The Stooshie Issue 3 Published June 7 2014

JUNE 7 2014 issue no.3 ❘ £2.50

W NE NE ZI GA MA

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Anyone but England...

Stooshie Should we support the Auld Enemy in the World Cup?

T h e b e s t o f S c ott i s h m ed i a – n ew s

Lessons learned?

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opinion

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Beeb under fire

Coming to terms with rally tragedy

Is Sarah better value than Gary?

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Scotland in days

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7-June-14

We are devo

One Direction

Moment of Ruth for Scottish Tories

Five go mad at Murrayfield www.thestooshie.co.uk

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Kelso motorsport tragedy

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Scottish police shut up shop

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The best stories from around Scotland

The cutting edge of boffinry

Stooshie Editor’s Round-up: That was the week that was

Welcome to The Stooshie, the magazine that brings you the most important news and best comment from across Scotland over the past seven days.

This week we have gorged ourselves on the best stories from across the country, feasted upon the best comment from Scotland’s best columnists, snacked on our favourite blogs and washed it all down with the best arts coverage around.

This week the BBC found itself becoming the news, rather than just reporting it. Yes campaigners protested over alleged bias in news reports outside the Corporation’s Pacific Quay HQ while the dismissal of respected presenter Gary Robertson left many observers shaking their heads in disbelief.

Elsewhere in Scotland there was tragedy when three spectators were killed after being struck by an out-of-control car at the Jim Clark Rally by Kelso.

Politically, the big winners this week were the Scottish Conservatives. In a dramatic volte-face, leader Ruth Davidson positioned the Tories as Scotland’s new party of devolution.

And, with the World Cup less than a week away, our Stooshie of the Week asks the big question: should Scots support England?

Read, digest and enjoy!

SCOTTISH WORD OF THE WEEK

clarty adj ❘ klærtı ❘ Talk of the steamie: the week’s gossip

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We Really Like...

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Fred’s Irish adventure

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1. dirty, especially covered in mud; filthy Usage: “The pictures reflect a vivid sense of the city... from gracious streets to clarty corners.” (p26) “That one would sook it through a clarty cloot.” (in reference to someone who likes his/her drink)

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■ A Salmond/Cameron faceswap from @JimboLoony. Posted on Twitter

Editor-in-chief: Richard Neville Editor: Steve Bargeton Deputy editor: Catriona MacInnes Art director: Aileen Wilkie Content manager: Rory Weller Editorial: Craig Smith, Stefan Morkis, Alastair Bennett Contributors: Brian Donaldson, Robert McNeil, Lucy Penman, James Williamson, Graham Huband

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4 l news

MAIN EVENTS

BBC under attack from outside and in Nationalists protest over “biased” news broadcasts while flagship referendum show falters after launch ■ Around two hundred protestors descended on BBC Scotland’s Pacific Quay headquarters to protest over alleged bias in its news reports.

Professor John Robertson from the University of the West of Scotland had produced a report claiming there was antiindependence bias on radio show Good Morning Scotland which triggered the impromptu demonstration.

His report came after 1,200 people complained to the BBC about alleged bias towards UKIP in its European election

coverage last month.

The Corporation’s problems deepened when it emerged Good Morning Scotland presenter Gary Robertson is not having his freelance contract renewed due to budget pressures.

A spokesman for the National Union of Journalists said the presenter felt he was being pushed out the door by the BBC’s apparent preference for London-based presenters, such as Scotland 2014 host Sarah Smith. Staff have said they may strike over the sacking.

EDITORIALS SAY

COMMENTATORS SAY

Professor John Robertson’s report does not provide any “definitive proof to support the accusations of bias” made against the BBC, the Sunday Herald admitted, or “at least not beyond reasonable doubt”.

And, the paper said, the fact Better Together has also complained of perceived bias against it shows the complaints are “not limited to one side”.

But the paper reminded readers the BBC has, unlike newspapers, an obligation to remain neutral.

But it said the BBC is jeopardising this because although individual reports may be balanced, the number of reports criticising aspects of independence appears to “overwhelm through sheer force of numbers”.

It said if this complies with the BBC’s code of practice, then perhaps it is time to realise new rules are needed for the referendum, although what these could be it does not say.

Another paper that readily accuses the BBC of bias is the Scottish Daily Mail.

It noted that former director general Mark Thompson admitted in 2010 the broadcaster had been guilty of a “massive bias to the Left”.

It blamed a combination of Tony Blair and the BBC for the rise in UKIP’s popularity and warned that if it continues to “patronise the conservative majority” more people will be tempted to vote for Nigel Farage’s party.

The reason there is so much anger over Gary Robertson’s sacking, speculated Lesley Riddoch in The Scotsman, is it appears to have been done in order to “finance” Scotland 2014, the BBC’s replacement for Newsnight Scotland.

She said Scotland 2014 had got off to “an embarrassingly bad start” and although she admitted she may be “plain wrong” to suggest a connection between the termination of Robertson’s contract and the new show, she said there is no sign of the extra £5 million director general Tony Hall had promised for referendum programming.

She said the arrival of Scotland 2014 presenter Sarah Smith and Jim Naughtie to Good Morning Scotland makes it appears that Scots are “being edged out of top jobs”.

Over in The Courier, Jenny Hjul said whatever the ins and outs of Gary Robertson’s dismissal, the “tone of complaints against the BBC is getting ominous”.

She said: “The linking of the anchorman’s dismissal with the arrival in Glasgow of London-based stars suggests a worrying culture of xenophobia.”

Meanwhile Professor John Robertson was unhappy with the Sunday Herald. In an open letter posted on Media Lens, he wrote: “The Sunday Herald is in favour of Independence for Scotland but not, it seems, able to criticise the BBC.”

Safety review after rally tragedy Investigations into cause of accident at Jim Clark Rally in the Borders now underway ■ Three people died and two were seriously injured following a crash at The Jim Clark Rally near Coldstream.

Iain John Provan (64) and Elizabeth Allan (63) both of Barrhead, and John Leonard Stern (71) of Bearsden, were killed in the crash.

Two other injured men, both aged 61, were taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

The three-day rally was abandoned following the crash.

Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has said there will be a full review into motorsport safety and that “lessons must be learned”.

Two hours before the fatal accident five spectators were injured when another car left the road.

EDITORIALS SAY There are now questions being asked about why spectators were allowed into the area they were standing as it has been closed to them in the past because it was judged to be too dangerous, the Daily Record said.

Inevitably “there will be doubts raised about how spectators are controlled,” The Scottish Sun said, while others will claim any spectators at a high-speed race “knows the risks”.

But the paper said these concerns should be left to those

MAIN EVENTS

Police stop and search tactics put on trial Outrage as children as young as seven subjected to police searches ■ Police Scotland has been subjected to damning criticism after a report by watchdog the Scottish Police Authority found thousands of people are being stopped and searched with no good cause.

The report revealed that people aged 15 to 19 are most likely to be stopped and that 223 children under the age of nine were searched last year.

The watchdog said many officers now feel pressured to reach a target number of searches.

Most of the searches are non-statutory, which means the officer does not have a reasonable suspicion of any wrong-doing. There are fears that many people do not know they can refuse to be searched under these circumstances.

The SPA said it could find no connection between a fall in violence and the number of searches carried out.

Police Scotland said 640,699 searches were carried out last year. It is to set up a national unit to ensure consistency in stop and searches.

responsible for investigation exactly what happened when the car left the road. Instead, the paper said people must remember that “right now this is a human tragedy”.

Elsewhere, The Scotsman noted the grim irony that the rally is named after former Formula 1 champion Jim Clark, who was himself killed in a motor racing accident.

The paper said questions must be asked about why the race was not stopped after the first accident and also said there needs to be a complete review of spectator areas at such races in the future.

EDITORIALS SAY

COMMENTATORS SAY

Even if stop and searches are a “valuable weapon” in the fight against crime overuse may “be storing up problems for the future,” The Scotsman warned.

It said Police Scotland needs to be “more judicious” in its use of stop and searches as the force risks “alienating too many young people”.

Meanwhile, The Herald said “the idea of the consensual search needs serious reconsideration and may be untenable”.

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill (above left) supported the police but the Scottish Daily Mail said “his backing for this tackety boots search policy once again calls his judgement into question”.

The paper added that public confidence in the police may soon be “irreparably damaged”.

The blame for the rise in stop and searches lies with Chief Constable Sir Stephen House said the Daily Record.

Police Scotland can have “no justification” for searching so many young children, the country’s commissioner for children and young people said in the Daily Record.

Tam Baillie said he was “disturbed” at the number of searches being carried out.

One of the most consistent critics of Police Scotland has been Liberal Democrat justice spokeswoman Alison McInnes. Writing on Lib Dem Voice, she said Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill must change the way Police Scotland use stop and searches.

She said: “If detection is the aim, statutory stop and search is the only commonsense option. From a civil liberties perspective, it is the only tolerable option.”

Earlier this year, Kath Murray from Edinburgh University, wrote in The Guardian there is no statistical link between use of the tactic and a fall in violent crime.

COMMENTATORS SAY

One of the main attractions of the Jim Clark Rally, said Jim McGill in The Scotsman, is that it “is the only allTarmac event to be held on closed-off public roads on mainland UK”.

This, he said, means cars will often travel faster than 100mph and some spectators will “expose themselves to the dangers”.

There is now a real question mark over the future of rallying as we know it, John Cooper wrote in the Scottish Daily Mail. He said the authorities have to balance the demand for high-speed racing with spectator safety.

Calls to ban rallying are premature, said The Scottish Sun’s deputy motoring editor Jon Doran.

He said that while it is right “these tragic incidents are thoroughly investigated” it is important to “establish the facts” about what actually happened before any decisions are made.

Writing in the same paper, lawyer Aamer Anwar said driver David Carney could not be held responsible for the tragedy as spectators “sign up to the risk”.

news l 5 on the bright side ■ It may be Scotland’s most famous victory, but the exact site of the Battle of Bannockburn has remained shrouded in mystery for centuries.

But now television historian Neil Oliver believes he has uncovered the battlefield.

Working with Dr Tony Pollard from Glasgow University, they discovered a medieval cross on the Carse.

They believe this may have belonged to a fleeing English cavalryman and indicates the likely site of the battle.

■ An Inverness accountant has become the only Scot shortlisted for a mission to Mars, reported The Press and Journal’s Laura Paterson.

Sarah Johnston (30) made it on to a 705-strong list of candidates to be included on the Mars One mission, which aims to set up a human colony on the red planet.

■ The wheelhouse of the historic Titan Crane in Clydebank was turned into a cosy bar called The Lion’s Clyde for a few days only.

Whyte and Mackay carried out the transformation to mark the whisky label’s 170th anniversary.

■ The Gumball Rally rolls into Edinburgh this weekend, giving people the chance to see some of world’s most exclusive cars.

Inspired by the 1976 film, The Gumball is an annual 3,000mile international event which attracts a whole host of A-list stars and cars.

This year’s event will feature almost every kind of Ferrari, Porsche and Lamborghini made in the last 30 years, as well as cars from TV and film – like the Batmobile Tumbler (pictured) from The Dark Knight movies.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

6 l news

POLITICS

Davidson rebrands Tories as party of devolution

After vague promises of additional devolved powers, the Scottish Conservatives finally put some “meat on the bone,” David Torrance claimed in The Scotsman.

He said the proposals put forward by Ms Davidson were “succinct and lucid” and provided a middleway between the Liberal Democrats’ more “radical” plans and Scottish Labour’s more “cautious” approach.

In the same paper Peter Jones described the plans as “revolutionary” compared to recent Conservative thinking on devolution.

Over at The Herald, Professor Adam Tomkins, an advisor to the Commission, said the Conservatives are now in tune with what most Scots want: “a powerful Parliament for Scotland in a secure UK.” Professor Tomkins said Lord Strathclyde’s report

was “devolution coming of age” and demonstrated the result of a No vote would be “responsible devolution in a renewed Union”.

Even The Herald’s leader column was impressed.

After months of critics decrying the negativity of the Better Together campaign, The Herald said Ms Davidson’s speech meant “a positive vision will now be on offer from both sides”.

The Daily Telegraph said the announcement “reverses decades of Conservative policy” and that it would be “fairer” to other parts of the UK if the effect of granting Scotland more tax powers is examined “before it happens, not after”.

The Financial Times was more impressed and said the plans “deserve widespread political support”.

“Ideally,” said the paper, “it should be the foundation of a broad constitutional settlement covering all the United Kingdom.”

But the FT warned that idea would be “tatters” if there is a Yes vote.

In The Scottish Sun Andrew Nicoll said that “bizarrely” it is “the Tories who are now able to paint themselves as ‘the party of devolution’”.

“There is no reason why these changes shouldn’t happen early in the next parliament.”

“They want us to believe they have had a sudden conversion to Scotland’s cause.”

David Cameron,

Nicola Sturgeon,

Prime Minister

Deputy First Minister

Prime Minister backs report recommending greater devolved powers after a No vote in September.

indy BRIEFS 1. Sir Ian Cheshire, the boss of DIY chain B&Q, has said the company would put plans for additional investment in Scotland on hold if there is a Yes vote on September 18.

2. A YouGov poll for Better Together found 64% of Scots think oil revenues should support public services across the UK, compared to 30% who think the money should stay in Scotland.

3. Think tank the Institute for Fiscal Studies has said Scotland would have to raise taxes or cut services to balance the books after independence to pay for White Paper pledges.

4. Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown has criticised the UK government’s handling of the currency row but said Scotland would “probably” be more unequal after independence.

5. Carl Bildt, Sweden’s foreign minister, has said independence would lead to the Balkanisation of the UK. the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

■ Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson unveiled details of her party’s plans to give the Scottish Parliament more powers if there is a No vote in the independence referendum – including control over income tax, air passenger duty and even the power to “supplement” Scottish benefits.

The proposals were revealed in the Strathclyde Commission’s report on further devolution and were backed by Prime Minister David Cameron who said they provided “a clear, coherent and Conservative blueprint” for more devolution.

The plans represent a major shift in direction for the Conservatives under Ms Davidson. She had previously said the Scotland Act, which gives the Scottish Parliament increased financial powers from 2016, was a “line in the sand”.

Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the proposals undermine the Better Together campaign by calling for the end of uniform taxes and benefits across the UK.

COMMENTATORS SAY

POLITICS London not such a dark star after all

Truth the casualty in hospital advert row ■ The world famous Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children forced a pro-union group to withdraw an advert claiming Scots would no longer be treated there after independence.

Vote No Borders produced the advert which said Scots who required treatment at the hospital after a Yes vote would “have to join the long queue of foreigners”.

But the hospital demanded the advert was withdrawn.

A spokeswoman for Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust said they were not consulted about the advert and would not endorse any political campaign.

She added: “We would like to reassure Scottish families that we already have reciprocal healthcare agreements with numerous countries, and we regularly treat patients from across Europe because of our very specialist expertise.”

The row came after Scotland’s major cinema chains, including Odeon and Cineworld, all decided they would no longer screen referendum-related broadcasts due to the high number of complaints they were receiving about them.

■ First Minister Alex Salmond may have described London as a “dark star of the economy, inexorably sucking in resources, people and energy” but he appears to have warmed to the capital.

Writing in the London Evening Standard, Mr Salmond said after independence Scotland will “work closely with London, for example in areas like financial services in which we both have huge expertise”.

And he said independence

is necessary to protect the rest of the UK from the economic “pull of London”.

He said Scotland would act as an “economic counterweight” to the capital and that independence would “rebalance” the economy right across the UK. Mr Salmond also told readers Scottish independence could inspire the rest of the UK. He said: “A vote for independence can see those same conversations start across the UK, including London, providing the opportunity for democratic renewal.”

No Scottish home for MEP

Left-wing wonderland

■ UKIP’s first ever Scottish MEP has said he will not move back to Scotland permanently until after the independence referendum.

David Coburn told The Big Issue that he is currently renting a flat in Edinburgh but has put plans to buy a property on hold until Scotland’s constitutional future is settled.

He said he believes the Scottish property market would “bomb” in the event of a Yes vote and that he fears being plunged into negative equity if he buys now.

■ An independent Scotland should offer a four-day, 30-hour working week and expanded public services, The Common Weal project has said.

Started by the Jimmy Reid Foundation, the project’s 180-page vision for a postindependence Scotland said tax rises for high earners would also be necessary.

Those earning more than £150,000 would pay a 60p top rate.

Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon the report shows “Scotland is ready for change”.

“We are fighting a battle against obesity in Scotland, and we know that if children eat unhealthily in their teenage years it’s a habit that can be hard to break.”

“In modern Scotland we should aspire to be a beacon of hope, diversity and humanity.”

“We Scots want to share the benefits of oil throughout the UK and the UK wants to share the wealth of London with us Scots.”

Michael Matheson,

Alex Salmond,

Johann Lamont,

Public Health Minister

First Minister

Scottish Labour leader

news l 7

indy BRIEFS 1. Male model Chris John Millington has said he backs a Yes vote and claims independence would help fashion designers further develop their careers.

