By Christine Lavelle THE Catholic Church says abortion is now being used as an alternative method of contraception among the nation’s school girls. The warning comes after it was revealed that 71 girls living in the Lothians region aged 15 or under had terminations last year. The number has reached a five year high, and [...]
By Christine Lavelle A DEDICATED Scot who ran 50 marathons in 56 days to raise funds for a cause close to his heart has smashed his goal of raising £25,000. Mark Cooper, 27, decided to embark upon the 1,300 mile dash across Europe to give back to Edinburgh’s Headway Group, a charity he says supported [...]
By Christine Lavelle THE UNIVERSITY of Dundee has topped the chart as the Europe’s ‘Best Place to Work in Academia’ – and took third place worldwide. The eighth annual survey was compiled by The Scientist magazine, and voted for by readers. Dundee was voted third internationally in a previous poll this year by the same [...]
By Cara Sulieman A PLUCKY pensioner fought off an attempted car jacker after he tried to steal her motor in the middle of a busy street. The 60-year-old woman was sitting in her blue Peugeot 207 when the man opened the driver’s door and tried to grab her keys just before 5pm on Tuesday. But [...]
By Paul Thornton A MAN has admitted sparking a four-hour stand-off with armed police after going beserk with a knife. Denim MacLeod, 28, self harmed himself then used a serrated kitchen knife as a weapon to keep police at bay during the incident at his flat in Caledonian Place in Edinburgh. A neighbour fled the [...]
By Paul Thornton A KILLER soldier behind the death of a young holiday rep in Cyprus which led to British troops being banned from an island has appeared in court after breaking the terms of an order to inform police of his movements. Justin Fowler, 42, along with fellow former Royal Green Jackets Allan Ford [...]
By Cara Sulieman A BOOZY teacher has been struck off after turning up for work reeking of alcohol on three separate occasions. Mary Gray had been given three months to prove she was able to bring her drink problem under control, but today education bosses decided she hadn’t made enough progress. Ms Gray worked at [...]
By Christine Lavelle EMOTIONAL tributes have been paid to a mother-of-three killed in a horrific blaze which ripped through her family home – just a month after she moved in. Tragic Angela Campbell, 23, died in the ferocious fire at her three bedroom home in Livingston during the early hours of Saturday morning. Her children [...]
By Michael MacLeod VANDALS have given Antony Gormley’s latest creation a Mc-makeover – dressing his statue up as a burger flipper. The sculpture in Edinburgh’s Water of Leith has been decked out with a McDonald’s uniform, complete with a baseball cap and name badge. The artwork’s new fast food look comes just a week after [...]
By Michael MacLeod SINGER Cheryl Cole is set to star in Scots comic The Beano as Minnie the Minx’s new sidekick. The Girls Aloud star will team up with the Beano bad girl in a series of cartoon strips published from next month. Dundee-based publishers DC Thomson spotted her sporting a red and black striped [...]
By Michael MacLeod A BIDDING war to build a new anti-terrorist security entrance to the Scottish Parliament has been criticised by the widow of the building’s original architect. Benedetta Tagliabue, widow of Spanish architect Enric Miralles, said the competition to design an extension will “rupture” the £431 million parliament. She told weekend reports that she [...]
By Michael MacLeod RETRO toys are making a comeback this summer thanks to blockbuster film Toy Story 3. Eager fans are snapping up toys featured in the Pixar series including Barbie’s boyfriend Ken, Slinky and the wheeled Chatter Telephone. A host of other classic toys, such as Etch A Sketch and Nintendo Game Boys, feature [...]
By Michael MacLeod SCOTLAND’S top recording studio, used by Susan Boyle and Simple Minds, is facing closure over a cash row. Glasgow’s Terminal Music could be shut down after talks to refinance a £1.9million loan from the Royal Bank of Scotland collapsed. The prospect has been described as “tragic” by Simple Minds singer Jim Kerr, [...]
By Michael MacLeod FIVE Scottish Water executives received £273,000 between them in bonuses in the past year. Two of the managers at the publicly owned service also shared £57,024 to help buy cars. The salary top-ups come after SNP finance secretary John Swinney called on public sector chief executives to waive their bonuses this year. [...]
By Michael MacLeod CRIMINALS have been granted access to laptop computers in Scottish prison cells. Inmates are restricted to using the devices to prepare legal documents and prison bosses insist they cannot access the internet. But critics fear the system could be hacked to “orchestrate crimes.” A ban on laptops was lifted earlier this year [...]
By Michael MacLeod A BRAVE shop worker stood up to a knife-wielding thug by offering him cigarettes. Sadi Anwar, 27, was just a month into her job at an Edinburgh newsagent when the knife raider left her fearing for her life. The would-be thief ran into the shop holding a 10-inch blade and demanded all [...]
By Christine Lavelle A YOUNG golfer shrugged off a crippling illness to sink a hole-in-one at a recent three day tournament. Lewis Reid, 12, had been battling vomiting fits and had to attend the Glasgow Sick Kids Hospital in the days leading up to the tournament. But the youngster, from Milngavie, Glasgow, wowed the crowds [...]
By Christine Lavelle QUADRUPLE Olympic swimmer Karen Pickering has warned that she is “quite frightened” by the number of people who can’t swim. The four-time World champion said she hoped to help tackle the number of non-swimmers as she gave a water master class in Edinburgh. Karen visited keen amateurs at Ainslie Park Leisure Centre [...]
MAKING WAVES: Olympic swimmer Karen Pickering warns that levels of non-swimmers are “frightening” as she gives a water master class in Edinburgh.
By Michael MacLeod THE former boyfriend of missing Edinburgh office worker Suzanne Pilley has been released on bail charged with her murder. David Gilroy, 47, appeared in private at Edinburgh Sheriff Court. He spent just five minutes in the dock before being led away by Reliance staff. Ms Pilley, 38, was last seen on CCTV [...]