#shetland series 6

[backgroundnoisewithaview]

Okay in my imagined version of whichever series I'm replacing (6 or 7), Jimmy's lost his love for the job and puts in for a sabbatical (Basically a year off on half pay). Duncan, who does not get arrested for assisted suicide because Jimmy doesn't let him get emotionally abused into that position like that, runs his bistro and everything is fine.

Cassie comes home for the summer after a placement falls through and is driven around the bend by Jimmy trying to cook. We're talking burnt custard, seperated cream, accidentally pouring stock down the sink and saving the bones instead of binning the bones and saving the stock, mixing up tartar source and cream of tartar (it happens, okay! We've all been there) and then Cassie being like "Duncan, you need to teach him".

And that's how we get them cooking together and Duncan getting exasperated for how much Jimmy argues despite Not being the expert but Jimmy learning how to make things over time.

And Cassie getting loads of photographs of what her fathers are making together, to the point where she sets up an instagram account for them that works as excellent promotion for the bistro even though Duncan is not the chef at the BIstro.

And if they happen to accidentally make a whole romantic meal together and kiss each other goodnight then so be it.

[scotianostra]

Happy Birthday Phyllis Logan, born 11th January 1956 in Paisley.

Phyllis was educated at Johnstone High School. She studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow and graduated with the top honour, the James Bridie gold medal in 1977, previous winners have included Ian Richardson and Hannah Gordon.

I suppose this is another one of those, depends on what era you grew up in, type posts, for me she will always be Lady Jane Felsham in Lovejoy in the 80’s and 90’s. Of course nowadays most know her as Elsie Hughes/ Carson housekeeper in all 6 series of Downton Abbey. Phyllis has also been in a host of TV shows, Shoestring, Scotch & Wry, Hannay, Holby City and Kavanagh QC to name a few, she also featured in the very last episode of A Touch of Frost as his love interest.

Logan met actor Kevin McNally in 1994, and they married on August 15, 2011.Their son David was born in 1996.

Last year Phyllis appeared in The Last Bus, with the versatile actor Timothy Spall, she was also in the second series of the excellent dark comedy, Guilt.

Phyllis shows no signs of slowing up fans of Downton will know ahe was in Downton Abbey: A New Era last year, she also turned up in Rocketry: The Nambi Effect the true story of Scientist Nambi Narayanan who was falsely accused of being a spy and arrested in 1994. Surprised by Oxford is a 2022 drama romance set in Oxford

Another one which will be of interest to us in Scotland is Banking on Mr. Toad, an animated biography about Edinburgh born writer Kenneth Grahame, the birth of his iconic story “The Wind In The Willows” and life with wife Elsie and Alastair, their troubled young son, no date for it's release as yet, but it has been completed.

Last year Phyllis appeared in season 8 of Shetland, and was in a movie called Surprised by Oxford, which gets a reasonable 6.5/10 on IMDb, I must look out for it.

[shetlandfics]

ANNOUNCEMENT:

Shetland Fic Fest 2023

Let’s fill AO3 with new Shetland fics in 2023! Below are the suggested posting dates and prompts, but feel free to do something else entirely. Art and videos also encouraged!

Schedule:

Wednesday 1 March - Rarepairs

Thursday 2 March - AU

Friday 3 March - Series 7 Fix-it

Saturday 4 March - Folklore, folk horror, history and ritual 

Sunday 5 March - Casefic

Monday 6 March - Crossovers

Tuesday 7 March - Comedy

Tagging:

Share your fics with the tag #shetlandficfest23 and we’ll reblog.

[morse-perez-and-davenport]

Jimmy Perez in Shetland series 4×6

[melikes-reads]

A Shetland Short Story

Reading fic without knowing the source material?

YES, PLEASE!

Finally caving in and watching the source material?

Series 1-5: YAY!

Series 6: TOO SAD, NO

Series 7-? : YOU DO NOT EXIST I WILL NOT WATCH YOU

Books: yeah, no. I'll ignore you, too.

