Scotland Magazine Issue 21

Ayrshire & Arran

There are countless hotels, restaurants and sight-seeing opportunities in the area. Sally Toms provides a selection

Where to visit Arran Arran Aromatics Home Farm, Brodick This visitor centre offers an unrivalled range of hand-crafted pampering products. Tel: +44 (0)1770 302 595 Arran Brewery Cladach, Brodick New,...

By Sally Toms in the section Regional Focus

A life on the ocean’s wave

Dominic Roskrow explains his love for boats

I love boats. Always have done. Always will. Any type of boat will do: rowing boats on lakes, sailing boats, historic tall ships, liners, I don’t care; the combination of water and vessel is one that ...

By Dominic Roskrow in the section From the Editor

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, ...

By Roddy Martine in the section Roddy Martine's World

Treasure trove

Charles Douglas visits Dalmeny House near South Queensferry

Some may consider it an unlikely surname for Scotland, but the family name of Primrose originates from the lands of Primrose in Dunfermline, in the Kingdom of Fife, occurring first in a mid-12th centu...

By Charles Douglas in the section Historic Houses

Beall, Portree, Skye

This issue Andy Hall photographs the favourite place of Donnie Munro, former singer of Runrig, solo artist and Skyeman

Here in the stillness of time is a settled feel, of all that has gone before, and a sense of scale that seems, at least for a moment, to make sense of all things.” This is how Beall in Portree is desc...

By Andy Hall in the section Scenic Scotland

In the footsteps in Scott part 3

In the latest chapter of Walter Scott’s travels in Scotland we travel to Rob Roy country. Words and pictures: John Hannavy

Weaving historical facts and figures into his writing was one of Walter Scott’s recurrent strokes of genius – legend meets literature against that beautifully drawn landscape for which Scott’s writing...

By John Hannavy in the section Scottish Landscapes

Murder most horrid

The Appin Murder still resonates more than 250 years after it happened. James Irvine Robertson explains why

1752 – Culloden was six years ago. The old culture was crushed, the rebel leaders dead or in exile, and their estates confiscated. It should have been all over but rumours were rife of another impend...

By James Irvine Robertson in the section Scottish History

Bucking the trend

While some species of bird are struggling, Britain’s most distinctive sea bird is thriving reports Graham Holliday

The puffin is Scotland’s most distinctive sea bird. It mates for life and returns to the same cliff top burrow to nest every March. Britain hosts nearly a million of the small black and white birds e...

By Graham Holiday in the section Scottish Wildlife

Hidden treasures

Pulau Sipadan, the Red Sea, the Great Barrier Reef and, erm, Scotland. It might not sound quite right, but Scotland is actually one of the most unique places to dive in the world. Alex Mead found out more…

Admittedly, it doesn’t offer the luxury of luke-warm water temperatures, palm-tree lined beaches or ‘Nemo-fish’ (also known as clown fish), but Scotland is a hotbed of dive sites and, if you want to c...

By Dominic Roskrow in the section Scottish Activities

Those who lay beneath us

You don’t normally associate mummies – the wrapped up kind – with Scotland. But the ones at Cladh Hallan are worth investigating

Scotland goes with mummies about as well as Egypt goes with bagpipes. Traditionally, the two are most definitely mutually exclusive. So to say that the islands of the Outer Hebrides are an unlikely p...

By Dominic Roskrow in the section Scottish History

Something for everyone (Ayrshire and Arran)

Ayrshire and Arran don’t enjoy as much attention as destinations further North, but they have a lot to offer

If you’re of the view that Scotland is that piece of land north of Glasgow and Edinburgh, think again. The Borders in the South East and Dumfies and Galloway in the South West offer a different but no...

By Dominic Roskrow in the section Regional Focus

Lets get funky

Scottish culture has played a major role in the fashion industry in recent years. Kate Patrick went in search of Scottish style gurus

When Howie Nicholsby redefined the traditional kilt by producing it for 21st-Century Kilts low-slung and in leather, dark grey wool or even camouflage print for one well-known British pop star, he may...

By Kate Patrick in the section Scottish Trends

Head for the Shetlands

Salmon’s not only good for you, it’s surprisingly versatile. Sue Lawrence looks at some recipe ideas

In these days of concern (bordering on obsession) with health, I often wonder why more people are not eating salmon more regularly. It is packed full of Omega 3 fatty acids which are known to have a ...

By Sue Lawrence in the section Scottish Food

Adopted by good Scottish folk

In the last issue we looked at some of the best venues for folk music. Here Kathleen Spiessbach sets out in search of Scotland’s best folk music

It all started in Peebles. We had just arrived in this small Borders town on the banks of the Tweed, a sundry group of Yanks under the wing of folklorist Ed Miller. As we watched the setting June sun...

By Kathleen Spiessbach in the section Scottish Journeys

Where business is a pleasure

Acanthus is a private conference and dining facility in Glasgow’s fashionable West End. Dominic Roskrow visited it

These days it’s becoming increasingly common to mix business with pleasure, and if you’re coming to Scotland it may well be you’ll want to take the opportunity to catch up with some business associate...

By Dominic Roskrow in the section Best of Scotland

Everything a port should be

Oban is a great centre for exploring the West coast and some of the islands. Dominic Roskrow reports

They say location is everything. In which case, the Oban Caledonian Hotel has it all. The town itself nestles on a rugged stretch of the West coast and you can only approach it from two directions: S...

By Dominic Roskrow in the section Best of Scotland

Entertain like a laird

Provenance of food is key to internet company Caledonian Connoisseur. Dominic Roskrow spoke to managing director Gillian Bell

It’s something many of us have dreamt about: hiring some beautiful house or even a castle in Scotland, inviting over friends we have met there, and entertaining them with the very best of Scottish pro...

By Dominic Roskrow in the section Best of Scotland

Hot in the city tonight

In exclusive association with HotelReviewScotland.com

Malmaison Edinburgh. Leith, Edinburgh. Tel: +44 (0)131 468 5000. The Malmaison Edinburgh is in the capable hands of Lizzy Kelk, winner of The Scottish Hotel Manager of the Year Award 2005. Managemen...

By Dominic Roskrow in the section Best of Scotland

2005 Hotels of the Year

When you plan your holiday in Scotland – or even a business trip – it’s sometimes a challenge to know which hotel to book. There are several guides, one of which is the leading independent website Hot...

By Dominic Roskrow in the section Best of Scotland

Northern warriors (Clan MacLeod)

James Irvine Robertson looks at the durability of Clan MacLeod

As had been known since time immemorial, the MacLeods are of Norse origin and descend from Leod, son of Olave, brother of Magnus, the last king of Manthe, King of Man. A few mavericks believed that t...

By James Irvine Robertson in the section Scottish Clans

Jewel of the North

The Inches are islands in the Forth close to Edinburgh. David McVey visited Inchcolm and found it soaked in history

You sometimes get the impression that all of Scotland’s offshore islands are found in Orkney and Shetland and off the West Coast. Certainly, most of them are. Yet not only does the East Coast have is...

By David McVey in the section Scottish Islands

Simply seeking the best

The best of Scottish cuisine matches anything found across the world – but you have to search for it. Vivien Devlin reports

For a few uninitiated visitors to Scotland, food and drink is represented by the ubiquitous haggis, shortbread, porridge and whisky. But there is far more to experience from the traditional Scottish ...

By Vivien Devlin in the section Scottish Food

Art and antiques news

Tough it out on a Skye night trip. One of the greatest environmental artworks ever to be staged in the United Kingdom is to take place on the Isle of Skye between August 1st and September 17th. ‘The ...

By Sally Toms in the section Scottish Antiques