2. The Scottish Government has said carers would get an extra £575 per year under independence thanks to a rise of £11 a week in the carer’s allowance.

3. Actor David Hayman, best known for the film Hope and Glory and his role in hit TV show Trial and Retribution, has said Scots should vote Yes. 4. Lib Dem peer Lord David Steel has said there should be a UK constitutional convention to transfer more powers to Holyrood if there is a No vote.

5. The Scottish Government has rejected claims by Business for New Europe that entry to the EU could be delayed until the next decade if Scotland demands optouts the UK enjoys.

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SEVEN BY SEVEN

news l 9

Control tweaks – why are the police closing Scottish 999-call centres?

SEVEN QUESTIONS YOU REALLY WANT TO ASK 1. Firstly, which control rooms are they closing?

Dumfries has already closed and will be followed over the next 19 months by Stirling, Glenrothes, Glasgow Pitt Street and Aberdeen.

According to The Herald, Glasgow Pitt Street’s functions will be transferred to Glasgow Govan and Motherwell, Stirling and Glenrothes to Bilston Glen in Midlothian, and Aberdeen to Dundee. Dumfries’s work has been transferred to Govan and Motherwell.

2. How many jobs are at risk?

About 300, though voluntary redundancies, transfers and early retirement will reduce that.

In Dumfries, the BBC reported that 20 staff had either taken voluntary redundancy or found jobs elsewhere. Efforts were continuing to find posts for 14 others.

3. What will that leave?

Four control rooms will be left to handle all 999 calls and major incidents in Scotland. These are the above named Glasgow Govan, Motherwell, Dundee and Bilston Glen. A support control room in Inverness will cover the Highlands.

Dundee won’t take 101 non-emergency calls, The Herald reported, meaning all non-essential calls will be channelled to the central belt.

The cuts will leave an estimated 800 people working in control rooms.

4. What’s the point of this? Is it just money saving as usual?

Pretty much (up to £74 million over the next decade), though top brass put a more positive spin on it. According to Chief Superintendent Val Thomson, the officer in charge, moving to fewer, larger centres will “enhance our capability to respond to day-to-day incidents as well as complex and large-scale emergencies”.

She said the remaining centres would have better technology, providing faster ways to share information and identify a caller’s needs, be that a beat officer, firearms officer or specialist detective.

police IN NUMBERS

999

Introduced in 1937, it’s the world’s oldest emergency call service.

101

The new number for calls that are urgent but not emergencies.

15,000

Number of 101 calls unanswered in four months after its launch.

47

Percentage of non-emergency calls made on 101.

10

Seconds target time for answering 999 calls.

40

Seconds target time for answering 101 calls.

520,000

Calls made to 999 in one year in Scotland (1.8 million to 101).

5. How has it all gone down then?

In the traditional manner: badly. South Scotland MSP Claudia Beamish has spoken of her disappointment, telling The Galloway Gazette: “Once again, we are looking at the loss of skilled jobs in the region and the latest shift to more centralised policing.”

North East MSP Alison McInnes also criticised the move, telling the Montrose Review: “From Aberdeen and Montrose to Durness and Portree, decades of local policing is being replaced by a one-size-fits-all faceless organisation.”

On the union front, Unison regional organiser Gerry Crawley said on BBC News that the Dumfries closure was a “sad day” and “a blow for the Dumfries community”.

6. Who staffs control rooms?

In the past it was mainly civilian staff but, according to Unison, under the new arrangements half the workforce will be police officers.

The union has told The Herald it found this “unacceptable”, particularly given that costs of employing a police officer are greater than those for a civilian employee.

Civilian workers have borne the brunt of cuts involved in creating a single police force for Scotland.

7. What’s with all this centralisation?

Efficiency, in both its financial and practical senses, is the reason given. On the wider front, beyond the control rooms, replacing eight area forces with a singular Police Scotland is supposed to save £1.1 billion by 2016, mainly by stopping duplication of tasks.

However, Alison McInnes, speaking as Lib Dem justice spokeswomen, has accused the SNP Government of having an “obsession with power-grabbing centralisation”.

Chief Constable Sir Stephen House has said the SNP was originally opposed to the idea, while the SNP themselves say the supposed centralisation has put 1,000 new bobbies on the beat. Or in the control room.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

10 l news

AROUND SCOTLAND

1 HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS Deep snow not enough

Scotland’s ski resorts had deeper snow than some Alpine resorts over winter – but fewer skiing days than the previous year.

Ski-Scotland said there were 235,303 skiing days in 2013/14, which generated £23.7 million for the economy.

Skye switch for Inbetweeners company

The independent film and television production company which made the hit Channel 4 series The Inbetweeners (right) has moved its operations from London to Skye.

Chris Young, who owns Young Films, has lived on the island since the 1990s. The company is now based at Fas, the centre for creative and cultural industries at Gaelic college Sabhal Mor Ostaig in Sleat.

Its latest project, Gaelic crime drama Bannan, will be premiered at the Edinburgh Film Festival and broadcast on BBC Alba.

2 GLASGOW & WEST Travel scam shame

A 26-year-old mother-of-two was sentenced to 200 hours of community service after taking £16,000 for flights and holidays that were never booked.

Amanda Stewart claimed she could book cheap trips for family and friends because of her job with Barrhead Travel.

However, she was a marketing assistant with the firm and not allowed to book holidays for people she knew.

At Paisley Sheriff Court, Stewart admitted defrauding 11 people over an 11-month period.

The court heard she had not profited from the fraud and she was sentenced to 200 hours of community service. She has been fired by Barrhead Travel.

Kids to spy on legal highs?

A Glasgow councillor has said “spy kids” should be used to make sure children are not being sold legal highs.

Councillor David McDonald has said the children should be used to target retailers who are selling legal highs to children.

Police already use a similar system to check shops are not selling alcohol to children under the legal drinking age.

Mr McDonald said that although the drugs may not technically be illegal, they can still be highly dangerous.

But he said “civil penalties legislation” could be used to crack down on the sale of legal highs. He said there should be “tighter controls” on shops selling legal highs.

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5

Games security pledge

Organisers of this year’s Commonwealth Games have said there will be “unprecedented” levels of security at this year’s event to protect spectators and athletes.

Police Scotland Deputy Chief Constable Steve Allen said planning for the competition has been going on for the past seven years.

2 3

3 SOUTH SCOTLAND Art theft easily fixed

The artwork depicts a knight on a white horse in battle at Police investigating the theft of Caerlaverock Castle. a mural from a Dumfries park Initial reports suggested it had discovered it had actually been been stolen but police later removed for restoration work.

It was thought the mural, which confirmed the theft had been a is 2.4 metres by 1.2 million in size, “false alarm”. had been stolen from Castledykes The mural, from the entrance to Park last month. the park, will be returned soon. the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

Borders Council’s Tapestry bid

Scottish Borders Council is bidding to become the permanent home of the Great Tapestry of Scotland.

Designed by author Alexander McCall Smith and Borders historian Alistair Moffat, the tapestry charts Scotland’s history over 160 panels. It took 1,000 volunteers more than 50,000 hours to complete the tapestry. It has been on tour around Scotland but Borders Council hopes to be allowed to give it a permanent home in a purpose-built £5 million building.

news l 11

AROUND SCOTLAND 4 NORTH EAST, ORKNEY & SHETLAND

Explosive store near park

Calls to rededicate Kitchener memorial

As the centenary of the outbreak of World War One approaches, there have been calls to rededicate the memorial to Lord Kitchener at Marwick Head on Orkney.

Lord Kitchener was one of the key figures in the First World War. He was sailing to Russian from Orkney to negotiate with the Tsar when HMS Hampshire struck a mine and sank with the loss of almost on board.

Now there are calls to rededicate the memorial to include the 649 people who lost their lives alongside Lord Kitchener.

Neil Kermode – from The Kitchener Memorial Project – said locals believe it is time “we drew back in the minor characters who have been lost from history”.

Renewables up in smoke?

5 TAYSIDE & CENTRAL PC awarded £4,000 over wrongful arrest in ice cream fracas

4

6

Aberdeen city councillors have given the go ahead to plans for an explosives store near a city park.

The six-building complex at Hillhead of Clinterty has been approved, subject to consultation with the Health and Safety Executive.

It would be used to store explosives such as perforating guns used in the offshore industry. Critics claim it is too near Elrick Country Park.

Police Scotland chief constable Sir Stephen House has been ordered to pay a Tayside PC £4,000 in compensation.

PC Gwen Louden (below) sued the police after being arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice.

Ms Louden fell under suspicion over comments she made to a woman alleged to have a man by throwing a McFlurry ice cream over him in 2010. The woman told police she had lied because she had been instructed to by Ms Louden, who denied the allegation.

Ms Louden was arrested and detained which left her “belittled and grossly humiliated”.

Sheriff Kevin Veal said her arrest was “unjustified, unnecessary and unlawful”.

Electricity giant Scottish and Southern Energy has confirmed plans to create a renewables hub in Dundee have been put on the back burner.

The company signed a Memorandum of Understanding, brokered by the Scottish Government three years ago with Forth Ports, Dundee City Council and Scottish Enterprise that was supposed to bring hundreds of renewable energy jobs to the city. None have arrived.

The company has confirmed it may withdraw from the agreement when it ends this year.

6 EDINBURGH, FIFE & EAST Suicide pact shock

The death of two elderly brothers at an Edinburgh house was a double suicide, police said.

John and Robert McIlwain, aged 71 and 73, were reportedly discovered by police with gunshot wounds to the stomach lying on top of a firearm at their home in Lockerby Cottages, Gracemount.

Police received a call from one of the brothers, who had warned he was going to kill himself.

Both men had suffered ill health.

Tram saga may only just be beginning

There have been fresh calls for a public inquiry into the Edinburgh trams debacle.

Although the trams (below right) are now up and running, the project was originally supposed to cost just £375 million but this eventually ballooned to £776 million, despite the project being drastically scaled back.

Trams were supposed to start running in 2011 but they only began taking passengers last weekend.

First Minister Alex Salmond promised a full public inquiry once the tram system was completed and the Scottish Government has said they will meet Edinburgh City Council to discuss and inquiry. But a spokesman warned its scope could be limited because of legal action being considered by the council against some of their legal advisors.

End of exclusions at high school

Edinburgh’s Craigroyston High School has scrapped exclusions as a punishment for unruly pupils.

Pupils who consistently misbehave will be taken out of mainstream classes and sent to a dedicated unit within the school.

Similar units set in some Fife schools have helped raise attainment levels.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

12 l news

AROUND BRITAIN

1 NORTHERN IRELAND

2 NORTH ENGLAND

Robinson’s Islam apology

First for mayor

Killer exams

Yarm votes for Yorkshire over Teeside

First Minister Peter Robinson (below) has apologised for offending Muslims.

He had said comments he made to a newspaper about how he would not trust devotees of Sharia law had been “misinterpreted”.

The new Lord Mayor of Belfast will be the city’s first female nationalist to hold the position.

Two other women have held the title of first citizen, but Nichola Mallen will be the first from a nationalist party to take office.

Ms Mallen said she was “deeply honoured” by her appointment. Her term of office lasts one year.

A Manchester schoolgirl has been warned studying for her ASlevels could kill her.

Jennifer Lloyd suffers from Addison’s disease.

Instead of producing adrenaline when stressed, her body begins to shut down vital organs.

Diagnosed 10 years ago, she was hospitalised sitting her GCSEs last year.

Voters in a small Teeside hamlet have said they would rather be under the control of Yorkshire.

Nearly 90% of voters who took part in a poll said they want the village to transfer to Hambleton Council in Yorkshire from Stockton Council in Teeside.

3 MIDLANDS & EAST Bin cleaner’s wheelie big win

1

A Nottinghamshire wheelie bin cleaner won more than £1.3 million on a bet after he staked £2 and predicted the winners of six races.

Thirty-nine-year-old Craig Brazier from Mansfield placed the bet after realising he had £2 left over after buying fish bait.

He said he intends to continue working but wants to buy a larger home and take his family to Disney World.

2

4 WALES

Custard cocktail

Concern over prejudice admission A survey has found that the Welsh are more racially prejudiced than people in other parts of the UK. The British Social Attitudes survey found 34% of Welsh people admitted to some degree of prejudice compared to 25% nationally.

Communities minister Jeff Cuthbert described the findings as “concerning”.

A cocktail made from one of Birmingham’s most famous products – Bird’s Custard – has won a top award.

Barman Robert Wood’s cocktail, called Robert’s Local Legend, won best Birmingham Cocktail in a competition sponsored

by Langley’s Gin. The £9 drink contains honey, toffee and gin in addition to custard.

Wood, said the drink took him three weeks to perfect.

3 4

Policing NATO summit dwarfs Olympics The man in charge of security at September’s NATO summit in Newport has said it will be a bigger operation than the London Olympics.

Assistant Chief Constable Chris Armitt said the protection needed for delegates such as President Obama was “unprecedented”.

The summit will take place at Celtic Manor. Protests are being planned.

5 SOUTH WEST ENGLAND Sued over loose helmet A West Country hunt is being sued for £200,000 after a former employee claims they were disabled in an accident because they had been given an ill-fitting helmet.

Former first whip kennel huntsman Edwin Bailey suffered brain injuries after being thrown from his “spooked” horse in 2009. the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

5

6

6 LONDON & SOUTH EAST Underground’s new heights

Congestion charge rises

The number of passengers using the London Tube has reached a record high.

London Underground said 1.265 billion people used the Tube in 2013/14, an average of 3.5 million passengers per day.

Passenger numbers have increased by a third over the past decade and watchdog London TravelWatch said overcrowding is now a big concern for commuters.

The central London congestion charge is to rise to £11.50 on June 16, up from £10.

It is the first increase since 2011. The charge was just £5 when first introduced in 2003.

But the Federation of Small businesses say two-thirds of their members oppose the rise and said the scheme is not deterring people from bringing their cars into London as congestion is back at pre-2003 levels.

PEOPLE

news l 13

Cliohna flying high ■ A teenager from Moray who lost her sight to cancer less than six months ago has flown a plane for the first time, reported The Herald’s Claire Elliot.

Doctors believed 16-year-old Cliohna Thomson was going blind due to type-1 diabetes but was given the shocking news just days later that it was leukaemia which was robbing her of her sight.

After five months “battling for life”, the teenager has now won her cancer fight and is planning a sponsored skydive to raise money for the charity that helped her through her ordeal.

Despite being blind in one eye and having limited vision in the other, Cliohna took the controls of a two-seater plane at RAF Kinloss thanks to the Douglas Bader Foundation.

Shout about Glasgow ■ Lulu is to headline a musical event at Glasgow Green to coincide with the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games.

Others acts lined up for the July 23 event include Eddi Reader, Rab Noakes and James Grant.

Was Burns the bipolar Bard?

Poet may have suffered mental disorder, claim researchers

Wullie and his pals avoided trouble after pinging PC Murdoch with a pea shooter. But they owned up when Primrose looked like carrying the can...and answered to her instead!

■ Scotland’s national bard Rabbie Burns could have been suffering from a mental disorder, according to a team of researchers.

The Scotsman reported that scientific and literary experts at Glasgow University have concluded that Burns’ famously tempestuous personality, high levels of creativity and complicated love life may suggest that he suffered from bipolar disorder.

The 18th century poet’s life was punctuated by periods of depression and heavy drinking, between which he had intensively creative periods in which he produced work such as Tam O’Shanter, Auld Lang Syne and The Cotter’s Saturday Night.

Dr Daniel Smith, from the University’s Institute of Health and Wellbeing, said: “Although it is difficult to prove conclusively it is possible that his life history and his prodigious literary outputs may have been influenced by a recurrent disorder of mood such as bipolar disorder.”

Colditz dentist was a secret spy Letters home to Dunfermline held coded messages that played vital role in the Allied war effort ■ The German authorities at in the Colditz thought Captain Julius Green was just a captured military dentist treating his fellow PoWs. But, as The Courier reported, Green, a prisoner at the notorious Colditz PoW camp, was a spy sending coded messages to Allied Intelligence in the form of seemingly innocent letters home to his family in Dunfermline.

Green’s coded letters, as well as papers, photographs and other effects, are to be sold at auction at Bonhams on June 18, and are expected to fetch up to £6,000.

As a dentist, he was in an especially good position to carry out espionage work as he spent much of his time travelling from camp to camp.

As a Jewish PoW in Nazi hands, he faced being shot if his secret work was discovered.

Green, who was brought up in Killarney, Ireland, was captured with his brigade at St Valery in June 1941 and spent the remainder of the war in a variety of camps.

At Camp Ilag VII he was taught the code used to communicate with M19, the War Office department aiding resistance fighters.

Kirsty surfed a wave ■ Kirsty Wark said she “rode the wave of positive feeling towards women” early in her career.

The presenter claimed she has never been on the receiving end of sexism, and had only been bullied at work by a woman.

Mackie mourned ■ Ice cream tycoon Maitland Mackie has died, just three months after being diagnosed with a brain tumour.

