The Rampant Scotland Newsletter - your weekly insight into what has been happening in Scotland, snipped from the Scottish media, for Scots in Scotland and abroad, bringing you news, events plus a Scottish magazine section. Printed with 100% recycled electrons.
Previous editions of this Newsletter are available in the Archive and the Index to the other pages of the Rampant Scotland site is available here.
The Scottish Snippets Newsletter in its original format began in April 1997 and continued in an unbroken series for 591 issues. Although no longer produced in that format there is now a regular update on the new and updated pages on the Rampant Scotland site and also "Scottie's Diary" on an intermittent basis, To receive this, kust send an e-mail to Scottie with "Subscribe Newsletter" in the subject line.
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Historical Affairs - Topical Items from Scotland's Past
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The "Magazine" section includes songs/poems of Scotland, Scottish humour and brief descriptions of Scottish Culture items added recently to the Rampant Scotland Website - with a link to the page where you can find the full feature, if you find the subject of interest to you.
Here is a simple sentimental song with which we can all readily identify. Bonnie Scotland I Adore Thee Chorus:
Mid the rays of summer weather,
Chorus Bonnie Scotland, land of grandeur,
Chorus Thou art dearest to me ever,
Chorus Let's Get Married |
Where else would you like to go in Scotland?
When the electioneering for the next Scottish Parliament on 1 May began a few weeks ago, the media was understandably swamped by stories of the Iraq war and Scottish politics took a back seat. In recent weeks, the quality newspapers have tried to present the issues and the answers from the various political parties. Even so, there is a considerable amount of disinterest amongst the electorate and, judging by the lack of party election posters on the streets, even the activists are finding it hard to rouse themselves. Jack McConnell, the Scottish Executive First Minister, is said to be so concerned that turnout could fall below 50%, that he is concentrating his efforts between now and polling day next Thursday on getting people to turn out and vote. And in typical political fashion, he is blaming his opponents in the Scottish National Party for deliberately alienating the public by highlighting negative aspects of the Parliament and the government's failures over the last four years - even though that is part of the role of any opposition.
George Galloway, the Member of Parliament for Glasgow Kelvin was accused this week of taking cash from the former regime in Iraq. Galloway, who is sometimes referred to as the "MP for Baghdad Central" because of his support for Saddam Hussein, strenuously denies the charges which were made by the Daily Telegraph newspaper which claims it uncovered incriminating documents in Iraq after the fall of Saddam. Galloway is suing the newspaper over the allegations - and he has a long track record of successful libel actions.
St John's Kirk (pictured here) in the heart of Perth was the scene this week of the funeral of Lance Corporal Barry Stephen of the Black Watch, the only Scottish soldier to die in action in the Iraqi war. He was killed defending his comrades when an Iraqi grenade exploded as he returned enemy fire. His coffin was draped in the Saltire and carried his blue bonnet with the red cockade of the Black Watch. St John's is the regimental church of the Black Watch. L/Cpl Stephen was 31 and came from Scone in Perthshire.
It's amazing what a bit of media publicity can do for a seal. One week, it had a death sentence hanging over it because it was too successful at what comes naturally (catching fish) and the local angling club was threatening to shoot it The next week, there is a media frenzy with newspaper reporters and TV crews descending on the river Leven, making him into a star attraction. André then skillfully avoided all attempts at capture by divers and marine experts from the International Rescue Corps trying to rescue him to take him back to sea. Seeing the writing on the wall (and the crowds thronging the river bank), the Loch Lomond Angling Improvement Association then withdrew the death threat - and gave André an official permit (#999) featuring a passport size photo, saying that although he had cost the anglers thousands of pounds in lost fish, at least his catches would now be "legal". 
It is thought that the seal arrived in the Leven which flows from Loch Lomond last year, after chasing salmon from the river Clyde. In recent months, he has been unable to go further upriver because of a weir and is reluctant to go downriver because it is shallow after the prolonged dry spell. The "experts" say that rescue attempts will continue...
Statistics from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) show that the number of applications in the UK from prospective students for courses starting in the autumn are up by 3.9% on the same period last year. But the number of applicants from Scotland has risen by 5.4%. Over half of the applications are from female students. Applications from people living overseas has grown by 12.2% - with numbers from the Irish Republic up by 24.8%.
