Search results for ""Luath Press Ltd""

The Scottish Parliament Oral History Project has compiled a series of interviews with staff, MSPs and journalists regarding their careers and experiences at the Scottish Parliament. These interviews captured a rich array of material, shining new light on the Parliament’s history. This book compiles extracts from these interviews, shining new light on the Parliament’s history, telling the story of Parliament through those who have helped shape it over the last 20 years.

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In this new book, Johanna Geyer-Kordesch brings together a lifetime of study and personal experience to show the many ways in which gardens matter to our modern society. Reaching back through the centuries, she explores how richly layered our contemporary response to both making and enjoying gardens has become. With an extract from renowned author Donald Smith, Why Gardens Matter provides a unique insight into how the outdoors can help us to find some calm in this increasingly busy world.

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Finding himself faced with a feeling of disconnect from his city of birth, Stephen Millar sets out on a mission to capture the heart and essence of Glasgow, engaging with the patchwork of 'tribes' which make up the fabric of the city. Meeting with members of a remarkable variety of clubs and sub-cultures – from pagans, to cosplayers, to traditional musicians – this collection moves beyond stereotypes and delves deeper into the origins of these tribes. Scottish photographer Alan McCredie brings their stories to life through a blend of portraits and candid snaps.

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Having heard and learned stories of Sgiath over the past many years, I felt that the time was right to put them down in print lest they be lost. GEORGE MACPHERSON Long ago in ancient Skye, a queen is born in a storm… From the depths of Scottish folklore emerges Sgiath, an ancient warrior queen of Skye. Also known as Scáthach or Sgathaich, Skye and Dunscaith Castle – her home on the island all those years ago – are said to have been named after her. Follow her incredible journey as she turns from ordinary village girl to leader of a great army of warriors, conquering her opponents and bringing education to all. Magic and myth interweave with history in this epic tale of ancient oral storytelling that is inspirational for our modern times.

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‘In many ways, being a fashion model can be compared to the life of a professional footballer. You might get signed, but the work doesn’t stop there. In fact, it’s only just begun.’ Interested in working in the fashion industry? Do you want to be a model, designer, photographer or stylist? Want a rare look at the industry from the inside? Supermodel Eunice Olumide MBE was signed when she was just 16. She has since graced catwalks all over the world, working with top design powerhouses including Christopher Kane, Harris Tweed, Alexander McQueen, and Mulberry. How to Get into Fashion is for you, whether you are looking to become a model or wish to pursue one of the many other careers in fashion – or just want to know what goes on behind the scenes. With stunning photographs and the knowledge of someone who’s been there and done it, this is your essential guide to the industry.

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Existential Edinburgh is a personal journey through a city that has for centuries inspired many. An exploration, an evocation of the city’s past and present it weaves together personal experience, memory and history. It takes the reader beyond the city’s historic centre, looking out to surrounding areas that are inseparable from Edinburgh’s story. There are companions on this journey, well-known figures from the past and the not so well-known.

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Art, Truth, and Time is a book which endeavours to show that artistic creation depends as much upon the body, as it does the soul, and the soul’s intelligent use of the body’s way of understanding. When there occurs a complete disjunction between the two, as occurs in much of contemporary art, art is stripped of its inherent beauty, its wholeness. In this book the author considers the nature of art from its earliest manifestations to the present day, endeavouring to show that its truth transcends time and place through the unity of soul and body and man’s awareness of this unity, not a barren unity, but a unity which is profoundly creative.

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The Book of Scotlands outlines 156 possible Scotlands which currently do not exist anywhere but maybe, someday, could. At a moment when, after centuries of desire and unrest, independence seems to be a real possibility for Scotland, Scottish-born, Berlin-based musician/author/journalist Momus, real name Nick Currie, offers a delirium of visions, practical and absurd. Momus, who describes himself as a polymath-dabbler, suggests that the real Scotland is free to embrace or reject this parallel world.

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If you enjoy walks in the countryside, Scotland should be on your list of places to visit, and you should bring this book as your guide. Anyone who has ever visited Scotland will mention the Highlands with its rolling hills and unspoiled landscape, and this book will guide you along some of the best routes the area has to offer. The routes are graded according to difficulty so walkers can easily choose a suitable route from the 50 included in the book. Put on your hiking shoes, and head for the hills with 50 Classic Routes on Scottish Mountains.

