 | Cowal Games Week | | Added: 04 May 2012 | | Hot of the press, we have had a cancellation in for the cowal Games week.Rowan Cottage,if you want it book it without delay it wont be there for long !!!!!!!!!! | | |  | Cowal Games Week | | Added: 04 May 2012 | | Hot of the press, we have had a cancellation in for the cowal Games week.Rowan Cottage,if you want it book it without delay it wont be there for long !!!!!!!!!! | | |  | Cowal Games Week | | Added: 04 May 2012 | | Hot of the press, we have had a cancellation in for the cowal Games week.Rowan Cottage,if you want it book it without delay it wont be there for long !!!!!!!!!! | | | ![Remember we do not only do self catering apartments!!]() | Remember we do not only do self catering apartments!! | | Added: 23 Mar 2012 | Hey Iain
The holiday has certainly got me back to the course. It was TRULY wonderful Iain , everything went to clockwork, flights, transfers , accommodation, food and us girls all got on amazingly . We had some real laughs and no arguments , all totally in agreement of everything.
Golf first day, was not my favourite course, unbelievably dry , short holes, just like pitch and put but you had to be so accurate. I lost about a dozen balls an all dried up vegetation. But still had lots fun. The championship course was so much better and obviously been watered as there were patches of green! They havnt had any rain out there and if that’s what it is like in March, phew can’t imagine what it will be like in the summer.
We played 9 holes of the championship course on the Monday giving us time to pack and have our hysterical prize giving. We will let you see the photos that Rachael loading inti a book .
We had so much fun and you were toasted a good number of times Iain, and think you will get lots of business from it, everyone so impressed with you .
Where we stayed was fabulous, great rooms, wonderful swimming pools, and tennis, rackets packed but no time!
Thanks again Iain xxxx
Website: http://www.totalholidayexperience.com | | | ![Mount Stewart opens 1st of April]() | Mount Stewart opens 1st of April | | Added: 21 Mar 2012 | MOUNT STUART OPENS TO THE PUBLIC 01 APRIL 2012
Mount Stuart offers the most memorable day out this Easter. Offering one of the world’s greatest houses and some of Europes finest gardens right on your doorstep – Mount Stuart offers so much more.
To mark the start of our season coffee lovers will be invited to join in the fun by attending Bute’s biggest morning. Discover what your taste buds say about you with a unique experience to taste a custom made coffee, created and blended by our world-class baristas from Grumpy Mule our award winning coffee supplier especially for your personal preferences.
Visitors can take advantage of our money saving promotions throughout the day across our shop and eat outlets. There will be competitions, prizes and our restaurant and tea room will be offering coffee themed products throughout the day.
Easter weekend sees a traditional Easter Egg Trail following the Easter Bunny around the gardens to the House. Come and meet our happy hens, or ‘Get Crafty’ with a series of children’s workshops to make jewellery, key rings and miniature Easter bonnets. In the Restaurant there will be Easter egg colouring competitions with lots of chocolate goodies as prizes.
For the green fingered, the Garden Centre will be bursting full of colourful and fragrant displays and the 300 acres of glorious gardens, woodlands and walks (dogs can bring their responsible owners too), offer a spectacle of spring colour and theatre.
The House boasts a rich and intriguing history - with jaw-droppingly stunning interiors and sheer detail and grandeur, this really is a place that has to be seen to be believed.
Fantastic days out awaits you and your guests with House Tours, Gardens, Visitor Centre, Restaurant, Tea Rooms, Gift Shops, Garden Centre, Adventure Play Area, Picnic Sites, Walking Trails and more!
Encourage your guests to visit Mount Stuart on the Isle of Bute this Easter and make their stay a memorable one.
To find out more about us please visit our website:
Website: http://www.mountstuart.com | | |  | Guess what property!!! | | Added: 16 Mar 2012 | Our first Tripadvisor comment on one of our luxury properties in Innellan ....“Beautiful accommodation”
Reviewed March 13, 2012 NEW We have just recently returned from a weekend break here and had such an amazing time.The apartment is absolutely stunning and has everything you could possibly need I was very sorry to leave and will have no hesitation in returning here again.
Views are spectacular and there is nothing I could possibly fault would recommend this as a short break or long term break to anyone.
We are so pleased and hope this is the first of many. | | |  | Cowal Tourism | | Added: 09 Mar 2012 | ARGYLL’S TOURIST industry leaders gathered at Portavadie Marina last Thursday for a tourism industry summit - and, despite challenging economic times for all, are determined that the region can go from strength to strength.
And their resolve was strengthened by the announcement of a £164,000 funding boost for a two-year marketing initiative for Argyll and the Isles - a tag line that is increasingly being promoted as ‘the’ name for the area.
The second annual tourism summit, organised by Argyll and the Islands Strategic Tourism Partnership (AISTP), was hailed as a ‘fantastic success’ by those in attendance - over 140 tourism professionals along with local authority officers, councillors and VisitScotland chief Malcolm Roughead.
Opening the summit, Argyll and Bute councillor Neil Mackay told how at the inaugural event in 2011, the theme was ‘Stronger Together’.
Building on this foundation was the key, he said - and this was reinforced by Mr Roughead, the keynote speaker.
He said: “When you look at investment in Argyll and the Isles recently, despite the economic recession these are really fast moving times. This venue - Portavadie Marina - is a great example.
“People have had the courage and commitment to invest in the region, and we will come through this in a much stronger and more competitive place.”
He pointed out that 2011 had ended with indicators of growth in the domestic tourist market - and despite decline in European visitor numbers, there was growth in the North American market.
“We are very well placed to take advantage of this,” he said.
“Think ahead - there is the Commonwealth Games, the Year of Homecoming - there are 32 clan seats in the region.
“Yes, these are challenging times, but there are also opportunities and we have to work hard, and together, to maximise these.