The passenger watchdog group at Prestwick Airport in Ayrshire, says that the railway station at the airport is failing to provide an adequate service. There is no ticket office, information screens are non-existent and there is not even a shelter for passengers to sit. Prestwick has seen a significant increase in passenger numbers as a result of the operations of budget services by Ryanair, and expects to double the numbers using the airport over the next two years. 600,000 passengers currently use the rail service annually. Numbers have been boosted by half-price rail travel to and from anywhere in Scotland for anyone on a scheduled flight. In addition to Ryanair, Aer Arann Express, another low-cost Irish airline has announced that it is to start daily flights to the Isle of Man from May and Globespan is to start services to four Mediterranean resorts.
Nick Nairn, one of a number of chefs who has become famous as a result of presenting cookery programmes on TV, has confirmed that he is to close his restaurant in Glasgow so that he can concentrate on his cookery school and consultancy services. Last year, he had insisted that the 40-seat restaurant was a key shop window for his other activities. Nairns opened six years ago and will continue to operate as usual until it is sold. 
The river Tweed in the Scottish Borders is already the most productive salmon river in the North Atlantic and a new deal is likely to enhance that reputation by adding thousands of additional salmon to the river this summer. The owners of 50 fishing boats, which catch thousands of fish heading for the Tweed with drift nets, are planning to surrender their licences in return for a compensation deal worth £3.5 million. This would leave only 15 boats catching fish by net. In the last three years, the nets have caught 100,000 salmon and 90,000 sea trout, most of them bound for Scottish rivers. In 2002, 10,300 salmon were landed in the Tweed by rod, the largest number for a decade.
Two walkers trapped in a flooded gorge near New Lanark had to be lifted out by rescue workers after water cascaded over a dam when the nearby Bonnington power station had its power output reduced. The walkers raised the alarm using their mobile phone and a police helicopter spotted them clinging to rocks in the middle of the river Clyde. But it was unable to pull them out as it had no winching gear. Emergency services worked for several hours before they were able to lower ropes to the exhausted couple and lift them by harness to safety. 
According to Plantlife Scotland, the native bluebell, one of Scotland's emblematic flowers, is under threat both from unscrupulous bulb collectors and from a Spanish variety which is infiltrating many woodlands. The Spanish variety is the one most commonly sold in garden centres and it is also spreading into the wild. Climate change and destruction of woodland habitat is also a threat. The charity is to undertake a survey to measure the extent to which the indigenous variety is being pushed out.
Nearly 1,000 people had to be led to safety after fires swept through Palacerigg country park last weekend as firefighters fought to control the blaze, one of a number across Scotland arising from the prolonged dry weather. Although there were still a number of locations which had long spells of sunshine this week (Aberdeen had over 12 hours of sun on Sunday and Wednesday) the week was more changeable than of late and there were a number of showers and longer spells of rain. Temperatures also fell during the week to 8/9C (46/48F) by Thursday and Friday which is below average for this time of year. But gardeners and farmers welcomed the arrival of the rain after the long weeks of dry weather and above average temperatures.
This week's illustrations of current flowers in Scotland were both taken this week in the gardens of Finlaystone House in Inverclyde. Rhododendrons of various varieties, including the one on the right, have been in bloom for some weeks but this was the first time that the brilliant azaleas (above) had burst into flower this year. In the coming weeks, more and more of these magnificent shrubs will brighten up gardens across the country.
A formal planning application has been lodged to convert Taymouth Castle in Perthshire into Britain's first "seven-star" luxury hotel. Service will be second to none at the £1,000 a night Highland hideaway which will rival the only other seven-star hotel in the world - in Dubai. Taymouth Castle is the ancestral home of the Campbell's of Breadalbane and Queen Victoria and Prince Albert spent their honeymoon there. Part of the movie "Mrs Brown" was filmed in the castle, with the 50-seater table there doubling as the one at Balmoral. The American Four Seasons Hotel Group which has bought the property, say that they plan to restore and repair the building to its former grandeur - and add to the facilities, including a helicopter landing pad, swimming pool and spa. The existing golf course will be enhanced and a new club house will be built.
Under an agreement signed in 1911, in a deal with the local railway company, the residents of Blair Atholl were guaranteed a low-cost supply of water in perpetuity. The rail company constructed large water tanks in Blair Atholl to supply the steam locomotives with water before they hauled the trains over the Drumochter summit - at 1,484ft, the highest point on the British rail network. The 600 villagers have enjoyed low water bills ever since, but the antiquated pipe work has been struggling in recent years, particularly in the summer when the population rises steeply during the tourist season. For some years, the water pressure can drop and there have been concerns about the water quality. Network Rail, who inherited the bizarre contract, now want to connect the residents to the mains supply from Scottish Water - but the connection charge would be £1200 per property. Network Rail are said to be looking at "the options".