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A face is nothing without its history. Gavin and Emma live in Manhattan. She’s a musician. He works in Artificial Intelligence. He’s good at his job. Scarily good. He’s researching human features to make more realistic mask-bots – non-human ‘carers’ for elderly people. When his enquiry turns personal he’s forced to ask whether his own life is an artificial mask. Delving into family stories and his roots in the Highlands of Scotland, he embarks on a quest to discover his own true face, ‘uniquely sprung from all the faces that had been’. He returns to England to look after his Grampa. Travels. Reads old documents. Visits ruins. Borrows, plagiarises and invents. But when Emma tells him his proper work is to make a story out of glass and steel, not memory and straw, which path will he choose? What’s the best story he can give her? A novel about the struggle for freedom and personal identity; what it means to be human. It fuses the glass and steel of our increasingly controlled algorithmic world with the memory and straw of our forebears’ world controlled by traditions and taboos, the seasons and the elements.

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How do you choose your nationality? This is a question that Anne Pia often asked herself whilst growing up in Edinburgh. Born to Scottish-Italian parents, she was sent to Catholic School in contrast with her Scots-Italian cousins and spent her days helping out in the family café in Edinburgh. Tackling themes such as growing up, romantic love and motherhood, Pia’s memoir traces her journey as she discovers her place in the world. Studying in France, Pia tries to come to terms with her unconventional family and the two nationalities she bridges. A truly honest book that delves into hard-hitting issues without veering into the sentimental, Pia’s memoir will strike a chord with readers of any nationality.

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Dr Hulbert’s researches into City Status in the UK gave him a unique insight into the situation in Scotland and especially in Perth. As Provost of Perth & Kinross, and leader of Perth’s campaign, he is the ideal person to tell the inside story of the tactics deployed to achieve the restoration of Perth’s City Status, the most important event in Perth’s history in nearly 200 years.

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Why are there so many Italian hairdressers and Chinese restaurants in Glasgow? Who's more Glaswegian: an Irishman, a Highlander or a Pole? Who's city is this anyway? For the past 200 years, immigrants to Glasgow have found prosperity and poverty in its streets and closes. Mary Edward investigates their history, and the contribution they have brought to the city. With clear-sighted social analysis and an impressive assembly of historical evidence, Edward weaves a vivid tapestry of the many peoples and cultures that have created contemporary Glasgow. The staggering diversity of languages, religions and ethnicities is no new phenomenon in this city on the Clyde. Today's Glasweigans are the children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren of yesterday's incomers, all of whom have chosen this great Scottish melting pot as their own. This book will be an education and a delight to generations of Glasweigans - and all those proud to belong to Glasgow.

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This is a book celebrating all that is great with the game of football, as seen through the eyes of clubs and fans rarely bothered by satellite television cameras and the riches of the elite game, a vibrant world of humour, warmth and friendship worth far more than all the wealth of the Premier League. Why do people head out on windswept Saturday afternoons and wet Wednesday evenings watch lower and non-league teams play when they could watch Premier League football from the comfort of their living rooms? Does an international match between two countries that technically don’t exist have any meaning? Why do some people go to so much trouble volunteering to support clubs which run on a shoestring budget and are lucky to get even a glimpse of the limelight? Over the course of a season, Mat Guy set out to explore the less glamorous side of the beautiful game, travelling the backwaters of football across the length and breadth of the country – and beyond. He watched Bangor as they were cheerfully thrashed by Reykjavik’s UMF Stjarnan, was absolutely won over by the women’s game, and found a new team to love in Accrington Stanley. From Glasgow to Northern Cyprus, Bhutan to the Faroe Islands, Mat discovered the same hope, sense of community, and love of the game that first led him to a life in the stands at Salisbury FC’s Victoria Park, where his own passion for football was formed.

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After 'How David Cameron Saved Scotland', satirical author Owen Dudley Edwards comes back with a new book, 'Nations and Nationalisms'. This is a collection of defining moments, some rather peculiar, in the history of multiple nations. A wide and interesting assemblage of events that have never been gathered in a single book before. An insight on what it means to become a nation and what a defining moment might actually be. The book covers the defining moments in which nations such as Ireland, Brazil, Belgium, Haiti achieved independence.