The 76-year-old businessman turned Mackie’s of Scotland into a household name.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

14 l news

BEST OF SCOTTISH COMMENT

Rankin deserves top ranking

UKIP voters may be anywhere

John MacLeod

Joyce McMillan

Scottish Daily Mail

The Scotsman

■ A recent poll found Ian Rankin was Scotland’s favourite writer, ahead of such luminaries as Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Iain Banks and, trailing in fifth place, Robert Burns.

This may have caused a few “pursed lips” in Scotland’s “more rarefied circles”, said John MacLeod in the Scottish Daily Mail, but it is a deserved accolade.

Comparing Rankin to best-selling authors such as purveyor of “dark-artof-the-Vatican piffle” Dan Brown, MacLeod said Rankin is a “good writer” with “a gift for phrases that stick uncomfortably in the mind”.

He also praised Rankin’s willingness to tackle social issues something, he said, alien to “Edinburgh’s other one-man book factory,” Alexander McCall Smith.

MacLeod said there is debate over whether Rankin’s books are great literature but there is no doubting their “commercial success”.

He said complaints about Rankin reminded him of an exchange on Twitter when someone described James Blunt has having “no talent”.

Blunt responded: “...and no mortgage.”

■ The election of a UKIP MEP in Scotland was a traumatic experience for The Scotsman’s Joyce McMillan.

She said “Scotland’s lapse of judgement” left her “peering suspiciously” at others in a hospital waiting room.

She said First Minister Alex Salmond deserved praise for saying he wants to see a “modest” increase in immigration but she warned UKIP’s rising popularity could hamper the campaign for independence. She said their success “damages, however slightly, the hopeful vision of Scotland as a progressive country” which is driving the Yes campaign.

The No campaign, she predicts, will begin to play on fears over immigration but McMillan was equally worried that UKIP’s success may lead to renewed effort from Labour activists. She believes the prospect of Labour success at the next general election could make it harder to secure a Yes vote.

McMillan said a No vote would be a “tragedy”, concluding UKIP’s purpose “is to divide ordinary people against one another, and to distract them from uniting in a common progressive cause”.

War legacy must be a better future

Andrew Wilson Scotland on Sunday

■ In a week that marked the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings (above), Scotland on Sunday’s Andrew Wilson said we owe it to those who laid down their lives in earlier conflicts to build the best future we can.

Wilson said his generation “will be the last to experience the oral history” of the Second World War and that “it is hugely important that the depth and weight of the shared sacrifice and agonies felt is respected properly”.

This, he said, means politicians who hope to use the commemorations to score political points in the run-up to the independence referendum will do their own cause more harm than good.

He said people from all nations involved in the two world wars should remember that many gave their lives “so that we might enjoy the relative era of peace and harmony that we do today”.

He said it may become “all too easy” to take these hard won freedoms for granted.

For Wilson, it is important that we all make a “personal memorial by living as good a life as we can”.

And, he said he hoped that in a century’s time people will continue to commemorate the sacrifices made during the two global conflicts.

Wilson said that while it is impossible to imagine what the world will look like then “we must hope it is a far gentle place than the trenches of the Somme then, or the streets of our towns on which our homeless sleep today”.

Wilson concluded that it is a “blessing” his generation has not been called upon to make the same sacrifices those before him did. But that, he told readers, does not absolve them of their responsibilities towards the future.

HAUD YER WHEESHT! ■ Famously, the only part of Scotland Elvis Presley set foot on was Prestwick Airport.

But a dental crown worn by the king of rock ‘n’ roll spent a few hours on a whistlestop tour of Dundee after being mistakenly couriered to the City of Discovery.

The King’s crown is on a tour of the UK with dozens of dentists hosting an “Elvis Day” in order to raise awareness of mouth cancer.

It was supposed to arrive at Bracknell’s Appeldore Clinic last week but FedEx mistakenly delivered the crown to Dundee the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

instead. Fortunately, FedEx were able to trace the package and ensure the Elvis cap was soon on the way to its proper destination.

Dr Teresa Day, from the Appledore Clinic, said: “It was supposed to arrive before 10am with a load of memorabilia, including costumes and a lock of Elvis’ hair, but instead we got a small package containing dentistry equipment meant for a clinic on the Isle of Wight.”

Elvis landed at Prestwick in 1960.

16 l news A change is gonna come

Simon Jenkins The Guardian

■ As the official campaign for September’s independence vote began, The Guardian’s Simon Jenkins said Scotland will win new freedoms whichever side wins the vote.

Jenkins said the two “dodgy dossiers” produced by Yes Scotland and Better Together on the supposed costs of independence gave false pictures of life after a Yes vote.

The Scottish Government’s paper, he said, promised “a golden age of wealth creation,” a country where “kilted children will dance joyously among the lochs and braes blessing the great leader, Alex Salmond, as liberator”.

And he found the Treasury’s analysis equally implausible, with its dire warnings that

BEST OF briTISH comment the four “Horsemen of the Apocalypse” will descend on a Scotland where “old men will starve in the gutter and wee bairns erupt in boils”.

The truth, said Jenkins, is that the referendum is now “superfluous” given the additional powers being offered by the unionist parties and desire of the SNP to continue in a monetary union.

He said “assuming” Westminster politicians keep their promises, they are asking Scots to “reject an unreal independence” in favour of the “unreal union” now being offered.

He said whatever the vote, Scotland will become “semiautonomous” but warned it will face a “decade of hell” as it moves into a “culture of austerity and self-sufficiency”.

Grim as that sounds, Jenkins said eventually Scotland “would sooner or later benefit” from being a smaller country, such as “dynamic” states in Scandinavia and the Baltics.

He concluded that whatever the result of the referendum Scotland is about to “embark on an exciting new era”.

A matter of life and death

Lies, damned lies and statistics

Jim Murphy

Jonathan Guthrie

The Guardian

The Financial Times

■ Allegations that Qatar paid football officials in return for their support of the country’s World Cup bid have put football itself on trial, Glasgow MP Jim Murphy claimed.

Murphy said if claims bribes were paid are proved to be true then FIFA will have to strip the 2022 World Cup from Qatar.

But he said there are also deeper problems with the Qatari bid. He travelled to Doha as part of a team investigating the conditions migrant workers hired to construct the World Cup venues are being subjected to.

What he saw was “a disgrace” with workers alleging “abuse, exploitation and deception”.

Some said they had not been paid while others described “the conditions as inhuman”.

“Proud workers,” Murphy said, “shouldn’t have to die while building a world cup.”

Murphy said football has a “universal power to inspire people” across the globe but those who govern the sport now face accusations that they allowed its “noble and egalitarian sporting ideal” to become corrupted.

■ Conflicting claims about the cost of Scottish independence left no winners, only losers, Jonathan Guthrie said in The Financial Times’ Lombard column.

Describing the rival press conferences as the “Edinburgh Festival of Bad Statistics”, he said First Minister Alex Salmond made “balloon sculptures with inflated output figures” which were then deflated by chief secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander.

Both men, according to Guthrie, “diminished themselves” by engaging in what he called “reverse empiricism”, where they “derived numbers from their opinions”.

He concluded that Scotland would survive as an independent nation and would probably raise taxes to pay for greater welfare spending. While this is fine for multinationals, Guthrie said it may be more worrying for small business owners.

Guthrie said both sides are happy to “bewilder voters with bad stats” and, quoting Oor Wullie, said many will conclude there is only one reasonable response: “Tae pot wi’ both of ‘em.”

HAUD YER WHEESHT! ■ A shocking image appearing to show the aftermath of an ‘axe murder’ on Google Street View sparked a police investigation.

Fear not though, as it turned out to be a pair of mischievous mechanics playing a prank.

Officers were relieved to discover that Dan Thomson (56) and Gary Kerr (31) had staged the fake homicide as a joke when Google’s camera car – which captures panoramic views of streets – passed by their garage on Giles Street in Edinburgh. the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

Garage boss Dan was the mastermind.

“We just thought we had to do something,” he said.

“This opportunity wasn’t coming around very often so Gary grabbed a pick axe handle and we ran out into the street.”

The Independent suggested it is not the only time scenes captured by Google have caused concern.

The paper also noted that several couples have also “ahem, ‘performed’, for Street View cameras around the world”.

18 l news

everybody’s talking about...

The ego and the 1D Boyband One Direction land in Scotland after Peruvian high jinks 1. Who are One Direction?

One Direction, or 1D for those who prefer the abbreviated immediacy of social media, are a pop band formed for the television talent show The X-Factor in 2010.

All five members of the band – Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson – auditioned as solo artists but were placed into a band for the competition, finishing third.

2. Third? But they’re huge.

Who won?

After The X-Factor, they were snapped up by Simon Cowell for his record label SyCo. Their debut single sold more than five million copies worldwide and the group’s popularity has only grown since then.

So far they have released three albums and a concert video, all of which have sold in record-breaking numbers. In fact they became the first band to have their first three albums debut at number one in the US. One Direction are the most popular band in the world right now and sold out Murrayfield this week.

4. Wow. So what do they sound like?

Somebody called Matt Cardle (below, centre) who is allegedly hard at work on his third album.

Second place went to someone called Rebecca Ferguson (below right).

Nope, we couldn’t remember her either.

Pretty much pop by the numbers performed in a fairly non-threatening manner.

But it appears things may be taking a darker turn if a recent trip to Peru is anything to go by.

5. What happened?

Two members of the band, Zayn (left) and Louis (bottom left), filmed themselves sharing what used to be a known as “jazz cigarette”.

The Scottish Daily Mail said such behaviour would “shock millions” of their

3. How did they become so popular?

It turns out teenage girls really like bands consisting of pretty teenage boys.

fans and later reported that some were taking to Twitter to express their desire to experiment with marijuana now they had seen two of the group smoking it.

On the other hand, some fans were so outraged at the behaviour of their idols they set fire to their concert tickets.

6. Was there really outrage?

Many commentators, such as The Scottish Sun’s Shereen Nanjiani said there had been a massive over-reaction to the incident. She said that “while stupid” to film themselves, they were only doing the same as many other 20-somethings and she noted possession of marijuana is not even against the law in Peru.

What she did find offensive, however, was Louis using “a shortened version of the N-word” while speaking in a gangster patois in the video.

7. This is hardly the end of civilisation as we know it, is it?

The Rolling Stones they are not.

But there was controversy over the sale of alcohol at their Murrayfield gig.

8. Were they drunk on stage?

Don’t be absurd – poor Harry had a cold.

There were fears that under-12s would not be allowed into the venue because alcohol was being sold. Luckily the whole thing passed off without any further outbreaks of rock ‘n’ roll behaviour, unless a cow holding up traffic counts.

The 1D global empire in figures:

19.1m

Number of One Direction Twitter followers

the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

$1bn

Predicted earnings for band in 2014

news l 19

BOFFINS

Mum backs cannabis testing

■ A former Mum of the Year has backed a bid by researchers to secure funding to test cannabis for medical use on teenagers, children and even babies, The Sunday Post reported.

Dalkeith mother Ann Maxwell (51) believes medical marijuana could change the life of her 17-year-old son Muir and thousands like him who suffer from severe epilepsy.

Researchers from Edinburgh University and the city’s Royal Hospital for Sick Children have applied to test the oil extracted

Researchers want to investigate medical use of marijuana on epilepsy

Self-help boost for cancer patients ■ Specialists at Aberdeen University have developed new technology that allows skin cancer survivors in remote parts of Scotland to check for signs of the disease returning.

The Scotsman reported that the software guides out-patients through self-examinations and enables them to send images of skin abnormalities directly to experts.

The Achieving Selfdirected Integrated Cancer Aftercare project involved collaboration between computer scientists and healthcare specialists.

from cannabis flowers on young people.

The paediatric neurologists aim to raise £250,000 for trials that would be the first of their kind in Britain. Similar work has already begun in the USA. Mrs Maxwell, the 2013 Tesco Mum of the Year, played a key role in bringing together researchers on both sides of the Atlantic to get the trials going.

She said anecdotal evidence about marijuana’s benefit was “too strong” to ignore.

The five requirements of cuteness ■ Boffins at the University of St Andrews have discovered a scientific formula for cuteness, the Scottish Daily Mail reported.

Researchers asked 90 adults to rate the cuteness of 200 infants. Using software to identify consistent features in the cutest 20, they found the requirements were: chubby cheeks, a small chin, undersized nose, large eyes, and a rosy complexion.

The formula also applies to adult faces.

Professor David Perrett, of the university’s School of Psychology and Neuroscience, said: “Cuteness can evoke both emotions of pleasure and care in humans, so we were keen to discover exactly what makes a person cute.”

The vital research was commissioned to mark the launch of a range of greetings cards.

Nematodes fed with a-ketoglutarate survived up to ■ Seeing requires ears,

according to a new study reported in The Herald.

University of Glasgow scientists found the visual cortex uses information from the ears as well as the eyes when viewing the world.

Professor Lars Muckli, who led the study, said: “Sounds create visual imagery, mental images, and automatic projections.”

70%

longer than normal. The diet supplement ingredient helps cells extract energy from food, and scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles, hope their work will have implications for humans.

SPACE IS THE FINAL FRONTIER FOR VEGETABLES ■ Garden design students inspired by NASA have created a biodome, which they say will let a legume “boldly go where no legume has gone before”.

The astrogarden, designed by seven undergraduates at Scotland’s Rural College, envisages a self-contained life support system using hi-tech gadgetry to cultivate crops without soil, Scotland on Sunday reported.

Scientists believe the Moon

could support plants if air, water, light and fertiliser were provided.

The designers chose peas, cabbages, pumpkin, sweetcorn, beetroot and peppers as specimens that provide nutrients essential for human survival.

Project leader Donald Ferguson (left), who conceived the idea, said: “Men and women have long since gazed at the stars, but now we have ventured into space and are planning to take our vegetables with us.”

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

20 l

LETTERS TO THE EDITORS Travellers are not the victims

best of the week

Hobson’s choice ■ In the lead-up to our referendum, we Scots still have many unanswered questions.

The only answered one is why David Cameron agreed to this in the first place – to get rid of 40plus Scottish Labour MPs in Westminster to clear his path to power in England.

Even if Salmond gets his Yes vote, he is still clinging to two millstones round Scottish necks: the Bank of England’s pound and signing us up to membership of the European Union.

The former still ties us to England, the City of London financial oligarchy and their bosses on Wall Street. The EU candle is flickering in the winds of change, and is a dangerous place for such a new bleating lamb.

Therefore our two fish, Salmon(d) and Sturgeon, it seems, have Hobson’s Choice of frying pan or fire.

■ To describe travellers as an “ethnic group” is nonsense.

There are very few, if any, pure Romanies.

Motorists may be required to provide to the police a valid driving licence, certificate of insurance, proof of payment of road tax and MoT inspection.

Parents are required by law to send their children to school and workers are required to surrender details of their earnings to the tender mercies of HMRC. Should the above measures be applied to travellers, the immediate squeal is “discrimination”. It strikes me that it is the rest of us who are being discriminated against if these people are exempt from the rules which govern the rest of us. It seems they are also protected from charges of criminal damage, loitering and trespass.

Trevor J. Alcott, Crimond The Press and Journal

Bad apples at the BBC ■ I read that John Inverdale had allegedly been axed from the BBC’s Wimbledon coverage because of his sexist remarks about Marion Bartoli last year.

It seems he will be replaced

by Clare Balding. Isn’t she the one who presented a prize to a young jockey and told him he could now get his teeth fixed?

Ronald Rankin, Dalkeith Scottish Daily Mail the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

It seems to be the BBC have simply replaced one bad apple with another.

E. Campbell, Glasgow The Scottish Sun

Great for Danes in Europe ■ While talking to a work colleague who hails from Denmark, I was surprised to learn that they have 13 MEPs for a country with about the same population as Scotland while we only have six.

Is the difference due to their nation status as opposed to ours as a region of the UK allocated numbers from Westminster? Just wondering.

Robin Ian McEwan, Edinburgh The Scotsman

Forgotten hero of D-Day ■ In the run-up to June 6, 1944, a Scottish meteorologist, Group Captain James Stagg, had been brought in to advise General Eisenhower on when to give the order to send thousands of waiting troops across the Channel in Operation Overlord.

Eisenhower’s American meteorologist considered that a ‘high’ over the Azores would be above the Channel on June 5 but Stagg disagreed citing storms in the North Atlantic.

Typically for UK weather the storm hit suddenly and Stagg was vindicated – but by taking

very detailed readings he identified a ‘window’ on June 6.

Had it not been for his accurate forecasting, the operation would have gone ahead on June 5 and many vessels would have been lost before they even landed.

Air cover would have been impossible. This would have changed the outcome of the D-Day landings.

Ms A Lagden, Livingston Scottish Daily Mail

Trams must not stop here ■ It is great to see the trams on Edinburgh’s streets, not just because it brings to an end the disruption to people and businesses but also because it opens a new chapter for the city in the first time in decades.