[maximumwobblerbanditdonut]

Outlander star, the charismatic Sam Heughan, and his co-star Graham McTavish, initially intended to delve into the rich culture and history of north Scotland, Shetland, and its intriguing Viking connections in their second domestic series of ‘Men in Kilts’. However, the harsh realities of filming amidst the Scottish winter, coupled with the actors’ demanding schedules, led to an unforeseen change in location – New Zealand.

A Scottish Tale in New Zealand

With one in five New Zealanders tracing their roots back to Scotland, the correlation between the two countries is palpable. The striking landscapes and the welcoming people of New Zealand echo the essence of Scotland, making it an apt alternative for the series’ second installment. Apart from the scenic beauty, New Zealand, the home of McTavish, presents a treasure trove of history, culture, and adrenaline-filled adventures that the duo plans to explore.

From Viking Roots to Maori Traditions

While the focus of the series has shifted from Viking influences to Maori customs and traditions, the core intent remains the same – to unravel the layered narratives of lands steeped in history. As part of their journey, Heughan and McTavish will traverse from the North Island to the South, engaging in thrilling activities such as diving with great white sharks and a nerve-racking 100m high zip line.

American Adventure Beckons

Heughan and McTavish have also set their sights on the North American eastern seaboard for their series’ third installment. Their itinerary includes locales with significant Scottish influence, such as Nova Scotia, Maine, New York, Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. The dynamic duo anticipates encounters with wildlife, including bears and moose, as they journey through North America, adding an extra layer of excitement to their upcoming adventures.

What! North America is huge, it includes the United States, Canada and Mexico, which are big countries compared to Scotland and New Zealand. How long do they expect to be filming, they won't cover it in 6 episodes. If they don't know exactly where they are going. They will take McTavish and Sassenach whisky on tour with a little help from STARZ with them.

[thesilversun]

20 questions writer meme.

Thank you @bbcphile for the tag :) 

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

112 (A few are art rather than fic - but over 100 of them are fics) 

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

953,545 (17 years and getting close to the 1 million words mark)

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Currently Mysterious Lotus Casebook and MDZS. Previously Torchwood, Doctor Who, Primeval, Being Human, Rivers of London, Shetland, (these are ones with 2+ there are others with just 1 fic)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Futures Written on Shifting Sand   My only fic to pass 4 digit kudos at 2134 kudos. Unfinished wip, that I might still go back to.   My first MDZS fic, Canon divergent AU where Lan Wangji is brought back to Lotus Pier after the Xuanwu cave incident and is there for the Wen attack. 

Time Enough and Life 486 kudos. A Torchwood bigbang fic for one of the big bangs that I ran back on Livejournal. 

Writing up the report on the Night Travellers, Jack finds one line in the Electro guide book that confuses him – it closed in 1977. It leaves him with one question, how did Ianto watch films there if it closed six years before he was born?

As Spring Will Surely Come

MDZS. Written for the Bottomji big bang early this year, 464 kudos. 

Now in their forth year of marriage Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian are settled into their life together in the Cloud Recesses, looking forward to a quiet, cozy winter together in the Jingshi. A night hunt at a haunted water mill, old injuries and family illness make it a very difficult winter instead.

Going On 351 kudos. One my earliest fics, written and posted while the first series of Torchwood was still airing. 

Conversations, realisations and angst set after Countrycide. 

Secrets and Hope 339 Kudos. Fix it fic written in the wake of Torchwood series 3. 

As Torchwood slowly rebuilds following the 456 the government is still keeping secrets from them and it's up to Ianto to reveal the truth.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I try to/mean to then it goes past a few days and I wonder if people really want a reply from me. Then it feels like it’s too long, that I’ve missed the timeframe for it to be reasonable. 

6. What is a fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Probably In Darkness one of the many Torchwood fics that I wrote.

The ending lines being:

Because if living forever is a terrifying thought, then living forever and losing himself in the process is beyond terrifying. It's something that Jack isn't sure there's a word to describe the sheer horror of it.

