A castle legacy
I have today just returned from a visit to Culross, in the Kingdom of Fife, the purpose of which was to inspect Dunimarle, a Victorian gothic mansion perched on a hill overlooking the estuary of the R...
April 2008, Issue 38, page 7

A Golden Age
JACK MCCONNELL, SCOTLAND'S FIRST MINISTER, TALKS ABOUT HIS HOPES AND INTERNATIONAL AMBITIONS FOR SCOTLAND IN A GOLDEN AGE, BY RODDY MARTINE
March 2003, Issue 7, page 30

A happy union
Let me first emphasise that there is no political agenda in my writing this, but it recently occurred to me, as I was listening to a speech from Alec Salmond, leader of the Scottish Nationalist Party,...
December 2006, Issue 30, page 7

A legacy that grows with each year
Roddy Martine talks...
March 2004, Issue 13, page 7

A lot to be proud of
We were gathered together in Edinburgh's Dome Restaurant to celebrate the presentation of an honourary doctorate from Queen Margaret's University to Alan Bain, President Emeritus of the American Scott...
August 2009, Issue 46, page 7

A new lease of life
The dovecot tapestries are going from strength to strength. Roddy Martine assesses a true Scottish treasure
January 2004, Issue 12, page 68

A phoenix from the ashes
Roddy Martine pays a visit to the newly renovated Fenton Tower, a castle given a new lease of life
September 2002, Issue 4, page 14

A question of Britishness
The debate that is currently preoccupying the intelligentsia throughout the United Kingdom is the future of ‘Britishness.' A lot of this has to do with providing 21st century immigrants with a sense...
August 2008, Issue 40, page 7

A real chance to become part of history
One notable benefit of Tartan Week in New York, so far as I am concerned, is that it provides those of us who tend to be preoccupied with whatever we are doing back home with an opportunity to get to ...
June 2006, Issue 27, page 7

A step forward
Roddy Martine talks...
July 2003, Issue 9, page 7

An extraordinary and enderrated hero
I now realise that I have known Professor Richard Demarco OBE for more than 40 years, a startling thought which came to mind when I attended his 76th birthday party at Fingask Castle, a 16th century J...
September 2006, Issue 28, page 7

Ancestral home
There is a saying in Scotland that it costs you nothing to find out who your ancestors are, but it costs a fortune to keep it quiet. That may be true, but Scotland is a small country with under five m...
March 2002, Issue 1, page 7

Art in the east
This issue, Roddy Martine visits the Stenton Gallery in East Lothian
August 2007, Issue 34, page 52

Artistic outpost
Roddy Martine visits The Pier Arts Centre, an artistic gem on Orkney.
March 2008, Issue 37, page 60

Aussie inventor
Although an increasingly multi-cultural society, this is an important year for Australia's Scottish community in that it is two hundred years since a Scotsman, Lachlan Macquarrie, was appointed Govern...
February 2010, Issue 49, page 7

Bigger than Madonna
Roddy Martine talks...
February 2003, Issue 6, page 7

Border patrol
In Scotland it is never possible to escape the past. At every turn it confronts you and although some of our more progressive politicians would happily wipe the slate clean and start again, the lesson...
July 2002, Issue 3, page 7

Branding irony
Roddy Talks...
June 2002, Issue 2, page 7

Caledon's success is music to the ears
Ihave just returned from Germany where on two successive nights I witnessed 550 Berliners giving a standing ovation to three kilted Scotsmen who had been singing a cross-section of those wonderful and...
April 2006, Issue 26, page 7

Changes
Change is part of life, and this year a lot of change is taking place in Scotland. Following the May elections for the Scottish Parliament, we have a new First Minister in the person of the enigmatic ...
June 2007, Issue 33, page 7

Come together
With VisitScotland's Homecoming Scotland initiative running throughout 2009, there is one invitation-only event in particular that to my mind stands out as totally unique. That is the seminar being ho...
June 2009, Issue 45, page 7

Crowned Triumph
RODDY MARTINE EXAMINES THE INTERNATIONAL SUCCESS OF TELEVISION SERIES MONARCH OF THE GLEN, WHICH HAS REVITALISED THE MID-HIGHLANDS REGION
November 2002, Issue 5, page 14

Edinburgh – So much more than a castle
Roddy Martine has spent most of his life in Edinburgh and loves it. Here he explains why.
May 2004, Issue 14, page 46

End of year cheer
Living in the Northern Hemisphere, we have all come to accept that the days and nights at either end of the year are long and cold and very dark. And that, of course, is why we Scots have earned ourse...
December 2007, Issue 36, page 7

