Features
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Auld Reekie at Halloween: Horror stories from Edinburgh’s dark past
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In pictures: winning shots from Loch Lomond photography competition
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Football’s greatest moments recreated in Subbuteo
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Into the spray, across the bay: Crofter’s Staffin herd heads for winter pastures
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Legal or ludicrous? Strange Scottish laws
Meet the Autumnwatch presenters prepared to pull on the thermals and head north to watch the season unfold with some of our rarest wildlife
IF YOU’RE a wildlife presenter who spends the majority of his time rolling around in the mud, attempting to unearth the daily habits of a dung beetle, it’s best to be prepared. At least that’s the philosophy of Autumnwatch presenter Martin Hughes-Games, who pulls up his trouser leg and says: “I’ve got thermal underwear on!”
Gig review: Charlotte Church, Glasgow
For someone who first came to prominence in her early teens on the back of a quite breathtaking vocal ability, it’s become all too easy to forget these days that Charlotte Church is a singer. Between adoration in lad’s mags, her ill-starred marriage to Gavin Henson, minor TV stardom and eventually the fallout from her tabloid ubiquity at the Leveson Inquiry, Charlotte Church the performer seems to have been all but forgotten.
Edinburgh Online Fashion Week: Goodstead
Every day this week Scotsman.com will be streaming runway shows from Edinburgh Online Fashion Week, Scotland’s first exclusively digital fashion event.
Auld Reekie at Halloween: Horror stories from Edinburgh’s dark past
EDINBURGH’S twisting wynds and and cobbled walkways, now so inviting for their historic draw among tourists, were once sites of plague, murder and apparitions, as some of the capital’s most infamous stories reveal
Picture: Tigers get into Halloween spirit Picture gallery
It’s a sight that would send a shiver down the spine into any prospective trick-or-treater but there’s no need for alarm. For these tigers are not roaming the streets on the look-out for pumpkins but have instead been set a challenge by their keepers at a Scottish wildlife park.
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Motoring
Motors: Steed rides in from the East
China’s Great Wall marque is making inroads into the UK with a well-priced pick-up that impresses Frederic Manby
My first car … Catherine Hardy
MY FIRST car was a 1970 navy blue Morris Minor which I inherited from my mum when I was 17 – I think my dad was working for a subsidiary of Austin Rover and she got his second company car.
Motors: Subaru’s Outback is overpriced and over the hill, says Frederic Manby
THERE were times when I really wanted snow. I wanted lots of it. Snow makes owning a 4x4 seem a great choice. The other reason is the mighty and high seating which levitates you above other drivers. But you don’t need snow or mud to justify those 4x4s – just a bit of extra cash.
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Audi RS4 Avant guards its reputation
Many, many years ago, a wise old man told me you never have any worries until you own something. In my innocent, and arrogant, youth, I failed to understand how that could be. Surely possessions gave you security and comfort and generally made your life easier and less stressful?
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I believe in Santa Fe
REPOSITIONED. It’s one of those horrible corporate doublespeak phrases which makes you instantly suspicious, like “synergies”, “restructuring” and “consultation process”. If a product is “repositioned”, it usually means it is going to be more expensive, and the Hyundai Santa Fe is, at first glance, no exception.
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Food and Drink
Gadget review: Sousvide Supreme Demi
I’m an avid watcher of MasterChef, Hell’s Kitchen and Great British Menu. Having attempted some of the marathon multi-process recipes that impress MasterChef’s John and Gregg I’ve learnt to use every time-saving gadget available
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Claire Macdonald’s recipes: Lamb with aubergines | Lamb chops in garlic | Braised lamb shanks with pickled lemon
IT IS 14 years since I was asked by the Blackface Sheep Breeding Association to demonstrate for two-and-a-half hours using lamb in each recipe
Wine: If you’re looking to learn more about wine these books are a good place to start
A QUESTION I get asked frequently by long-term wine-lovers and beginners alike: which books would I recommend to learn about wine?
Restaurant review: Chaophraya, Glasgow
GIANNI Versace, Saddam Hussein, Roman Abramovich. If I was a panellist (alongside Eve Pollard) on popular Eighties telly programme Through the Keyhole, and Loyd Grossman showed me a video clip of Chaophraya’s interior, and before Sir David Frost asked, “Well, Gaby, who lives in a house like this?” those would be my guesses.
