Researchers at the University of Edinburgh have discovered accounts dating back more than one hundred years of Morag of Loch Morar. The descriptions paint a conflicting view of the monster, who is reputed to inhabit the Loch in the remote Lochaber area of the Highlands. One account describes her as a mermaid-like creature with flowing […]
A handwritten, unpublished work by a Scottish music hall performer known as the world’s worst poet is set to fetch thousands of pounds at auction. Edinburgh-born William McGonagall, won notoriety in the 19th century as an extremely bad poet, and to this day is regarded as the worst in English literature. His works were so […]
THE world’s top haggis hurler Alan Pettigrew has announced he is to quit before his 29 year old record is broken. His world record was set in 1984 when he threw a 1lb 8oz haggis 180ft and 10in on the island of Inchmurrin on Loch Lomond. But the retired school janitor, from Saltcoats, Ayrshire, fears […]
Today marks the 321st anniversary of the Massacre of Glencoe, in which 38 MacDonald of Glencoe clansmen were murdered on direct orders from the crown. The death warrant signed by King William III provided flames to fuel the Jacobite’s cause and subsequent rebellions, and contributed to generations of unease between the MacDonald and Campbell Clans. […]
A new soundtrack by a Scottish composer has been influenced by the infamous Highland Clearances of the 18th and 19th Centuries. Kildonan, the latest work by Sutherland based composer Robert Aitken, draws on traditional, contemporary and classical styles to create an album that evokes the forced eviction of people from their lands. During the industrial […]
On a sunny morning in September 1928, Scottish biologist Sir Alexander Fleming accidentally made one of the most important medicinal discoveries of all time. After returning from holiday with his family, he noticed that one of the cultures of bacteria he had left sitting on a bench in his laboratory had developed mould which had […]
Here’s a strange case of life imitating art from Inverness, with news just in that rivals Hitchcock’s 1963 horror The Birds: A giant Eagle Owl is to blame for attacks on pedestrians over the last week on Castle Street. Police have warned residents to keep clear of the giant bird of prey, who has taken […]
It has been recently suggested that the centuries-long rivalry between Scotland’s capital and Scotland’s largest city all started over bread. It seems to have begun in 1656 when the Glasgow town council spoke of their worries about the low quality of bread its local bakeries were producing, and two bakers from neighbouring Edinburgh cheekily offered […]
When asked to give the name of his nearest mainline rail station on a Parliamentary expenses questionnaire, former liberal MP for Orkney Jo Grimond gave his reply as Bergen, Norway. This facetious response turned out to be correct, as Bergen’s rail station is situated 340km from the Orkney constituency, compared with the Highland Main Line […]
French fashion powerhouse Chanel recently hosted it’s annual Metiers d’Arts show at Linlithgow Palace just outside of Edinburgh, showcasing a contemporary interpretation of traditional Scottish crafts and tartan. Creative director Karl Lagerfeld’s collection combined elements of gothic grandeur with tartan, tweed, sporrans, argyle socks and brogues, coloured with a rich earthy palette. The show ended with […]