However stopping here would mean foregoing the real gains that should be the prize from the pain of recent years; increased property prices and transport options and far more flexibility to regenerate areas where development has stalled Cities know that networks, not single lines, are the answer.

Just take a look at Dublin, which has kept going with its tram expansion despite the hige financial challenges faced

by Ireland in recent years.

Nathan Goode, Edinburgh The Scotsman

that’s debatable ■ Apart from the Treasury’s estimates of the costs of independence being wildly overstated, Danny Alexander claims that one of the advantages of the “Union dividend” is the UK’s “deep pockets”. These, he says enable the sharing of risk.

Sadly, those pockets have very big holes in them, to the extent of a UK national debt of £1.2 trillion and growing.

When it comes to sharing risk the question is this: Is it better for Scotland, with its trade surplus, its balanced budget and its wealth of natural resources to pool our wealth with (subsidise) a country on the brink of insolvency, or, like prosperous Norway, to conserve our wealth and invest it in a prosperous future for our own nation?

Only a yes vote will guarantee the latter.

■ While agreeing that Danny Alexander’s and the Scottish Government’s contrasting views on the implications of a yes vote bring more heat than light to the debate, we are inching closer to determining the economic costs of independence.

The Scottish Government’s newest forecast is that Scotland’s deficit in 2016/17 would be higher than the UK despite its inclusion of a reduced but still optimistic oil revenue forecast. Apparently we are to accept the Scottish Government’s assertions that productivity, employment and immigration could be increased to bridge the gap between income and public spending.

The weasel word here is “could”. What the Scottish public deserve is to see more of how this might be achieved.

Roy Pedersen, Inverness The Press and Journal

Alan Ramage, Edinburgh The Herald Letters have been edited

l 21

THE WEE PAPERS

A taste of...

Dunfermline Press

‘Crush hour’ call ■ Campaign group Fairness for Fife Commuters has called for more train carriages, particularly at ‘crush hour’ on the Edinburgh-Fife service.

Inverkeithing councillor Gavin Yates said matters would worsen “if nothing is done”. ScotRail said it had a finite supply of trains and had to balance travellers’ needs across Scotland.

E.coli outbreak

SPORT Pars go plastic ■ Dunfermline Athletic will tear up their grass pitch and replace it with an artificial surface for season 201516, the Press’s Ross Hart reported.

Going plastic could cost £300,000, but the football club believes significant revenue would be earned by hiring out the pitch for use by the community.

Karen ‘cock-a-hoop’ ■ A ‘cock-a-hoop’ Dunfermline mum-of-three has helped her basketball club to take a Lothian League and Cup double.

Mum-of-three Karen Roberts (38) expressed delight at the City of Edinburgh Basketball Club’s senior women – the ‘Kool Kats’ – winning the league for the first time.

■ An Indian restaurant in Dunfermline has been linked to 13 confirmed and eight suspected cases of bacterial disease E.coli.

A spokesperson for Khushi’s said the restaurant had always complied with stringent hygiene checks by health officials.

Staff had worked closely with the local environmental health office in resolving the matter.

Radiation warning ■ New signs at Dalgety Bay will warn children of the dangers of digging in radioactive sand.

Radiation contaminated items surfaced at the beach after wartime planes

were broken and dumped in the area more than 50 years ago. Area MP Gordon Brown has called for regular cancer checks and a clean-up.

‘Puffers’ hounded ■ NHS Fife has employed a warden to stop smokers clogging up entrances and creating palls of smoke at Kirkcaldy’s Victoria Hospital.

The warden will ask smokers to stop and keep records of how many are caught. The

Scottish Government wants all hospital grounds smoke-free by early next year.

Duck’s faulty sat nav ■ A mother duck and her four ducklings were found wandering about lost in the residential streets of Garvock Hill, Dunfermline.

Local resident Arthur Allan told the Press: “The mother duck must have left her map back in the nest.” An SSPCA officer later took the fluffy family to Lochgelly Loch.

The big story Dead man billed for taxi ■ A dead man has been sent a £25 bill for a taxi that took him home from hospital in his nightclothes in the middle of the night, shortly before he died.

Mrs Wendy Aitken, widow of former councillor Kenneth Graeme Aitken – who was blind – told the Press’s Gary Fitzpatrick: “It was dreadful the way my husband died.

That should never have happened and then to get this letter addressed to him is unbelievable.”

In March, Mr Aitken (66) was rushed to the Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy, with chest pains.

Four hours later, at around 4am, he was discharged with a packet of paracetemol.

After the taxi left him outside his house in Rosyth, Mrs Aitken found him clinging to a hedge and shouting for help. An ambulance returned him to hospital, where he died the next day.

NHS Fife said it deeply regretted sending the taxi bill and is investigating Mr Aitken’s treatment.

EVENING ALL Edinburgh Evening News

Evening Express

Evening Times

Greenock Telegraph

Evening Telegraph

■ The capital’s pupils

■ Firefighters rescued a nurse and her dog from a top-floor flat after a blaze took hold in a property below.

Four fire engines attended the scene, where Rachel Elder (23) struggled for breath at her window.

The fire began in an empty property on the ground floor of the flats in Old Aberdeen.

■ Drugs are being

■ Gambling addicts have

are bucking the country’s couch potato trend, after schools hit Scottish Government targets.

All but one city secondary school provided every S1-4 pupil with two periods of ‘quality’ PE per week. In primaries, 95% of pupils had two hours of PE weekly.

■ A Dundee woman made

smuggled to prisoners inside Kinder Surprise eggs thrown over the wall of Glasgow’s Barlinnie Prison.

Sources told the Times the deliveries were made during exercise periods when inmates were in the prison yard. The drugs are hidden in capsules that usually hold toys.

been invited to address Inverclyde school pupils about the dangers of betting machines.

SNP MSP Stuart McMillan’s initiative was welcomed by Inverclyde Council, which said it shared his concerns about fixed odds betting terminals. The special talks begin in August.

fraudulent benefits claims worth nearly £80,000, after failing to inform authorities she was living with a man.

Jacqueline Low (53) made the income support and housing benefit claims over an eight-year period.

She admitted the fraud at Dundee Sheriff Court, where sentence was deferred for reports.

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VIEW POINTS: THE BEST OF THE REST

NEWS BLOGS Moral authority over nukes undermined

By Dom ❘ Better Nation The decision to award the franchise for the Caledonian Sleeper to Serco disappointed Dom on Better Nation. He said the SNP has gained much support for its stance on removing nuclear weapons from Scotland but said Serco also holds valuable contracts for the maintenance of the UK’s nuclear fleet. He said: “The link between a lucrative contract for the Caledonian Sleeper and Serco’s nuclear and defence work...makes the SNP hardline on public services and moral superiority look a little weaker.”

■ Some of the members of the St Andrews Streakers practiced their start ahead of the Chariots of Fire 5k race.

■ The first paying passengers waited patiently as Edinburgh’s trams went into service. The first trip went from the Gyle Shopping Centre.

www.betternation.org

Scotland a plaything for the one per cent

By Alex Bell ❘ Scottish Review There is unlikely to be any meaningful land reform in Scotland, despite a new review recommending limits to how much one private landowner can own, wrote Alex Bell on Scottish Review. Bell, a former advisor to Alex Salmond, said “every community should be allowed to purchase nearby land for housing young families”. He said other countries limit the amount of land sold to foreigners and it is time for politicians to get serious about land reform as “it is the easiest way to signal the Scotland we could build”.

■ Two dolphins in the Moray Firth got into World Cup mood by playing keepie-uppie with a jellyfish.

www.scottishreview.net

Narrow focus damaging Yes campaign

By Andy Maciver ❘ Wealthy Nation The SNP used to be known as the Tartan Tories but Andy Maciver, a former spin doctor with the Scottish Conservatives, said the Yes campaign has missed a trick by not appealing to right-of-centre voters in the independence debate. He said the campaign “has been utterly dominated by narrow left-wing thinking” and by failing to “understand there is no such thing as a stereotypical nationalist” they have ignored many potential voters. www.wealthynation.org

Sturgeon to lead 2016 campaign

By Paul Hutcheon ❘ Politics, Journalism, etc Speculating on Alex Salmond’s future after the referendum, Paul Hutcheon said one Holyrood source claims Mr Salmond would resign immediately after a No vote, but that Nicola Sturgeon will lead the SNP into the 2016 Holyrood elections, whatever the result. www.paulhutcheon.blogspot.co.uk the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

■ Singer Susan Boyle certainly enjoyed the company in her role as chieftain at the West Lothian Highland Games.

■ Soldiers from the Royal Regiment of Scotland train on land at Dreghorn earmarked for a memorial to Scotland’s World War One heroes.

NEWS TWEETS #BBC You will seriously regret if you don’t flick your way through #bbcbias tweets. The plot has been lost.

The best thing about #bbcbias protest is that they’re now upset that the BBC isn’t covering their protest.

If BBC refuse to report a protest of alleged bias by a national broadcaster in Scotland’s largest city, isn’t that bias? #bbcbias #indyref

Rob Shorthouse @Bobbybungalow

Aric Gilinsky @AGilinsky

The Old School @Harrytheshadow

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VIEW POINTS: THE BEST OF THE REST good week Bamse’s bravery A Norwegian ship will dock at Montrose in July to mark the 70th anniversary of the death of Bamse, a Saint Bernard dog who saved the lives of two Norwegian sailors during World War One. Bamse saved a young lieutenant commander who had been attacked by a man wielding a knife by pushing the assailant into the sea, and also dragged back to shore a sailor who had fallen overboard.

Tram takes flight More than 40,000 tickets were sold over the opening weekend of the new tram route in Edinburgh.

■ Our word cloud amalgamates all the week’s news from the Scottish papers, with greatest prominence given to the most frequently used words.

bad week

Hansen set to swap punditry for the paso doble?

GOSSIP OF THE WEEK

Council split Dumfries and Galloway Council was thrown into disarray after the SNP group quit the coaltion administration.

The SNP cited “serious concerns” over the location of a learning hub, although Labour claimed the SNP had “reneged” on its position on the issue”.

Awards get hairy The organiser of the Scottish Hair and Beauty Awards in Glasgow has quit her job after the evening descended into carnage.

Ruthanne Reid headbutted a guest at the Glasgow event.

Big Yin spins the yarns Academics at St Andrews University will star alongside Scots comedian Billy Connolly in an animated retelling of Scots fables.

The Big Yin, most recently seen in a programme exploring death, will read popular stories through a mobile app and on a TV show with Dr Ian Johnson and Dr Chris James from the Fife university.

Former Match of the Day analyst Alan Hansen is being lined up for the new series of Strictly Come Dancing, reported Sarah Deen in the Metro.

The paper, which also linked ex-Eastenders hard man Ross Kemp with the show, said Hansen’s “forthright views” might be “just the ticket” to get him on Strictly.

Friendship Laid in Leeds The Independent’s Adam Jacques revealed an unlikely friendship between Scotland boss Gordon Strachan and Tim Booth, the lead singer of indie band James.

The paper told how Strachan invited Leeds fan Booth and his bandmates to a game when he was playing at Elland Road

– this after Booth left some signed copies of his album Laid for the team – and the pair struck up a rapport.

“When I was having a lousy time at Middlesbrough [in 2010], I drove away listening to James’s greatest hits,” Strachan said.

“I got sacked on Monday, but that night, I felt better.”

I sipped a Tennent’s... and I liked it US singer Katy Perry liked the taste of Tennent’s Lager so much on her recent tour of Scotland that she ordered crates of it to be sent to her studios in Los Angeles.

According to the Daily Record, Tennent’s revealed they received a request for 10 cases to be sent to Liz Hudson, via Katy’s LA record label address in Hollywood.

Katy’s real name is Katherine Elizabeth Hudson.

“If you hate the BBC, clap your hands.”

This wasn’t a protest against bias. It was bams out for a fight.

If you don’t think a bunch of government supporters trying to howl down the media is sinister s**t, then you’re an idiot. #bbcbias

BBC Scotland have sacked hard-working @BBCGaryR 2 save money while importing bigger names fm London.

Ridiculous. Needs to be stopped.

BBC Scotland have ended Scotland at Ten, Newsweek, Headlines and Newsnicht in last couple of years.

Ditching Gary Robertson fits MO.

#BBCbias march...

Funny yes but mainly just embarrassing.

Roll on September to get this bloody neverendum over with!

Duncan Hothersall @dhothersall

Euan McColm @euanmccolm

Lesley Riddoch @LesleyRiddoch

Jonathan Mackie @MackieJonathan

Taylor James Scott @TaylorJamesScot 7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

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Stooshie of the week

aye or ay ❘ eye ❘ 1. means yes.

Usage: “Aye, I’ll be there.”

■ When Brazil kick off the World Cup against Croatia on Thursday it should herald a month-long celebration of the beautiful game.

Sadly, in this footballobsessed little nation of ours, it will usher in a storm of petty, small-minded xenophobia directed towards the England team and the media south of the border.

Yes, the England-hating brigade will be in full cry, and pity help anybody who tries to stand in their way.

Expect the usual stories about “Anyone but England” T-shirts selling like hotcakes, and tartan hordes descending on sports shops like locusts to snap up strips of any of England’s opponents.

In 1986 shops sold out of replica Argentina tops before England’s infamous “Hand of God” clash with Diego Maradona’s Argentina.

Did these people ever stop to consider that they were supporting a nation we had been at war with just four years earlier, a war in which many Scottish servicemen lost their lives?

Then there are those who say they have nothing against the England team per se, it’s just that they can’t stand the media.

Any hint of pro-English bias from TV pundits will be

seized on by the blinkered brigade, who say that because Gary Lineker and Co are broadcasting to a national audience they should remain neutral.

Are they serious? Do they really think that TV football experts, many of whom played for England, should pretend they don’t want them to win just to satisfy the prejudices of a few chippy Scots?

Speaking as a life-long Scotland supporter, who was one of the thousands on the pitch at Wembley after the famous 1977 2-1 win, nothing makes me more ashamed of my countrymen than our smallminded, chip-on-the-shoulder attitude towards England.

For the next month or so, English fans living or working in Scotland will be well advised to watch the games at home. If they are brave, or foolhardy, enough to go to the pub they may find the atmosphere hostile and intimidating. And pity help them if they dare to wear an England top.

We all have English friends and colleagues, even family, with whom we get on perfectly well. So, just for once, why don’t we put away our outdated prejudices and do the decent thing.

Come On England!

AS ITHERS SEE US!

O wad some Power the giftie gie us To see oursels as ithers see us!

To a Louse ❘ Robert Burns growing alienation between First Saudi Arabia’s British military and civilian life Arab News focused in the wake of interventions in on UK Armed Forces day, the Afghanistan and Iraq. main event of which will take “A Scot himself, Brown is place in Stirling on June 28. campaigning for Scotland to The paper said that the remain part of the UK. If his annual event “had been fellow countrymen choose established by the former UK independence, the political Prime Minister Gordon Brown establishments of England in response to worries about the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

SAUDI ARABIA

and Scotland will face braincudgelling challenges – not least whether a sovereign Scotland is to make its own defence arrangements.

“With the United Kingdom Independence Party pressing hard for a referendum on British membership of the EU, the possibility looms that

before long Scotland could be out of the UK and the UK out of Europe.

“The nomination of Stirling as the venue for the 2014 Armed Forces Day is plainly calculated in London to rekindle Scottish pride in belonging to the UK.” The paper stated that the British, and Scottish people have always supported the armed forces.

“What has perhaps obscured popular fervor for the armed forces in recent years is the widespread belief that the British military interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq ought never to have taken place.”

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Stooshie of the week

Time to back the Auld Enemy in Brazil?

Should we support the only home nation to qualify at the World Cup?

The Ottowa Citizen’s David Arminas said a Yes vote in September’s referendum could also usher in a renaissance for Scotland’s Gaelic language.

Unlike in Quebec, he continued, language rights have not been central to the independence movement in Scotland.

However, although Gaelic has been in decline for half a century, and now has only 58,000 speakers, a reversal could be in the offing, Thanks to the Scottish Parliament’s Gaelic Language Act 2005, Gaelic has “official recognition”. The act tasked

the Bòrd na Gàidhlig – Gaelic Language Board – with “securing the status of the Gaelic language as an official language of Scotland commanding equal respect to the English language”.

However, unlike in Canada, Government authorities are not bound legally to offer services in Gaelic or Scots.

Past UK census figures have shown a progressive loss of Gaelic speakers.

Between 1991 and 2001, the drop was 11% to 59,000.

However, the 2011 census showed the decline had slowed to 1.2%.

That was grounds for

naw

❘ naw ❘

1. means no or not.

Usage: “Naw, I can’t make it to the game.”

■ We tend not to mention him much these days but let’s take a second to remember Tim Henman.

Remember Tiger Tim? That tennis player from a time before Andy Murray?

He was the physical embodiment of the Home Counties, always the bridesmaid but never the bride at major championships.

Well, like most Scots, I rooted for young Mr Henman whenever he was on court.

A gifted serve-and-volleyer whose career just happened to coincide with two of the greatest grass court players of all time, that final hurdle was always just too high.