Restaurant review: Cafe D’Amour, Aberfeldy
ABERFELDY is one of those great little towns that gladdens the heart. There’s so much to like about it, from the Watermill Gallery and bookshop to the Highland Chocolatier and local distillery tours.
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Outdoors
Perthshire beauty spot set for £1m visitor centre revamp
Queen’s View, one of Scotland’s most spectacular beauty spots, is in line for a £1 million revamp.
4 commentsJonathan Trew: Different acts of union
FROM same-sex marriage to the future of the United Kingdom, the various definitions of union have been in the news lately. Acts of union are also at the heart of many events taking place under the umbrella of this year’s Glasgay!
Roger Cox: The secret to sea kayaking is knowing when to stay at home, according to this well-seasoned expert
SIMON Willis’s book, The Scottish Sea Kayak Trail, gives me what I call the risk versus reward shivers. It’s the feeling I get when I see a picture of a surfer riding a giant, perfect wave, or of a skier about to leap off a cornice into a steep, deep, powder run.
Outdoors: Otter spotter
IF YOU want to see river otters, you will need to get up early and know where to look
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Travel
Travel: The Ligurian Mountains, Italy
WHEN you tire of the French Riviera’s celebrity lifestyle, the beautiful scenery, historic villages and delicious food of the Ligurian Mountains are the perfect tonic.
Travel: Biggar
WITH seven museums and a historic castle to stay in, Biggar is a treat for time travellers
Do not disturb: The Old Station, St Andrews
IF YOU are looking for somewhere unique to spend some time away or you’re just a bit of a trainspotter at heart, the Old Station four-star B&B, just outside beautiful St Andrews, provides a railway-themed weekend with vintage appeal.
Travel: Tarn, France
A TINY, ancient woman peers down from a window of her chateau and tosses us the keys to let ourselves in. This spry little aristocrat, Madame Tapié de Celeyran, is the granddaughter of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s cousin, and she takes great delight in showing us around Chateau du Bosc, in the Aveyron region, where the artist spent many holidays as a child
Travel: Australia
For rugby union fans, it’s regarded as one of the sport’s ultimate supporter experiences, one they dream of taking part in at least once in their lifetime.
Music
Review: American Idiot! Playhouse
From the instant the company launches into an opening number that oozes vigour and verve, you can tell this has come straight from Broadway rather than stagnating in the West End first – it’s big, bold and ballsy. With a multi-Tony Award-winning team behind things, it was never likely to be anything but.
Album review: 18 Months by Calvin Harris
What – apart from successful pop careers – do Rihanna, Florence Welch, Mary J Blige, Ellie Goulding, Sophie Ellis Bextor, Cheryl Cole, Kylie, Ke$ha and Kelis have in common? All have stepped into Calvin Harris’s studio harem and emerged with a hit collaboration of some description.
Q for Quality as Emeli Sandé caps quite a year with solo artist award
BARELY a year after releasing her first single, Scots singer Emeli Sandé capped a spectacular 12 months yesterday when she was named best solo artist at the prestigious Q Awards.
Radar weekly: The latest from the Scottish music scene
New Frightened Rabbit tour, Haddow Fest returns, free all-day event from Cry Parrot and Green Door, Bongo Club finds a home, Twin Atlantic soundtrack space jump; plus this week’s new music and gig picks.
Classical review: Dresden Philharmonic; Edinburgh Usher Hall
It was mighty strange to experience the swashbuckling extrovert style of violinist Sarah Chang against the more stately showmanship of the Dresden Philharmonic, both of whom joined in combat last night for a performance of Samuel Barber’s Violin Concerto under the baton of Michael Sanderling.
Books
Spark and Kelman in the running for ‘book of the last century’ prize
IT WILL be chosen from a hotly-debated list spanning more than half a century and feature some of the biggest names in modern literature.
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Comprehensive guide to Bond creator Ian Fleming was four years in the making
IT PROMISES to be the ultimate Christmas guide for fans of Britain’s favourite spy – and his enigmatic creator.
Comprehensive guide to Bond creator Ian Fleming was four years in the making
IT PROMISES to be the ultimate Christmas guide for fans of Britain’s favourite spy – and his enigmatic creator.
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Fans of Robert Louis Stevenson urged to celebrate author’s life and work
IT WILL be Scotland’s answer to Bloomsday, the date in June when Dubliners take to the streets to commemorate James Joyce’s most famous novel Ulysses.