Everything you need to know about Scottish bagpipes
Roddy Martine reveals the history of the humble bagpipe
April 2007, Issue 32, page 74

Everything you need to know about... The Loch Ness monster
The Loch Ness Monster, or ‘Nessie,' as he, she or it is known locally, has become a popular Scottish icon inspiring poems, books and songs. Over the years, Nessie's image has been transposed onto co...
June 2007, Issue 33, page 74

Everything you need to know about...Tartan
This issue, Roddy Martine reveals the history of tartan
December 2006, Issue 30, page 74

Everything you need to know about...wearing the kilt
In the first of a new series, Roddy Martine reveals how to look good in a kilt
October 2006, Issue 29, page 74

Family ties
VisitScotland, the Scottish government agency which promotes Scotland as a tourist destination throughout the world has, in recent years, launched a series of genealogy initiatives aimed at expatriate...
April 2007, Issue 32, page 7

Festival still leads the way
Roddy Martine talks...
September 2003, Issue 10, page 7

Festive season
I was at an American-Scottish gathering in Atlanta, Georgia, when an attractive young lady wearing a skirt, waistcoat and bonnet in the Buchanan tartan approached me and asked if I could tell her abou...
September 2002, Issue 4, page 7

Finding Scotland Down Under
Roddy Martine talks...
March 2003, Issue 7, page 7

Fondest memories of a legendary Highlander
Holiday brochures wax lyrical about locations and sunsets, but there is nothing to compete with first-hand memory. That is why I was so very delighted to discover that an anthology of the essays of Se...
February 2006, Issue 25, page 7

Future of Scotland is blowing in the wind
Back in 1975, when I was editor of a Scottish business journal, I interviewed Stephen Salter of the department of mechanical engineering at Edinburgh University.
March 2005, Issue 19, page 7

Getting to grips with Gaelic
Roddy Matine talks...
November 2003, Issue 11, page 7

Gorgeous gardens
I was seated at my desk and staring out of the window searching for inspiration when I suddenly noticed that the plants and trees in my garden were starting to bud. The global financial gloom of recen...
April 2009, Issue 44, page 7

Granite city of culture (Aberdeen)
Roddy Martine looks at the art galleries and museums to be found in Aberdeen
April 2007, Issue 32, page 44

Hideaway Holidays
RODDY MARTINE INTRODUCES SOME TRULY UNUSUAL AND STUNNING LOCATIONS FOR THE PERFECT HIDEAWAY SCOTTISH HOLIDAYS
February 2003, Issue 6, page 66

History today
Roddy Martine talks...
November 2002, Issue 5, page 7

It's a small world
The mobility of Scots during the past two centuries never ceases to fascinate me. While researching my latest book project, I have discovered that, around 1842, Joan Carfrae, a relative of my great-gr...
March 2008, Issue 37, page 7

Life on Lewis
At this time of year I am usually to be found on the island of Lewis, where I annually meet up with a group of old friends in a stalking lodge, far from the madding crowd. As the temperature drops, h...
November 2007, Issue 35, page 7

Life's rich tapestry
One of the more fascinating features of the Edinburgh suburb of Corstorphine used to be the Edinburgh Tapestry Company which was quartered in close proximity to a 16th century Dovecot, from which it i...
December 2008, Issue 42, page 7

Living here isn't quite murder
Roddy Martine talks...
May 2004, Issue 14, page 7

Living on an island
RODDY MARTINE GOES IN SEARCH OF ISLAND PARADISE AND SELECTS SOME TOP HOTELS
March 2003, Issue 7, page 66

Moving forward in the Highlands
Roddy Martine talks...
September 2004, Issue 16, page 7

My kinda town...
Roddy Martin talks...
July 2004, Issue 15, page 7

Nothing quite like honourable defeat
Roddy Martine talks...
January 2004, Issue 12, page 7

On the face of it, it's chiefly good news
Roddy Marting talks...
November 2004, Issue 17, page 7

Perfectly sculpted
Scotland Magazine readers domiciled in the UK will no doubt be familiar with the Angel of the North, the imposing statue which overlooks the town of Gateshead in England and which is the creation of t...
August 2010, Issue 52, page 7

Poet's legacy
Although poetry commands its own following, it is more often than not sidelined in the fast world of prose and spoken word. So it was striking to hear the words of Elizabeth Alexander, America's chose...
February 2009, Issue 43, page 7

Politics alive and well in Scotland
With the United Kingdom in the grips of General Election fever, I am not at all surprised that some of my trans-Atlantic and pan-European friends remain baffled by the defining differences between our...
April 2005, Issue 20, page 7

