By Karrie Gillett A DISABLED rights campaigner has launched Scotland’s first agency to fight hate crime after suffering decades of abuse. Jimmy McIntosh, who has cerebral palsy, joined councillors and police officers to set up a task force to try and put a stop to intimidation and violence. Mr McIntosh revealed how he had once [...]
By Paul Thornton A WOMAN allegedly tried to open the door of an aeroplane during a flight. It is claimed that the 47-year-old lunged for a passenger door when onboard an Air France flight to Scotland. Police say the captain of the plane, which had been travelling from Paris to Edinburgh on Wednesday morning, called [...]
By Cara Sulieman A FIVE-year-old girl has been left heartbroken after her beloved cat was sickeningly poisoned to death. Little Emily Rhodes spent three days thinking her cat Tigger had simply gone missing. But he was found wailing in pain in a neighbour’s garden and died from suspected poisoning, despite the help of Scottish [...]
By Cara Sulieman ANCIENT religion could be connecting with modern-day technology when a mobile phone mast is installed in a church spire. Mobile phone heavyweights O2 want to turn the 135-year-old Edinburgh church spire into a giant phone transmitter. They plan to hide the mast inside the very tip of the listed building, and give [...]
By Cara Sulieman ROLLING Stone Ronnie Wood is hoping to prove he has more to him than sex, drugs and rock n’ roll when he unveils his art exhibition in Scotland. The 61-year-old wrinkly rocker’s work is a mixture of celebrity portraits and animal scenes; showing he doesn’t just paint it black. But Wood himself [...]
By Alexander Lawrie SCOTTISH Olympic hero Chris Hoy has been dragged into a row over the New Year Honours list. Members of Britain’s Paralympic team are “disappointed” that almost half of the squad has been overlooked in this year’s honours. At first glance the list seems to honour many of the paralympic stars, but a [...]
By Michael MacLeod HOLIDAY hunters want to travel to Scotland more than some of the sunniest places on earth. Our capital cities rank ahead of Ibiza, Milan, Venice, Madrid and Las Vegas in the internet’s most searched for holiday destinations. Experts say the credit crunch has forced Brits to look closer to home for a [...]
By Cara Sulieman A GLASWEGIAN who can’t speak a word of Gaelic dreamt up Scotland’s new Celtic social networking site. Hot on the heels of Facebook and Myspace, Scotland’s 60,000 Gaelic speakers now have their own version – mygaelic.com And English-speaking web surfers will be able to translate the site from the native tongue into [...]
By Cara Sulieman RECEIVING a bottle of whisky for your birthday is not unusual – but one famous Scot has had 250 bottles made especially for him. Famous Grouse have created the special edition bottles to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Robert Burns’ birth and Homecoming 2009. The bottles, one to signify each year since [...]
By Cara Sulieman AS SCOTLAND’S most famous literary figure celebrates a big birthday this year, it is also time to honour another great Scottish author. Although Robert Louis Stevenson is one of the country’s most renowned writers, there is little information available online. Now three of Scotland’s universities have come together to create a website [...]
By Alexander Lawrie ROCKER Rod Stewart is expected to attend a Scots church communion with a difference – where the worshippers will be offered champagne rather than red wine. Celebrations are taking place at the South Leith Parish Church in Edinburgh to mark the 400th anniversary of the church. The multi-million selling artist, and his [...]
By Karrie Gillett CRIME writer Ian Rankin is enjoying seeing his first published novel – in braille. Now, the best-selling Rebus author has launched an appeal calling on more books to made available to the visually impaired. Yesterday, extracts in braille from Rankin’s 2004 thriller Fleshmarket Close were placed on the stone walls of the [...]
By Alexander Lawrie SIR SEAN Connery has admitted not being able to speak to his wife is the secret behind his happy marriage. The former Bond star has been married to French wife Micheline for over 30 years, but still cannot speak a word in her native tongue. And the 78 year-old screen legend insists [...]
By Karrie Gillett HARDY revellers braved the bitter cold to take a dip in the icy waters of the Firth of Forth to welcome the New Year in style. Around 600 swimmers – many scantily clad in thongs and bikinis – plunged into the sea as thousands watched on. Characters including Elvis, wonder-woman and banana-man [...]
By Karrie Gillett A DELIGHTED mum is celebrating the New Year by giving birth to Edinburgh’s first baby of 2009. Malogorzata Wojcik, 30, went into labour just after the midnight bells and delivered a healthy little girl less than two hours later. Tiny Eliza Janet was born at 01.53am after a mad dash in [...]
By Cara Sulieman SCOTS have traditionally chosen food over sex, but are now ready to spend more time in the bedroom than the kitchen. A whopping 71 per cent of Aberdonians have vowed to have more sex this year, with a similar number of Edinburghers and Glaswegians agreeing. The poll by LighterLife looked into the [...]
By Michael MacLeod SEX toys, iPods, gym equipment and even a new kitchen are among items found by people moving into new homes – because the previous owners forgot they even had them. Seldom-used vibrators are said to be the most common items left behind in bedroom drawers, according to one of Edinburgh’s leading property [...]
By Michael MacLeod THE brother of a nurse who was discovered in her car boot after 11 days missing says their mother was “shocked and frightened” she could have been dead. Magdeline Makola, 38, was found alive on Boxing Day, and police have now charged fellow South African Safiso Justice Ngema, 35, with attempted murder. [...]