“We can and we will.”
Mike Story of AISTP was equally enthusiastic.
“Argyll is a really fantastic place, with clan seats, castles, islands, distilleries, places of national interest, golf courses, Michelin stars, wildlife, world championships and more birds of prey than anywhere else,” he said.
“We have so much to celebrate but it has been kept hidden for so long - we can’t do that anymore.”
As part of increasing that visibility, Mr Story told how AISTP will have a significant presence at this year’s Expo event.
“We will take every single one of Argyll’s marketing groups with us - the eyes of the world will be upon us, so let’s put on a good display,” he said, after outlining the theme of Argyll’s Expo showcase which will be ‘A Journey Through Argyll’.
A question and answer session with the main speakers did highlight some key issues, though, with transport and travel high on the list and tourism leaders asserting: “Something has to be done.”
AISTP also announced the winner of the Argyll and the Isles Tourism Award - Ian Cleaver, of Highland Heritage, which operates coach tours around the region from its Dalmally base.
| | | ![]() | | | Added: 07 Mar 2012 | | | |  | Run for it Mr Muddles | | Added: 07 Mar 2012 | | Someone left the back door open at Mr Muddles holiday home at Benmore Byre.Im off he said.Dont worry he was quickly recaptured before farmer Neil noticed. | | |  | I made it to the end of the week,just | | Added: 02 Mar 2012 | Well i’ll tell you I didnt think i would make this weekend.Feel like running away just like Iain at Portavadie !
| | |  | Things might be warming up around here ! | | Added: 01 Mar 2012 | Well well well,looked out the window this morning and it was bright and cheery,I even opened the window and stuck my head out,didnt suffer any ill effects.Mmmm might head out this weekend over to Portavadie do a spot of walking,might even stay overnight in one of the lodge rooms.Its hardly slumming it.
| | |  | Missed Valentines Day | | Added: 14 Feb 2012 | Dont panic ! Ok you forgot Valentines Day.Redeem yourself this weekend book the Couples Retreat Portavadie Marina.www.argyllselfcateringholidays.co.uk
| | |  | Sounds like a very wooley proposal | | Added: 10 Feb 2012 | | One of the country’s leading farmers has suggested that grazing livestock would help stabilise the hillsides above the Rest and be Thankful. | | |  | New property to Argyll Self Catering Holidays | | Added: 08 Feb 2012 | | We have just been given a new property to promote.Pier Cottage Kames and it does what it sais on the tin.Right on the old pier,you dont get much closer than swimming than this.We will be taking more photos and a full discription will appear on the site soooooon promise.If you want to book though just give us a call. | | |  | Walk the dog | | Added: 03 Feb 2012 | Its so cold the streets are icy, everything is white, time to go to the hills and enjoy them.Find a holiday home for a weekend with a big open fire to warm yourself after a long walk with the dog and kids.Check out the website for houses with open fires.
| | |  | Top 100 things to do in Argyll: Enjoy a drink at the Kames Hotel | | Added: 31 Jan 2012 | Right on the banks of Loch Fyne, the Kames Hotel is a great spot for an alfresco drink in summer. But it’s January and cold, so you’d be better off heading into its cosy Highland bar to warm up with the locals. It’s a great wee pub, nicknamed ‘the glue pot’ because once you’re through the doors you get kind of stuck. There’s a fine collection of single malts on offer, real ales from local brewer Fyne Ales and an excellent wine list. You’ll often stumble upon live music on a weekend and in the bleak midwinter, there’s no better place to hunker down.
| | |  | Rabbie Burns | | Added: 24 Jan 2012 | On Wednesday Scots around the world will be getting stuck in to haggis, enjoying a dram of whisky, reciting poetry and singing some songs to commemorate the great Scottish poet, Robert Burns.
And the people of Argyll are no exception. If you want to join in and give haggis a go, there are plenty of Burns Suppers taking place. You could, of course, organise your own. There’s a great online guide here http://www.ivillage.co.uk/organising-a-burns-supper/78395 that includes a sample menu, recipes and poems to recite. You can get your haggis from most supermarkets, but we’ve heard that A.Kent Family Butchers in Dunoon do a particularly fine one.
If you’re planning an Argyll holiday next winter, then why not come for Burns Night? It’s always fun to celebrate it in Scotland and some of our properties are perfect for hosting big dinners. Take a look at Ormidale House with its roaring fires and dining hall seating 24 or Old Kilmun House with its wood-panelled dining room – just the place to toast the haggis with family and friends.
| | |  | Top 100 things to do: Visit Mount Stuart on Bute | | Added: 20 Jan 2012 | | Bute is a gem of an island and home to Mount Stuart, the astounding Victorian gothic mansion set in acres of lush gardens overlooking the Firth of Clyde. Created by the third marquess of Bute in 1877, no expense was spared on this building and its interiors. The Marble Hall is stunning, its vaulted ceiling and stained-glass windows beautifully decorated with the signs of the zodiac. There are details and fine craftsmanship everywhere, from the animal carvings to the tapestries. The tour guides are always entertaining and full of fascinating insights into the house and the eccentricities of the family who built it. Take a stroll through the gardens and have a coffee or lunch at the modern visitor centre. | | |  | Top 100 things to do in Argyll: Climb the Cobbler | | Added: 13 Jan 2012 | At 2891 ft Ben Arthur, better know as the Cobbler, isn’t the tallest peak in the Arrochar Alps range, but it’s possibly the most enticing. Its jagged, 3 peaked ridge (one of them representing a cobbler bent over his last) is a spectacular sight and the views from the summit are breath-taking. On top of that, it’s a surprisingly accessible wilderness, with the most popular route starting just off the roadside at Succoth at the head of Loch Long.