Scotland'smaritime legacy
The exhibition Books on Ice: the British and American Literature on Polar Exploration which was due to be held at the Grolier Club in New York City over Christmas and New Year marks the end of an impr...
January 2006, Issue 24, page 7

Seven degrees
One unexpected consequence of my having written a history of my ancestors in East Lothian, the rich coastal pastureland of south-east Scotland, is that I have recently been approached to provide my DN...
June 2010, Issue 51, page 7

Snapshots from my life
Roddy Martine shares some candid photos with us from his career in journalism.
August 2010, Issue 52, page 58

Soaking up the culture
In the latest of our series on Scotland's great museums and art galleries, Roddy Martine Explores Perth
November 2007, Issue 35, page 58

Steel appeal
RODDY MARTINE PROFILES THE LIFE AND WORK OF FIFE-BORN VETERAN POLITICIAN SIR DAVID STEEL
July 2003, Issue 9, page 28

Stirling stuff (Smith Art Gallery and Museum)
Museums and galleries rank among the most visited attractions in Scotland, but what makes them so appealing? In the first of a new series, Roddy Martine visits the Smith Art Gallery and Museum in Stir...
December 2006, Issue 30, page 38

Supernatural Scotland
It was extremely dark and unnaturally cold. I could hear a dog barking and the clatter of horses hooves on the cobbled street in front of me. On all sides were shadows cast by the flicker of lamplight...
June 2008, Issue 39, page 7

The big freeze
I was talking on the telephone to a friend in Cape Town earlier this week and inevitably he asked me about the weather in Scotland. I told him the sky was blue, the sun was shining, and that the snows...
April 2010, Issue 50, page 7

The National Gallery of Scotland
In the latest of our series on Scotland's best galleries and museums, Roddy Martine takes a walk round Edinburgh's National Gallery
June 2007, Issue 33, page 22

The power of fiction
As you read this, I will be preparing to give a talk at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. I'm in good company this year with Norman Mailer, Germain Greer, ANWilson, Alexander McCall Smith and...
August 2007, Issue 34, page 7

The restoration
I have often observed that Scotland appears to have far more historic ruins per square mile than any other territory in Western Europe. The obvious conclusion is that it has something to do with our n...
October 2008, Issue 41, page 7

The Spirit of Scotland at its very best
Roddy Martine talks...
January 2005, Issue 18, page 7

The Wild, Celtic West
Roddy Martine talks...
May 2003, Issue 8, page 7

The world's eyes on Edinburgh
This has been an eventful summer for Scotland, what with the G8 Summit at Gleneagles Hotel and the accompanying demonstrations in Edinburgh, Stirling and Auchterarder. No sooner had the streets of Sc...
August 2005, Issue 22, page 7

They don't make 'em like they used to
Roddy Martine takes a walk down memory lane at The Museum of childhood, Edinburgh.
April 2008, Issue 38, page 26

Thriving abroad
It was the combination of a book launch, and meeting up with Eddie Tait, who runs the website www.scotsinlondon.com, that got me thinking about just how well the Scottish diaspora (I dislike that word...
February 2007, Issue 31, page 7

To the beat of a different drum
Roddy Martine looks at the history of Scotland's most spectacular annual event, the Edinburgh Military Tattoo
June 2007, Issue 33, page 68

Transatlantic celebration
Roddy Martine attended the festivities of tartan week in the US, as thousands of Americans celebrated their Scottish links
July 2002, Issue 3, page 10

Two for one
Roddy Martine looks at The Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art and the Dean Gallery, two venues close enough to be counted as one and the same.
December 2007, Issue 36, page 58

Visiting those old haunts...
Roddy Martine, author of the book supernatural Scotland, picks Scotland's ten most haunted places
May 2004, Issue 14, page 22

Wallace, Bruce and political correctness
Seven hundred years ago, on August 23, Sir William Wallace, the Scottish resistance leader, was sentenced to death in London. Thereafter, he was hung, drawn and quartered, and his body parts despatche...
October 2005, Issue 23, page 7

Where the past is in touching distance
Summer being on its way, before the season of midges, I took a friend to visit Appin, in Argyll. We were staying, as it chanced, on Isle of Eriska, until recently the fiefdom of Robin Buchanan-Smith, ...
July 2005, Issue 21, page 7

Woven history
I recently purchased a bolt of Harris Tweed to have made into a jacket. I know that sounds rather an old fashioned thing to do nowadays given the generous availability of off-the-shelf menswear but to...
December 2009, Issue 48, page 7