I have held an Irish passport for all of my adult life, although I have not lived there since 1971. Ireland shaped me and I hope that I remain today essentially an Irish person, albeit one probably modified by the cultural influence of other countries where I
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Language researchers at Glasgow University have discovered that people have a dual linguistic identity. They talk informally to friends and family in one way but affect a more posh voice for the telephone and in the workplace. They conclude that the phenomenon occurs because people want
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The TaxPayers’ Alliance (TPA) has received high level coverage on BBC Scotland today for its ‘Town Hall Rich List’ . It contends that Scottish councils, and particularly Glasgow, are spending too much on wages. The Campaign Manager, Robert Oxley, was given a particularly easy time on
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In 1960 the halls of residence were my accommodation during the first year I spent as a student in Belfast. We were the first cohort in a brand new building which was inviting, well furnished and provided all meals at no cost to our families. How times
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… The arrival of the giant pandas, Tian Tian and Yang Guang, at Edinburgh Zoo in November 2011 capped a magnificent year for the SNP in Scotland. Underlining its importance, First Minister, Alex Salmond, said it symbolised Scotland’s ever growing relationship with the People’s Republic of
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Watching Adrian Dunbar’s moving production of Brian Friel’s ‘Translations’ at the Kings in Edinburgh last week, it was difficult not to apply the message to 21st Century Scotland. Set in the early nineteenth century, the play explores the difficulties of dealing with a culture which is alien to
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I went to the cinema recently. That’s an opener because it must be two to three years since I was last there. The Academy winner, ‘Argo’ was showing at a local multiplex. More about the film anon but the cinema experience has changed utterly. There is no
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The death of Margaret Thatcher has brought predictable response from political and community groups. The Conservative Party, conscious that its chances of winning the next election are slim and that the late Baroness still commands ardent support among the dedicated faithful and in sections of a right
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