Contents
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Sally Toms looks at the life of celebrated Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson (1850-1894) was born in Edinburgh in November 1850. The Stevensons were distinguished lighthouse designers, but from an early age Robert showed an interest in literature...
By Sally Toms in the section
Scottish Legends
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Sally Toms enters into the spirit of the Edinburgh festival. All of them
As this issue went to press, Edinburgh was a buzzing with festival spirit.
Every year, the city flings open its gates and welcomes hundreds of thousands of visitors to revel in art, music, comedy and...
By Sally Toms in the section
From the Editor
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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...
By Roddy Martine in the section
Roddy Martine's World
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Charles Douglas visits Brodick Castle on the Isle of Arran, home of the Dukes of Hamilton
The island of Arran is the most southerly of Scotland’s inhabited islands and sits in the Firth of Clyde between Ayrshire and Kintyre. So the first thing you have to do before planning a day visit to ...
By Charles Douglas in the section
Scotland Houses
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John Hannavy captures the beauty of the Lewis, the northern part of the largest Hebridean Island
Despite have travelled extensively throughout Scotland with my camera for more than 40 years, there are still countless places I want to visit before I check out. One of those, until recently, was Cal...
By John Hannavy in the section
Scottish Islands
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If you’re looking for a little rest and relaxation in Scotland, then you can’t go wrong with a holistic retreat. Cora Lydon reports
While holidays should be about taking a break, soaking up the sun and relaxing, for some reason they always end up being the source of much family arguing, an excuse to spend your days trekking from e...
By Cora Lydon in the section
Scotland Breaks
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Sometimes the best way to see a city is from up high. Gary Hayden picks out the best vantage points from which you can look down on Edinburgh
Edinburgh is a city of hills, and has some wonderful viewpoints. No visit is complete without taking in some of its high spots. Here are four of the best.
Arthur’s Seat At 251m, Arthur’s Seat is the ...
By Gary Hayden in the section
Scottish Landscapes
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In the final instalment of Celebrity Scotland, Christopher Fisher speaks to Scottish actor Gray O’Brien, best known for playing Billy Davies in Scotland’s leading soap River City and his cameo appearance in film The Queen
Gray talks about his Scottish roots Do you find with your filming commitments, you don’t get very much time to enjoy Scotland?
“Yep. We are very lucky, because for River City we have a disused whisky...
By Christopher Fisher in the section
Celebrity Scotland
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Fancy experiencing Edinburgh in a different way when you next visit? Then why not set up temporary home there? Dominic Roskrow reports
What sets Edinburgh apart from so many other cities isn’t just its castle, its history, or its age – it’s the way you can envelope yourself in it and let it wash over you. It has none of the remotenes...
By Dominic Roskrow in the section
Best of Scotland
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Stirling, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs are within easy reach of Glasgow but offer solitude and scenery. Dominic Roskrow reports
The heart of Scotland
The area around Loch Lomond and the Trossachs is a vast historical playground, the buffer between the Highlands and Lowlands, a vast expanse of variety just a few miles from Sc...
By Dominic Roskrow in the section
Regional Focus
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James Irvine Robertson describes the battle of Stirling Bridge and Wallace’s legendary defeat over the English
One of the problems about early Scottish history is the lack of sources. Edward I deliberately removed and destroyed most of the records that existed before the 14th century. Those that survived were ...
By James Irvine Robertson in the section
Scottish History
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Grand Perthshire estate Kinnaird is offering unique fishing breaks specifically for women. Sally Toms found out more
If, like me, you’re a woman that cringes at the ‘women’s section’ in a newspaper, then the idea of a specialist fishing holiday for women may at first seem a bit...
patronising. But, even in these da...
By Sally Toms in the section
Best of Scotland
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Ian R Mitchell explores Scotland’s reborn Forth & Clyde canal
It is easy to close a canal, much harder to re-open it. Finished in the 1790s, the Forth & Clyde Canal was the artery of Scotland’s Industrial Revolution. Largely devoted to carrying commercial freigh...
By Ian R Mitchell in the section
Scotland Waterways
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In recent issues we have looked at how you can find out about your ancestors through genealogy. In a new
series we look into the ancestry of some famous Scots. First up, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown
Being Scottish and the leader of the United Kingdom takes some balancing act. New British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has done it by stressing his loyalty to the Union between Scotland and England whi...
By Sally Toms in the section
Scotland Genealogy
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Gone are the days of shared bunks and joint cooking, Scotland’s hostels are now clean, comfortable and, above all, reasonably priced. Richard Goslan reports
If the thought of youth hostelling brings back memories of draughty dormitories, chilly showers, grumpy wardens and chores in the morning, think again. Since celebrating its 75th anniversary last year...
By Richard Goslan in the section
Scotland Accommodation
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This issue, Sue Lawrence provides some recipes celebrating Scotland's historic associations with France and Italy
There has been a strong Italian community in Scotland for decades. Italians arrived in Edinburgh as early as the 1860s when, according to author of Dear Francesca, Mary Contini, they would congregate ...
By Sue Lawrence in the section
Scottish Food
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This issue, Roddy Martine visits the Stenton Gallery in East Lothian
The small, picturesque village of Stenton lies in the heart of rural East Lothian on Scotland’s south east coast. It is located four and a half miles from Dunbar, off the A1 and in 1969, this gem of a...
By Roddy Martine in the section
Scotland Galleries
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More than 300 years of theft, skirmish and plunder has left its mark on the Border lands. Jessie Anderson follows the Reiver Trail
Today the border dividing England and Scotland runs through one of the most tranquil areas of Britain. But step back a few centuries and you will find a very different scene. For this is the Debatable...
By Jesse Anderson in the section
Scotland Trails
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This issue, James Irvine Robertson turns the spotlight on the Clan Cummings
In 1268 David de Strathbogie, the 9th Earl of Atholl, went on a crusade – he died in Tunis the following year. His absence gave his northern neighbour, Comyn of Badenoch, a chance to encroach into Ath...
By James Irvine Robertson in the section
Scottish Clans
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Scotland has numerous islands. Some of them are inhabited, others are deserted. More than 80 of them used to have inhabitants, but the locals left for several different reasons. Marieke McBean investigates
Scotland’s national tourist organisation, VisitScotland, says there are 790 Scottish islands, whereas Hamish Haswell-Smith, author of the book The Scottish Islands, a Comprehensive Guide to Every Scot...
By Marieke Smegen in the section
Scottish History
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Kinloch Lodge
Isle of Skye
Tel: +44 (0)1471 833 333
This hotel simply couldn’t be in any country other than Scotland – it has an unmatchable sense of place. The whitewashed stone architecture is ...
By Sally Toms in the section
Best of Scotland
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Rob Allanson introduces us to Scotland’s whisky producing regions
Scotch malt whisky is one of the very essences of Scotland; a golden and copper spider’s web that sprawls across the country and weaves its way through history.
Whisky can often provide a link back t...
By Rob Allanson in the section
Scotland and whisky