It may not be a Munro, but it’s fairly serious walk so you’ll need to be fit to bag it. The path zigzags its way up the hillside through forest, follows a burn and then climbs steeply upwards. The Cobbler has 3 distinctive summits: the middle one is the highest.
Traversing the ridge in order to ascend any of these peaks is a tricky business and you’ll need a good head for height to reach the true summit, which ican best be reached by crawling through a hole known as ’Argyll’s eyeglass’. This hairy move is called ’threading the needle’ and should only be attempted by experienced hikers and scramblers.
You’ll need about 5 hours in total. Refresh yourself with a drink at the Village Inn in Arrochar afterwards. | | |  | These boots are made for walking … | | Added: 09 Jan 2012 | The indulgences of Christmas and Hogmanay are officially over and it’s time to put those New Year resolutions about getting fit into practice. And what better way than walking? Argyll is brimful of fabulous walks, from easy coastal rambles to hardcore mountain climbs. So dust off your boots, pack a picnic and make your Argyll holiday a walking one.
The most famous walk is the long-distance Cowal Way, which runs for around 90 kilometres along the length of the Cowal Peninsula. It begins at Portavadie in the southwest and ends at Inveruglas on the shores of Loch Lomond, passing through beautiful countryside (and a fair few bogs!). Some sections are pretty rough and you’ll require some navigational skills, but this epic route is well worth the effort. Portavadie Marina, at the start of the walk, offers a range of accommodation for all budgets and has excellent facilities for walkers.
If hills are your thing, then head to the Arrochar Alps – by far the most spectacular mountain range in the southern Highlands. The most popular hill within this group is Ben Arthur, commonly known as The Cobbler. The Loch Eck hills also offer challenging walks, particularly Beinn Ruadh (664m), Sligrachan, and Clach Bheinn (643m). Lochgoilhead is another great hill walking area. Ben Bheula (779m), towering above Loch Goil, is a rewarding climb, and the hills between Loch Goil and Loch Eck, though less high have wonderful views of the mountains and sea. Have a look at Shoreside in Lochgoilhead and our properties on Ellary Estate – they’re both excellent bases for hill walkers.
And if you want to make a week of it, why not plan your holiday to coincide Cowalfest (www.cowalfest.org), a walking and arts festival taking place from 5 to 15 October 2012? Base yourself in any of our Cowal properties for easy access to some fabulous walks and events over the festival week. | | |  | Holy Smoke Holy Loch ! | | Added: 14 Dec 2011 | EXCLUSIVE: Emergency services were called to Holy Loch Marina on Thursday morning after receiving reports of a blaze on board a tug moored in the nearby loch.
The vessel ’Gary Grey’, which has been tied up in the Holy Loch for several years, had caught fire internally.
However, when emergency workers - including police, ambulance and fire personnel and coastguard volunteers - tried to assist, the situation developed intoa stand-off when the tug’s crew proved unco-operative.
Strathclyde Fire and Rescue personnel from Dunoon stood by on shore, but were unable to board the vessel - a specialist marine team would require to act insuch circumstances.
Both RNLI and Strathclyde Police RIBs were unable to attend due to the severe and worsening weather conditions. And it is understood that in any case, thefour crew members on board the tug showed some reluctance to come ashore.
A Cowal company, Clyde Sea Recovery, came alongside the ’Gary Grey’ and brought one crew member to Holy Loch Marina where he hoped to obtain theuse of a pump.
But it appeared that his colleagues were reluctant to allow him to return to the ship and protracted discussions between emergency service chiefs, the on-shore representative and the remaining crew members took place by mobile phone from the safety of the marina.
The crew member was heard to insist to fire personnel: "The fire is out. You are now able to accept that the fire is out. I am happy to go back on to the boatand be responsible for my own health and safety.
"We’ve got a perfectly good boat there on a perfectly good mooring - it is insured and given a few hours work we may be able to get her off the mooring and under way. We just need to assess the damage - I can’t really help anyone here any more."
The seaman also advised that he and his crew-mates had been working on the vessel’s wiring systems the previous day as part of repair works required before the tug would be hauled out for winter refit. He said that no one on board had suffered any ill-effects as a result of the fire, which was not visible from the shore by late Thursday morning.
Eventually the man agreed that ambulance staff could examine him for smoke inhalation or other issues, and was taken back out to the ’Gary Grey’ by a Clyde Sea Recovery vessel - following which emergency services personnel and vehicles began to leave the scene.
The ’Gary Grey’ had been sold, it is understood, within the last few days.
| | | ![Kyles Newtonmore Nail Biter]() | Kyles Newtonmore Nail Biter | | Added: 05 Dec 2011 | KYLES ’DEVASTATED’ AFTER LAST-GASP DEFEAT
Written by Colin Cameron
Saturday, 19 November 2011 20:13
Kyles Athletic’s league title dreams were left in tatters in Dunoon this afternoon (Saturday November 19) as a last-minute goal by Danny MacRae stole victory - and the Scottish Hydro Premier Division title - for Newtonmore.
| | |  | Castle Toward New Resort | | Added: 15 Nov 2011 | CASTLE Toward, an outdoor education centre for over 60 years, is set to be sold to a Bristol-based timeshare company.
Argyll and Bute Council announced last week that, after its executive committee considered four bids for the 1820 mansion, Seasons Holidays were named as ‘preferred bidders’. The company plans to build a resort with a hotel, spa, conference centre and holiday lodges. It claims that over 200 jobs will be created.
The council was seeking offers over £2.25m for the property and its extensive grounds, which contain the ruins of the sixteenth century Toward Castle, the Chinese ponds, wooded areas and access to the shore.
Council leader Councillor Dick Walsh said that Seasons Holidays development would amount to one of the most significant leisure developments ever seen in Argyll and Bute, and would put the area firmly at the forefront of tourism development in Scotland.
“This plan has the potential to transform the economy of the local area, as well the wider region,” Councillor Walsh said.
