Which pictures have caught the eye of Scottish Field’s team this week? Peter Ranscombe takes a light-hearted flick through photos of Outlander, robots, and more.
DOUNE Castle, one of the stars of the Outlander television series, has reopened to the public.
Access was restricted at the castle last year, so that Historic Environment Scotland could inspect its masonry.
Minor restrictions are still in place, but visitors can now see the interior of the castle, including its courtyard, basement, and many of its smaller chambers.
Doune is used as “Castle Leoch” in the programme, which is based on the books by Diana Gabaldon.
‘To Innerleithen and beyond…’
Forget Mars or Dounreay – the South of Scotland is where you want to be if you’re a robot.
Meet “The South of Scotland Adventure-Module” – or “Tam” to his metallic mates – which has been touring the Borders and Dumfries & Galloway to promote the area.
Tam visited the beach at Coldingham Bay in Berwickshire and was fitted for some fetching knitwear at Johnstons of Elgin in… erm… Hawick (not Elgin).
The robot stars in the new “Curiosity Starts Here” marketing campaign run by the South of Scotland Destination Alliance.
Rhapsody in ‘brew’
Not just one of the images of the week, but also the top headline of the week by a country mile – and, no, I can’t claim credit for that one.
Sean Logan, a multi-instrumentalist from Pianodrome, has been serenading the tanks at Bellfield Brewery to find out if playing piano to two fermenting beers really does affect their taste and aroma.
The two new beers – Resonancy India pale ale and Resonancy pilsner – were brewed for Pianodrome’s summer-long “Resonancy” at its upcycled piano amphitheatre in the Old Royal High School.
Research from the United States’ National Institute of Health suggests that sound makes yeast grow faster, increases alcohol production, and enhances aromas.
Dance like no-one’s watching
Not so much a photograph as a layered image, yet eye-catching nonetheless.
Choreographer Rosemary Lee has recruited 18 dancers aged nine to 70-plus from around Scotland to perform alongside six professionals from Scottish Dance Theatre for “Threaded Fine – Scotland”.
They’ll each perform the same routine – one after the other – accompanied by a song composed by Isaac Lee-Kronick and performed live by Jamie McCarthy.
The five-hour performance takes place tomorrow at Magdalen Green in Dundee, following previous outings among the sand dunes at Findhorn, and in Lowestoft and Malta.
But there’s no burdock in sight
Equally as eye-catching is the “Pavilion of Perpetual Light” at Dandelion Festival in Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Park.
The stage consists of vegetables growing inside cubes.
The art installation is designed to make festivalgoers think about the origins of their food.
Artists performing at the wider festival – which begins today and runs until Sunday – include Newton Faulkner, Niteworks, and Shooglenifty.
Getting into a jam
Galloway Country Fair has teamed up with Defender Jam for an extra-special weekend of events on 20 and 21 August.
The programme for the expanded fair was launched at Drumlanrig Castle this week, complete with Land Rovers, motorbikes, and more.
Galloway Motorcycle Club will also host a stand at the event.
“There’ll even be music as I’ll be there with my own Compact Disco Defender that’s been converted into a DJ booth,” added Defender Jam organiser Martyn Henderson.
And finally…
Just when you think baby animals can’t get any cuter, along comes a ten-day-old cria – or juvenille alpaca – at Tollcross Children’s Farm in Glasgow.
The cria is the second baby for mum Paris and dad Alaska, following in the hoof-steps of big brother Rodrigo, which was born in November 2019.
“Mum gave birth while standing up eating grass in the paddock,” reported farm supervisor Hugh Boyle.
“The baby is a real character – she runs about like a wee racehorse and is quite confident.”
Don’t miss photographer Kimberley Grant’s stunning adventure photos in the July issue of Scottish Field magazine.
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