To many foreign observers the British political and parliamentary set up can seem a little bizarre: a sort of anachronistic parade of costume drama and archaic procedure. Our system relies on custom, often centuries old, and on checks and balances within the law. It is complex, full of pageantry and tradition; but it does work. […]
Scotland has a long tradition of being a lyrical and musical nation – drawing deep from the well of human emotion. Every song sung has an origin in who we are as a people, our culture and our peculiar Celtic perspective on life. Here is the story behind three of our best known songs
Scotland has four World Heritage Sites, and perhaps the least well know, New Lanark, has its own very interesting tale. To me the story of the enterprise village is part and parcel of the change that embraced Scotland during the Industrial Revolution, and Enlightenment period.
For centuries the Parallel Roads of Glen Roy had baffled both scientists and myth-makers alike; and solving the puzzle would reveal an amazing picture of our geological past. Glen Roy, in Lochaber has three distinct, parallel terraces running the length of both sides of the valley; and it wasn’t until the mid 19th century did geologists realise that they were looking at ancients shorelines from a lake dammed back by huge glaciers. The understanding that Scotland was once glaciated opened up the study across the world; but it was here that scientists had their ah-ha moment.
Most people have a fixed idea of what a Scottish accent is, thanks to film and television; and, generally it’s sort of Glasgow-ish, with a hint of Edinburgh. This is no coincidence, as nearly two thirds of the Scottish population lives in the Greater Glasgow – Edinburgh corridor, and this kind of accent prevails. That’s […]
Sitting at one of the great junctions of Scotland and guarding the road north to the Highlands, is Stirling Castle – towering high on an extinct volcano and dominating the lower reaches of the River Forth. Known as the Brooch of Scotland, it has from time immemorial been a key strategic location securing the kingdom; […]