Archaeologists are working flat out to uncover relics from the 14th century in the centre of Glasgow. The site on Shuttle Street, not far from the city's High Street, has been a car park for the last 30 years and is thought to hold the remains of a building occupied by Franciscan Friars. But work is to start soon on creating a £55 million science park there and the researchers are trying to uncover as much as they can. So far, they have only found some broken pottery and a spindle whorl - part of a necklace.
Bookings for the Edinburgh International Festival in August only opened a month ago. But already receipts are at record levels, with £1.26 million in advance ticket sales, more than half the total sales achieved in 2002. Despite the problems of international travel, demand for tickets from abroad has held up well, with many customers coming back year after year. The strong sales are also being attributed to a new online booking system which went live this year. The Edinburgh Fringe Festival adopted online booking in 2000 and now the "official" festival has adopted a similar approach. 
Now in its 12th year, Perthshire Food Festival is one of the tastiest offerings on the Scottish Calendar. Starting on April 24th, eleven food and fun-packed days provide a sumptuous showcase for the region's internationally renowned produce and culinary talent. The festival offers something for everyone with cookery demonstrations, tastings, farmers' and continental markets, fun events, promotions and sales, fabulous fare and special theme meals. There are events on offer both in Perth City and out and about in the county. From the flag falling on the charity duck race to mark the opening if this year's Perthshire Food Festival to the black tie splendour of the Scone Palace Gala Buffet which draws the event to a close, there's something for all tastes and all pockets in this food packed programme. Cut a slice of this year's action and sign up for seconds at 
The Isle of Mull Music Festival, taking place in Tobermory between 25th and 27th April, is packed full of events guaranteed to put a spring in your step. This stunning island, surrounded by spectacular bays and seascapes, is setting out invigorate the soul in more ways than one. The festival allows you to experience a whole host of music, from jazz to blues and, of course, traditional Scottish folk. Visitors can join in on the singing and learn to ceilidh with the locals for the ultimate all-round Scottish experience.
Both Celtic and Rangers managers say that their match on Sunday is not a championship decider as there are more matches to be played. But with Rangers currently 8 points ahead, having played one more game than Celtic, a win for the Ibrox side would all but clinch the title. Hearts in third spot are not yet assured of the opportunity to play in Europe which goes with that position, but Kilmarnock are 10 points behind, though with a game in hand.
There was euphoria amongst Celtic fans - and much of Scotland too - as Celtic scored the vital goal against Boavista in the Portuguese town of Oporto, which took them to their first European final, after a gap of 33 years. In a tense, tight match, Boavista relied on their away goal in the 1-1 draw in the first leg. Celtic pressed hard but made little impression on the Boavista goalmouth. Celtic had lost their captain Paul Lambert in the 33rd minute through injury but kept pressing forward until Henrik Larsson, the man who so often scores the winning goal for the club, crashed the ball into the net in the 78th minute. Larsson described it as "the best goal of my life" which is saying something from a man who scores so many (it was his 40th this season). There was then a tense 15 minutes as Boavista belatedly tried to attack Celtic's goal, but the Glasgow side hung on grimly. The next day, travel agents were overwhelmed as frantic Celtic fans tried to make travel arrangements to the final in Seville against another Portuguese side, FC Porto, on 21 May. This could be an even tougher match for Celtic as Porto have a 13 point lead at the top of the Portuguese Super Liga and a place in the Portuguese Cup Final. But in a one-off UEFA Cup final, either team could win out on the day. After all, it was in Portugal in 1967 that Celtic's Lisbon Lions became the first UK team to win the European Cup.
After nearly 40 years, Dundee have at last made it to the final of a Scottish Cup. Their narrow victory over First Division side Inverness last Sunday earned them a place at the final - against Rangers, at Hampden Stadium on 31 May. 
The construction of a funicular railway to take skiers to the top of the ski runs on the slopes of Cairn Gorm near Aviemore was one of the most controversial developments in the Highlands. It took ten years of heated argument and planning inquiries before the concerns of environmentalists were overcome and approval was given for the £15 million scheme. The railway opened in December 2001, so it was in use for only part of that season and this season has been a poor one because of the lack of snow for much of the winter. The ski slopes, which can sometimes continue until May, are now closed and numbers visiting Scottish slopes have fallen from 400,000 two years ago, when the snow was good, to 186,000 this year. Now the accounts have shown that the Cairn Gorm ski slope company is operating at a loss and there are concerns that instead of being an asset in the new Cairngorm National Park, it could become a liability. Highlands and Islands Enterprise, which owns the railway, contributed £12.4 million to the capital cost of setting up the funicular and may need to supply more cash if it continues to operate at a loss.