“This is a company with a strong track record, which has been liaising with Scottish Development International, the government agency for inward investment, for several years regarding possible investment opportunities in Scotland. I am very excited that they have chosen the Cowal peninsula for their latest project.”
Seasons Holidays describes itself as ‘a specialist property developer working solely to provide high quality and cost-effective holiday homes for purchase’. It currently has six resorts in the UK – including at Brunston Castle in Ayrshire - and three in Europe. Until three years ago it ran its resorts on a timeshare basis, but now operates on a ‘fractional ownership’ basis. This model, described by one holiday commentator as ‘son of timeshare’, involves the purchase of a freehold share of a holiday property.
After wartime use as a combined operations centre, Glasgow Corporation purchased Castle Toward from the Coatts family in 1945. Initially used as a residential school for Glasgow children recovering from illness, it became available for use by all Glasgow children as an outdoor education centre.
With local government reorganisation in 1996 ownership passed to Argyll and Bute Council and Castle Toward was threatened with closure. The centre’s then principal, Peter Wilson, mounted a rescue operation and a company, Actual Reality, was formed to keep the castle in use as an outdoor activity centre. The council has made a number of attempts to sell Castle Toward and all – until now – have been met with stiff opposition. A host of celebrities and academics made sure the Save Castle Toward campaign received national headlines.
Actual Reality runs the council’s outdoor centre at Ardentinny as well as Castle Toward. Dr Christopher Mason of Actual Reality told the Standard: “Of course we are very disappointed. The provision of outdoor education and music experiences will end after 62 years at Castle Toward. Actual Reality is about the education of young people in Scotland and will carry on our work in other premises. We were prepared for this.
“We will be carrying on in Castle Toward and Ardentinny until the end of this school year. Beyond that – we are talking about Ardentinny with Argyll and Bute Council.
“I am absolutely positive about the future – I hope Actual Reality will be around for another 60 years.”
Seasons Holidays’ chairman Barry Hurley expressed his pleasure in securing Castle Toward in a presss statement, and revealed that his company had been looking at Castle Toward for five years.
“We will now endeavour to work closely with the local planning authority, Historic Scotland and all the associated bodies to achieve a deliverable mixed use resort development, whilst retaining the important historical heritage of the site,” he said.
“We are convinced this new development will be a catalyst for the re-emergence of tourism and leisure in this region of Scotland. The benefits in economic terms, new local employment and investment generally will be the most rewarding aspect of this new venture proposal that is seen at all our regional developments throughout the UK.
“A truly exciting opportunity now exists and congratulations to Argyll and Bute Council for seeing the future vision for Castle Toward as we have always seen over the past five years, since our first visit to the development. A great deal of thanks also goes to Scottish Development International, which has worked extremely closely with my acquisition team, Argyll and Bute Council and council members.”
We were keen to ask Seasons Holidays how many people it employed in its other resorts, and about its plans to refurbish the castle, but th company did not return our calls.
The seat of Clan Lamont is facing a new chapter.
| | |  | Haloween | | Added: 31 Oct 2011 | Dunoon girl Leigh Miller’s home has a Hallowe’en feel all year round with these spooky ‘faces’ in the doors.
Leigh noticed that natural grain in two of the doors resemble a ghost (left) and, perhaps less scary, the lovable alien, ET (on the right).
We hope you enjoy your Hallowe’en celebrations this weekend.
| | |  | Big Freeze | | Added: 25 Oct 2011 | Council well prepared for winter onslaught
October 25, 2011
FREE READ:
COUNCIL roads bosses have shown true grit ahead of an anticipated big freeze this winter – by ordering 70 per cent more salt stocks than last year.
Argyll and Bute has stockpiled nearly 18,000 tonnes of salt and has a fleet of 33 gritting and snow ploughing vehicles – with eight more set for delivery in December.
And the belt and braces approach is being extended further with roads crews preparing to carry out ‘dry runs’ to make sure everything is working properly.
But motorists are being warned to continue to drive with caution on local roads which can be unpredictable at the best of times.
Council gritter driver Willie Holmes said today: “We are first on the road when there’s been heavy snowfall and, although there can be some beautiful views, there are still some very real dangers.
“Despite the snow and icy conditions many people drive too fast. Remember even if the gritter has been, it will take a couple of cars to go over the grit to really make it effective – so my advice would be to slow down.”
The council will also be giving out salt stocks to local people to help keep individual locations safe for pedestrians too.
A spokeswoman for the local authority said: “There are more than 300 grit bins and thousands of salt heaps across Argyll and Bute, so you can spread salt on local pavements and roads.
“Salt will be available for you at roads depot gates and will be restricted to one 20kg bag per person.”
Councillor Duncan MacIntyre, chair of the transport and infrastructure committee, said: “This year’s plan to deal with winter is very impressive. The council is ready for whatever the weather holds in store.
“There will be leaflets distributed across the area with information on priority routes, how to be prepared in the car and some tips for winter driving.
“This year there will be also more information available online at http://www.argyll-bute.gov.uk/transport-and-streets/winter-road-maintenance .
“You can see the treatment routes and how they are prioritised. You can also see regular weather forecasts so you can plan ahead.
“And if the weather is severe you have to ask yourself if the journey is really necessary.”
| | |  | Cairndow Homes | | Added: 24 Oct 2011 | Written by Aileen
Friday, 21 October 2011 14:07
PLANS for a development which would bring much-needed new homes to a Loch Fyne community have been delayed - despite a full hearing to discuss the proposals.
Ardkinglas Estate submitted an application for 16 new houses, a childcare centre and seven commercial units on land adjacent to its existing sawmill at Clachan, near Cairndow.
The plans have been in the pipeline for some years now and were discussed at a meeting of Argyll and Bute Council’s planning committee in September.