But he never gave up, never complained, in public at least, that the demise of the seemingly invincible Pete Sampras was swiftly eclipsed by the emergence of the ludicrously gifted Roger Federer. Most memorably, he somehow won through to the semi-finals of the French Open, where no-one serves and volleys, the sort of freak run that speaks volumes about his guts.

And that is why when it comes to the World Cup England win so few friends north of the border.

They, or perhaps commentators, never consider

themselves the underdog and that simply makes them impossible to support.

Obviously, as Scots we take perverse pride in losing to supposedly lesser teams and occasionally embarrassing the big guns, so when England swagger into matches fully expecting to win our allegiance always switches to the team they are up against.

As neutrals watching the World Cup, are we really going to find ourselves drawn to a bland team made of millionaires which, let’s face it, already believes they have one foot in the second round or are we going to root for something a little more inspirational?

Whether it is the unfettered joy of Brazil in full flight or Andrea Pirlo creaking around the Italian midfield, there will be far more interesting stories at the World Cup. Watching a mediocre England team reach the knock-out stages before getting dumped out of the competition by the first contender they meet is hardly going to set pulses racing in comparison.

The expectations placed on English players must be huge but a little more humility would certainly improve their standing in Scottish eyes. We may not support them, but we could respect them.

“guarded optimism”, said Toronto-born Robert Dunbar, chair of Celtic Languages at the University of Edinburgh.

“It amounts to a stop in the decline,” says Dunbar.

I wanted him to be Scottish, sort of old world as the king.

“There’s a sound in the Scottish accent of real royalty and majesty where the guy from South London wouldn’t sound as good as the king!”

The South African star of new film Maleficent adopted a Scottish accent because he wanted his character, a king, to sound as regal as possible.

US website contactmusic. com reported that Shartlo Copley, who plays King Stefan in the new movie, said: “Choosing the accent was the first and most important part of the character. I knew

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REVIEW & Preview

STAGE

Nederlands Dans Theater 2 EDINBURGH FESTIVAL THEATRE Run ended ■ On the only UK date for their current tour, Nederlands Dans Theater delivered a selection of pieces both old and new (from 2003’s Shutters Shut to last year’s Sara), with a soundtrack provided by works from Van Morrison and Philip Glass.

Whisky Kisses PITLOCHRY FESTIVAL THEATRE Until October 18 ■ Having been worked on for the best part of a decade, musical Whisky Kisses launched the 2014 season at Pitlochry Festival Theatre. Set around a Speyside distillery, its owner is trying to find a way to save the business’ skin: perhaps selling off the last bottle of the beautifully named, ancient Glenigma is the last resort? But will the potential buyers stick to their hard-nosed guns or can they be swayed by the romance of both the drink and the people to leave well alone?

In The Herald, Neil Cooper was smitten: “In this rollicking musical play, the malt becomes a symbol both of the absurdities of global capitalism and of the life-force of a rural community struggling for economic survival.”

Allan Radcliffe in The Times welcomed the show being “comfortingly familiar in its story of city slickers losing their hearts and rethinking their values in rural Scotland”, but The Scotsman’s Joyce McMillan sounded a more cautionary note. “The show often seems confused about the message it’s trying to send, collapsing into an embarrassing parade of couthy Highland stereotypes one minute, then the next coming up with a song that sharply challenges kitsch-filled tourist images of the Highlands,” she wrote.

Blackout Reviewed ASSEMBLY ROXY, EDINBURGH At Cottiers, Glasgow to June 10 ■ New Room Theatre have concocted a stark and powerful piece about alcoholism, performed by five actors including the work’s writer, Mark Jeary. The play is based on interviews with recovering

EXHIBITIONS A Capital View CITY ART CENTRE, EDINBURGH Until July 6 ■ Edinburgh has been a focal point for artists to gather through the centuries, but what of art about the city itself? In A Capital View, we see painterly representations of Craigleith Quarry, Princes the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

While admitting to being a longstanding fan of the company influential European dance group, The Scotsman’s Kelly Apter felt a little disappointed by the overall quality of this offering. She did admit that “the highlight was worth the ticket price on its own. Sol León and Paul Lightfoot’s Postscript is a 25-minute reminder of the power of great art.

“Everything works – the live music, the choreography, the design and the flawless execution of technicallydemanding material.”

Writing in The Herald, Mary Brennan was certainly taken with everything on show here, but agreed that León and Lightfoot’s work was also “the icing on the cake, showcasing the tremendous poise, precision and technical aplomb of the company”. alcoholics going from the happy times of first drinks to the hell-like journey of dependency and violence that it takes some people on.

Jeary’s skill is tying together these various tales into one whole work.

For The Scotsman, Mark Fisher wrote: “In place of conventional dramatic interaction, they keep the actors moving in tightlychoreographed patterns while maintaining the focus on the words. It makes for a lively, if sobering, evening.”

At the All Edinburgh Theatre website, Susan Lowes enthused: “The production leaves a feeling of hope: hope for a better life; hope that alcoholism does not inevitably mean a shorter or a wasted life.”

Street and Arthur’s Seat, among others.

Duncan MacMillan in The Scotsman was hugely impressed, stating, “the diversity of the pictures here reflects a vivid sense of the city as a living organism, from gracious streets to clarty corners, from glittering assemblies to rumbustious street fairs”.

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REVIEW & Preview FILM

Maleficent (PG)

the fore in playing the mean fairy from the Sleeping Beauty Starring: Angelina Jolie, Elle story with Elle Fanning as Fanning, Sharlto Copley a girl cursed at birth by the ■ It’s de rigueur these days for malevolent Maleficent. us to find out why archetypal Alistair Harkness in The fictional figures became the Scotsman concluded that “an people we first encountered ability to merge the fantastical on screen (the various X-Men with the dramatic is what’s origins movies, the Wicked stage missing”. Siobhan Synnot in musical) and this is the thrust behind the less than magnificent Scotland on Sunday was also Maleficent. Angelina Jolie brings fulsome in her praise of its star presence: “this film is a beauty, some striking cheekbones to but whenever Jolie is offscreen, it is also a snooze”.

In The Herald, Alison Rowat felt this film was quite the mixed bag: “The piece certainly looks magnificent; the pace is frustratingly sluggish to start with, though, leaving Jolie and Fanning to give the tale its oomph with their sparring. A nicely old-fashioned fairy tale, nevertheless.”

Average rating 5/10

Edge Of Tomorrow (12A) Starring: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Brendan Gleeson ■ Another summer and another sci-fi blockbuster starring Tom Cruise. Ho hum, you might think. But the critics are in raptures over Edge Of Tomorrow, in which Cruise plays a timid soldier trying to help protect Earth from seriously scary aliens. When he appears to die in battle, he awakens the day before his demise and on realising he’s trapped in a time loop, help arrives from a fellow warrior (Blunt) as they attempt to make ‘tomorrow’ a better day.

In The Scotsman, Alistair Harkness wrote that “what could easily have been another ‘game over’ message for originality in the multiplex is instead, quite unexpectedly, a sign of renewal”, while in The List, Matthew Turner believed that “the clever structure is augmented by some terrific editing work that credits the audience with the intelligence to keep track of the story through the repeated resets”.

There’s much praise too for director Doug Liman. Alison Rowat in The Herald wrote that “with a script that keeps the synapses firing on all cylinders, Liman’s picture has the edge over every other blockbuster currently on offer”, and for The Skinny, Josh Slater-Williams stated that “Liman handles his high concept conceit with some particularly dynamic visual touches, while Cruise and Blunt bring energy to their roles”.

Venus In Fur (15) Starring: Emmanuelle Seigner, Mathieu Amalric ■ A new Roman Polanski movie was once the cause of much excitement within cineaste circles but these days, his films barely cause a ripple of intrigue. Still, this small-scale affair about an actress auditioning for a theatre

Average rating 8/10

Moyna Flannigan: Stare GALLERY OF MODERN ART, GLASGOW Until November 2 ■ Dunbar-based Flannigan’s contribution to Generation has the female figure at the centre with an un-portrait like series of paintings (right).

Jan Patience in The Herald concluded that, “this is a

director has its admirers. In The List, Emma Simmonds reckoned that “by expertly embellishing the theatrical, Polanski has made Venus In Fur thrillingly cinematic”.

On the more negative side of the equation, Alison Rowat at The Herald opined: “It would be easier to take the argument about female empowerment more seriously, however, if Seigner didn’t spend most of the movie in her skimpies.”

Least impressed of them all is The Scotsman’s Alistair Harkness: “Roman Polanski has a tendency to rub our faces in his dubious past and he does so again with this theatrical two-hander about the shifting power plays that erupt between an actress and a director.”

Average rating 6/10 small exhibition which packs a punch. I urge you to visit it and take some time to stand and Stare.”

ECA Degree Show EDINBURGH COLLEGE OF ART Run ended ■ This year’s ECA graduates get a thumbs-up with

Scotland on Sunday’s Duncan McMillan stating that: “Edinburgh College of Art and Edinburgh University have now been merged for several years. So far, reports from both sides are good.”

And in The Skinny, Kate Andrews noted that “you will appreciate the feat bravely faced by the graduating students at ECA”.

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REVIEW & preview

Worth catching…

THIS WEEK

A great Irish actor gets his hands dirty as a Dublin pathologist while Scotland celebrates a lunchtime theatrical experience. Plus, we enjoy a Fifer’s crime caper.

SCOTS on the box

TV: Quirke

BBC1 ❘ Sundays 9pm ■ Gabriel Byrne is one of our most popular actors (Miller’s Crossing and In Treatment anyone?) but has shown up in his fair share of not-great productions. The threepart Quirke, in which he plays a 1950s Dublin pathologist struggling with his difficult past and alcoholic present ends its mini-run here and unfortunately winds up on the wrong side of the balance sheet.

In The Sunday Herald, Damien Love is bemused as to why this drama hasn’t been better: “It’s not Byrne’s fault. He’s good to go, and glides through, even as the programme collapses under the weight of the stilted dialogue, claustrophobically unconvincing dress-up-box period reconstruction, sledgehammer music and sheer bad acting that surrounds him.” And for The List, Brian Donaldson was similarly scathing: “It takes quite an effort to make child trafficking and back-street abortions tedious television, but homburg hats off to the makers for achieving it.”

A Play, A Pie And A Pint: Scotland’s Theatre Revolution BBC Two Scotland, Friday June 13, 10pm ■ Now 10 years young, A Play, A Pie And A Pint has triggered a quiet revolution in Scottish theatre. A rather delightful concept (a veggie option is available and you can have a glass of wine if you prefer), the man with this plan is producer David MacLennan. A longstanding pioneer of Scottish theatre via 7:84 and Wildcat, he ushered in this fresh idea through the doors of renovated former church Òran Mór in the West End of Glasgow (Edinburgh has now got a taste of the PPP action with shows at the Traverse Theatre).

As well as offering a chance for established writers to get their wares on daytime stages, A Play, A Pie And A Pint has been a godsend to aspiring dramaturgs and the phenomenal global outreach means that work premiered at Òran Mór have visited everywhere from Beirut to Bermuda and Newcastle to New York. Among the starry people paying tribute in this documentary to MacLennan and his project are Robbie Coltrane, David Hayman, Liz Lochhead and Bill Paterson.

RADIO: 15 Minute Drama – Deadheading

Bryan Burnett GET IT ON

Radio 4, Monday June 9, 10.45am

BBC Scotland’s request show picked songs with a referendum feel in their titles

■ Fife crime writer Val McDermid turns to comedy as we learn of murder on an allotment starring Miriam Margolyes and Julie Hesmondhalgh. DCI Alma Blair and crime scene manager Jo Blake might be rivals on the job but there’s also an unspoken mutual admiration that might get in the way.

RADIO: Paper Cuts Radio 2, Wednesday June 11, 10.30pm ■ Concluding the following night, this two-part interview has Kate Thornton chatting to Jennifer Saunders. The creator of Ab Fab discusses her childhood and meeting future husband Ade Edmondson and longstanding partner Dawn French on the early alternative comedy circuit.

the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

Al Green

Fleetwood Mac

Strawbs

Donna Summer

Fern Kinney

McAlmont And Butler

Engelbert Humperdinck

Queen

Let’s Stay Together State Of Independence

Release Me

Go Your Own Way Together We Are Beautiful I Want To Break Free

Part Of The Union

Yes

Jack Johnson

Better Together

■ Get It On ❘ Weekdays at 6.10pm

Louise White morning call The following questions were asked on BBC Scotland’s weekday Morning Call programme ■ Do you welcome charges for plastic bags?

■ Has society become more racist?

■ How easy is it for disabled fans to watch sport?

■ Why are kids still eating ‘beyond the school gates’?

■ Are new mothers discharged from hospital too quickly?

■ Morning call ❘ Weekdays at 8.50am

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REVIEW & preview

The best of this week’s books

SCOTTISH BESTSELLERS

A biography of the daughter of international socialism’s chief architect gets top Marx.

Meanwhile spies, cops and an assassinated archduke all make the cut.

HARD BACK

RECOMMENDED

1. The Sex Lives Of Siamese Twins

Eleanor Marx

2. Fighting Spirit

by Irvine Welsh

by Rachel Holmes

by Fernando Ricksen with Vincent De Vries

■ Karl Marx’s youngest daughter is the subject of this biography from cultural historian Rachel Holmes. Eleanor emerged from the long shadow cast by her father to carve out her own career as a passionate political activist and strident campaigner on social issues. She was also involved in the arts, producing the first English translation of “Madame Bovary”. But the relationships she enjoyed with men were not so successful.

Jonathan Wright in The Sunday Herald implored us: “Please read this book. It takes you to a time when hastily written pamphlets had an outside chance of changing the world; a time when the Reading Room of the British Museum was one of the hubs of the intellectual universe.” Writing in Scotland on Sunday, Lesley McDowell was warm in her praise of “this lively, informal and engaging account of the life of Marx’s youngest daughter”.

3. The Last Refuge

by Craig Robertson

4. Where Memories Go

by Sally Magnusson

5. 50 People Who Screwed Up Scotland

by Allan Brown

6. The Legacy Of Elizabeth Pringle

by Kirsty Wark

7. Hebrides

by Peter May and David Wilson

8. Och Wheesht And Get Oan Wae It

by Lewis Dawson (editor)

No Place To Hide

The Trigger

by Glenn Greenwald

by Tim Butcher

■ The Edward Snowden affair has shaken up our views of the spying game beyond recognition and Greenwald was the man on the ground following it from the start.

Andrew Neather in Scotland on Sunday wrote of No Place To Hide: “Greenwald is a former litigator, and it shows: there is no nuance or trace of humour in his writing. Everything is black and white: you either agree with him completely or you are an instrument of the surveillance state.”

■ Working on the basis that many people know the assassination of Franz Ferdinand sparked WW1, while less are aware of the full story surrounding that murder, Butcher has written a vital text. Mark Smith in The Herald wrote that “The Trigger” is an “elegant, horrifying and enlightening book; a book which is not only a good piece of detective work, it is the finest contribution so far this year to the rapidly expanding literature on the Great War”.

Doubling Back

by Linda Cracknell

■ The genre of “new nature writing” continues apace with this book from Perthshire-based short story writer Cracknell.

Subtitled “Ten Paths Trodden In Memory”, it features walks along ancient footpaths, musing on her and others’ relationship with the surrounding landscape.

Roger Cox, writing in Scotland on Sunday, said that “Cracknell is at her most compelling when she moves beyond the premise of her latest adventure and starts creating a fresh narrative of her own”.

LOOK OUT FOR...

■ On June 14, actor Tam Dean Burn (right) will get on his bike as he crosses Scotland to read all 195 of Julia Donaldson’s books to children. Part of the Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme, Burn will follow the Queen’s Baton Relay (QBR), finishing his heroic endeavour on August 3.

■ Beating off stiff competition from the likes of Robert Burns and Robert Louis Stevenson, Ian Rankin has been voted Scotland’s favourite author in a poll commissioned by Explore Learning in Scotland.

The illustrious top five was completed by Arthur Conan Doyle and Iain Banks.

9. The Great Tapestry Of Scotland

by Alistair Moffat and Andrew Crummy

10. Blue Thunder

by Jeff Holmes

PAPER BACK 1. Extraordinary People

by Peter May

2. There Was A Wee Lassie Who Swallowed A Midgie

by Rebecca Colby & Kate McLelland

3. Hour Of Darkness

by Quintin Jardine

4. Saints Of The Shadow Bible

by Ian Rankin

5. The Blackhouse

by Peter May

6. The Quarry

by Iain Banks

7. The Chessmen

by Peter May

8. The Bird That Did Not Sing

by Alex Gray

9. Gone Are The Leaves

by Anne Donovan

10. Scottish Independence: Yes Or No

by Alan Cochrane & George Kerevan ■ Lists from Waterstones 7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

30 l CHEF’S CORNER

Martin Hollis Exec. Chef, Old Course Hotel, St Andrews

Fish and shellfish provide fabulous variety and seasonality for Martin, writing in his column for The Courier. He loves cooking with produce that is so local, particularly when it’s so fresh.

