few presentations that will defy classification. The programme launch highlighted a one-off show at Edinburgh Castle by comedian Ricky Gervais and there are two musical productions focusing on outgoing Prime Minister Tony Blair (which will no doubt be uncomplimentary). See www.edfringe.com.
The Inaccessible Pinnacle
A Gaelic language film made on the Isle of Sky, which was recently screened at the Cannes Film Festival, has secured UK distribution and so should be seen by a wider audience. Entitled "Seachd: The Inaccessible Pinnacle" it is the first-ever Scottish Gaelic feature film. It tells the story of a young man who visits his Grandfather in hospital. Angus wants to find out the truth about the death of his parents and the truth behind his Grandfather's ancient, incredible, fearful stories. Stories from the whole swathe of Gaelic history of poisoned lovers, bloody revenge, water-horses and Spanish gold. His Grandfather hijacks Angus' life for one last time, leading him to one of Scotland's most treacherous mountains, The Inaccessible Pinnacle, and an ancient truth he never expected to find... See also www.seachd.com.
Monster Rock Ness Festival
The second Rock Ness Festival at Dores on the east side of Loch Ness is expected to attract 35,000 people this weekend. Certainly, the main A9 road to the north from the central belt was busier than usual on Friday, with quite a number of motorbikes with riders sporting "Manic Street Preacher" leather jackets! This summer the dance music festival is being staged over Saturday and Sunday. The line-up includes disk jockey Mark Ronson, singer Kelis, The Feeling, Manic Street Preachers and the Chemical Brothers.
Bandstand Replacement Delayed
A £14 million plan to replace the aging Ross Bandstand in Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh with a modern 10,000-capacity concert arena is likely to be delayed by several years. It seems that Edinburgh City Council "shot themselves in the foot" in 1991 when they drew up a law that banned development in the gardens and other green spaces in the city. That legislation would need to be amended, and could be too contentious to push through as it might open up unwanted developments in other open spaces in the city. Last year, the council trumpeted computer-generated images of what the Ross Theatre project might look like and an international design contest was launched - and now has had to be abandoned.
Scottish Culture Around the World
The main focus of the Scottish Snippets is news items, usually about Scotland but occasionally items from overseas are covered. The new "Scots Abroad" section, invites folk to write in about Scottish-related events in their part of the world. It allows publicity for them and an appreciation by others of just how much Scottish culture is perpetuated in every corner of the globe.
30th Jakarta Highland Gathering
The largest HIghland Gathering in SE Asia, at Jakarta in Indonesia last Sunday, attracted 7000 spectators and 17 pipe bands from Australia, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Singapore. In addition to the usual events such as caber tossing, hammer throwing and piping competitions, there were also more "local" attractions such as Maori war dancers and Australian log choppers. The caber competition only takes place thanks to the tree trunk being rolled off a ship, many years ago, and drifting to shore, after the Indonesian authorities refused to allow the caber through customs! The Gathering is not just the show on the day. There are a catalogue of events that culminate in the Gathering, including the JHG Golf Tournament. There was also a popular Scottish Concert. All the events were organised by Java St Andrew's Society (founded in 1919). See Java St Andrew's Society and Jakarta Highland Gathering.
Greenville Games, North Carolina
The Eastern United States Pipe Band Association is bringing the 2007 Southern Pipe Band Championships to the Greater Greenville Scottish Games on Saturday, 9 June. The schedule of events also includes Scottish singer Isla St Clair and fiddler Andrew Dodds. In what is believed to be the first official "Trooping of the Color" in the USA, The Right Honorable the Earl of Caithness, Malcolm Sinclair, took the salute and received his new flags. The Chief's Piper, Rory Sinclair, President of Clan Sinclair Canada piped the Chief and others onto the field. In addition to the athletics and dancing competitions, there was also a ceilidh on Friday evening. See also greenvillegames.org.
Curse of the Faroes Lifted
On the last two visits by the Scotland international football (soccer) team to the Faroe Islands, they could only scrape a couple of draws. Indeed, Scotland were 2-0 down on the last occasion and only a fight-back in the second half allowed them to just even the score. So there were media reports of the Faroe Islands being a "jinx". The local football association added to the pressure by insisting on the Euro 2008 qualifying match being played on the wind-swept stadium at the small town of Toftir, where Scotland had struggled in the earlier matches had taken place, instead of in their capital. In the end, Scotland scored twice in the first half on Wednesday, with goals from Shaun Maloney (in his first international game) and Gary O'Connor. The local team came back in the second half but a combination of the woodwork, good defending and athletic goal-keeping kept them from scoring. That keeps Scotland's dream of qualifying for the finals of Euro 2008 alive - or at least mathematically possible.
Logo of Faroe Islands Football Asociation courtesy of http://hqfl.dk.
Alcohol Ban Inside Murrayfield Stadium Lifted
Sale of alcohol inside sports stadiums in Scotland was banned in 1980 after violent clashes at the Scottish Cup final at Hampden Park that year. Although rugby supporters argued that their sport was not affected by such misbehaviour, the ban applied to their sport too. As a result, alcohol cannot be sold at Murrayfield Stadium, even during international matches. There is no such restriction at rugby grounds in England and Wales. Of course, that doesn't stop many fans consuming large quantities of spirits before the match - as the bars and hotels nearby can attest. But now, for a trial period, the Scottish government has decided that senior men's international rugby matches will no longer be included in the ban. But application will have to be made to Edinburgh City Licensing Board for dispensation for individual international matches.
Superbike Spectacular for City Square
Around 20 powerful motorbikes will be racing round a mini track in Glasgow's George Square later this month. The fun event will be a "warm-up" for the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Knockhill Racing Circuit on 1 July. There, the riders and their 1000cc bikes will race at speeds of up to 200mph. The starting grid for that event will include defending champion Ryuichi Kiyonari, who will be battling hard to retain his title. Scottish motorcycling legend and three-time British Superbike champion Niall Mackenzie will also be participating.
Boost for Badminton
On the eve of hosting the World Team Badminton Championships in Glasgow, BADMINTONscotland announced a major new sponsorship deal with Bank of Scotland, worth over £275,000 over the next three years. The extra funding will allow the organisation to create new development initiatives and opportunities for more youngsters to get involved in the sport. BADMINTONscotland already runs a series of programmes supported by the bank, including the National Junior Championships and Bank of Scotland International Championships - this year will see the centenary of this event.. And since 1999, more than 100,000 children have been involved in the "Play Badminton Carnivals".
Picture via Wikipedia.
Equestrian Centre Gallops Ahead
A new equestrian centre in West Lothian, which was opened last month, is to host its first major event. The £3.5 million Scottish National Equestrian Centre at Oatridge College is to host a horse trials championship this weekend with around 300 riders.