The monarch who loved Scots’ spooky traditions

Queen Victoria had a fascinations with the spooky goings on at her Highland retreat of Balmoral.  Her interest started properly in 1866 when, after paying a visit to Mrs Grant, mother of John Grant, the head keeper at Balmoral, on the afternoon of 31 October she saw children carrying torches, and bonfires appearing on the…

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Water feature is back working at Scots castle

A water feature first built in the late 19th century has been revived a Scottish castle, after a programme of conservation and repair work by the National Trust for Scotland. Designed in the shape of a compass, the fountain and pond are a key feature in Crathes Castle’s Fountain Gardens. Originally installed in the 1880s,…

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Experienced hand to guide heritage trust forward

A woman who has cared for some of the most important industrial heritage in the world has been appointed as chief executive of a Moray-based heritage trust. As chief executive of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, a World Heritage Site in Shropshire, England, Anna Brennand brings a wealth of experience having led a series of…

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Peace events will mark 30 years since Lockerbie bombing

A rider on a white horse will join young people, parents and grandparents and others, carrying the flags of the nations which lost people in the Lockerbie bombing for a 30th anniversary Walk for Peace. The hill walk is one of three linked Journey Towards Peace events that focus on hope, kindness and the need…

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Dance adaptation of The Mother set for debut

A thrilling dance adaptation based on Hans Christian Andersen’s The Story of the Mother arrives for its debut in Edinburgh this weekend. Starring internationally acclaimed principle ballerina, Natalia Osipova, this enchanting production, The Mother, has a strictly limited run of only two performances. The Mother will be performed at the Pentland Theatre, Pleasance at EICC,…

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Prince Charles will pay his respects to the Iolaire lost

Prince Charles is to attend the centenary service to mark the 100th anniversary of Britain’s worst peacetime disaster at sea. The Prince will attend the commemoration the loss of HMY Iolaire. During the Service, Prince Charles will deliver a scripture reading and lay a wreath. After the service, HRH will unveil a new sculpture, which…

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Glasgow panto to stage autistic friendly showing

Glasgow’s King’s Theatre is to host a relaxed performance of its pantomime with the support of the National Autistic Society Scotland. The relaxed performance of Aladdin will be held on Wednesday 19 December at 1pm for the fifth year running. The relaxed performance creates a theatre experience which is specifically designed to welcome people with…

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Frederick Douglass spoke on his abolition mission

Frederick Douglass, the pioneering abolitionist, former slave, writer, and the first African American to run for high office, had a relationship with Scotland long before he ever set foot on these shores. At a Burns Supper in 1849 when he returned to New York, he pronounced ‘though I am not a Scotchman, and have a…

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The master of disguise in a leather mask

This mask is a relic of a bygone age, when outlawed convenanter Alexander Peden work a leather masic and wig to preach anonymously in Ayrshire. In 1660 Charles II was restored to the throne after the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Once re-established he betrayed the Covenanters, a Scottish Presbyterian movement his father Charles I…

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Scottish firm has made a lasting impression

The Woollard & Henry paper mill has made an indelible mark on the Scottish fabrication industry. Ernest Woollard’s legacy is invisible – unless you hold it up to the light. The engineering company he founded in Dyce, Aberdeen, Woollard & Henry, is now one of only five firms worldwide which know the secrets of the…

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