The Journal of The Scots Heritage Society 

Published February 2006.

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REGULARS

4       Editorial

6       Letters to the Editor

8       SCOTS Q & A - find the answers to those elusive questions.

102   SCOTS Fare – Jamie Thewes.

106   SCOTS Music – Anne Lorne Gillies 

112   SCOTS Music Reviews - Pete Clark  

114   SCOTS Book Reviews - Seumas MacLeod  

116   Caledonian Calendar

117   Clans and Societies

122   SCOTS SHOWCASE

FEATURES

10  SHETLAND

Shetland is unlike any other part of Scotland and many argue that the northern archipelago is in fact much more Scandinavian than it is Scottish.  In Britain's most isolated community, the people of Shetland maintain a fiercely independent pride of place as Angus Urquhart discovered when he explored the islands.  This is the first of a series of features on Shetland and its people.

22 SCOTLAND'S CASTLES

Historian Christopher Tabraham continues his series on Scotland's castles with an examination of their Golden Age, the thirteenth century.

32 DOON THE WATTER

When Archie Dunbar McIntosh was a boy growing up in post-war Glasgow, his greatest delight was to scamper aboard the sleek paddlewheel ferries at the Broomielaw and voyage 'doon the watter' to Dunoon with his family on their annual summer holidays.  The magnificent Clyde flyers made such a vivid impression that today their beauty still influences the way he sees the world as one of Scotland's leading painters.  Bruce MacWilliam spoke with the artist at his home in Dunfermline.  

38   THE HILL HOUSE

The Hill House at Helensburgh near Glasgow is a masterpiece of design from the great Scottish architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh.  Roger Billcliffe takes us on a tour  of the house which is now in the care of The National Trust for Scotland.

46   GENTLEMAN OF LETTERS

Alexander McCall Smith is one of the world's best-selling authors.  In his most recent novels, set around Edinburgh's New Town, he pokes gentle fun at the eccentricities and aspirations of middle-class life in the Scottish capital and allows us to savour a part of Edinburgh which has remained largely hidden since Muriel Spark wrote 'The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'.  Bruce Stannard met the author at his home in Marchmont.

52  URBAN PHOENIX

When Ian Mitchell arrived in Glasgow from Aberdeen 30 years ago the city appeared to be dying.  De-industrialisation and de-population had created a bleak, desolate and sometimes dangerous urban landscape in which some of its greatest architectural gems were being lost to senseless demolition, vandalism and decay.  Mitchell set about discovering and documenting his adpoted city.  In his latest book, 'This City Now', he explores the hidden riches of Glasgow's famous working class districts.  Iain Gunn reports.

60   GLASGOW'S NEW RIVERSIDE MUSEUM

Glasgow City Council is spending £63 million on what promises to be a magnificent new Riverside Museum specifically designed to celebrate the city's status as the shipbuilding and engineering capital of the world.  Isla MacDonald spoke with the Council's Executive Director, Bridget McConnell.

62   MR TWEED 

Gordon Covell is a Master Weaver and one of the last textile craftsmen in Britain to use a water-driven mill to power his looms.  His lovely old stone mill at Bridgend on the island of Islay has become a place of pilgrimage for those who love the natural beauty of Scottish tweed.  Fiona MacLeod reports from Islay.

68  HIGHLAND WILDERNESS - The Islands

Panoramic photographer Colin Prior and writer Magnus Linklater conclude their survey of the Highlands with a look at Scotland's Islands. 

78   PIRATE'S PASSAGE

When Robert Louis Stevenson write 'Treasure Island' in 1882-83 he drew heavily on the work of the mysterious Captain Charles Johnson, author of the early 18th century volume that remains the cornerstone source on the subject of piracy.  Captain Johnston's namesake is the central character in 'Pirate's Passage' a wonderful new book for young adults written and illustrated by the distinguished Scots Canadian writer and artist William Gilkerson.  Heather Ross spoke with Mr Gilkerson at his home on the shores of Mahone Bay Nova Scotia. 

88  CULLODEN HOUSE

Culloden House, one of Scotland's most attractive late 18th century country houses, is a hotel with an international reputation.  Hard by the famous battlefield at Culloden Moor, the house and estate were closely associated with the turbulence of the Jacobite Risings.  Donald Cameron reports.

94   THE CASTLE OF MEY 

Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, owner only one home in Britain - the Castle of Mey on the North Sea at Caithness.  She bought the castle as a crumbling ruin in 1952 and set about its complete restoration, a huge task which also included the creation of a series of magnificent gardens.  Catriona Stuart reports.

100  SCOTLAND'S WILDLIFE

Niall Benvie continues his series on Scotland’s wildlife with a look at one of its most beautiful raptors, the Merlin.