Huddling against Ianto, Jack supposes that at least he's got all the time in the universe to come up with one.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Maybe New Horizons Canon Divergent SongXiao in the CQL setting (I tend to write novel setting) 

The decision to help a small village threatened by a vicious yaoguai brings with it danger and upsetting news that Xiao Xingchen never expected to receive. With the news comes a choice, one that will change the course of both Xiao Xingchen and Song Lan’s lives in ways that neither of them expect.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

No, the occasional annoying/odd comment - like asking me to use US spelling grammar or to re-write in past tense as they didn’t like present tense, or leaving a ‘sadly unfinished’ bookmark in a completed big bang fic

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes, not so much in recent fandoms - but I have ideas, but Torchwood and Primeval it was a bigger part of it. Most of it had a strong kink element. Generally with the focus being on trust

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

Occasionally.  The most ridiculous has to be Hex, Mainframe and the Temporal Trouser Error.

Discworld, Torchwood and Primeval. A conversation across time and space between Hex and Mainframe, two sentient computers.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I’m aware of.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not that I’m aware of, that is to say if anyone had they’ve not told me.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes, as part of a fic writing challenge event, Out of Dark Places, written with Harkpad.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

Honestly I have many ships in every fandom I’ve been in. Although Jack/Ianto will always hold as special place, because it was that ship that really brought me into fandom circles. 

15. What's a wip you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

Probably the ridiculously ambitious alternative 4 season of Torchwood, which used my fic Secrets and Hope as a bridge between series 3 and hypothetical series 4.

13 fic ‘episodes’ which were a mix of creature of the week and had an overarching plot behind it all, using the Rift and Bilis Manger. It was all plotted out, and some ‘episodes’ partially written - but the whole thing would have been something like 300k-400k

16. What are your writing strengths?

Honestly, I don’t know. People have said that I’m good at getting inside characters’ heads. 

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Too many thoughts and description and not enough action, probably.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I can’t write well enough in another language to attempt it. 

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Highlander: The TV series. That was never posted online/shared. The first to be posted/shared was Torchwood.

20. Favorite fic you've written?

That’s a difficult one, there are so many over the years - it’s been 17 years I posted by first fic online 

Maybe  Northern Lights

An unlikely case fic crossover between Shetland and Rivers of London, written with fondness for the times I spent working on an archaeological dig in Shetland 23 years ago. 

The theft of three Pictish stone carvings from a museum in London lead Peter and Nightingale to Shetland. The reason for the theft is clear: The stones are ancient storage devices for magical energy. Who took them and why is a lot less so. That Shetland has its own mythology and magics which are far closer to that of Scandinavia than London doesn't help matters.

Between the lack of information, the cold and wet January weather and Nightingale's cold, Peter can't help but wish they were back in London.

I always feel like imposing on people somehow by tagging them in things, so don’t feel like you have to do this, I do tag you @heyholmesletsgo @hils79 @galadriel1010 and anyone else who wants to do it

[greygullhaven]

FanFic Masterlink Collection

Master list of most of my Fanfics on AO3. I will update the links with new stories and fandoms as they come!