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Richard Demarco co-founded the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh in 1963 and ran the vibrant Richard Demarco Gallery in Edinburgh for almost 30 years. He promotes crosscultural dialogues and was the first person to introduce Joseph Beuys in the UK. Joseph Beuys was a German sculptor and creator of action performances, political activist and teacher. This book explores the works, lectures and ‘Actions’ which resulted from the mutual hopes, inspirations and shared values of Richard Demarco and Joseph Beuys, the innovative and inspirational German postwar artist, from 1970 until Beuys’ death in 1986. Demarco, an avant-garde gallerist in Edinburgh, was an early proponent of Scotland taking its place within the European art world; Demarco recognised the visionary quality of Beuys’ work and visited him in Oberkassel in January 1970. In the hope of focusing Beuys’ attention on Scotland, he presented him with a set of postcards depicting typical Scottish scenes. Beuys responded with, ‘I see the land of Macbeth, so when shall we two meet again, in thunder, lightning or in rain?’ They reunited in thundery Edinburgh later that year and Demarco led him northwards along the ancient track he calls ‘The Road to Meikle Seggie’. This initial experience of the Scottish landscape inspired Beuys, who felt a strong connection with Celtic culture, and laid the foundation for a remarkable artistic friendship which enriched the work of both men. With photos from Demarco’s personal collection and essays spanning from 1970 to the present, this is an intimate and intellectually rigorous look at a friendship seminal to the development of art in Scotland over the last 40 years.

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In A Walk in the Park, Cairney shows that he clearly loves the city and he expresses that it is more than it appears to be. Glasgow is not just a city full of tenements and big buildings, it is a beautiful Scottish landmark outfitted with the beautiful parks that he will go on to describe. He takes the reader on a unique walk through the various parks of the town stopping along the way to share brief anecdotes, historical accounts, and detailed images of how the parks look.

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A Utopia Like Any Other is an accessible and easy to understand guide to contemporary Sweden and its politics. Part travelogue, part academic primer and part reflection on our own need for utopias, the book takes readers on a journey from the 1930s to the present day and from an Arctic iron mine to the suburbs of Shanghai. On its way it features a migrant camp, political festivals, radical feminist activists and concrete housing projects, TV talk shows and celebrity economists, faded bathing resorts, neo-Nazis, and the Scottish independence referendum. All of these different locations and characters are used to explain the Swedish model; what it is, how it works and what it means for the rest of the world.

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A collection of diary entries from the dean of the fictional St. Andrew's College, Edinburgh. Longsuffering and cantankerous, he documents the comings and goings of eccentric professors, academic triumphs and failures and the disastrous outcome of a physics department’s experiment resulting in the magnetisation of the number 42 bus.

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The 2015 General Election is just two months away and whilst the debates are heating up, experts are unanimous on one thing: that this is set to be the most important and unpredictable election since World War Two. So who’s who in the current landscape of UK party politics? Who most represents your views? What would a country governed by that party look like? Co-author of Scotland’s Referendum: A Guide for Voters and author of 100 Days of Hope and Fear, David Torrance is here to give you all the information you need to make your vote count. This pocket-sized guide features a chapter on Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats, the Green Party, the SNP and UKIP, and another dedicated to the other parties contesting seats. The guide is rounded off with a prediction of possible outcomes and an overview of the constitutional implications the election has for Scotland.

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I saw the field of battle… It still exhibits a most striking picture of desolation all the neighbouring houses being broken down by cannon-shot and shells. There was one sweet little chateau in particular called Hougomont which was the object of several desperate assaults and was at length burned to the ground… There was an immense carnage on this spot and the stench of the dead bodies is still frightfully sensible. WALTER SCOTTWhy was the Battle of Waterloo so significant for Scottish history? How has the conflict been represented in Scottish art and literature? What did the Scots who witnessed the battle and its aftermath have to say about it at the time?The Battle of Waterloo represented a seismic shift in the tectonic plates of national identity for Scotland. In art and political rhetoric, the Scots became the poster boys of the British Empire at Waterloo. Ostensibly fighting alongside England against France, the battle also arguably saw Scotland move away from the Auld Alliance towards identification with the United Kingdom. Scotland’s Waterloo concentrates on how the battle was perceived at the time, showcasing the different ways that illustrious Scots documented and responded to the battle in its immediate aftermath. Owen Dudley Edwards starts with the painters and their patrons, before moving on to the fascinating eyewitness accounts of Scottish soldiers and doctors. He finally introduces the voices of two of the most famous Scottish writers who experienced the horrific aftermath of the battle first-hand, Sir Walter Scott and Lord Byron.

