Posts by Ellie Forbes
The Good Books, Foday Mannah: ‘I always recommend Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stewart, it’s a stunning novel’
Foday Mannah on reading as a child, the author who has inspired him, what he’s reading now. The first book I remember reading: Children of the New Forest by Frederick Marryat comes to mind as do the Hardy Boys detective novels written by Franklin W. Dixon. But the standout from childhood has to be…
Read MoreInsh Island: One of Scotland’s last untouched private Islands hits the market
Insh Island, one of Scotland’s last untouched private islands has gone on the market – for just £500,000. The island is only accessible by private boat or helicopter, located near Easdale, the smallest inhabited island in Scotland and host of the World Stone Skimming Championship. The rare 90-acre private island offers an extraordinary opportunity to…
Read MoreDetective John Rebus back on our screens as season two confirmed
Detective John Rebus will be back on our screens after the BBC confirmed a second season of the hit TV drama with Richard Rankin. The drama, based on the books by Sir Ian Rankin, saw the detective return to TV for the first time in 20 years last year in a six part series. The…
Read MoreGame of Thrones actor Rory McCann invests in a new Scotch whisky Slanj
Game of Thrones actor Rory McCann has invested in a new blended Scotch whisky brand, called Slanj. Brothers Brian and Craig Halley, alongside friend Stuart Montgomerie – an investor and adviser to several Scottish businesses – founded the whisky. The trio said they have dreamed of launching a Scotch for over a decade, securing the…
Read MoreScottish author Val McDermid awarded an honorary degree from University of Edinburgh
Scottish author Val McDermid has been awarded an honorary degree from University of Edinburgh. Originally from Kirkcaldy, Val is one of the UK’s most accomplished and respected novelists, an international number one bestselling author whose books have been translated into more than forty languages and sold over 19 million copies worldwide. Her multi-award-winning series and…
Read MoreMountain rescue volunteer wins £10,000 for landslide picture at Rest and Be Thankful
A mountain rescue volunteer has won a £10,000 prize for his incredible image of a landslide at the Rest and Be Thankful. Mick McGraw won the Lapeca Scottish Landscape Awards 2025 for the piece, titled ‘Glen Croe landslide, August 31, 2020’. The winning photograph was taken from the slopes of Ben Donich, looking over the…
Read MoreCampsie High Kirk Church: Historic church to reopen as community arts centre after £1 purchase
The 200-year-old Campsie High Kirk Church which was previously destroyed in a fire is set to begin a new chapter as a community arts centre after it was transferred to the local community. Campsie High Kirk Church lay empty and without an owner for years after a fire in 1984. Friends of Campsie High Kirk…
Read MoreThe Good Books, David Goodman: ‘It’s a shameful thing to admit for an English Literature graduate, but I couldn’t get through Ulysses’
David Goodman on not being able to get through Ulysses, how Iain Banks inspired him, and the books of his childhood. The first book I remember reading: If we’re talking children’s books, it’s probably Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak, which I read dozens of times with my parents. But the first…
Read MoreLife With Bunny Christie: ‘My earliest memories of the theatre is being taken to see Peter Pan in Dundee’
Tony and Oliver award winner, Bunny Christie on her incredible set and costume design, growing up in Scotland and receiving an honorary doctorate from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. I grew up near St Andrews in Fife, in a little village nearby surrounded by fields and woods. We cycled around and bought Highland toffee…
Read MoreProducer’s Corner: Judith Vajk, Caledonian Oyster Company
Judith Vajk has been harvesting Pacific oysters from Loch Creran near Oban for 30 years. Brought up in Pethshire, Judith didn’t think much about food until she moved to Paris aged 21. It was while in France her eyes were opened to the world of food, and she tried her first oyster. Her and her late…
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