Wedding venues prepare for New Year

SCOTLAND’S wedding venues are gearing up for a busy 2023. Joyce and Simon Usher, owners of Dunglass Estate, are celebrating after being named as “wedding venue of the year” at the Scotland Prestige Awards. The 5,000-acre estate in East Lothian was dubbed “the most romantic sweet place I ever saw” by poet Robert Burns. Usher…

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Equi’s opens bigger ice cream factory

ICE cream maker Equi’s marked its centenary by flitting from Hamilton to its new factory in Rutherglen. The £1.7 million facility was opened in time for Christmas. Managing director David Equi said: “When my grandfather, Pietro, immigrated to Scotland from Tuscany in Italy he started the small independent café that we know today as Equi’s…

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National museums unveil festive events

SCOTLAND’S four national museums are running a series of festive events. The National Museum of Rural Life at East Kilbride has hidden miniature festive scenes in displays throughout the museum. Visitors can follow Clyde’s winter trail until 8 January. In Edinburgh, the National Museum of Scotland is running “Drawn Together at the Museum”. Artists can…

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Islanders slam ferry services, but praise staff

SCOTLAND’S ferry services are falling “well below” the public’s expectations, according to the Scottish Parliament. Nearly 400 individuals and groups responsed to a survey run by Holyrood’s Net Zero, Energy & Transport Committee. The results, published today, revealed anger at “short-notice service cancellations and the impact this is having on many aspects of life in…

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Gaelic specialist celebrates winter solstice

A GAELIC specialist is helping NatureScot to mark today’s winter solstice. The Scottish Government agency, known previously as Scottish Natural Heritage, asked broadcaster, storyteller, and writer Ruairidh Maclean to compile a Gaelic compendium that “celebrates the nature, land, and heritage of Scotland in the winter”. Maclean said: “As keepers of a unique language and culture,…

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Royal Scottish Academy gets Blackadder Houston bequest

THE Royal Scottish Academy (RSA) has received a donation worth more than £7 million from the estate of Dame Elizabeth Blackadder. The artist, who died last year, left the money to the arts charity to create the RSA Blackadder Houston Bequest. The money will help more than 60 artists and architects in Scotland each year.…

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Union Chain Bridge prepares to reopen

THE Union Chain Bridge, which links Scotland to England, is preparing to reopen after Hogmanay. Restoration of the 202-year-old structure, the the oldest vehicle suspension bridge in the world, began in October 2020. Around 95% of the handrails are now in place and final painting work is continuing – although the surfaces need to be…

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Second TV series for Pettycur Bay Holiday Park

VISITORS and staff from Pettycur Bay Holiday Park at Kinghorn in Fife will be starring on the gogglebox again next month. A second series of Life on the Bay will be shown on the BBC Scotland channel on 8 January. The eight-part series, which was made by Red Sky Productions, will also be streamed on…

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Mains of Taymouth

Mains of Taymouth: On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me… the gift of luxury Stuck for that perfect Christmas gift? What better present to give than a gift voucher to enjoy against a stay in our luxury properties? Planning a romantic getaway, a family reunion or just time with friends,…

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Bon Accord soft drinks

SINCE 1903, families across Scotland have eagerly anticipated the sight of the iconic Bon Accord bottles on their doorsteps. The Scottish, family-owned business created soft drinks that found a place in the hearts of the nation for over 90 years. Production paused in 2000, but 16 years later the business was successfully reignited by the…

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