Shetland

1.    The Waves of Shetland (One shot for Jimmy and Duncan- will this fight drive them apart?)

2.    What We Have Right Before Us (One shot for Jimmy and Duncan realizing what they have)

Death in Paradise

1.    Solving Your Own Murder (Fix it fic/long fic dealing with Richard Poole’s ‘death’)

2.    A DI and His Whiteboard (Fun little fic looking into Richard’s head- might be continued)

Primeval

1.    Primeval Drabbles for Nick, Connor, Becker, Stephen, and Lester (Short drabble collection)

2.    Never Alone (One shot story for Becker and Connor after a creature incursion injury)

3.    Beyond the Darkness (One shot story of Stephen and Nick Dealing with Helen’s aftermath)

4.    Halloween – Primeval Style (Qucik drabbles of the gang celebrating Halloween)

5.    How Drunk Was I? (AU one shot for Becker/Connor and their not-so-secret relationship)

6.    Dinner Time Shenanigans (One shot of Danny and Lester having dinner)

7.    The Start of a New Life (One shot of Cutter’s clone- AU where he survived the attack)

8.    How Far We’ve Come (One shot for the Polycule of Nick/Stephen/Connor)

9.    Time of Death (AU story- warning of character death/afterlife flashes)

10. Echoes of the Past- Sounds of the Future (AU story for Cutter/Connor – Paused for now)

11. Swirling Time and Shattered Lives (AU story of Nick and Helen chasing anomalies together)

12. New Years, Old Memories, New Future  (One shot for Becker and Danny- PTSD warning)

13. Rift Risks – (A little one shot of Nick and Becker arguing about what to do with the anomalies)

14. Looking to the Future (One shot for Nick and Stephen- Helen is gone and they actually talk!)

15. The Legacy of the Ability Research Center (Epic AU superpower/hero story- co-authored)

Roswell New Mexico

1.    New Year’s Eve Hope (Fic for Alex and Michael- warnings for PTSD focus)

2.    It’s a Christmas Tradition? (Fluffy one shot for Alex and Michael at Christmas time)

3.    Who Cares if One More Light Goes Out? (Angsty Alex and Michael fic- Paused for now)

By Any Means

1.    The Price of Getting Attached (Little one shot for Jack and Tom-Tom – relationship talk)

2.    Where Do We Go From Here? (One shot dealing with the aftermath of the series)

Haven Fanfics

1.    LifeHouse- A Haven Found Family Story (AU story Poly-family dynamics- Co-authored)

2.    Those Late Night Talks (One shot of Haven Poly-family storyline)

3.    Lizzie’s Special Family (One shot of Haven Poly-family storyline)

4.    Math is Math is Math (One shot of Haven Poly-family storyline)

5.    Matters of the Heart and Mind (Duke and Dwight relationship story- WIP/Paused)

6.    What’s in a Name? (One shot AU story about Dwight and his Father)

7.    Changing Tides, Changing Hearts, Changing Perspectives (Reimagining of the Troubles)

8.    Rock Me Hard Rock Me Gently (AU story with Duke/Nathan/Dwight- might be continued)

9.    Quiet Moment On The Beach (Duke/Nathan one shot story during a relaxing walk)

10. The Gift of a Touch(Duke/Nathan one shot story with Nathan’s touch Trouble reimagined)

11. Friendly Competition (Fun little one shot with Duke/Dwight/Nathan one afternoon)

12. Be Mr. Responsible (Duke/Nathan one shot story one sleepy morning)

13. This Is My Christmas Wish (AU secret/forbidden love short with Duke, Nathan, and Dwight)

14. Making a House Into a Home (Duke/Nathan/Dwight story- the birth of “Three Stars of Haven”)

15. Collide (Slice of Life collection of stories for Duke and Nathan)

16. Demons (Angsty one shot for Duke struggling with the Crocker Curse)

17. Love Lost and Love Found (Story for Duke and Nathan and Dwight -near character death)

18. All I Want For Christmas Is…. You? (Three Gulls fanfic- Christmas for Duke/Audrey/Nathan)

19. Giving Thanks For You (One shot for Duke and Nathan having Thanksgiving together)

20. Harmless Flirting? (Duke and Nathan story where assumptions may just derail a relationship)

21. Kissing Scars (Fluffy one shot for Duke and Nathan)

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 11.23 (after 1970)

