Useful Gaelic word: fèin
fèin – self Listen to the pronunciation guide The word is often spelt féin in older books and the resemblance to the Irish word féin – as is Sinn Féin – is not a coincidence. Fèin and féin are the same...
View ArticleIt’s not quite café culture – but you’ll be served a summit snack
There is no obvious reason why the spirit of entrepreneurial enterprise should have an altitude ceiling, but news of a café having been established at almost 950 metres on the third-highest peak in...
View ArticleSex and the Celestial Bed: the lives and lusts of Scotland’s libertines
By Elizabeth McQuillan The lords, lairds, nobles and wealthy libertines of 18th-century Scotland, supplemented by a few customs officials and smugglers with gold coin, had ample opportunity to have...
View ArticleThe ghost of the night-bird: owls and their mysterious imprints
A variety of news outlets, including the BBC and the Westmorland Gazette, have published a beautiful, haunting picture of an imprint made by an owl – probably a tawny owl – when it crashed into the...
View ArticleNo clear benefit from increased water intake, says Glasgow GP
A Glasgow GP is warning consumers that they should “just say no” to those trying to urge them to drink more of a popular beverage. The drink promotion which has raised the ire of Margaret McCartney...
View ArticleYomps, tors and a strange sort of hill: diary of a week off, part 1
Sunday Late morning was as good a time as any to brave the 100-mile drive up the A9, and by 2pm I was starting up the strange hill that is Creag Meagaidh. It was tackled from Moy, to the south, rather...
View ArticleDoctors warned not to compromise confidentiality via social media
Asked if he has ever Tweeted anything he regrets, junior doctor Alan Robertson pauses just a moment. “No – except if it’s got a typo in it,” he laughs. “I hate that. “But the thing about Twitter is...
View ArticleUseful Gaelic word: seann
seann – old Listen to the pronunciation guide Sometimes spelt sean, it is one of two words for "old" in Gaelic. The other one is aosta, which is spelt aosda in older books. The difference between the...
View ArticleUseful Scots word: hunker
By Betty Kirkpatrick It is a sure sign of getting old when your joints begin to play up. They start to creak, stiffen up and cause sudden stabs of pain, making actions like hunkering very difficult....
View ArticleStruggling to slim? It might be your genes (if you’re from Europe)
Scientists at Aberdeen University have discovered a genetic “switch” which they believe makes Europeans far more likely to choose high-fat food and alcohol than people in Asia. The findings also have...
View ArticleFriday song: Rebekah
The Sensational Alex Salmond Band have, once again, produced a video to promote their new album. This week’s topical offering, entitled simply Rebekah, is written and performed by Tommy Mackay,...
View ArticleFriday song 2: Rebekah, Flame-Haired Temptress Of My Dreams
As a bonus end-of-week offering, The Caledonian Mercury is proud to present Zander "Blind Boy" Flugga with his musical musings on the former high priestess of News International. Donate to us: support...
View ArticleWeir’s Week: cowards, crashes, curses and a bag man
By Stewart Weir Saturday As a nation, England have a pretty dire record when it comes to winning penalty shoot-outs. That said, at least they have regularly put themselves in that sudden-death...
View ArticleHamish – and the beauty of Heaton Cooper: diary of a week off, part 2
After the Cairngorms raid and a day of rest … another day of gardening and general pottering. Hamish Brown dropped by for a chat, and to pass on a copy of John G Wallace’s privately published History...
View ArticleAlex Salmond outlines the Scottish clubgolf initiative
– This is the text of an article by Scottish first minister Alex Salmond which first appeared in the Sunday Mail. On the last day of the Open championship, the first minister outlines Scotland’s...
View ArticleUseful Gaelic word: cian
cian – age/distance Listen to the pronunciation guide Cian is one of these words hardly ever used in modern Gaelic on its own with its original meaning, but which is used as part of other bigger words...
View ArticleSolid but slow barometric improvement in Scottish labour market
According to the latest Bank of Scotland Labour Market Barometer, the jobs market in Scotland has continued to improve in the last month, but at a slower pace. The figures also show that the labour...
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Defence cuts hit Scotland hard as RAF Leuchars to close
As widely expected, the UK defence minster, Liam Fox, has announced that RAF Leuchars is to close, despite a campaign by all political parties in Scotland for it to remain open. With the earlier...
View ArticleDebt crises in Greece and elsewhere cause stock market jitters
Monday was a day of worry for investors. They are growing ever more worried by the debt crises in the eurozone and the US. Stock markets fell, as did the euro against both the Swiss franc and the yen....
View ArticleSun, sand and shipwrecks – five great Scottish beaches
By Elizabeth McQuillan Scotland boasts over 50 beaches that have been awarded flags recognising their safety, water quality and beach cleanliness. Another seven beaches have also been awarded the blue...
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