6 commentsStuart Kelly: “The Booker admits the existence of nettles but prefers dahlias”
HILARY Mantel has won the Booker Prize for the second time, laying to rest the myth that it is only men from the Antipodes (JM Coetzee and Peter Carey) that can accomplish such a feat.
Comedy
Comedy preview: Pappy’s Last Show Ever, The Stand
EDINBURGH Fringe favourites Matthew Crosby, Ben Clark and Thomas Parry are calling a day on their sketch troupe Pappy’s. Or are they?
Comedy preview: Punchlines, Usher Hall
COMEDY replaces concerts at the Usher Hall on Saturday when Punchline present another evening of laughs, featuring four of the UK’s top stand-ups.
Review: Andy Zaltzman: Armchair Revolutionary, The Stand
After a lengthy and highly entertaining series of pre-show public announcements, Andy Zaltzman takes the stage, improbably high forehead peaked by even more unlikely shock of red hair, accessorised with a classic ‘arrow through the head’ prop.
Comedy review: John Bishop; Glasgow SECC
FOR stand-ups who have become prime-time television fixtures, the arena tour is a tricky balance of acknowledging your success while retaining empathy with your audience.
Comedy review: Mark Steel - Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh
MARK Steel is a worried man. He’s fretting about being in his 50s, which means he’s getting ever closer to taking a cruise holiday and he’s concerned that he now has a teenage son with his own ideas and, it seems, a promising talent for jokewriting.
Film
Comprehensive guide to Bond creator Ian Fleming was four years in the making
IT PROMISES to be the ultimate Christmas guide for fans of Britain’s favourite spy – and his enigmatic creator.
Hooray for Holloway: Christina Hendricks
FORTY-EIGHT hours after all-round defeat, and still Christina Hendricks is smiling. “I thought it might go that way,” the woman best known as Mad Men’s Joan Holloway is saying. “Are you kidding me?” she laughs.
Comprehensive guide to Bond creator Ian Fleming was four years in the making
IT PROMISES to be the ultimate Christmas guide for fans of Britain’s favourite spy – and his enigmatic creator.
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Arts blog: The small Breton town that celebrates British film
ONLY in Dinard will a request for the bill at the end of a meal be turned down. Not because your money is no good in this small Breton town, but because in Dinard the word for “receipt” is not recue but a Britishism: “ticket”.
DVD reviews: The Devil Rides Out | The Alexander Sokurov Collection
FIRST released in 1968, The Devil Rides Out is one of Hammer’s best films. It’s a cult movie in both senses of the word, which along with Rosemary’s Baby (released the same year) helped make satanic rituals a staple of the horror genre for decades to come.
TV and Radio
Ewan Crawford: BBC faces a searching examination
SAVILE scandal has raised wider concerns about how the public service broadcaster is being run, writes Ewan Crawford.
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Donald Trump to seek legal advice over “biased” BBC documentary
DONALD Trump is threatening to take legal action against the BBC following the broadcasting company’s decision to screen a controversial documentary on the tycoon’s Scottish golf resort development.
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‘No evidence’ was found of BBC Jimmy Savile cover-up – Panorama
A PANORAMA documentary has failed to find evidence of a BBC “cover-up” over the decision not to air a Newsnight investigation into the Jimmy Savile sex abuse claims.
Jimmy Savile investigation: BBC editor gave ‘inaccurate’ account of Savile sex probe
THE editor of the BBC’s flagship current affairs programme, Newsnight, has stepped aside with “immediate effect”, while the corporation reviews its response to the deepening Jimmy Savile abuse scandal.
5 commentsX Factor judges ‘talked through sing-off’
X FACTOR hopefuls MK1 have criticised judges Gary Barlow and Nicole Scherzinger for “talking” during their sing-off performance on Sunday night.
Performing Arts
Theatre review: Demons; Glasgow Oran Mor
WITH 13 writers involved, this political cabaret at Oran Mor looks a bit like a show designed by a committee.
Comedy review: Nordoff Robbins Comedy Gala, The Garage, Glasgow
IT IS to comedians’ credit that so many give their time for free, but a common frustration with charity gigs is that they try to pack in too many acts.
Opera review: Scottish Opera: The Magic Flute, Theatre Royal, Glasgow
‘I feel as if I’ve been drugged!’ exclaims Nicky Spence’s wide-eyed Tamino near the start of Thomas Allen’s sparkling yet rather hallucinogenic new production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute for Scottish Opera.