1971 – Representatives of the People's Republic of China attend the United Nations, including the United Nations Security Council, for the first time. 1972 – The Soviet Union makes its final attempt at launching the N1 rocket. 1974 – Sixty Ethiopian politicians, aristocrats, military officers, and other persons are executed by the provisional military government. 1976 – Jacques Mayol is the first man to reach a depth of 100 m (330 ft) undersea without breathing equipment. 1978 – Cyclone kills about 1,000 people in eastern Sri Lanka. 1978 – The Geneva Frequency Plan of 1975 goes into effect, realigning many of Europe's longwave and mediumwave broadcasting frequencies. 1980 – The 6.9 Mw  Irpinia earthquake shakes southern Italy with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme), killing 2,483–4,900, and injuring 7,700–8,934. 1981 – Iran–Contra affair: Ronald Reagan signs the top secret National Security Decision Directive 17 (NSDD-17), giving the Central Intelligence Agency the authority to recruit and support Contra rebels in Nicaragua. 1985 – Gunmen hijack EgyptAir Flight 648 en route from Athens to Cairo. When the plane lands in Malta, Egyptian commandos storm the aircraft, but 60 people die in the raid. 1991 – Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury announces in a statement that he is HIV-positive. He dies the following day. 1992 – The first smartphone, the IBM Simon, is introduced at COMDEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. 1996 – Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 is hijacked, then crashes into the Indian Ocean off the coast of Comoros after running out of fuel, killing 125. 2001 – The Convention on Cybercrime is signed in Budapest, Hungary. 2002 – Space Shuttle Endeavour launches on STS-113 to the International Space Station carrying the Expedition 6 crew and the P1 truss. 2003 – Rose Revolution: Georgian president Eduard Shevardnadze resigns following weeks of mass protests over flawed elections. 2004 – The Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi, the largest religious building in Georgia, is consecrated. 2005 – Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is elected president of Liberia and becomes the first woman to lead an African country. 2006 – A series of bombings kills at least 215 people and injures 257 others in Sadr City, making it the second deadliest sectarian attack since the beginning of the Iraq War in 2003. 2007 – MS Explorer, a cruise liner carrying 154 people, sinks in the Antarctic Ocean south of Argentina after hitting an iceberg near the South Shetland Islands. There are no fatalities. 2009 – The Maguindanao massacre occurs in Ampatuan, Maguindanao, Philippines; 58 opponents of Andal Ampatuan Jr. are kidnapped and killed. 2010 – Bombardment of Yeonpyeong: North Korean artillery attack kills two civilians and two marines on Yeonpyeong Island, South Korea. 2011 – Arab Spring: After 11 months of protests in Yemen, Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh signs a deal to transfer power to the vice president, in exchange for legal immunity. 2015 – Blue Origin's New Shepard space vehicle became the first rocket to successfully fly to space and then return to Earth for a controlled, vertical landing. 2018 – Founders of Italian fashion brand Dolce & Gabbana issue an apology following a series of offensive advertisements on social media promoting a fashion show in Shanghai, China, which was canceled. 2019 – The last Sumatran rhinoceros in Malaysia, Imam, dies, making the species officially extinct in the country.

[helmstone]

Shetland — get ready for series 9

Shetland — get ready for series 9

Shetland returns for a ninth series (watch the rest on iPlayer while you wait!). Leads Ashley Jensen and Alison o’Donnell are interviewed (with others) in a new article on the BBC website. The series returns on November 6 to BBC One. A double missing persons case blurs the line between the personal and the professional, as Calder and Tosh are drawn into a labyrinthine investigation. When Tosh��s…

[myrna-nora]

2023: TV

January 1. Shetland (series 1 / 2013) [UK]

February 2. All Creatures Great and Small (series 3 / 2022) [UK] 3. Vera (series 12 / 2023) [UK] 4. A Discovery of Witches (series 3 / 2022) [UK] March 5. Killing Eve (series 4 / 2022) [UK | US] 6. Strike (Troubled Blood) (2022) [UK] 7. Poker Face (series 1 / 2023) [US] 8. Line of Duty (series 4 / 2017) [UK] April 9. Call the Midwife (series 12 / 2023) [UK] 10. Inspector Morse (series 4 / 1990) [UK] May 11. Line of Duty (series 5 / 2019) [UK] 12. The Mandalorian (series 3 / 2023) [US] 13. Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story (series 1 / 2023) [US] 14. The Crown (series 5 / 2022) [UK] June 15. Agatha Raisin (series 4 / 2021-2022) [UK] July 16. Endeavour (series 9 / 2023) [UK] 17. McDonald & Dodds (series 3 / 2022) [UK] 18. Signora Volpe (series 1 / 2022) [UK] August 19. Kohrra (mini-series / 2023) [India : Punjabi] 20. Maigret (series 1 / 1992) [UK] 21. Happy Valley (series 3 / 2023) [UK] September 22. Maigret (series 2 / 1993) [UK] October 23. Only Murders in the Building (series 3 / 2023) [US] 24. Mrs. Sidhu Investigates (series 1 / 2023) [UK] 25. Dahaad (series 1 / 2023) [India : Hindi] November 26. Wolf Like Me (series 2 / 2023) [Australia]  December 27. Archie (mini-series / 2023) [UK] 28. Frasier (series 1 / 2023) [US] 29. Clouds of Witness (mini-series / 1972) [UK]

