Tag Archive for: periodicals

The Scottish Banner
Aug 2023
In this issue...
CELEBRATING STORIES AT THE ROYAL EDINBURGH MILITARY TATTOO
This month, set against the spectacular backdrop of Edinburgh Castle, the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo will welcome local and international audiences to their new show, Stories. Staged between 4-26 August,...
MY 5 FAVOURITE EARLY HISTORIC SITES
Previously, I shared five of my favourite Scottish medieval castles and five of my favourite ancient sites. Now, it’s time to pick five from the somewhat awkward middle child, the Early Historic period. You may be more familiar with the term ‘Dark Ages’,...
HEAD TO SCOTLAND FOR AN ADVENTURE THIS SUMMER
Scotland benefits from beautiful scenery, many hills and mountains to explore, as well as stunning wildlife and spectacular walking routes and trails. With the arrival of summer...
Aug 2023

The Scottish Banner
July 2023
In this issue...
THE ART OF BUILDING A NEW TOWN
Celebrating 75 years of Glenrothes. The Fife town of Glenrothes was ‘born’ on 30th June 1948. It was Scotland’s second new town and became the first in Scotland to appoint its own artist to specially create public art. Today the town houses tens of thousands of people, has a strong connection to the electronics industry, as well as a much loved African animal, as Judy Vickers explains. In 1950,..
BACK TO THE TOP
The Cairngorm Mountain Railway. The Cairngorm funicular railway in the Cairngorms National Park has the double distinction of being the only funicular railway in Scotland, and the highest railway in the United Kingdom. Positioned on the north side of Cairngorm, the railway serves the Cairngorm Mountain alpine ski area that,..
MY FIVE ANCIENT SITES
In the May 2023 edition I reflected on five of my favourite Scottish castles following twelve years of non-stop exploration. Let’s now turn the clock back, way back, into the mists of prehistory. Scotland has tens of thousands of prehistoric sites, from intangible yet significant Mesolithic settlements hinting at...
July 2023

The Scottish Banner
May 2023
In this issue...
SCOTLAND'S OLDEST TARTAN DISCOVERED
New scientific research has revealed a piece of tartan found in a peat bog in Glen Affric around forty years ago can be dated to circa 1500-1600 AD, making it the oldest known surviving specimen of true tartan in Scotland. The Scottish Tartans Authority commissioned...
SCOTLAND'S ZEN GARDEN
The place of pleasure and delight. Everything about the Japanese Garden at Cowden is designed to slow visitors down, to calm the mind and encourage contemplation, even down to the uneven stones underfoot at the entrance arch, which is carved with the words “the place of pleasure and delight”. These days, the garden, near the town of Dollar, quietly hums...
TWELVE YEARS AND OVER 400 CASTLES LATER
My favorite Scottish Castles. Twelve years after my arrival in Scotland from Canada, I have more than made up for the lack of true castles in the country of my birth. To date, my Scottish castle count stands at 443, almost all of which I have reached by foot, bicycle, and public transport. To answer the two very reasonable questions...
May 2023

The Scottish Banner
April 2023
In this issue...
A CELEBRATION OF TARTAN
V&A Dundee present major exhibition solely on tartan. Tartan (1 April 2023 – 14 January 2024) at V&A Dundee takes a radical new look at an instantly recognisable textile and pattern. Set to be a major event in 2023’s cultural calendar, Tartan marks the 5th anniversary of Scotland’s design museum. Celebrating tartan and its global impact, the exhibition explores...
100 YEARS OF FLYING SCOTSAMAN
World’s most famous steam locomotive. Friday 24 February 2023, marked 100 years since Flying Scotsman, the world’s most famous steam locomotive, set off on its first journey from the sheds at Doncaster Works. Now a national treasure, Flying Scotsman is a star attraction in...
THE PRESTWICK PIONEERS
Prestwick is located in South Ayrshire and is synonymous with Scottish aviation. Ninety years ago this month, on April 3 1933 David McIntyre and Sir Douglas Douglas-Hamilton were the first men to fly over the summit of Mount Everest. The aviators would go on to form Scottish Aviation Ltd at Prestwick, which was the last Scottish aircraft manufacturing company created, as Eric Bryan explains.
April 2023

The Scottish Banner
March 2023
In this issue...
SHINTY
Scotland's ancient sport. s a sport, its fortunes have often reflected the ups and downs of life in the Highlands where it is played, from Celtic myths, through the Scottish diaspora and the decimation of young men during World War One to the challenges of modern rural life. And those with a passion for shinty – camanachd or iomain in Gaelic – will be hoping that particular tradition continues as the stick and ball sport looks to a future...
EILDON HILLS
Icons of the Scottish Borders. Gattonside, Eildon North and Mid hills appear as twins, with perspective playing tricks as to which is the highest (Eildon Mid Hill comes out on top, barely, at 422 metres compared with Eildon North’s 404). From the east, the three become one as Eildon Hill North seems to engulf them all...
March 2023

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