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Baffies’ Easy Munro Guide to the Cairngorms is the third volume in Ralph Storer’s inspirational series of guidebooks dedicated to finding the easiest way up Scotland’s highest mountains. This latest volume covers the Cairngorms National Park.

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Honey Get the Door! is a book of illustrated thoughts and pictures of Honey the wee sausage dog who Janey Godley ventriloquises for her fans across social media on a regular basis. In this book Honey tells us what she really thinks about her life as a dachshund, with Janey’s own thoughts, along with cute photographs and hilarious illustrations, interspersed throughout.

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While other guides plot intrepid mountaineering missions, workouts and route marches, Highland Walks: Perth to Inverness, returns to the core of what walking really means. It is unhurried, leisurely, and most importantly an ‘act of travelling’; an experience, not a box to be ticked. Each walk is hand-picked to be accessible from the public transport network between Perth and Inverness, Highland Walks provides environmentally conscious and budget-friendly outings for all the family. To smooth your road, walk times and difficulty ratings are detailed for every route, alongside some extra things to see and interesting facts for curious minds. Once you learn to lose yourself without ever leaving the path, every stroll can become an adventure.

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He can’t lie, he can’t harm but he can save livesWilliam Arthur is no ordinary teenager. He is a Swidger who can sense future catastrophes and so change your Timepath from certain peril. Only now he’s discovering that his time-bending powers go far beyond mere accident prevention.After a mind-boggling incident leaves him confused and questioning his place in the world, William is rescued by a wise and bizarre lady by the name of ‘Granny’. Together they embark on an epic journey of hilarity, danger and intrigue.Will he learn the true nature of his gift?And can he evade the dark forces that would use his powers for evil?All will be revealed... IN TIME

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‘And then I saw it. And once I had seen it, I saw it everywhere. Why are men still winning at work? If women have equal leadership ability, why are they so under-represented at the top in business and society? Why are we still living in a man’s world? And why do we accept it? In this provocative book, Gill Whitty-Collins looks beyond the facts and figures on gender bias and uncovers the invisible discrimination that continues to sabotage us in the workplace and limits our shared success. Addressing both men and women and pulling no punches, she sets out the psychology of gender diversity from the perspective of real personal experience and shares her powerful insights on how to tackle gender equality.

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Demons had been let loose, xenophobia and racism legitimised... But was it, in fact, the European Union that was the root of the referendum defeat, or was it a convenient and obvious scapegoat? Ironically, the day following, ‘EU’ was the most searched term on the internet. What was this institution that they had just decided to leave? Many people had, in fact, no idea.au revoir: (French)goodbye for the present; until we see each other again.Britannia: (Latin)a province of the Roman Empire to the north of Gaul.Is it goodbye to the eu forever for Britain?Has the good ship Albion sailed into an oblivion of its own making?From her unique perspective as former French ambassador to the UK, Sylvie Bermann examines the mistruths told by politicians surrounding the fateful 2016 Brexit referendum. Au Revoir Britannia asks the question ‘How did this happen?’ and exposes what she sees as the ‘unrepenting’ and ‘inveterate’ lies of the now pm, Boris Johnson. This first English edition includes a new preface exploring the future of post-Brexit Europe and Britain, and the uncertain implications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

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From David Cameron striding across the border, wearing nothing but a kilt and brandishing a claymore soaked in the blood of his enemies, to Alex Salmond’s naked mud wrestling bout with Alistair Darling, the campaign to win Scotland’s independence from the Evil Empire in Westminster had everything. Now, with in-depth analysis from renowned political expert, Dr Ian Shackleton of the Glasgow School of Politics and Football, and relying on actual quotes from friends of sources close to aides to senior Holyrood insiders, From #Indyref to Eternity tells the true story of this momentous political event, with week-by-week reports from the final six months of the campaign that historians will call ‘that vote about the thing that happened in Scotland in 2014.’