Although planning officers had recommended refusal, citing development density, the area’s panoramic quality and objections from some parts of the community, councillors indicated their desire to find a way of approving the plans.
They pointed out the fact that there are employment opportunities available in Cairndow, but not enough houses - an unusual situation for a small community.
The committee members agreed to hold a full hearing, which took place in Strachur hall on Friday October 21.
But after considerable discussion, a final decision was deferred again - and will not be made until the committee next meets in Kilmory on November 23.
Full coverage of Friday’s hearing to follow in the Dunoon Observer and Argyllshire Standard.
| | | ![Blow Hard]() | Blow Hard | | Added: 07 Oct 2011 | TOO MUCH WIND
Written by Colin Cameron
Friday, 23 September 2011 14:03
The tail-end of Hurricane Katia brought plenty of rain and wind to Britain last week – so much, in fact, that wind-produced electricity was more than the grid could cope with.
National Grid, which manages the electricity transmission network, asked 13 windfarms to stop producing electricity for periods between September 10 to 14.
Locally, the An Suidhe windfarm, on the hills between Loch Fyne and Loch Awe, was asked to reduce generation.
A spokesman for National Grid said: “National Grid balances supply with demand on a minute by minute basis, and can ask power generators to come on and off the network to keep it balanced, making sure we all continue to receive secure energy supplies.
“In this case, some windfarms were asked to reduce their generation as supply was outstripping demand and our priority is always to operate the network as safely as possible.
“If there is too much generation, we sometimes use what’s called the balancing mechanism (BM) to accept offers for power stations to stop producing (and vice versa, we can use the BM to accept a bid to generate more power).
“We do this to make sure the supply/demand balance stays in balance, or else it could affect things like system frequency and voltage.”
The balancing mechanism is used to compensate generation companies for potential loss of production, and in last week’s storms, the total compensation paid was was £2.6m.
The National Grid spokesman added: “As we move into winter – and particularly after the clock change in October – electricity demand tends to increase. So while we can’t definitely say we won’t have to reduce generation over the winter, it is less likely given people use more electricity.
“This situation tends to arise when it is warm and there is relatively low demand, but the wind is still blowing.”
According to the British Wind Energy Association, wind turbines start operating at wind speeds of 4 to 5 metres per second (around 10 miles an hour) and reach maximum power output at around 15 metres/second (around 33 miles per hour). At very high wind speeds, i.e. gale force winds, (25 metres/second, (5-plus miles/hour) wind turbines shut down.
| | |  | Ferry | | Added: 07 Oct 2011 | A revamped timetable for Argyll Ferries Dunoon-Gourock service will be introduced on Monday – but five weeks later it will be withdrawn as both Argyll Ferries’ boats go for refit.
Managing director Phil Preston said that, in common with all other ferries, both the company’s vessels require to have annual refits and these will take place between November 7 and November 26 November. The service will reduce to one return sailing an hour during this period.
Mr Preston said: “The timing of the refits of the MV Argyll Flyer and MV Ali Cat is unfortunate, but unavoidable, and we are grateful for passengers’ patience while we carry out this essential work.”
Timetable revisions are designed to improve connectivity with rail services at Gourock railhead.
Mr Preston said: “When we were drafting the timetable for the new service, out of necessity we made a number of assumptions about some timings which experience now shows were optimistic, so we have taken the opportunity to adjust these.”
He added: “We are on track to implement other improvements such as electronic message boards at each port, and are in discussion with Argyll and Bute Council, Inverclyde Council, ScotRail, SPT and Transport Scotland, about the longer term improvements to passenger facilities which are required to help us achieve our vision of a frequent, reliable, world-class passenger service.”
| | |  | Queen visits Dunoon | | Added: 23 Sep 2011 | The 151,400 tonne Cunard liner Queen Mary 2 passes the Gantock, off Dunoon, this morning,hope they dont try visiting Lochgoilhead in that thing,said local wag. (Friday). Photo: Harry McGilvray, Sandhaven
| | |  | Great cowal gathering | | Added: 14 Sep 2011 | Argyll enjoyed an unprecedented day of success at last weekend’s World Pipe Band Championships.
The region can now boast two world champion bands at lower grades – and the fourth best band in the world of elite competition.
In front of 40,000 spectators at Glasgow Green, some 8,000 pipers and drummers from 16 countries vied for the world titles across eight separate grades.
Now in its tenth year in competition, Kintyre Schools Pipe Band added to their British and European titles, securing the world crown in the Novice grade. In a contest involving 20 young bands, Kintyre Schools pipped Edinburgh rivals George Watson’s College by a single point. Also competing were Rothesay and District Pipe Band, which came 11th, and 13th placed Oban High School.
In the Juvenile arena Inveraray and District ‘wee’ band – stepping up from Novice for the first year – took an excellent fourth place behind George Watson’s College, Boghall and Bathgate and Dollar Academy. The achievement is all the more remarkable given that the young Inveraray band members went into this year’s contest just a few months after the band’s pipe major, Robert Stewart, passed away. In the same competition, Oban High School were placed eighth.
After qualifying in third place for the Grade 3B final, relative newcomers Cowal Pipe Band were ultimately placed a creditable eighth in a final comprising 12 bands. Rothesay and District had more success, coming third, just behind St Laurence O’Toole and clear winners New York Metro.
Over in Grade 3A current Scottish champions, Oban Pipe Band, recovered from a shaky qualifying round to take first place under Pipe Major Euan Dewar. Led by a strong piping score, Isle of Islay were not too far behind in fourth place.
Grade 1 is split into two components in which bands must perform a march, strathspey and reel (MSR) set and, separately, a medley of tunes.