[tvrundownusa]

tvrundown USA 2023.12.20

Wednesday, December 20th:

(exclusive): Vera (BritBox, season 12 Christmas episode), Chip 'n' Dale: Park Life (dsn+, special Christmas episode), South Park (Para+, special #6: "Not Suitable for Children"), Love Is Blind Brazil: After the Altar (netflix, reality special), "Cindy la Regia: The High School Years" (netflix, Mexican teen comedy, all 7 eps)

(movies): "Taming of the Shrewd 2" (netflix, Polish rom-com sequel, 100mins), "Maestro" (netflix, Bradley Cooper as Leonard Bernstein, 2hrs+++)

(streaming weekly): Shetland (BritBox), Slow Horses (apple+, penultimate), Dragons of Wonderhatch (hulu|dsn+, live-action fantasy, first 5 eps), Percy Jackson and the Olympians (dsn+, series premiere, first 2 eps), "Soundtrack #2" (dsn+, next 2 eps, limited series finale), "BTS Monuments: Beyond the Star" (dsn+, docuseries premiere, first 2 parts), Ink Master (Para+, season 15 finale), Like Flowers in Sand (netflix, Korean wrestling drama-romance series premiere)

(also new): "The Serial Killer Seduced Me" (LMN original movie, 2hrs), "Daniel" (HBO, filmmaker Daniel Northcott documentary, 75mins)

(earlier - hour 0): Young Dylan (NICK) / . / NFL Slimetime (NICK)

(hour 1): Survivor (CBS, 3hrs), The Masked Singer (FOX, 2hrs), The Challenge (MTV, 90mins), That Girl Lay Lay (NICK, "All I Want For Christmas is Lay Lay") / . / Nick News (NICK, monthly special)

(hour 2): Sistas (BET), Survivor (CBS, contd+2hrs), The Masked Singer (FOX, contd, season 10 finale), The Challenge (MTV, contd) / . / Cribs (MTV), CMT Crossroads (CMT, "Bret Michaels & Chris Janson" special)

(hour 3): Ms. Pat Settles It (BET), King Charles (CNN, weekly talkshow), Survivor (CBS, contd, season 45 finale)

[preempted: Magnum P.I. (NBC) returns Jan.3rd for 2-hour finale.]

[scotianostra]

October 5th 1785 saw a spectacular balloon flight by Italian aeronaut Vincenzo Lunardi from Heriot's School, Edinburgh to Ceres in Fife, the first Scottish hydrogen-filled balloon take off.

The 46 mile flight over the Firth of Forth ended at Coaltown of Callange in the parish of Ceres, Fife. There is today a commemorative plaque nearby. At the time, The Scots Magazine reported:

'The beauty and grandeur of the spectacle could only be exceeded by the cool, intrepid manner in which the adventurer conducted himself; and indeed he seemed infinitely more at ease than the greater part of his spectators.'

The Glasgow Mercury newspaper ran adverts the following month announcing Lunardi's intention to 'gratify the curiosity of the public of Glasgow, by ascending in his Grand Air Balloon from a conspicuous place in the city'. Vincenzo made five flights in Scotland in his Grand Air Balloon—which was made of 140m2 of green, pink and yellow silk, and which was exhibited, 'suspended in its floating state' in the choir of St. Mungo's Cathedral in Glasgow for the admission charge of one shilling.