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Craving an escape from everyday life, Gregor Ewing writes a personal account of his 1,000 mile walk over nine weeks with collie Meg that takes them through the central belt of Scotland, literally following in Robert the Bruce’s footsteps.From Kintyre, Arran and Ardrossan north to Ayr through Glasgow to Fort William and Elgin, south to Inverurie, Aberdeen and Dundee, over the Forth to Edinburgh and Berwick upon Tweed then east through Roxburghshire to Bannockburn, Gregor frames his expedition with historical background that follows Robert the Bruce’s journey to start a campaign which led to his famous victory seven years later.

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The future of Scotland is at a crossroads as Brexit creates more complexity and confusion. The SNP has lost momentum and a window of opportunity has emerged for a wider and deeper debate about the current political situation both in Scotland and the UK. What's the matter with democracy in Britain and how can we make citizenship meaningful in such turbulent times? How is populism changing how we view politics, political parties and democracy? Europe is our future - how can we stay in the EU? How can we address the anger, mistrust and fear currently dominating the public discourse and bitterly dividing Britain? What is Scotland's future role within the UK? How do we develop a more inspired politics where the citizen is valued and taken seriously? This book examines the most pressing issues facing us today in the context of the political and constitutional upheaval that is coursing throughout Western democracies. The shock politics of Trump and Brexit demonstrate that the political landscape has changed and we face an uncertain future. Henry McLeish offers a new approach to get us out of the mess we're in.

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Edinburgh Castle is one of Scotland's most awe-inspiring and striking landmarks. A site of human habitation since the 9th century BC, it has a rich and varied history and has been a crucial strategic military site for thousands of years. A new title in the popular 'Luath Storyteller' series, Tales of Edinburgh Castle is a salute tk the ancient tradition of storytelling, painting a vivid picture of the castle in bygone times, and the rich and varied characters to whom it owes its notoriety.

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Published to mark the first centenary of Italy’s entry into the Great War, Like Leaves in Autumn features 21 original Italian poems by Giuseppe Ungaretti, with new English translations by Heather Scott. These are set alongside 21 new poems by contemporary Scottish poets writing in response to Ungaretti, and are illustrated with striking black-and-white artworks from the ARTIST ROOMS collection, owned by National Galleries of Scotland and Tate. One of Europe’s greatest modernist poets, Ungaretti was born and raised in Alexandria, Egypt, to an Italian family from Tuscany. From 1915, he served in the Italian infantry in the campaign against Austria-Hungary. It was a ferocious conflict fought in the mountains of Northern Italy in trenches dug out of Alpine rock. Thousands died and Ungaretti’s poems, written during pauses in the fighting, channel these horrific experiences. In addition to his grief and loss, these verses are shaped both by Ungaretti’s sense of exile and by his intense life-affirming poetic sensibility. A century on, this anthology offers a creative interplay of recollection, translation and new inspiration. Italian, English, Scots and Gaelic voices mingle on these pages, and the artworks spark a dialogue between words and images, creating an alchemy of further meanings.

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Meet Dave. Dave is Prime Minister. Dave really wants to do the right thing. He keeps telling us he wants to do the right thing. Again and again and again. One afternoon he told us four times in half an hour. Then he went off and did the right thing. Every morning when he wakes up, he reminds himself to remind us that he's doing the right thing. But what is the right thing? And what is the wrong thing? And is doing the right thing the right thing or the wrong thing to do? Or is doing the wrong thing the right thing to do when doing the right thing might turn out to be the wrong thing, and doing the wrong thing might turn out to be the right thing? Next to doing the right thing, the most important thing is to let people know you are doing the right thing. JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER You can always count on Americans to do the right thing – after they've tried everything else WINSTON CHURCHILL Sometimes it is better to lose and do the right thing than to win and do the wrong thing TONY BLAIR If I lose the ball, I lose it trying to do the right thing. That's the way it is. FRANK LAMPARD

