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.
Regular readers of the weather reports in this newsletter will be aware that in recent weeks there has been an above average amount of sunshine and higher than usual temperatures in Scotland. That weather pattern has continued again this week. The long-term average maximum daytime temperature for April in central Scotland is around 11/12C (52/54F) - and slightly lower further north in places like Aberdeen. This week, temperatures have often reached 18C (64F), with long spells of sunshine. On Saturday, temperatures in some parts reached 21C (70F). To those of you living in warmer climates than Scotland, that may not sound very warm - but it is above the average temperature for June here. The lack of rain (although there were a few showers this week on Tuesday, welcomed by farmers and gardeners alike) is not unusual for April, however, as this is the driest month of the year. Tourist attractions, particularly those in the open air, have seen record numbers of visitors as schools are closed for the Easter break and many parents and others take at least some time off work. The only glum faces are of those who run Scotland's ski resorts!
The cooling towers of the Ravenscraig steel plant used to dominate the North Lanarkshire town of Motherwell, until they were pulled down after the closure of the steelworks in 1992. That signalled the end of large scale steel making in Scotland. Since then, there have been a number of grand plans for the redevelopment of the site. Most have included large retail units, which produced lengthy objections from existing retail centres in the area. It now looks as though the project may at last be getting under way and the publication of an artist's impression of a new state-of-the-art campus for Motherwell College, which is part of the regeneration project, is a positive sign. The 280,000 square feet campus, costing £70 million, will be the first building on the site, which will also see the creation of thousands of homes, shops and community facilities. One of the new college building has been designed in a cylindrical shape - to reflect the former structures at Ravenscraig steelworks. Currently, the college has 20,000 students from more than 40 countries.
Car number plates in the UK reflect the year of manufacture, with the last two digits of the year being included - the first two letters indicate the part of the country in which it has been registered. (The exceptions are where owners pay extra for personalised registration letters). The new year starts in March, however, so car dealers pull out all the stops to encourage motorists to buy a new car with the current year on the number plates. It seems that they were successful, with sales up by 2.3% compared to last year. However, the increase was achieved only as a result of heavy discounting on prices. There were also regional variations, with dealers in the Scottish Borders recording an increase in sales of 15%, while those in Lothian saw numbers slump by 9%. The best-selling car in Scotland remained the compact French-built Renault Clio.
The Marquess of Bute, who was at one time a Formula One racing driver under the name of Johnny Dumfries, has confirmed that he is to sell Dumfries House and its contents. The house was designed and built by the renowned Scottish architects John, Robert and James Adam between 1754 and 1759 for William, the 5th Earl of Dumfries. Standing in 2,000 acres of land, it is expected to fetch a price of nearly £7 million. The collection of furniture being sold from the house includes many outstanding pieces by the famous designer Chippendale (who was a friend of the Adam brothers). A George II bookcase alone is expected to sell for between £2 million and £4 million. In total, it is estimated that the contents will realise around £13 million. That would make it the largest furniture sale in British history. The Marquess of Bute, who uses the name Johnny Bute, wants to restructure his family's finances and concentrate on his family home - the magnificent Mount Stuart, on the Isle of Bute in the Firth of Clyde (pictured here). This is a flamboyant example of 19th century gothic architecture built in a reddish brown stone.
Golfers heading for the home of golf at St Andrews can now book tee times online for eight of the local courses - the New Course, Jubilee, Eden and the Strathtyrum, Kingsbarns, the Duke’s, the Torrance and the Devlin. Most are championship standard courses and a number are ranked among the top courses in the world. The more traditional ways of booking the famous Old Course are also given on the online site - see 
Crab meat used to be regarded as a luxury food, but it seems that partly as a result of being highlighted by celebrity TV chefs, we are consuming far more of this seafood. Sales have soared by 50% in the last year, helped also by media reports on the beneficial health aspects of crabmeat - it is low in fat and a good source of iron, potassium, selenium and omega 3. Environmentally aware consumers are also said to be attracted by the "sustainable" methods used in catching crab - they are caught in baited traps and only the ones of the right size and quality are taken, with the rest being returned to the sea. By weight, crab is the second most common species of shellfish landed by UK vessels, with about a third of the catch coming from Scottish waters.
The Scottish crossbill is only found in parts of the Highlands, its numbers having dwindled in the 20th century to less than 1,500 birds. But it may be saved from extinction as it is to benefit from a share of a £500 million European Union scheme aimed at saving endangered species. The Scottish crossbill has been identified as a separate species, with a different size of bill and a distinctive Scottish accent or call. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is to launch a study to establish its population size and draw up a plan for the correct conservation and management measures to protect and conserve its habitats.
As noted earlier, there has been a lot of sunshine and above average temperatures this week. Tuesday was the only really cloudy day and even then Aberdeen reached 18C (64F). On Friday Lossiemouth on the sheltered Moray Firth reached over 20C (68F) and Strathallan in Perthshire achieved over 21C (70F) on Saturday - the warmest day of the week for most places in Scotland. More sunshine is forecast for Sunday and Monday though temperatures will slide a bit by mid-week. Even so, the figures will be above normal for April.