Being based between the East Neuk and Angus he’s got plenty to choose from.

Sea trout is perfect just now, he says. It has lovely taste and texture, so needs very little “dressing up”.

One of his favourite recipes is sea trout with crushed fresh peas.

At this time of year, he tells us, wild salmon are firm and bursting with flavour.

Mussels are great at the moment and the aromatics of Thai cooking work particularly well with the catch.

tastiest FOOD & Drink Foodies catered for at Highland Show ■ The Scotland Food & Drink Hall at this Year’s Royal Highland Show (June 19-22) will feature almost 100 companies, plus some of Scotland’s top chefs demonstrating their culinary skills.

One of the main attractions will be the Cookery Theatre, with a four-day rolling programme of more than 30 demonstrations by top chefs, including Roy Brett, Neil Forbes, Paul Wedgewood and David Haetzman.

Royal Highland Show manager, David Jackson, said: “Food and drink production is growing in importance year on year for Scotland and it is encouraging that we have more Scottish producers than ever before. As an event highlighting the whole chain from farm to retail counter, the Royal Highland is a unique food festival and an essential shop window for our great Scottish produce.”

Heritage on department store’s menu ■ John Lewis in Edinburgh will feature special heritage dishes created by Michelinstarred chef Tom Kitchin in its Place to Eat Restaurant to mark the store’s 150th anniversary.

For one month until the end of June, the store will

offer Sheep’s Heid Scotch Broth, Stargazy Fish Pie and Scottish Strawberry Fool.

Cate Devine in The Herald wrote that the three dishes created by the chef “draw on old menus and recipes found in the archives of the National Library of Scotland and date back to the 1860s, when John Lewis first opened its doors”.

Tom Kitchin owns The Kitchin and Castle Terrace restaurants and the Scran and Scallie gastro-pub in Edinburgh. Jane Bradley wrote in The Scotsman that the chef “also consulted a recipe book used by Beatrice Lewis – wife of the store’s founder, John Lewis – and has trained the store’s chefs on how to perfect his recipes”.

Tom Kitchin told The Herald: “Reworking oldfashioned ingredients gives people a little bit of comfort in these changing times, and creates a conversation round the table. The future of cooking definitely lies in the past.”

Tea with a twist ■ One Square in Edinburgh has combined two great afternoon classics to create its Bloom Gin Afternoon Tea, with a gin cocktail plus the usual sandwiches, scones, cakes and pastries wrote Scotland on Sunday.

The new twist on a classic afternoon tea is available from June 1 to August 31. www.onesquareedinburgh. co.uk

WINE OF THE WEEK Chandon Brut NV Argentina (MAJESTIC) Changing perception of South American fizz Most sparkling wines from Chile and Argentina have been disappointing compared to New Zealand, Australian or European fizz, wrote Rose Murray Brown in The Scotsman.

Moet Hennessy hopes to change that perception and Chandon is “designed to appeal to both Prosecco drinkers looking for something different as well as those who buy cheaper Champagnes”.

This “well-made full flavoured fizz” featured “a slight hint of toasty richness with interesting gingerbread and liquorice undertones”. the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

RECIPE of the week

Spanakopita From Lia Baillie, head chef at Papii, Hanover Street, Edinburgh Lia reveals the secrets behind her famous spanakopita, a simple traditional dish that can be eaten hot or cold, for breakfast or lunch, as a starter or a main!

Ingredients (8 portions) ■ A bunch of spring onions ■ 200g feta cheese ■ Three eggs ■ 250g filo pastry ■ Olive oil ■ 750g fresh spinach ■ Salt & pepper Method 1. Preheat your oven to 180°C 2. Wilt the spinach in a pan. Drain in a colander and when cooled press out as much water as possible. Chop the spinach and put into a large mixing bowl.

3. Chop up the spring onions and add it to the spinach. Crumble up the feta cheese and then add to the mix.

Crack the eggs into the mixture and stir everything together with a spoon until combined.

4. Brush a 9x13 pan with olive oil.

Layer half the packet of filo pastry on top of the mixture, again brushing each layer with olive oil.

5. Roll up the edges tightly and brush the top lightly with olive oil.

6. Bake in the oven for about 35-45 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Cool for 10-15 minutes before cutting into eight portions.

7. Best enjoyed with a rocket salad and balsamic vinegar.

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THE BEST RESTAURANT REVIEWS Arisaig House, Arisaig PH39 4NR www.arisaighouse.co.uk ■ Since being taken over by Edinburgh sisters who spent their childhood holidays nearby, Airisaig House has undergone a complete transformation, while at the same time keeping up the grand old hotel’s reputation as one of the finest on the west coast.

The hotel, set “amid one of the best gardens on the west coast”, is nothing short of idyllic, wrote Richard Bath in Scotland on Sunday. While the house has been updated, the most obvious change is the ambience. “Informal and relaxed, it’s more like being in someone’s home.”

The food is local by necessity, with the nearest supermarket over an hour away, and the herbs, vegetables and most of the fruits are grown in the house’s walled garden.

The wild garlic soup was “excellent”, while the reviewer was “blown away” by the mousseline of scallops. Mains of salmon and monkfish in a mussel, lovage and whisky broth and seared venison with spicy beetroot and chive potato cake were also sourced from nearby hills and seas.

Score: 8/10 | Scotland on Sunday

Kim’s Mini Meals

5 Buccleuch St, Edinburgh EH8 9JN www.kimsminimeals.com

Miller & Carter

Cromlix

Deil’s Cauldron

Cramond Brig EH4 6DY

Kinbuck, Stirling FK15 9JT

27 Dundas St, Comrie PH6 2LN

www.millerandcarter.co.uk

www.cromlix.com

www.deilscauldron.co.uk

With its eccentric, talkative management and a mish-mash of decor, “there’s the definite feeling we’ve accidentally wondered into someone’s living room”, wrote Ron Mackenna in The Herald.

But the – decently-sized – Korean dishes served up were enjoyable. The kimbap, Korean sushi, were sweet, crunchy and moreish. The seafood bulgogi was a good choice, but the speciality was the beef bulgogi which “sparkles with bold flavours”, with a yoghurt-like pineapple sauce.

The quirky style of this restaurant works well in Edinburgh.

The US twist at this chain did not really work, but the service was “pandering and jolly”, wrote Gaby Soutar in The Scotsman.

The US influence was evident in starters such as bourbon-glazed belly bites.

As steak is the speciality, she chose a fillet wellington, but the “beefy parcel depreciated in quality from the inside out, with a beautiful rose-coloured piece of meat” followed by “gluey” sauce and “anaemic” pastry.

The onion loaf was “flavourless” but chips were good.

Overall prices were “higher than they need to be”.

The latest in a string of glowing reviews for tennis champion Andy Murray’s hotel restaurant saw Joanna Blythman in the Sunday Herald describe it as “a glittering oasis in a dessert” of eating spots in and around Stirling.

She was impressed with the welcoming and enthusiastic young staff and decided The Chez Roux restaurant serves up “the hallmark Roux virtues” and a graceful leek terrine was “a glowing example of Roux savoir-faire”.

Roast saddle of rabbit was “101% rewarding to eat” and the warm diplomat pudding was better than the tarte au citron.

This delightful restaurant offers high-quality home cooking and a friendly welcome, wrote The Courier – despite its name, which comes from a local beauty spot which legend has it is home to a murderous Brownie.

A starter of kiln-roasted, hot smoked salmon risotto with a parmesan crisp was cooked perfectly and “I would have happily ordered it as a main course”. A main of beef was “pink inside and wonderfully tender, but with a bit of bite”.

The passion fruit meringue for dessert had “an inspired variety of textures” and the cheeseboard boasted a good selection.

Score: 24/30 The Herald

Score:14/20 The Scotsman

Score: 9/10 Sunday Herald

Score: 38/50 The Courier 7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

32 l

PROPERTY

INSIDE OUT – our Pick of the Scottish Market

Bannatyne House, Newtyle, Angus Offers Over: £900,000 Savills ❘ www.savills.com n A stunning 16th century fortified house at Newtyle in Angus, some 10 miles from Dundee and 18 miles from Perth. Bannatyne House sits on the western edge of the village, which has a post office and newsagents, a grocer and butcher, and a primary

school. It is in an enviable rural location, surrounded by beautiful countryside, yet handy for most big Scottish cities.

Bannatyne House was originally a simple three storey tower house which could be defended against marauders. It was built during the first half of the 16th century by one John Bannatyne, who had acquired the lands of Kirkton of Newtyle which later became part of the Barony of Newtyle in Strathmore.

BIG BUDGET

14 Wester Coates Avenue, Edinburgh Offers Over: £1.65m

16 Succoth Avenue, Edinburgh Offers Over: £1.4m

Knight Frank ❘ www.KnightFrank.com

Knight Frank ❘ www.KnightFrank.com

n This is a substantial family home offering spacious and flexible accommodation in a superb location. Extensive living space is combined with well-proportioned bedrooms, a lovely elevated garden, off-street parking as well as a double garage. the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

n The combination of the spacious accommodation, sought after location, remote controlled double garage and fantastic garden make this a very appealing proposition for families looking to move to the area.

PROPERTY

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8 School Wynd Elie, Fife

Lunan House Lunan Bay

Pagan Osborne

Thorntons

Offers over: £369,000

Offers over: £300,000

A most attractive traditional home that has been upgraded to form a three bedroom property.

❘ www.thorntons-property.co.uk

❘ www.paganosborne.com

COAST TO COAST

1 Girvan Road Turnberry

17 Miller Terrace St Monans

Offers Over: £250,000

Pagan Osborne ❘ www.paganosborne.com

❘ www.mcewanfraserlegal.co.uk

McEwan Fraser

This four bedroom property boasts breathtaking views of Ailsa Craig and the ‘Fourth Hole’ at Turnberry.

This large former care home is set within extensive grounds, with a number of potential developments possible.

Offers over: £210,000 This villa is pleasantly located adjacent to a coastal walk and close to St Monans windmill.

CLIMBING THE LADDER

7/3 Darnell Road, Edinburgh Offers Over: £245,000

24 Back Lane, Aberlady Offers Over: £225,000

McEwan Fraser ❘ www.mcewanfraserlegal.co.uk

Coulters ❘ www.coultersproperty.co.uk

n This beautifully presented two bedroom first floor flat comprises a large entrance hall and all rooms off the hall. It also features a bright and spacious lounge with bay window providing adequate space for a dining table and six chairs.

n A stunning and immaculately presented two bedroom cottage in the heart of a very popular East Lothian village. The property has been maintained to a very high standard, has a beautiful rear garden and designated private parking space.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

34 l

the best travel writing

TRAVEL THE WORLD

Chris Higham The Press and Journal

Budapest spa break, Hungary

■ Prices in restaurants, bars and shops make this a cheap city break option, but there is more to the Hungarian capital, wrote Chris Higham in The Press and Journal.

There are a bevy of spa baths and tourists are welcome to join hundreds of Hungarians who flock to City Park to take the spa waters, “savouring the elegant neo-Baroque surroundings of Europe’s largest thermal baths”. The open-air baths are a great place to bask in the 32C spa water, while there are hot medicinal dips and saunas on offer, as well as the chance to play leisurely chess on giant floating boards.

The world-famous Gellert Hotel houses the “once grand, now slightly faded” Art Nouveau baths, which also offers hot baths and saunas, but “this time with a roof on”.

Away from the spas, the medieval Castle District is the place to go for unsurpassed city views as well as the imposing Royal Palace and the 700-yearold St Matthias Cathedral, while Heroes Square is the city’s most impressive, housing two major art galleries.

“Every trip to Budapest should include a visit to the opera,” and with state-subsidised opera houses offering good tickets for as little as £4, “you do not have to be an opera buff to enjoy the music”.

TRAVEL SCOTLAND

TRAVEL BRITAIN

TRAVEL THE WORLD

Malmaison, Dundee

Linden House, Stansted

Callao Salvaje, Tenerife

Janet Christie ❘ Scotland on Sunday

“The Inspector” ❘ Daily Mail

Sally McLean ❘ Daily Record

■ The thing that sets this hotel apart from other boutique hotels is the friendly staff, wrote Janet Christie in Scotland on Sunday.

Staff could not have been kinder after she found her top floor room claustrophobic and was moved to a suite. Chock full of grand statement pieces and views of the rejuvenated waterfront, the hotel also delivered in the dining room, scoring “top marks for freshness, presentation and a skilful combination of flavours”.

■ Helpful staff directed “Mr and Mrs Cranky” to the Linden House Hotel after a sat nav failure and led them to a spotless if rather cluttered room with a huge bathroom.

The hotel, which opened two years ago, “has heart” and is more than an airport hotel. Although the evening meal did not impress with its “bland presentation”, there was a great buzz and a delicious breakfast the next morning.

■ A sunny break was just what was needed to break up a Scottish winter for Sally McLean in the Daily Record.

Tenerife fitted the bill and the small resort of Callao Salvaje, a transfer time of about half-an-hour from Tenerife South Airport and seeming worlds away from the bright lights of Playa Las Americas. In reality, it is just a 20-minute scooter-ride from the island’s most popular resort but perfect for a relaxed getaway.

TRAVEL NEWS Chicago non-stop

United Airlines has launched a nonstop service between Edinburgh and its Chicago hub, O’Hare International Airport. It is the first scheduled non-stop service between the two cities and will operate until October 6.

Jake Cefolia, United’s Vice

President Atlantic and Pacific Sales, was joined by Nicola Sturgeon MSP, Scotland’s Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Investment and Cities, and Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport, at a ceremony to inaugurate the first flight.

Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “I’m

the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

delighted to mark the launch of this direct service between Edinburgh and Chicago, a link that highlights the strong relationship between Scotland and the United States.

This service will provide real benefits to Scotland’s economy, encouraging more tourism, trade and investment by reducing the need for travellers to make connecting

flights via London or the continent”.

Close to the action

Cox and Kings has created a range of holidays to destinations from popular film and television shows.

The Footsteps Collection takes in locations from Borgen, Wallander, Inspector Montalbano and The Godfather.

THE BEST OF the great outdoors the garden experts Still much to admire with Dundee verdant works

Gamble on bluebells ■ Bluebells can be a great addition to the garden and look particularly good “planted amongst trees and allowed to spread into thick drifts,” said John Stoa in The Courier.

But he warned the plant “will want to spread well beyond their intended area”.

He said not to compost bulbs or seed heads as they will grow again.

■ There are many tourist attractions in Dundee, the city once renowned for jam, jute and journalism.

But it is a remnant from the jute mills that brought The Herald’s Jenny Mollison to the city – its allotments (left).

She said that as women were “more employable” than men during the peak of the jute trade, as their smaller hands were more dextrous, men took up allotment gardening.

She said she admired the “elaborate huts with all manner of creature comforts” but said “growing for showing” is hugely important to the gardeners, particularly at the city’s annual Flower and Food Festival.

Summer combination to savour ■ There are some things in life that work perfectly together, the Daily Record said.

In terms of garden flowers, they said clematis and rose are as successful a combination as “strawberries and cream, roast beef and Yorkshire pudding and gin and tonic”.

The paper said clematis “can cling gently” to other plants but will “not strangle a rose”.

OOT AND ABOOT! Holiday adventure time ■ With the summer holidays fast approaching, The Scotsman’s Catriona Thomson offered plenty of advice on some thrilling outdoor activities the whole family can take part in over the next few weeks.

She said phrases like “cotton wool generation” have been coined to describe children who spend their time indoors playing video games or watching television rather than “experiencing the

great outdoors first hand”.

She said “children need to learn about their own physical limits within a controlled environment” but warned there are no “zero risk” activities.

She recommended the obstacle course at Foxlake Adventures in Dunbar, den building at Jupiter Artland near Edinburgh, sphering at Bankhead Farm in West Lothian and tubing at the Hillhead Ski Centre in Penicuik as days out for adventurous families.

Views that never get old ■ It may be one of the “oldest paths” in the country, but Fergal MacErlean said “devout mountain bikers” can get fantastic views cycling the Minchmoor track near Selkirk.

MacErlean warned the 14-mile route contains some “very steep, slightly technical sections” on the loop, which passes by Mungo Park’s birthplace, and should take two-and-ahalf hours to complete.

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NATURE’S BEST ■ A swarm of 30,000 honey bees descended on an Inverness street, forcing terrified residents to flee indoors.

Resident Leanne Sharp of Duke’s View said he heard a loud buzzing noise but did not realise what was happening until she saw a “black cloud” of bees in front of her house.

“It was like a whirlwind of bees coming up the street,” she said.

Police were called to the quiet cul-de-sac and they drafted in Bryce Reynard from the Invernessshire Beekeepers’ Association who managed to capture the queen bee and, over the course of three trips, the bulk of the swarm.

The bees have been rehomed at the Scottish School of Forestry.

The Press and Journal’s Jamie McKenzie told readers “spells of warm weather are ideal triggers for honey bee colonies to start swarming”. He said they occur when a queen bee leaves an overcrowded colony to establish a new one.

