Another name to add to the panoply of women whose role in history has been under-recorded. Lesley Gibb was the older sister of the Gibb brothers who went on to global and enduring fame as the Bee Gees, brilliant singers and songwriters all. Lesley Gibb had two key moments in the Bee Gee story. The first was pulling her toddler brother Robin from a river and saving him from drowning,
Scotland is getting its own version of cabin porn with The Bothy Project. Primarily designed to give artists residency space in remote spaces around Scotland, the first bothy to be completed is now open to paying guests for part of the year. It may feel remote but it is only four miles from Aviemore and is located near Inshriach House in the Cairngorms national park. Walter Micklethwait, who manages the accomodation side,
Molly Erdman reveals the true silliness of the over-decorated interiors styled for magazines and catalogues by writing funny captions and featuring them in her blog Catalog Living. ‘Who actually lives that way?’ was the question asked by Erdman when she was pushed too far by a photo depicting a plate of figs placed under a table. As well as captioning the photographs she created Gary and Elaine, a well-heeled and
You may, like me, have to force yourself to keep calm whenever you see this overworked wartime mantra, particularly in its many bastardised forms, but this is a sweet little film about the origins of the original poster and the lovely looking bookshop where it was found and brought back, spectacularly, to life…
If you are passionate about mid century design and architecture, you could do an interesting if unglamorous cultural road trip around Scotland to admire the works of Peter Womersely. The Yorkshire born architect contributed edgy and iconic buildings to places such as Selkirk, Coatbridge and Galashiels. Born in 1923, Womersley studied law at Cambridge after serving in the army. One of his first commissions was a sheikh’s palace in Kuwait
It is well-known that the famous running-along-the-beach scene in Chariots of Fire was filmed in St Andrews but the University town is not the only part of Fife to have had a starring role. Pittenweem and North Queensferry have both put in appearances and the historic village of Culross often provides a period setting for tv and film – and more suprisingly – for Captain America, the First Avenger. Thanks
If you wake up tomorrow and decide to knit your country avoid the landmarks. Take it from two women who have tried. For them the Forth Rail Bridge proved to be a span too far but the Scotch pie, Tunnocks teacakes and Andy Murray turned out beautifully. Two costume designers, Jackie Holt and Ruth Bailey have published Knit Your Own Scotland with patterns for some of the best Scottish icons,
At the end of last year the National Library of Scotland ran a competition asking people to Scotify famous lines from the movies. Over 2000 entries were received – one smart alec even Scotified a line from Braveheart. ‘Corpse Bridie’ is a favourite but maybe that’s just a fondness for bridies. Here’s a selection but there are more on the Library’s facebook page. Famous songs next?
Ok so I’ve become even more of a dog-sentimentalist since I found out that the beloved Abby needs a hip replacement, but these beautifully painted portraits – posted daily on Facebook by artist Sally Muir – must surely bring a ray of pleasure to even the grimmest of mornings. Muir’s Dog A Day project began on 19 February and will run for a year. The paintings are for sale with
SXSW, the flourishing Texan festival which has become a sort of Sundance for music, is underway. It’s an event at which Scotland has always made its present felt and this year, with support from Creative Scotland and the Scottish Music Industry Association, there’s a particularly good showing from Scottish bands. Edinburgh’s Young Fathers – gathering a reputation as the best Scottish rappers of all time – Glasgow’s well connected Chvrches