In just their second year in the top grade after a meteoric rise up the rankings in the five years before, Inveraray and District is rapidly becoming established as a serious contender. Amid the showers last Saturday, Stuart Liddell led the young band to their finest performance yet. A good solid MSR round, in which the band was placed sixth, was bettered by an exuberant medley full of musicality – a Stuart Liddell trademark. A third place in the medley secured the youngsters fourth place in the world championships at Grade 1, behind more experienced bands Field Marshal Montgomery (Northern Ireland) in first, Simon Fraser University (Canada) in second and Scottish Power in third place.
Inveraray and District Pipe Band secretary, Jim McMillan, said: “Our Grade 1 band was looking to improve on last year’s ninth place at the ‘worlds’, in this their second year in the top grade,” he said.
“So we were delighted to finish in fourth place behind some great bands.”
| | |  | The Royal National MOD Dunoon 12th-20th October 2012 | | Added: 08 Sep 2011 | The Royal National Mod is organised by An Comunn Gàidhealach (The Highland Association) which was founded in Oban in 1891 and has HM The Queen as its Patron. Famous for celebrating our Gaelic linguistic and cultural heritage, Scotland’s premier Gaelic festival and provides opportunities for people of all ages to perform across a range of competitive disciplines including Gaelic music and song, highland dancing, instrumental, drama, sport and literature.
The support of organisations such as Caledonian MacBrayne, The Royal Bank of Scotland, The Royal Mail Group and BBC Scotland has helped to consolidate the status of the Royal National Mod as Scotland’s main Gaelic cultural festival.
The international dimension to the Royal National Mod continues to grow with the support of EventScotland and VisitScotland while the leading Gaelic language promotion and development organizations in Scotland including Bòrd na Gàidhlig, Comunn na Gàidhlig, the Gaelic Books Council, Pròiseact nan Ealan , HIE and the Gaelic Media Service all offer considerable support. | | |  | Cowal Highland Gathering 2011 | | Added: 06 Sep 2011 | IT ALL BEGINS
Written by Gordon
Thursday, 25 August 2011 08:09
Cowal Highland Gathering begins today (Thursday) in Dunoon.
Thursday’s highlights include the Scottish National Dancing Championships at 10am and classic car display at 1.15pm.
Friday sees the Scottish dancing come to a conclusion and the heats for the world championships, solo piping competitions and heavy athletics.
The pipe bands turn up on Saturday for competition in all grades. In highland dancing the Argyllshire Chamionships take place at 10am and at noon the World Championship finals begin.
Other highlights include the Ceilidh Tent and the massed bands at 6.30pm.
Watch this space for regular updates from Dunoon Stadium…
| | |  | Fflying Fifteen Scottish Championships | | Added: 29 Aug 2011 | Flying 15 Race Reports
Scottish Championships at Holy Loch
Competitors came to the Holy Loch over the 20th and 21st August from as far away as Northampton, Yorkshire and Cumbria. Sponsors Holy Loch Marina looked after the boats and Loch Fyne Oysters provided a tasty buffet to welcome crews. With prizes including malt whisky from the Loch Lomond Distillery, a decent weather forecast the scene was set for a weekend of top level racing.
On Friday evening the assembled crews were treated to a welcome supper courtesy of Loch Fyne Oysters, we were treated to some of the company’s finest delicacies and the club was really buzzing with a great pre-event atmosphere. The highlight of the evening a talk from Steve Goacher on how to get the best from your fifteen both up wind and down, the packed club house received the pearls of wisdom gratefully and looked forward to applying them on the water.
For Saturday the race officer set a windward leeward course in a 8 – 12 knot WSW breeze, the fleet keen to apply the knowledge gained the previous evening engaged in close racing with Goacher/Evans (3821) taking the win from Chris Bowen (3351) from Northampton (so much for local knowledge) and third Salmond/Condy (627). With the wind swinging to the SSE and building to upwards of 20 knots the race officer was able to set a much longer windward leeward course almost the length of the loch. This breeze favoured some of the heavier crews and again Goacher/Evans moved to the front of the fleet by the end of the first beat taking a second bullet from Bowen (3351) and in third Purves/Anderson (3347).
The fleet came ashore, greeted with drams of whiskey and shortbread, courtesy of sponsors Loch Lomond Whiskey. An excellent hot supper was served in the clubhouse, washed down with more samples of our sponsor’s product or the local beer depending on preference. A great evening was had by all.
On Sunday morning with a very shifty breeze developing the crews waited for over two hours for the wind direction to settle so the race officer race officer was able to set a course. An even longer wait due to a broken ferry left three crews stranded on Bute and ultimately missing out on proceedings.
Race three got under way in a WNW breeze with big lifts to be found on the west shore of the loch and again close racing amongst the fleet whilst a breakaway group dominated the race. The result again gave a win for Goacher/Evans from Purves/Anderson (3347) and Neville (270) in third. The last race started after a short delay to shift the windward mark and again the fleet headed to the west shore looking for lifts into the windward mark. With Goacher/Evans in the fleet at 5th and pushed to the wrong side of the run were we going to see a different race winner? No Goacher/Evans moved up to second by the end of the run and took the win on the last beat from Jamieson/Wilson (3521) and Salmond/Condy (627) in third. The race was a very tight affair with much place changing as crews worked hard to get one last good result as it was something of a closer match in the classic and silver divisions.
In the Classic fleet Salmond/Condy fought hard to keep in front of Challis/Shaughnessy while in the silver fleet Purves/Anderson kept a respectable distance in front of Orr/Ferguson in and Scott Train to close off the other prizes.
In the final analysis Messrs Goacher and Evans (3821) won the Scottish title, from Purves/ Anderson (3347) in second overall and the first HLSC boat, Salmond/Condy (627)in third .
Bobby Salmond also claimed the Classic section and with it the HLSC Silver and Classic combined trophy, (Just as well as he had forgotten to bring the trophy to the presentation having won it last year.) A special mention should be made here for Patrick Condy, a young cadet member at HLSC who took on the challenge at short notice of crewing for Bobby the current classic world champion. Also braving the fierce conditions teenage Alistair Ireland from Toward Sailing Club sailing with his dad did a sterling job .