As queens are poorer fliers than worker bees they often have to rest, which can cause swarms to descend on populated areas and cause “mayhem”.

Weather Warmest – Lossiemouth 20.7C (69.3F)

Wettest –

Port Ellen 11mm

Sunniest – Aberdeen 11.6hrs

Coldest – Cairngorm Mountains -0.6C (30.9F)

Weather round-up:

Summer is supposed to be just around the corner, but the Met Office has warned that the UK is set to have a wet start to the season – with rain predicted over the next week or so at least.

Although the country enjoyed warm weather last weekend, forecasters say conditions will deteriorate and there will be little chance of prolonged sunshine.

Indeed, the Metro said the Met Office expected it to be “dull, dank and miserable” for a spell.

With that in mind, The Daily Telegraph’s Claire Duffin highlighted how the Duchess of Cambridge and Countess of Strathearn dressed appropriately during her recent visit to Scotland, wearing a “knee-length coral and red striped coat”.

“It appeared the Duchess may have had small lead weights sewn into the hem of her coat to stop it blowing up in the gusty conditions north of the border,” she also noted. Sound advice, it seems.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

l 37

CONSUMER

Three of the best...gadgets for your car

TRIED AND TESTED

These days there’s no need for car journeys to be boring. There are a host of gadgets to keep the whole family going.

Father’s Day

tIPPLES Innis & Gunn Whisky Trail Limited Edition 12-bottle box £35 innesandgunn.com

This new brew is matured for 30 days in casks sourced from Scotland’s malt-producing regions. A rich, complex ale.

USB Double In-Car Charger £6.99

Lavazza Espressgo £89.00

4G mobile WiFi Buzzard £49.99

Avoid the fear of your kids’ gadgets running out of juice and the inevitable groans from the back seat by packing a dual-USB device like this one. Plugged into a lighter socket all you provide is the lead to download your amps into any device creeping perilously close to blank screen syndrome. www.go-travelproducts.com

Forget the trusty old thermos flask or crowded and vastly overpriced service stations, now you can create your own delicious Italian coffee from a pod in just a matter of minutes.

Just plug this clever gadget into the lighter socket and sit the main unit in your cup holder.

Molto bene! www.storeuk.lavazza.com

The ability of this cup holder device to deliver content to up to 10 devices at once is quite staggering. Admittedly you’ll need to be in a good 4G coverage area to get the lightning quick top streaming speeds, but network operator ee are constantly rolling out these WiFi hotspots across the UK. www.shop.ee.co.uk

West End Estate The Boxer Durif 2012 £8.99 laithwaites.co.uk

A robust red that is dangerously easy to drink.

Loads of lush forest fruits and a supple finish.

G H Mumm Cordon Rouge Formula One Brut NV £33.50 Sainsburys

One for motor racing fans, but this easy-drinking, limited edition champers, from the F1 sponsors, is far too good to be wasted on spraying around.

DRIVE TIME

Jaguar F-Type Coupe Price from £51,250

Citreon Grand C4 Picasso Price from £19,205

Nissan X-Trail Price from £22,995

Jack McKeown ❘ The Courier

Andrew Mackay ❘ The Herald

Alisdair Suttie ❘ The Sunday Post

Jaguar’s F-Type Convertible was launched last year. Successor to the E-Type, it is a wonderful car with just two small faults.

One was the tiny boot and the other was that, as a convertible, it lost body rigidity due to not having a steel roof structure.

The F-Type Coupe fixes both issues.

Its bodyshell is 80% stiffer than the Convertible’s, giving tighter handling.

The boot leaps from 196 litres to a much more usable 315.

While the V8 is an outstanding car, the V6 provides all of the good looks and much of the performance for more than £30,000 less.

The nearest thing on the market to the old Renault Espace, Citreon’s MPV is genuinely spacious with an appealing and futuristic cabin.

The top of the range Exclusive+ spec has electric heated seats, auto headlights and a panoramic glass roof.

There is a two-three-two seat formation with plenty of flexible space options. The rear two seats, designed for children, are robust with plenty of headroom.

Under the bonnet is an exceptionally strong two-litre diesel engine that pulls the large frame with no complaint.

All round, a practical, comfortable car.

This second generation of this previously rugged SUV has become much more of a crossover vehicle.

While it has lost some off-road and towing capability, the X-Trail has become much more spacious and comfortable.

A whopping 100mm more legroom shared between front and rear seats combined with more sophisticated suspension means it gives superb family comfort, though it has lost some of the driving spirit of its predecessor.

And it’s economical too. If you opt for a manual gearbox and front wheel drive, fuel consumption will be 57.6 mpg.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

38 l

BUSINESS & FINANCE Hired, Fired & RETIRED ■ British Gas boss Chris

Wagons rolling for Serco as Sleeper dreams come true Fans of the overnight trains between London and Scotland get all dewy-eyed despite the discomfort and a lack of sleep – but now there’s a new operator promising first class service.

■ Outsourcing firm Serco is probably better known for transporting prisoners in those natty white vans you see on the news, but it’s now promising Albert Roux cuisine and “outstanding” hospitality after winning a deal to run the Caledonian Sleeper service.

The company – no stranger to running rail franchises elsewhere – said it would boost revenues and passenger numbers by improving marketing and showing off “the best of Scotland”.

New carriages will feature en-suite cabins, cradle seating and fold-down pod flatbeds amongst a range of options.

The franchise win is a first piece of business for new Serco boss Rupert Soames, but also marked the second rail bid lost by major Aberdeen-based firm FirstGroup inside a week.

The number of high growth entrepreneurs in Scotland has risen by

100%

over the last five years, according to research published by Strathclyde University and supported by Sir Tom Hunter

COMMENTATORS SAY The deal merited the second leader slot in The Scotsman, where the paper noted “great excitement” at the promise of a luxurious new regime amongst regular travellers.

But there was sadness too – at the loss of scratchy blankets and “the trickle of water in the tiny sink”, but mainly the passing of the famous sleeper bar. “A great social leveller”, it hosted toffs, itinerant workers and squiffy MPs. Business editor Terry Murden came over all wistful – both for the benefits of hassle-free inter-city travel with an afterdinner departure and breakfast thrown in, and the “golden age of rail when everything seemed so much more comfortable, stylish and welcoming”.

The study defines “high growth” entrepreneurs as those who believe they will employ at least 10 people within the first five years of setting up business.

Sir Tom said the doubling was “good news for Scotland” but warned of a considerable gap to nations like the US and Canada.

“That high still ranks us average at best and I don’t believe anyone has our aspirations set on average,” he said.

the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

Serco now promises a return to those ideals. “All it must do is deliver on those promises,” Murden said, but noted trade union unrest amid troubles at the outsourcing giant too.

In his Lombard column in the Financial Times, Jonathan Guthrie also claimed the move could restore some glamour to a service which had been “more Brittany Ferries than the Orient Express”. And he said the award showed “Sassenach” contractors should fear no discrimination from the Scottish Government.

The Times said passenger revenues are expected to bring in £42m per annum over a 15year deal, alongside £180m in subsidies. Serco is allowed to make profits of £2.9m a year before it has start paying back excess earnings.

It said a deal to make new 72 new carriages in Spain was a blow to Britain’s trainbuilders, and argued the romance of the sleeper would come at a cost.

The paper said the service was effectively becoming a “rolling hotel” after attracting private investment on a standalone franchise.

Weston was named as the new chief executive of Aggreko – a second big-name departure from the Centrica board in five months after finance director Nick Luff moved on in January.

The appointment brings to an end speculation over the future of the Glasgow temporary power firm’s caretaker Angus Cockburn, who didn’t apply for the post full-time because he wants “a fresh challenge”.

The Herald reported Weston (below) would start on a basic salary of £750,000, but collect a £2.2m golden hello to compensate him for lost share options at Centrica. He’ll be joined on the board by finance director Carole Cran, who steps up to the CFO seat.

■ Meanwhile, Centrica boss Sam Laidlaw has been tipped for the hotseat at oil firm BG Group, according to The Press and Journal’s Ryan Crighton.

He said both parties had refused to comment on the speculation. BG chief Chris Finlayson stood down last month following a string of profit warnings, while Centrica faces a potentially-disruptive energy industry probe.

BUSINESS & finance WEEK IN NUMBERS

7.5%

The UK’s manufacturing sector remains 7.5% smaller than it’s pre-recession peak, reported The Courier.

But the sector is enjoying one of its “brightest spells” in more than two decades as growth in the sector continues to help rebalance the economy.

£335m

The total value of the 31 corporate deals worked on by accountancy firm Johnston Carmichael during the year to March.

The Herald reported the figure was a significant increase on the total for the previous 12 months.

12

The number of full-time knitters who produce high-end jumpers, cardigans, accessories, gloves and hats for Scottish Borders based Eribé Knitwear.

The award-winning firm has tied up new export deals with distributors in Denmark and South Korea, reported the Sunday Herald.

Negative equity Instability warning ■ London house prices, eh?

It’s a bubble, isn’t it? Kept going by oligarchs snapping up multi-million pound properties, making no difference to the value of your average two-up, two-down in Middle Scotland.

Wrong, according to the boss of Nationwide – the UK’s biggest building society. In The Scotsman, chief exec Graham

Supermarket giant Tesco continued its fall from grace with sales dropping

3.7%

on a like-for-like basis during the first quarter of its financial year.

It is thought the grocery market’s dominant player could be losing as many as a million customer visits each week.

11,000

The number of litres of extra virgin rapeseed oil which can be produced each day by Buchan firm Mackintosh of Glendaveny.

The group will see its wares served on North Sea oil rigs after agreeing a deal with offshore caterer ESS.

Beale said any effort to cool things in London would have “repercussions” across the UK. “We could get unintended consequences by starting to delay the rise in the housing market,” he said.

The society, which rescued the Dunfermline Building Society in 2009, also said closing branches saved it £25m.

Exports: confused by too much support ■ A new review of support for exporters has found many firms are befuddled by the plethora of options on offer and don’t know where to turn for help.

Former Westminster trade and energy minister Brian Wilson said a shakeup was required to create a “clear and comprehensible” way for UK and Scottish bodies to offer complimentary advice.

He warned that some firms felt frustrated by a string of agencies and said a single “portal” – dubbed Scottish Exports – should be set up to point people in the right direction.

Several papers noted a Holyrood target to up Scottish exports by 50% by 2017.

But The Scotsman’s Terry Murden said exporters might feel “short-changed” by a report which highlighted challenges in finance and skills but didn’t propose much.

COMMENTATORS SAY

£1 billion

Scottish Renewables reckons investment running to 10 figures could be unlocked if there was more support for pumped storage hydro power.

But the proven technology – which acts like a battery by pushing water uphill then allowing it to fall through a generating turbine during periods of high demand – does not attract subsidies.

l 39

Weir merger hopes crushed ■ Glasgow engineering firm Weir Group has given up on its two-month pursuit of Metso after the board of the Helsinki rock-crushing specialist rejected an improved £9bn merger offer.

It told shareholders the Finns “did not engage” despite a proposal which would generate significant value through cost and efficiency savings.

Metso said the latest bid still “significantly undervalued” the firm’s standalone prospects.

Weir said it was “moving on” after the latest rebuffal, adding it would not make another offer for Metso “at this time”.

But, in The Times, Tempus wasn’t so sure. “The deal is not necessarily dead,” Martin Waller argued, suggesting major shareholders could pressure Metso’s board to reopen negotiations.

In the Financial Times, Lex said Weir’s “flowers and chocolates” hadn’t impressed and the suitor was bound to slope away. Metso’s directors need to lay out their plan, or risk remaining a “wallflower”.

The Herald’s Ian McConnell said the “adamant” refusal

by Finnish state investment vehicle and 11% Metso stakeholder Solidium was refreshing. “It is nice to see a long-term approach,” he said.

talking heads “I have done absolutely nothing wrong. And that’s why I have been fully co-operating with the FBI agents and I’m happy to do so in the future, too, until this gets resolved.”

Golfer Phil Mickelson reacts to being investigated

by US authorities over an insider trading probe also involving billionaire Talisman investor Carl Icahn and Las Vegas gambler Billy Walters.

All deny any wrong-doing.

“Your chairman is always your best friend until he shoots you.”

Clive Bannister, son of four-minute miler Roger and chief exec of insurance group Pheonix, tells Scotsman city editor Martin Flanagan about his (good) relationship with chairman Sir Howard Davies, the former chairman of regulatory body the FSA.

“I think we are doing a good job but we need to do more.”

RBS chairman of SME banking Ian Cowie reacts to news the taxpayerowned bank cut lending to small and medium-sized firms by £737m last year.

The Herald’s Mark Williamson reported how the amount advanced to SMEs under the Bank of England’s Funding for Lending scheme fell by a total of £720m across the UK during the first quarter.

Mr Cowie said demand for lending had been muted for some time.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

l 41

SPORT £20m rugby boost

Murray builds momentum as Wimbledon defence looms large on the horizon ■ After a difficult few months since returning to action following back surgery, few would disagree that Andy Murray appears to be hitting form again at an opportune moment.

Most pundits predicted the Scot was unlikely to go far in the French Open, but Murray proved the doubters wrong with some tremendous performances as he progressed on the clay courts at Roland Garros – one of his least favoured surfaces.

The Wimbledon champion will no doubt have his defence at SW19, which begins in little over a fortnight’s time, in his sights, but he passed several tests of character in Paris with flying colours this week – notably the epic five-set win over Philipp Kohlschreiber and his dismantling of clay court specialist Fernando Verdasco en route to the latter stages.

More importantly though, Murray is enjoying himself.

The Scottish Daily Express’ Bob McKenzie said it was great to see Murray return to the form that “brought the house down at Wimbledon” and noted: “While still not the Folies Bergere, at times it is like watching the Glee Club with the new, smiley Andy Murray”.

The Scotsman’s Alix Ramsay also noted Murray’s previous tendency to savour the moment after it happens, but said he was “loving it” this week – particularly beating Verdasco in “one of the best clay court matches in his career”.

The Independent’s Paul Newman said Murray’s Paris run “extended his fine record of consistency in Grand Slam tournaments”, reaching the last eight in each of the last 13 he has contested.

■ The news that the home of Scottish rugby was now to be known as BT Murrayfield was greeted by a “surprising” lack of opposition, said Steve Scott in The Courier.

SRU chief executive Mark Dodson (below) said that the four-year deal that will pour £20m into the game, will be “transformational” for Scottish rugby.

Apart from the stadium naming rights, the package includes BT becoming the sponsor for the Scotland 7s team, the club game competitions and four new SRU academies.

Dodson pledged that the money would not be used to cut the organisation’s £11m debt, but would be mainly used to develop rugby at the grassroots.

In his Courier column Scott described the decision to rebrand the stadium as a “no-brainer”.

“The shaky foundations of the game in Scotland need to be rebuilt, and the benefits in the future will hopefully be the legacy of what is now BT Murrayfield.”

OTHER NEWS Gallacher in play-off loss Thongchai Jaidee beat Scotland’s Stephen Gallacher and Victor Dubuisson in a play-off to capture the Nordea Masters in Sweden.

The Thai golfer won his sixth European Tour title at the first extra hole after tying with Gallacher and Frenchman Dubuisson on 16-under in regulation play at PGA Sweden National in Malmo.

Scots rowers among the medals at Euros Scots rowers involved in the European Championships in Serbia returned home with three medals after a successful stint in Belgrade.

Polly Swan and Helen Glover, who both hail from Edinburgh, claimed the women’s pairs title for Great Britain ahead of Romania (see page 45 picture), while Forfar’s Sam Scrimgeour won silver in the men’s lightweight pairs with Jonathan Clegg.

Glasgow’s Imogen Walsh took bronze in a lightweight double sculls partnership with Olympic champion Kat Copeland.

Pennie pays penalty Crieff’s Fiona Perrie had to relinquish her European Canoe Slalom crown in “agonising fashion”, The Scotsman reported.

The defending champion recorded the fastest time of the final – 95.52 seconds – but clipped the fourth gate of the course in Austria, which incurred a two-second penalty and dropped her to fifth.

HAUD YER WHEESHT! ■ Brazil and their great South American rivals Argentina are the bookies’ favourites to lift the World Cup next month.

Yet again, Scotland will be frustrated onlookers, but both these famous football nations have Scots to thank for introducing them to the beautiful game in the first place.

Hugh MacDonald in The Herald reported that the legacy of the two Scottish football pioneers was included in the new edition of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.

“A prominent figure in the commercial life

of Sao Paulo, Charles Miller is attributed with introducing football to Brazil in 1894, though another Scot, Tom Donohue, may just have pipped him.

“The other Scot included in the dictionary is Alexander Watson Hutton. In 1884, in Buenos Aires, Hutton founded a high school where he built up a culture of team sports and, in particular, football.”

Hutton, from Edinburgh, later became the first president of the Argentine Association Football League.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

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SPORT Display pleases Strachan

United they stand... but what now for Warriors?