Theatre review: Ulysses, Tron, Glasgow
RICH, strange, uneven, complex, imperfect, foul, beautiful and absolutely charged with the glorious and terrible pulse of life: this is Andy Arnold’s new stage version of James Joyce’s Ulysses, built round a text first written almost 20 years ago by the great Irish novelist and playwright Dermot Bolger, but now given its first full production by the Tron Theatre, along with the Everyman in Cork and the Project Arts Centre in Dublin.
Edinburgh International Festival apologises for misleading box office figures
THE EDINBURGH International Festival has been forced to apologise after issuing misleading box office figures at the end of this year’s event.
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Visual Arts
Lothians in Pictures: Forth Bridge
The Forth Bridge is dwarfed by a massive anchor in this unusual perspective captured by News reader Isabel Armstrong
Images of Scotland: St Andrews
On a golfing trip to St Andrews, David Mollison from Kirknewton took this impressive photograph of the town from a neighbouring course.
Edinburgh Sketcher: The Meadows
Sunday morning and an early walk across a misty, atmospheric and very beautiful Meadows Park.
Lothians in Pictures: Portobello
Evening News reader John Thomson was in Joppa just in time to catch the last of the sunset behind Portobello
Images of Scotland: Swans near Peebles
Jim Grieve’s photograph of swans and their cygnets taken near Peebles recalls sunnier days full of promise at the beginning of summer
Fashion
Edinburgh Online Fashion Week: House of Fraser
Every day this week Scotsman.com will be streaming runway shows from Edinburgh Online Fashion Week, Scotland’s first exclusively digital fashion event.
Edinburgh Online Fashion Week: Shhh...
Every day this week Scotsman.com will be streaming runway shows from Edinburgh Online Fashion Week, Scotland’s first exclusively digital fashion event.
Edinburgh Online Fashion Week: House of Fraser
Every day this week Scotsman.com will be streaming runway shows from Edinburgh Online Fashion Week, Scotland’s first exclusively digital fashion event.
Fashion: Rock chic
Rock chick chic is about to hit Auld Reekie with Haddowfest just around the corner.
![Bride Wore Red, The (1937) | Pers: Joan Crawford | Dir: Dorothy Arzner | Ref: BRI009AM | Photo Credit: [ MGM / The Kobal Collection ] | Editorial use only related to cinema, television and personalities. Not for cover use, advertising or fictional works without specific prior agreement](/web/20121023122511im_/http://www.scotsman.com/webimage/1.2591091.1350822076!image/4196626570.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_109/4196626570.jpg)
Lights, camera, wardrobe!
FROM Dorothy’s coveted ruby slippers to Bruce Willis’s vest in the die hard movies, Hollywood’s most iconic films often feature memorable costumes. see the best in a captivating new exhibition
Homes and Gardens
Gardens: ‘Autumn is a good time to assess the planting structure’
Work has started on a house extension that I have been involved in from the design stage, which is great as we meet to discuss the design as a whole rather than following on after the building is complete. There was soil to be excavated before construction work begins and this gave me the opportunity to assess the soil conditions for the garden. The profile showed a good depth of topsoil, which allows us to create the levels we want without having to scrape off the topsoil, adjust subsoil levels then spread the topsoil back. Aside from being time-consuming and expensive, the latter is always challenging in a small garden where there is a lack of space to stockpile the material. It is always worth considering engaging a garden designer at an early stage to work in conjunction with a design team, particularly where there are issues with levels.
Gardens: An austere space in Edinburgh’s Royal Terrace has been given the gentle touch
CLEAN lines and imposing beauty could describe much Georgian architecture, and the gardens often match. In Edinburgh’s New Town, the designs are easy on the eye, but perhaps a little austere for modern families.
At home with: Sanjeev Kohli
WHEN Sanjeev Kohli opens the door to his smart West End flat in Glasgow, he already has a huge smile on his face.
Interiors: By adding a dining and family room to their Bathgate home, Mark and Nicola McCabe enjoy the best of period features with contemporary convenience
IT WAS the high ceilings, original woodwork and traditional grandeur that attracted Mark and Nicola McCabe to Tweedholm when they bought it six years ago.
Health
High blood pressure raises cancer risk
HIGH blood pressure increases a man’s risk of dying from prostate cancer.
