Contributed

Duncan MacLeod from Bonar Bridge, winner of the Traditional Gold Medal

Duncan MacLeod from Bonar Bridge, winner of the Traditional Gold Medal

Duncan’s journey to winning the Men’s Traditional Gold Medal at the Royal National Mòd By Fiona Macleod Although Duncan’s maternal grandfather and paternal great grandparents were Gaelic speakers neither of his parents were brought up speaking the language so Duncan began learning Gaelic at Croileagan (Gaelic playgroup)

How to train your dragon

How to train your dragon

Release date (UK): 2025 | Country: US, UK, Ireland, Iceland, Canada | Running time: 125 min | Genre: Fantasy - Action | Director: Dean DeBlois | Starring: Mason James, Nico Parker, Gerard Butler. | BBFC PG By Jack Weir This year’s How to Train your Dragon serves as definitive proof that live-action remakes can transcend

The end for Rebus?

The end for Rebus?

A Heart Full of Headstones by Ian Rankin Novel ideas from Catherine By Catherine Williams, Vice Chairperson, St Duthac Book and Arts Festival Ian Rankin does not disappoint in this 2023 crime thriller. Once again John Rebus is right at the heart of the book, though it’s an older,

An 80th Anniversary reflection

An 80th Anniversary reflection

Eight decades after VE and VJ Day, Valerie Mackenzie-Harris reflects on her late husband Major S.L.M. Harris’ decorated wartime service and her own childhood memory. By Valerie Mackenzie-Harris Eighty years ago, on VE Day (8th May 1945) my late husband S.L.M. Harris D.S.O.M.

History of the Highland Games

History of the Highland Games

Alasdair MacDonald, Historian for the Royal Scottish Highland Games Association, explores the rich history of Highland Games in and around the Kyle of Sutherland area. By Alasdair MacDonald The Oxford Dictionary gives ‘Highland Games’ the following meaning: Highland Games noun [plural] - A Scottish event with traditional sports, dancing, and

Plant galls

Plant galls

You might have noticed strange, bulbous growths on oak leaves or rose stems. These curious structures, called galls, are nature’s hidden laboratories — formed when insects or fungi persuade plants to grow in extraordinary ways. By Cherry Alexander Silvia the editor and I talked about the subject for this issue.

Carnivorous plants

Carnivorous plants

Dave Browne, member of the Carnivorous Plants Society, shares with us how he ended up ‘captivated’ by these plants, which blur the line between flora and predator, using ingenious traps to lure, capture, and digest unsuspecting insects. By Dave Browne My name is Dave and I’ve been a grower