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Great Britain, (abbreviation: UK) England, Wales and Scotland considered as a unit. The name is also often used loosely to refer to the United Kingdom.reboot, ri-bu:t , verb to restart or revive… give fresh impetus to…federal, fed ar-al, adj. having or relating to a system of government in which several states form a unity but remain independent in internal affairs.Would federalism work in the UK?Wouldn’t England dominate a British federation?How would powers be distributed between federal and home Nation level?What about the House of Lords?In the run up to the historic referendum on Scottish independence there has been a plethora of tracts, articles and books arguing for and against, but there remains a gap in the literature: the case for Scotland becoming part of a ‘rebooted’ federal Union. It is an old, usually Liberal, dream, but one still worth fighting for.It is often assumed that federalism is somehow ‘alien’ to the Scottish and British constitutional tradition but in this short book journalist David Torrance argues that not only has the UK already become a quasi-federal state but that formal federation is the best way of squaring the competing demands of Nationalists and Unionists.He also uses Scotland’s place within a federal UK to examine other potential reforms with a view to tackling ever-increasing inequality across the British Isles and create a more equal, successful and constitutionally coherent country.

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A Labour Whip once revealed that in their office they sang songs about certain backbenchers. In the case of the Member for Maryhill, their choice was ‘How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?’A frank account of fourteen years in Westminister from the rebellious Maria Fyfe – the only female Labour MP in Scotland when she was first elected. Fyfe recounts some of the most significant moments of her political career, from the frustrating and infuriating, to the rewarding and worthwhile.A significant aim of writing this book was to set the record straight on that period in our UK Parliament. Another aim was to encourage interest in a political life when widespread cynicism discourages good people from thinking about it. MARIA FYFECovering some of the most turbulent years of British and Scottish political history, A Problem Like Maria takes the female’s perspective of life as an MP in the male-dominated Westminister. This book reaches the parts of politics some people hope you never reach. The intimidating Maria Fyfe sounds like strong Scottish domestic drama. Edward Pearce, LONDON EVENING STANDARDThe terrifying Maria Fyfe stamped in … her of the sharpened claws. Matthew Parris, THE TIMESAn incorrigible Bevanite. THE OBSERVER

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The Leith area possesses a highly distinct cultural and social identity, with a contentious history to its relationship with Edinburgh.Tom Wright opens the door to Leith’s past by exploring its rich heritage through a comprehensive collection of black and white photographs taken over time. Accompanied by quirky and insightful text which brings the era to life.From the bustling community atmosphere of the Foot of Leith Walk, to the rich naval history of the Shore, it is easy to understand why the people of Leith are so proud of their town and its distinct character.The perfect gift for someone who lives or has lived in the area.

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An alternative look at notable figures and events as seen through a unique Caledonian perspective. The attributes associated with being Scottish are applied to well-known quotes and events. Covering topics such as war, politics, cinema, religion and more, the text will be accompanied by light-hearted and witty illustrations making this an ideal book for the gift market both in Scotland and further afield.

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What makes a speech great? In this second volume of Great Scottish Speeches, more than 60 speeches made by Scots or by others in Scotland have been drawn together, not necessarily for their heart-stopping eloquence (although many have that), but as a testament to their enduring historical significance. These speeches each provide a snapshot of the social, cultural or political context in which they were made, a celebration of the power of great oratory across the ages.As you fight for fairness, you will always find in me a friend, a partner and a brother. Gordon Brown O sister, rule your realm in peace; I give up every claim to these domains. Mary Queen of Scots Such in my opinion is the true gospel concerning wealth, obedience to which is destined someday to solve the problems of the rich and the poor. Andrew Carnegie Vote, Jock. Vote, Sweaty Sock. Talk properly. Alan Bissett

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Danny is in trouble. A wannabe animal rights activist and modern day hero, none of this was supposed to happen. After his first attempt at animal liberation ends badly, things go rapidly downhill. In the supermarket where he works his behaviour is becoming more erratic and a number of people, including his boss (a big Jim Davidson fan), a Goth grocery girl (and also teenage poet) and a security guard (enough said) are all out to get him. The woman he loves, Shona, is becoming more extreme by the minute and when they hook up with some hunt saboteurs she’s more interested in digging up human graves and stealing the remains than saving foxes. Danny doesn’t waste his time at the hunt either – thanks to him the fox gets torn to pieces. It’s treble or nothing time, and next week the Circus is coming to town.