Health and Beaty: Treat yourself and your loved one to a bespoke break at Airth Castle Spa
SPENDING quality time with your other half doesn’t have to involve sitting in a restaurant, or in front of the goggle box. So I discovered on a recent trip to Airth Castle Spa.
Lifelines: Anne Chilton on Anxiety
ANNE Chilton is head of professional practice for counselling with Relationships Scotland
Malnutrition: Not just a third world problem
MALNUTRITION. Hear the word and you might think of famine in east Africa. You might picture heartbreakingly thin children, razor-sharp cheekbones, ribs poking through chests, huge vacant eyes staring as flies swarm, unnoticed, around starving mouths.
Health and beauty: For movie-star glamour, it’s all about the hands
Autumn’s here. And while the catwalks may have just been full of sherbet lemon and pistachio ice-cream shades, here in the real world we’re thinking cold nights, electric blankets and hot chocolate with marshmallows and whipped cream.
Technology
Five things we’ll miss about Ceefax
AS the digital switchover signals the end of the analogue television system in the UK, it also means the end of Ceefax, a real-time information service that offered millions of television viewers the latest news, weather, entertainment and sport.
Warning over free pro–smoking apps
Pro-smoking apps that are free to download could increase teenagers’ risk of starting smoking, researchers have warned.
Smartphone app to help rural healthcare wins two awards
A SMARTPHONE application which helps clinicians reach and treat patients has won two national awards.
Gadget review: Sousvide Supreme Demi
I’m an avid watcher of MasterChef, Hell’s Kitchen and Great British Menu. Having attempted some of the marathon multi-process recipes that impress MasterChef’s John and Gregg I’ve learnt to use every time-saving gadget available
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Is Google share slump a sign of wider malaise in the tech world?
THE premature release of third-quarter earnings wiped as much as $22billion off Google’s share price before trading was halted yesterday, bringing the search-engine giant’s market capitalisation below Microsoft’s.
Heritage
Red squirrel ousts Nessie as Loch Ness’s main attraction
IT SOUNDS as unlikely a contest as the infamous battle between David and Goliath, but tourism chiefs are hoping that Scotland’s diminutive red squirrel can bring in more money than the Loch Ness Monster.
2 comments‘Honour the haka with bagpipes’
A SCOT studying in New Zealand has called on Scotland supporters to ignite a cauldron of noise in response to the haka at next month’s Test match with the All Blacks, insisting that they would do so with the blessing of the Maori people.
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Organisers pull plug on Gathering of the Clans
AMBITIOUS plans to hold a second Gathering of the Clans during the 2014 Homecoming celebrations have been scrapped, Scotland on Sunday has learned.
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US clan chiefs’ dream shattered as council pull plug on Gathering celebrations
YESTERDAY morning, the lobby of the Hilton Northeast Hotel in the southern American city of Atlanta, in Georgia, was a blaze of tartan.
Outside the front door, a pipe band warmed up in the sunshine. Inside, men, women and children wearing every tartan from MacGregor to Donald could be spotted, along with several fully made-up Braveheart warriors.
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Georgian brothel guide inspires new walking tour
IT IS a new take on the walk of shame. A company is offering a tour of the network of brothels used by prostitutes plying their trade in 18th century Edinburgh.
6 comments- Earthquake that killed nine people in southern Spain was ‘man-made’
- Celtic shareholders urge club to drop joint commercial deals with Rangers
- Charles Green apologises to fans for revealing death threats
- Scottish independence: Row over SNP bid to ‘rig’ cash limits for referendum
- Fleet grounded after helicopter ditches in North Sea
- ‘Who dares wins’: Cheers and boos as SNP votes to end opposition to Nato
- SNP party conference: ‘We’re ruled by a bunch of Snootys,’ says Alex Salmond
- Scottish independence: Spain ‘would not allow Scots automatic EU entry’
- Scottish independence: Row over SNP bid to ‘rig’ cash limits for referendum
- Charles Green says path now cleared for Mike Ashley to buy stake in Rangers
- Scottish Government urged to review smoking ban
- Abercrombie & Fitch: The brand might soon open a store in Glasgow, but does its 'heritage' fit the city?
- Edinburgh trams: £100m left in budget as council pushes for faster progress
- Fleet grounded after helicopter ditches in North Sea
- Earthquake that killed nine people in southern Spain was ‘man-made’
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Weather for Edinburgh
Tuesday 23 October 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 9 C to 12 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 6 C to 11 C
Wind Speed: 6 mph
Wind direction: North east