Will Dublin defeat galvanise Glasgow?

■ Glasgow Warriors may have been pipped at the post in their quest for their first ever Rabobank PRO12 title, but coach Gregor Townsend summed up the general consensus when he said that success could be just around the corner.

Warriors were blown away by defending champions Leinster in the second-half of their bruising encounter in Dublin, with the Irish side running out comfortable 34-12 winners.

Despite the scoreline though, Townsend (above) remained in defiant mood.

“We were just not good enough on the day,” Townsend told BBC Scotland.

“We’ve just got make sure we learn the lessons, which we have done every year and we’ve got better and better, and we come back here and win it next time.”

Around 3,000 fans made the trip across the Irish Sea to support the Warriors and they were rewarded with a decent enough first period, with Townsend’s charges finding themselves only 14-12 down at the half-time interval in front of a 19,000 capacity crowd.

However, Leinster, who had topped the league table ahead of the Scots, finished the game by far the stronger and scored all four of the game’s tries to secure victory in what was Ireland centre Brian O’Driscoll’s swansong.

All eyes will now be on whether or not the Warriors can repeat their heroics next season and perhaps go one better.

“We will keep working hard to get there,” Townsend concluded.

“What the players have achieved is fantastic.”

Quick FIRE

COMMENTATORS SAY Still, despite the defeat, The ■ The end result in Dublin Herald’s Alasdair Reid said was made all the more there are “many consolations” disappointing by the fact Glasgow could take from their that “Glasgow never looked “fierce but ultimately fruitless” like winning this game after PRO12 final. the first half hour or so”, The biggest of those was the wrote Iain Morrison in The fact Leinster themselves “built Scotsman. a reputation as serial nearly But Morrison was quick to men” before establishing turn his attention to what the themselves as “giants of future holds for Glasgow, European and Celtic rugby”. a “worthwhile” question However, he felt one or two given the fact they are losing second-choice fly-half Ruaridh players stood out as underperformers, for whatever Jackson and first-choice reason, and although Glasgow scrum-half Chris Cusiter this did “produce passages of the summer. quick, slick and ambitious And he surmised: “You offloading game that has been suspect that whatever the their thrilling trademark for the immediate future holds for past couple of years”, it was Glasgow, it would have been only in “fits and starts”. that much rosier with, rather The Courier’s Steve Scott than without, their best said Saturday’s final may have scrum-half.” the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

■ Scotland manager Gordon Strachan said he was pleased with his team’s attacking threat during the 2-2 draw with Nigeria at Craven Cottage.

The Scots led twice and gifted the World Cup bound Africans a late equaliser, but Strachan chose to dwell on the positives.

“We could have scored four or five goals. That’s the first time I’ve said that.

“There was a bit of flair and imagination.”

Dundee United’s Andrew Robertson (below) received plaudits after making his first start at left back and Derby County pair Craig Forsyth and Chris Martin made their debuts from the bench.

been their “best chance”, and felt Leinster were helped

by Glasgow “inexplicably changing” their previously successful gameplan.

On what now for Warriors, he said the decision not to resign Cusiter could be a “huge mistake”.

“No side in the PRO12 is staying still, even Connacht are signing ex-All Blacks,” he added.

“Munster, Ulster and to a lesser extent Leinster have often treated the PRO12 like weekend filler between international and European Cup competition, but there’s growing signs they won’t from now on.

“Even the pitfully underachieving Welsh have got more money to spend.”

■ Scots international James McArthur was “devastated” after the theft of his FA Cup winner’s medal from his home. Two wedding rings were also taken.

The Scotsman

■ Alex Dunbar and Chris Cusiter are out of Scotland’s opening rugby tour match against the USA. Grayson Hart and Mark Bennett will join the squad for June 14’s Test.

BBC Scotland

■ Graham Gristwood and Claire Ward won the British Orienteering Championship in Northumberland.

The Herald

SPORT

good week

l 43 QUOTES

James Campbell

“I’m manager of an England team with 23 to 25 very good players to choose from.”

Scotland’s javelin record holder can turn his attention to Glasgow 2014 after securing a spot at the Commonwealth Games.

Campbell has not had his setbacks to seek in the last three years, but his throw of 70.36m in Bedford will have him dreaming about a medal.

ROY HODGSON Time well tell if the England boss is right...

Scottish Thistles

Scotland’s netball stars qualified for next year’s World Cup in Sydney after hammering Ireland 79-19 in their final qualifier.

The Scots, who had been beaten by Wales on Saturday, were made to sweat as they would have missed out had Northern Ireland beaten Wales the following day.

However, the Welsh won 51-43 and means the Thistles can look out their passports.

BAD week

FIFA

Calls are growing for the 2022 World Cup to be moved amid allegations of corruption.

The Sunday Times revealed how Qatar’s victory in the race to host the tournament was allegedly won using secret payments to senior FIFA officials, and it was claimed former vice-president Mohamed bin Hammam (above) handed out £3 million.

Scottish MP Jim Murphy said the Home Counties should bid if wrong-doing is found. He said: “There are enough great stadiums in Scotland, England and Wales to put on one of the best shows in the world.”

■ Arsenal Ladies’ Scottish coach Shelley Kerr signed off her reign as manager with a 2-0 victory over Everton in the Women’s FA Cup final.

Claymores chief wants trip down memory lane ■ A decade after the Scottish Claymores bit the dust, the team’s former general manager has suggested NFL fans should stage a game in Scotland as a thank you to the fans.

Writing in the Sunday Mail, Colan Lamont told how Steve Livingstone would love to see the NFL hold a game north of the border – 10 years after the Claymores

played their last game on Scottish soil.

The NFL have gone from playing one game of their regular season in London to three, with talk that a permanent British franchise could well be on the cards.

With that in mind, Livingstone feels there is still a huge appetite for American football in Scotland.

He told the paper: “There is plenty of room to bring an NFL game to Scotland and I’d like to think the Claymores had a big part to play in that.

“I think the Claymores shook up sport in Scotland so the NFL owe us a game here.

“I think it would be a great goodwill gesture.”

Lamont suggested the Claymores and the London Monarchs “helped fuel the growing demand” for the game in the UK.

“There is a lot to be proud of.”

GORDON STRACHAN Scotland boss reckons the future’s bright after 2-2 draw with Nigeria

“There was no lack of effort, but you’ve got to be accurate and we were not accurate enough.”

CHRIS CUSITER Glasgow Warriors’ scrum-half disappointed with PRO12 final defeat

“When you lose in a final, there are two ways you can go. We want to take one more step.”

■ Scottish athlete Eilish McColgan took the first run on the new Hampden track ahead of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

AL KELLOCK Despite losing in the final, the Glasgow skipper set sights higher 7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

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SPORT

OFF

THE BALL

■ The football season might be over, but BBC Scotland’s Off The Ball still had a packed show.

■ Stuart Cosgrove and Tam Cowan were joined by Dundee striker Peter MacDonald and broadcaster Alison Walker.

Celtic back to the drawing board ■ It has now effectively turned into a good, old fashioned summer saga.

Within hours of Neil Lennon announcing his resignation from Celtic last month, the media spotlight quickly turned to his successor – and who would be the man charged with bringing success to Parkhead.

Whoever that man was to be would surely have to secure a fourth successive Premiership title – that would be a given in the current climate – and also do their damnedest to negotiate the tricky qualifying

rounds in Europe before landing a lucrative spot in the Champions League group stages proper.

It would be a big ask for anyone, and the high profile names immediately linked with the post perhaps told you that.

Steve Clarke, David Moyes, Malky Mackay, Owen Coyle, and even ex-Celtic striker Henrik Larsson were all mooted initially, until one name emerged from the pack last week.

They say there is no smoke without fire, and the fact Roy Keane quickly became a 1/7

favourite with the bookies to succeed Lennon in the Celtic hotseat and leave his post as Republic of Ireland assistant probably said more than most.

However, most of the Scottish media had probably not counted on Keane opting to stay in his coaching role with the Republic of Ireland, leaving us all guessing yet again.

Ronny Deila, boss of Norwegian side Stromgodset, emerged from left-field, but it just goes to show that Scottish football will always serve up twists and turns, even in the close season.

COMMENTATORS SAY ■ Before Keane turned the down the post, the Daily Record’s Keith Jackson conceded he would “undoubtedly be good for business”, and in terms of box office credentials “you’d have to build a bigger Wembley” if you were to put him in a ring with Carl Froch or George Groves.

Keane carries an “aura” and “steeliness” which is impossible to ignore and Jackson likened him to being like “Cork’s answer to Graeme Souness”.

However, on the field, he said Keane would have been judged on the one criteria all Celtic managers should be judged on – “what they deliver from the pitch into the trophy room”.

Some reporters had it all the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

■ Topics discussed included the head-to-head between the Premiership and the Championship and, following Hamilton’s win over Hibs, penalties people will never forget.

■ Team of the week was the Fine Art XI, featuring Oil Berkovic, Campbell Monet and Pre-Rafael Scheidt.

Moyes looks to the future signed and sealed at the start of the week – like The Irish Times’ Keith Duggan who said “some things just fit hand in glove”.

And he noted: “Once the notion of Roy Keane glowering on the sideline at Parkhead was floated, it was all but impossible not to think of it as somehow fated; something that will one day seem as natural and predestined as Keane wearing the red shirt of Manchester United.”

However, fast forward a few days and everything was up in the air again.

At the very least, The Scotsman’s Alan Pattullo said Keane’s rejection should mark “another compelling chapter” in his forthcoming autobiography.

“Why I Said No To Celtic will

be one of the first sections many will turn to,” he said.

He added that “perhaps the choice between preparing for three tough Champions League qualifying ties and casting his cold, analytical eye over a series of World Cup games in Brazil was really no choice at all”.

The Scottish Daily Mail’s John Greechan said Celtic’s hunt for a new manager had had “more favourites than the Cheltenham Festival” and “enough unexpected twists to fill a Dick Francis whodunnit”.

But he said few should be surprised by that.

He concluded: “Pursuing a new manager – an outside candidate who has to be courted and wooed – can be a fraught business for the most appealing of clubs.”

■ David Moyes believes he will benefit from his ill-fated stint at Manchester United, according to The Sunday Post.

In an exclusive interview with the paper, the Scot said his time at Old Trafford taught him “invaluable lessons” and will make him a “more knowledgable” coach and manager.

He told the paper he was “tempted by one or two” offers since leaving United and will “definitely have moved on” from his woes at Old Trafford, whatever happens next.

Moyes added it was “unfortunate” he was not given more time to succeed, but had “nothing but support” from Sir Alex Ferguson.

SPORT

good week

QUOTES

Gary Holt

“I’m just riding a bike, not saving lives.”

The now former Falkirk manager decided to quit his post at the Falkirk Stadium after being offered a coaching role with Norwich City.

MARK STEWART Dundee cyclist keeps his feet on the ground after Glasgow 2014 selection

Skye

The Skye shinty team endured a 500-mile trip by road and water to play their Camanachd Cup tie with Bute, and it was worth it as they won 3-0.

Ally MacLeod

The former Scotland boss has long been ridiculed in some quarters for claiming Scotland would win the 1978 World Cup. But The Scotsman’s Martyn McLaughlin revealed that a new biography has dismissed as “myth” the idea that MacLeod vowed to win the World Cup in Argentina for Scotland, revealing how his original quote was embellished by the press.

“It’s sad it’s come to this, but not surprising.”

■ Hurlford United captain Paul Cameron lifted the Barr Scottish Junior Cup after their 3-0 win over Glenafton Athletic at Kilmarnock’s Rugby Park on Sunday. The match was watched by 5,000 fans.

HEADLINES

All eyes on competitive Championship

BAD week Rod Petrie A rally will be held in Edinburgh this weekend demanding the dismissal of Hibs’ beleaguered chairman.

Relegation to the Championship proved to be the final straw for some fans of the Easter Road club, who are set to vent their anger.

l 45

■ Fans of clubs in the 2014/15 Championship are excited – and rightly so.

With Hibs, Hearts and Rangers all involved, Falkirk want to cash in by building a temporary stand to increase capacity by 1,000, while Hearts themselves could formally exit administration within a fortnight and avoid a 15-point deduction.

Aberdeen vice-chairman George Yule told STV the Premiership can still “thrive”, but hopes Hibs, Hearts and Rangers will return soon.

Football: Rangers supporters’ group The Union of Fans called on the Ibrox club to reveal how many season tickets have been sold.

The deadline for renewals passed over a fortnight ago and directors previously warned that a drop in renewals would affect the business’s ability to trade as a going concern.

The Union of Fans urged supporters not to renew in protest against the current board.

Shinty: Camanachd Cup holders Newtonmore crashed out of this year’s tournament courtesy of a last-minute Colin MacDonald goal for Kyles.

Kyles, who lost last year’s showpiece 3-0, gained a measure of revenge as a 2-1 win booked a quarter-final spot.

Glenurquhart won the other all-Premiership tie, winning 5-3 away to Lochaber.

charlie reid One half of The Proclaimers, Reid was in attendance at a meeting of Hibs fans calling for chairman Rod Petrie to go after their relegation

“British fans love him and American fans love him, so he will be a huge hit.”

JIM WATT Scot hopes Carl Froch will fight in Vegas after win over George Groves

“Motherwell was a very good experience because it wasn’t a good experience.” roberto martinez The Everton manager insisted his time in Scotland helped him become stronger

Forfar Farmington Bottom of the Scottish Women’s Premier League, Forfar Farmington travelled to face Rangers hoping for a change in fortunes.

Sadly they were thumped 14-0, with Suzanne Mulvey netting five of the goals.

■ Edinburgh rowing duo Helen Glover (left) and Polly Swann won the European women’s pairs title at the European Championships in Serbia.

7 June 2014 ❘ the stooshie

46 l

COMMENT

FRED SAID Comedian, broadcaster and presenter

FRED MACAULAY

Trammed if you do, trammed if you don’t You can always rely on Fred to stay on the rails – wherever he is in the world

■ The big story of the week, for me, was that the trams have started operating commercially in Edinburgh.

It’s been an interesting few years, not least for myself and my fellow comedians who have all had the road-works as fodder for our stand-up shows at The Edinburgh Fringe for about a decade.

I remain to be convinced about the need for a tram that runs from near the top of Leith Walk all the way out to Edinburgh Airport. I suggest that’s a journey that several thousand people, on a daily basis, aren’t at all interested in making.

And I like trams. I’ve been all round Melbourne on trams. It takes careful study to ensure you make connections from one line to another across the

Clarifications and corrections The Stooshie is committed to journalism of the highest standards and we aim to produce our magazine with accuracy, honesty and fairness. Our journalists adhere to the DC Thomson company values of integrity, respect, commitment and creativity. We abide by the Editors’ Code of Practice which is enforced by the Press Complaints Commission. It is our policy to publish clarifications and corrections when necessary and as quickly as possible. You can contact us by email at: editor@thestooshie.co.uk or by writing to: The Readers’ Editor, The Stooshie, 80 Kingsway East, Dundee DD4 8SL.

the stooshie ❘ www.thestooshie.co.uk

whole system. Something I needn’t get worried about in Edinburgh as it’s more of a ‘line’ than a ‘system’.

Aileen and I were on a Melbourne tram one evening with our children after a day when the mercury had risen to 40 degrees Celsius. We encountered another Scottish family who had been at St Kilda beach all day and were in considerable discomfort from sunburn.

When I explained that the weather would be in the low forties again the next day they replied: “Good. We’ll get wir backs tanned as well then.” I didn’t doubt it. But I must have looked sceptical, because it was immediately followed by that good old positive Scottish addition to a sentence, “so we will”.

Some footballers may very well be Muppets but this is going too far ■ I was in Kilkenny in Ireland at the weekend for the annual Catlaughs Comedy Festival. It’s a great festival held over the Irish Bank Holiday They seem to have more bank holidays in Ireland than we do – the current one has been every day since 2008.

Anyway, the highlight of the weekend is the football match between the Irish comedians and a team simply called “The Rest of the World”. The Irish won. Not bad for a nation of roughly five million when you think that the rest of the world has about 8 billion to select from.

I do a commentary from the touchline with an Irish pal called Karl Spain.

When the Irish comedians scored a second goal I pointed out to the FIFA registered referee that they had 12 men on the pitch. To which the ref replied that the Rest of the World’s striker (a ventriloquist) had a puppet on his right hand, which balanced the numbers out evenly. Can’t argue with that!

Little wonder Qatar won the 2022 World Cup bid!

Information about the Code of Practice can be obtained from The Press Complaints Commission at Halton House, 20/23 High Holborn, London EC1N 2JD or email complaints@pcc.org.uk or call 0845 6002757 or 0207 8310022.

Published in Great Britain by D.C. Thomson & Co. Ltd, 185 Fleet Street, London, EC4A 2HS. © D. C. Thomson & Co., Ltd, 2014. Distributed by Marketforce, Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark Street, London, SE1 0SU. Tel: +44(0) 20 3148 3300 Fax: +44(0) 20 3148 8105 Website: www. marketforce.co.uk

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