All in all a very competitive and hard fought championship. Enthusiasm for fifteens has steadily grown over the last 10 years at Holy Loch and the club was delighted to be given the opportunity to host the Scottish Nationals. Full results can be found at www.flyingfifteenhlsc.co.uk and the club is now focussed on the Marineblast regatta which is on the 11th and 12th September.
| | |  | World Pipe Band Championships 2011 Cowal Gathering Dunoon Next | | Added: 29 Aug 2011 | Argyll enjoyed an unprecedented day of success at last weekend’s World Pipe Band Championships.
The region can now boast two world champion bands at lower grades – and the fourth best band in the world of elite competition.
In front of 40,000 spectators at Glasgow Green, some 8,000 pipers and drummers from 16 countries vied for the world titles across eight separate grades.
Now in its tenth year in competition, Kintyre Schools Pipe Band added to their British and European titles, securing the world crown in the Novice grade. In a contest involving 20 young bands, Kintyre Schools pipped Edinburgh rivals George Watson’s College by a single point. Also competing were Rothesay and District Pipe Band, which came 11th, and 13th placed Oban High School.
In the Juvenile arena Inveraray and District ‘wee’ band – stepping up from Novice for the first year – took an excellent fourth place behind George Watson’s College, Boghall and Bathgate and Dollar Academy. The achievement is all the more remarkable given that the young Inveraray band members went into this year’s contest just a few months after the band’s pipe major, Robert Stewart, passed away. In the same competition, Oban High School were placed eighth.
After qualifying in third place for the Grade 3B final, relative newcomers Cowal Pipe Band were ultimately placed a creditable eighth in a final comprising 12 bands. Rothesay and District had more success, coming third, just behind St Laurence O’Toole and clear winners New York Metro.
Over in Grade 3A current Scottish champions, Oban Pipe Band, recovered from a shaky qualifying round to take first place under Pipe Major Euan Dewar. Led by a strong piping score, Isle of Islay were not too far behind in fourth place.
Grade 1 is split into two components in which bands must perform a march, strathspey and reel (MSR) set and, separately, a medley of tunes.
In just their second year in the top grade after a meteoric rise up the rankings in the five years before, Inveraray and District is rapidly becoming established as a serious contender. Amid the showers last Saturday, Stuart Liddell led the young band to their finest performance yet. A good solid MSR round, in which the band was placed sixth, was bettered by an exuberant medley full of musicality – a Stuart Liddell trademark. A third place in the medley secured the youngsters fourth place in the world championships at Grade 1, behind more experienced bands Field Marshal Montgomery (Northern Ireland) in first, Simon Fraser University (Canada) in second and Scottish Power in third place.
Inveraray and District Pipe Band secretary, Jim McMillan, said: “Our Grade 1 band was looking to improve on last year’s ninth place at the ‘worlds’, in this their second year in the top grade,” he said.
“So we were delighted to finish in fourth place behind some great bands.”
| | |  | | | Added: 22 Aug 2011 | Ian Jack guardian.co.uk, Friday 29 July 2011 20.30 BST Article history
The Waverley still sails the river Clyde … but for how much longer? Photograph: Jeff J Mitchell/REUTERS
If there were to be a contest for the best British summer in living memory, I would vote for 1955. Meteorologically, that might be debated. Other summers since may well have been hotter and sunnier across the United Kingdom as a whole. But that summer in Scotland was glorious. Day after day the sky dawned blue, even in Port Glasgow, which is notorious for its rain, and where for a week that year I spent the first of my holidays with my uncle, aunt and cousins. One day we took a ferry and a double-decker bus to a beach near Dunoon. There, late in the afternoon, I looked up from the rocks to see a two-funnelled steamship come round the headland, gliding towards us like a small liner. "That’ll be the wee Queen Mary," my uncle said, "going home to Glasgow from the Kyles of Bute."
To describe the effect as an epiphany would be going too far, but the sight of this pleasure steamer planted an interest in me (reinforced the same evening by sailing home on a ship where the crowds on deck sang to an accordion band) that grew into an enthusiasm, and in adolescence almost to an obsession, before falling back into a deep fondness that still persists. In 1955, pleasure fleets still sailed across the Bristol Channel, along the south coast and down the Thames, but neither in number nor style did any of them equal the fleet on the Clyde, where the geography demanded sea travel both in winter and summer, and which launched Europe’s first sea-going steamship in 1812. As a cult, the Clyde steamer is at least as old (and was once just as fierce) as Britain’s better-known devotion to steam locomotives.
Books first began to cater for it 100 years ago, so that on winter nights summer holidaymakers could study the details of their favourite ships, their engines, outlines and relative speeds and comforts: the Duchess of Hamilton versus the Glen Sannox, say, or the Mercury against the Marmion.
I imbibed this history as a 13-year-old member of the Clyde River Steamer Club (founded 1932), which sometimes organised sea-going excursions. You could lean on the rail and listen to elderly men (or so they seemed – they may have been in their 50s) recall "the great days" when more than 40 steamers served the Clyde coast in summer and ships from rival companies dashed from pier to pier under a fug of coal smoke. Two world wars and changing holiday habits had brought this golden age to an end – to that extent, I lived among ghosts – but in the late 1950s the Clyde could still boast a fleet that contained eight or nine elegant ships driven by paddles or turbine-powered propellors.
The old rituals of summer continued. You might sail all the way downriver from Glasgow, or (a more popular choice) take a train from one of three city termini to reach the firth at one of half-a-dozen railhead piers and board a steamer there. Smells were exchanged – the stale tobacco smoke of the railway compartment for fresh sea air – at the opening of the carriage door. If your boat left in the morning on a day-long trip to the furthest reaches of the firth, to Campbeltown or Inveraray, coffee would be brewing in a dining saloon which later served roast lunches and fish teas.