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Excitement builds as The Sheiling opens for its very last season. All's set for a great time with nothing to mar the horizon, despite Connie's retirement, Himself believing he's fully in charge, and Joan aching for the day she has nothing better to do than twiddle her thumbs in front of a blazing fire with a good book and contented cats. It doesn't turn out that way. BT sabotages the business. Connie is missed beyond measure and Himself has ideas well beyond his station while the cats do their utmost to destroy harmony by taking exception to certain guests. More laugh-out-loud tales from the pen of Joan Campbell, mixed with some sound advice about running, or staying in, a successful B&B.

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The intricate stories told in Rodrigues’ portraits are matched by the rhythms and imagery in Fraser’s poetry. From ‘The Bangladeshi Gentleman’ to ‘Jura Whisky’, this book offers an insight into the fusion of Eastern and Western cultures in today’s Scotland. By peppering her poems with both Scots words and Indian words, Fraser demonstrates the bi-cultural nature of many of today’s Scots.

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I confess that I am a witch. I have sold myself body and soul unto Satan. My mother took me to the Blinkbonny Woods where we met other witches. I put a hand on the crown of my head and the other on the sole of my foot. I gave everything between unto him.Scotland, late seventeeth century. A young woman is accused of witchcraft. Tortured with pins and sleep deprivation, she is using all of her the Scottish witch-hunt began.Probably more than a thousand men and women were exectued for witchcraft before the frenzy died down. When Edinburgh-based Advocate John MacKenzie and his assistant Davie Scougall investigate the suspicious death of a woman denounced as a witch, they find themselves in a village overwhelmed by superstition, resentment and puritanical religion. In a time of spiritual, political and social upheaval, will reason allow MacKenzie to reveal the true evil lurking in the town, before the witch-hunt claims yet another victim?

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Voicing Scotland takes the reader on a discovery tour through Scotland’s traditional music and song culture, past and present. West unravels the strings that link many of our contemporary musicians, singers and poets with those of the past, offering up to our ears these voices which deserve to be more loudly heard.What do they say to us in the 21st Century? What is the role of tradition in the contemporary world? Can there be a folk culture in the digital age? What next for the traditional arts?

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Since its establishment in 1922 the BBC has continually asserted itself as one of the great British institutions at home and abroad. David Pat Walker offers an in-depth analysis of the history of BBC Scotland from its creation in 1923 through to its 50th anniversary in the seventies. Examining how the firm developed over the course of the 20th century, the author portrays how the broadcaster developed its own Scottish identity despite governance from London and how it thrived within the context of the history it reported and created.

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Written mostly in Scots, Rab Wilson's A Map for the Blind deals with topics ranging from satirical social commentary to sublime shots of everyday life with his characteristic wit and insight. From a poignant reflection into the 'black hairt' of the coal industry, to a nostalgic and spirited look at classic bicycles, to wondering if anyone was listening to 'Holy Gordon's Prayer', Rab Wilson delivers a vibrant picture of Scotland which we can't fail to recognise.

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With a strong, vibrant use of Scots, McLellan intermingles comedy with serious moral and political content. McLellan's collected works brings together previously unpublished plays like Jeddart Justice with acknowledged classics such as Jamie the Saxt and a selection of his prize-winning poems. Also included are a Foreword by playwright and poet Donald Campbell and an Epilogue by drama producer Alastair Cording.

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From Robert the Bruce to Alex Ferguson, find out what happens when Scotland's most famous figures overrun the present day. Picking up from where they left off, will these vividly drawn characters right past wrongs, see how their legacy has shaped Scotland's future, or just go and have a good time? This new collection of poetry from acclaimed Scots writer Mark Thomson looks at the effect our famous ancestors have had on us, and what they would think of Scotland today.

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In the 18th century shotgun weddings were not unusual, but in most cases it wasn't the bride that was holding the gun. So began the stormy marriage between Lord and Lady Grange, a marriage which was to end with Lady Grange's death on the Isle of Skye after 13 years in exile. The daughter of a convicted murderer, Lady Grange's behaviour, such as her fondness for drink, was so outrageous that her sudden disappearance from public life was not considered surprising. But few knew the true story of her disappearance. This book reveals, for the first time, how the unfortunate lady was violently kidnapped and transported to the remote islands off the west coast of Scotland, spending seven years on the island of St. Kilda's. Condemned to a very different lifestyle than she had enjoyed in Edinburgh, and baffled by the strange tongue of the Gaelic West, she still obstinately survived, finally dying in Skye in 1745.

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