The weather was fine at about 14:00 on 23rd November 1785 when The Daredevil Aeronaut 'ascended into the atmosphere with majestic grandeur, to the astonishment and admiration of the spectators' from St. Andrew's Square in Glasgow. The two-hour flight covered 110 miles, and passed over Hamilton and Lanark before landing at the feet of 'trembling shepherds' in Hawick near the border.

A couple of weeks later, in early December, a local 'character' called Lothian Tam managed to get entangled in the ropes and as the balloon ascended—again from St. Andrew's Square in Glasgow, Tam was lifted 6 metres before being cut loose and falling—with apparently no serious injury. The weather was worse on this flight—which had to end after just 20 minutes, with the Grand Balloon landing in Campsie Glen in Milton of Campsie—just over 10 miles from Glasgow. His landing, on 5th December 1785, is commemorated by a small plaque in the village.

However, the next flight on 20 December 1785, was a disaster, though he survived. Seventy minutes after the ascent from the grounds of Heriot's Hospital in Edinburgh, Lunardi was forced down in the sea. He spent a long time in the North Sea until rescued by a passing fishing boat which docked at North Berwick. The diary of the Rev John Mill from Shetland states:

'A French man called Lunardi fled over the Firth of Forth in a Balloon, and lighted in Ceres parish, not far from Cupar, in Fife; and O! how much are the thoughtless multitude set on these and like foolish vanities to the neglect of the one thing needful. Afterwards, 'tis said, when soaring upwards in the foresaid machine, he was driven by the wind down the Firth of Forth, and tumbled down into the sea near the little Isle of May, where he had perished had not a boat been near who saved him and his machine.'

A short time later, in 1786, Lunardi published 'An Account of five Aerial Voyages in Scotland' in a series of letters to his guardian, Gherardo Campagni.

[shahananasrin-blog]

[ad_1] The hit show, which was first broadcast 40 years ago on September 6, 1983, also gave a few well-known names their big break. Here is a round-up of some of the Hollywood A-listers and big-name British telly stars who cut their teeth as villains or heroes on the classic STV series. Ashley Jensen (Image: Newsquest) Ashley Jensen Recently announced as the new lead on Shetland reboot, taking over from fellow Taggart alumnus Douglas Henshall, the Ugly Betty and Extras star appeared in a 2005 episode of Taggart called A Taste of Money. Douglas Henshall Shetland and Primeval star Douglas popped up in Taggart in 1990, playing a motorcyclist in an episode called Love Knot (which also starred Trainspotting’s Ewen Bremner AND John Michie, who went on to become regular DI Robbie Ross.) Dougray Scott Hollywood superstar Dougray, most recently seen on our small screens in Irvine Welsh’s Crime, guest starred in the terrifying Taggart episode Nest of Vipers in 1992. James Cosmo The Old Bear (Jeor Mormont) himself from Game of Thrones, James starred in the episode Dead Giveaway in 1988, a delightful tale about a murderer putting rat poison in food products. Balamory and Scot Squad star Julie Wilson Nimmo in a scene from Taggart (Image: STV) Julie Wilson Nimmo Most famous for her roles in Scot Squad and Balamory, Julie was also part of the Taggart cast back in 2008 for an episode called Point of Light. Robert Carlyle Acting heavyweight Robert (Trainspotting, The Fully Monty, Hamish Macbeth, Bond villain….) played an ambitious politician who wanted to bring back capital punishment, in the 1990 story Hostile Witness. Gavin Mitchell (Image: STV) Gavin Mitchell Long before he became the legendary Boaby the barman in Still Game, Gavin Mitchell appeared in a 2002 episode called Fire, Burn. Joe McFadden The Heartbeat and Holby City star, who won Strictly Come Dancing, appeared in a 1994 episode called Secrets, in which the Glasgow literary scene is thrown into chaos when a university lecturer is murdered. Ewen Bremner Ewen would go on to become one of the huge stars of Trainspotting, but in Taggart episode Love Knot in 1990, he was playing a young rock climber. Clare Grogan Clare, of Gregory’s Girl and Altered Images fame, played Mary Catto in the 1992 story The Hit Man. John Hannah and Jill Gascoine He went on to play another famous cop in a long-running series (Rebus), but in 1990, John Hannah starred in Evil Eye, alongside well-kent face, Jill Gascoine. Readers of a certain vintage will remember her as DI Maggie Forbes in 80s detective show The Gentle Touch. Jill Gascoigne (Image: Newsquest) Sheila Grier Scottish actor and Brookside star Sheila, who played Sandra Maghie in the long-running Channel 4 soap, appeared in the 1987 episode The Killing Philosophy. Diane Keen English actor Diane is most famous for The Cuckoo Waltz, and appearing as Julia Parsons on the BBC soap opera Doctors, although for a generation she will always be the woman from the Nescafe adverts which ran throughout the 1980s. Diane Keen with Mark McManus (Image: Newsquest) She appeared in the Taggart story Cold Blood in 1987. [ad_2]