This week's large format photographs taken in Scotland to show the current season and its flora and fauna are featured in another "double page spread" - all from Scone Palace in Perthshire. They include illustrations of the palace itself; a rare (for Scotland) Comma butterfly (see thumbnail here); a Pied Wagtail; Chaenomeles flowers; two kids (young goats); white peacock and the normal Indian Blue variety; an attractive, unusual daffodil; and Oyster Catchers. See 
Sergeant James McKechnie was one of the first soldiers to be awarded the Victoria Cross, the UK and Commonwealth's highest military honour for valour "in the face of the enemy". He won the medal at the Battle of Alma in 1854 while with the Scots Guards during the Crimean War. The pole carrying the unit's colours was smashed, while under heavy fire. He dashed forward, brandishing a revolver, rallying his men round the flag. His action turned the tide, even though he was wounded in the battle. But after the war and leaving military service, he fell on hard times, as was the case with many former soldiers in those days. When he died in 1886, aged 56, he was buried in an unmarked pauper's grave in the Eastern Necropolis in Glasgow. A researcher in the Scots Guards association was looking into the story and thought it was high time that McKechnie was given a burial with the military honours he deserved. So this week, a group of serving and veteran Scots Guards gathered in the cemetery to see a granite headstone unveiled in Sgt McKechnie's memory. His VC is displayed in the Scots Guards regimental HQ.
Hard on the heels of performances by top pop music groups The View and Arctic Monkeys at Dundee's Caird Hall this month, singer KT Tunstall is booked to perform at Fat Sam's in the city on June 22. KT (her real name is Kate) was originally from St Andrews and she was educated for a time at Dundee High school. The Dundee gig will come not long after the release of a new album "Under The Moonlight" by Scottish band Travis in which she sings a song which she co-wrote.
Using the tenuous pretext of treasure buried by monks in the grounds of Scone Palace in 1296, when King Edward I of England raided the area and carried off the Stone of Destiny, the Perthshire visitor attraction laid on a treasure hunt at the Easter weekend. Captain Jack Hogwash shivered a few timbers to encourage youngsters to dress up as pirates and wave a few Jolly Rogers. Instead of having to walk the plank, the best dressed young pirates won prizes. Staff at Scone Palace entered into the spirit of the event - staff serving in the cafeteria were still sporting pirate headgear and cutlasses on Monday - much to the surprise of visitors who knew nothing about the weekend's entertainment.
An Indian production of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," a musical inspired by the Proclaimers (singers Charlie and Craig Reid) and an epic six-hour performance of a Charles Dickens' "Nicholas Nickleby" are among the highlights of the forthcoming programmes at the King's and the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh over the next few months. Scottish Ballet's "Sleeping Beauty" and Penelope Keith in Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Ernest" will also keep the theatre-goers entertained. That Indian version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" has been getting rave reviews in London and has a cast of 23 dancers, musicians, actors, acrobats and martial arts experts.
The main focus of the Scottish Snippets is news items, usually about Scotland but occasionally items from overseas are covered. The new "Scots Abroad" section, invites folk to write in about Scottish-related events in their part of the world. It allows publicity for them and an appreciation by others of just how much Scottish culture is perpetuated in every corner of the globe.
This week has seen a series of events in New York celebrating "Tartan Week". The aim is to celebrate Scottish culture and the immense contribution of Scots to the American nation. The culmination is the Tartan Day Parade through the streets of the Big Apple on Saturday, April 14th, at 2:00pm. The Tartan Day Parade down Manhattan's 6th Avenue involves several thousand pipers and drummers. This photo of some of the participants was taken earlier today by Graeme J.W.Smith.
It's not just Celtic in the SPL who are stumbling their way to win the title. Gretna in the First Division are also making heavy weather of their promotion chances. A 0-0 draw against Hamilton means that St Johnstone are 6 points behind - but have next week's game in hand against Clyde to possibly close the gap to 3 points. With two further games to play after that, it could be an exciting finish. The bottom of the table has its own excitement too, with Ross County and Airdrie equal on points. Neither team could gain the advantage on saturday when they met each other in a 1-1 draw.
You have to look back in the record books to 1936 to find the last time that St Johnstone won a Scottish Cup game against Celtic. Even so, in the run-up to Saturday's semi-final between the two clubs, Celtic manager Gordon Strachan voiced a few concerns - after all the SPL leaders have not been at their best in recent weeks and the First Division Perth club did defeat Rangers earlier in the season in the CIS Cup. Saints did give a good account of themselves, managing to answer an early goal by Celtic with one of their own, to go in at half-time on level terms. But Celtic's Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink scored again for Celtic in the second half. Even so, Celtic fans were relieved when the final whistle blew. Saints Manager Owen Coyle had reason to feel disappointed with the result.
Waikiki it's not, but Thurso in the north of Scotland is luring the best wind surfers in the world to the biggest international competition of its kind ever held in the UK. The water may be chilly (make that icy cold) but when the north wind blows, the reefs off the coast can create waves of over 20 feet, comparable with the likes of Waimea Bay in Hawaii. Those waves - and a prize fund of over £60,000 - are attracting surfers from Hawaii, California, Australia and South America to the O'Neill Highland Open. It was trialled last year and the outstanding surf and huge waves meant that Thurso is one of only five "prime" surfing events in the world. It will be shown live on the Internet, from 24 April to 1 May.