[morse-perez-and-davenport]

Douglas henshall and Alison O'Donnell on the set of Shetland series 6

© Alison O'Donnell on twitter

[safereturndoubtful]

A Space Odyssey

Thursday 20th July

The RAF have had a military presence at Saxa Vord, on the opposite side of the inlet or voe, to Hermaness, since the Second World War, with a Radar Station on the hill, symbolised by its radar tracking huge golf ball, similar to Great Dunn Fell. It closed in 2006 as it was becoming too expensive to maintain, but reopened in 2019 due to increased Russian military activity. About two kilometres across the hill, on the Skaw headland is the new Saxa Vord Spaceport, formerly the Shetland Space Centre, on the Lamba Ness peninsula. Tests for the first UK vertical rocket launch have already taken place, and the launch itself is scheduled for later this year. Three launch pads will enable 30 launches per year, for orbital rockets for satellites.

Surprisingly, the only objections came from Historical Scotland who withdrew them in 2022, stating that they recognised the benefits that this would bring to the area, in terms of employment, and the visitor’s centre as a tourist attraction.

Tours are taking place at the moment, but more controversial, is for how long the land I have wandering around over for the last couple of days, and up at Skaw Beach, will be accessible to the public. The large grey house, and the white cottage on the beach here at Norwick, are set for compulsory purchase, and no longer occupied. The former was a retirement property that a local farmer had worked on for several years, and the latter a holiday rental. Both on the photo below.

At the moment security is minimal, just an old guy in a portacabin bored out of his mind. The ‘warning’ sign seems in jest rather than with any seriousness to it. No doubt things will change quickly.

I met four older women sat having lunch on the beach at Skaw. They came from the Mainland island and told me they take their holidays annually here on Unst. They pondered what it might be like to watch a launch from a position sat on Skaw beach. It certainly would be a pity if there was no access to this far northeasterly part of Unst. It seems this little corner of wild UK will be a lot less wild in a few months.

I put a hike together that started on the old road between Norwick and Skaw. It is closed and has fallen into disrepair..

Then past the space port, and the old man in his portacabin, who Roja surprised so much that he hastily put away his magazine. The road runs out at Skaw, where there claims to be the most northerly house in Britain, and the terminus of the Northern Cycle Route.

Beyond are Vendra Stacks and a small wild island called the Holm of Skaw. There were a couple of showers during the three hours or so that we were out, but the strong northwesterly kept them short, and the temperature at about 10C.

Back at Norwick beach dog walkers came and went, some stopped to chat, and ask the Test match score. I’ve watched only bits of this series, listened to a lot more of it on the radio, but some of the places I have watched it in have been quite distractingly spectacular.

Unst Fest doesn’t name a venue for its outdoor events until shortly before, due to weather conditions. This afternoon at 4 pm there was a kids disco, for the 6 to 12 age group, and it was on Norwick beach, about 50 metres from where I had the Ashes on. It didn’t disturb me at all, fifty or more kids painting each other, dancing, and playing various other games in the sand and the sea. Most of them were completely soaked after the hour was up. With the temperature at 10 degrees, one can only admire their toughness. I didn’t see anyone complain, and it rained hard at one time, with the sand blowing around.