Portents of these meals mingled with the whiff of smoke and hot grease. Then the engine room telegraph rang and ropes were cast off, and within minutes you were surging full steam ahead towards the hills of Argyll or the mountains of Arran. You might go below and watch the engine cranks turning mesmerically or stay on deck to see a succession of Victorian resorts, some no more than a line of villas along the shore, come and go. This was the Clyde steamer’s great trick: that within an hour or two it could take you from one of the world’s densest cities into the heart of one of its most intricate and beautiful landscapes, and give you companionship as well as food and drink, and shelter from the rain.
I use the past tense, but it can all still be done. Alone of the old Clyde fleet, the paddle-steamer Waverley still sails to the islands and up the sea lochs every day in high summer, then sails south for a short season in the Bristol Channel, the Solent and the Thames. Her survival is a testimony to the enthusiasts who saved her from the scrappers 35 years ago, and later to a Heritage Lottery Fund grant that paid for her complete overhaul. Launched in 1946 from the Glasgow yard of A & J Inglis – a site now occupied by Zaha Hadid’s new Riverside Museum – the Waverley has followed the same tracks across the Clyde ever since. Britain has preserved many handsome machines, from royal yachts to express railway engines, but none of them other than the Waverley do the work they were intended for, where they were intended to do it. To sail on her is to experience a tradition that began with Henry Bell’s Comet. The following 199 years have never known a summer, excepting one when the Waverley was under repair, when the waters of the Clyde haven’t been churned by a paddle steamer. In a livelier and truer sense, she is much more "iconic" than Hadid’s museum. The Waverley represents a technology and a delightful form of seaside pleasure that found their highest expression on the river that built her.
Whether the Waverley will still be sailing to celebrate steam navigation’s 200th anniversary next year is now an open question. The oil price has sent fuel costs shooting up – the boilers now burn oil at £8 per minute – and poor summers over the last three years have reduced annual passenger numbers by about a third; in 2007, 155,000 people sailed on the Waverley, falling to 95,000 in 2008. Other than a £50,000 grant from Glasgow council, the ship receives no public subsidy, though she is a wonderful ornament and a source of business to the seafronts of many other local authorities. An appeal has been launched (see waverleyexcursions.co.uk). If £350,000 can be found, the ship can afford her annual dry-docking and maintenance. If not, then her smartly raked and striped funnels will soon have appeared above the low-lying islands of the Kyles of Bute for the last time, and the familiar three blasts on her steam whistle to the yachts in Rothesay Bay (’Take care! I am going astern!’) will never be heard again.
The ship that I saw rounding the point that day in 1955 left the Clyde 20-odd years later, to become a bar moored next to Waterloo bridge, and is now reported to be a floating gym somewhere on the Seine. In London, it ("she" no longer seems appropriate) looked forlorn. Every time I crossed to the South Bank, I tried hard not to notice it. What did its crowd of evening drinkers know about turbines, high teas or the way the ship would slip expertly alongside the wooden pier at Tighnabruaich? Yeats described my feelings perfectly: Cast a cold Eye/ On Life, on Death/ Horseman, pass by!
The Waverley richly deserves a better fate. Long may she sail to remind us of summers past., prompting our expectation of summers to come.
| | |  | A Bridge To Far | | Added: 17 Aug 2011 | THE notion of a bridge between Dunoon and Gourock is not a new one, but an Inverclyde councillor is hoping that steps can be taken to make it a reality - some day.
| | |  | Russell Goes To Holyrood | | Added: 12 Aug 2011 | A small army of people wearing yellow and black rosettes were in seventh heaven today (Friday) at Lochgilpead Joint Campus as the result of the Argyll and Bute seat for the 2011 Holyrood election was announced, and SNP candidate Michael Russell was returned - having increased his party’s majority ten-fold.
After a campaign on issues such as proposed school closures and - in Dunoon at least, ferries - the people of Argyll and Bute gave the SNP candidate 13,390 votes (up from 9,944 in 2007). In second place was Conservative candidate Jamie McGrigor with 4,847 votes (down from 5,571). Third was Mick Rice for the Labour party with 4,041 (4,148) and in fourth place was Liberal Democrat Alison Hay with 3,220 (9,129).
The result followed the national trend, which produced an overall majority for the Scottish National Party and saw the Liberal Democrats humiliated.
This result caused the map of the highlands and islands to turn SNP yellow and one party activist told the Standard: "This is more than Charles Edward Stewart managed to do." For the Scottish National Party unbridled joy. For the Liberal Democrats: Lochaber no more, Skye no more.
Speaking after the poll Mr Russell said: I’d like to say thank you to the people of Argyll and Bute who elected me and I will try not to let you down. There are big isues in Dunoon and Argyll and we need to work on them together. The school closures and the ferry issues need sorting out, and I’m not afraid of confronting them and discussing them, and we need to do that together.”
Jamie McGrigor said: “I’m hopeful that I will get in on the list and be able to work together with Michael Russell for the good of Argyll and Bute.” It was later confirmed that Mr McGrigor did indeed win a place on the Highlands and Islands regional list, along with his party colleague Mary Elizabeth Scanlon. Rhoda Grant and David Stewart were successful as Labour list MSPs and, for the SNP, John Finnie, Jean Urquhart and Mike MacKenzie won through. Mr MacKenzie stood for the Argyll and Bute seat at last year’s Westminster election.
Labour candidate Mick Rice quipped: “Politicians have to accept that they can’t re-elect the people. I think, though, that things will start to move in our direction.”
LibDem Alison Hay said, simply and with dignity: “I live to fight another day.”
Independent candidate George Doyle managed 542 votes while George White of the Liberal Party won 436.
For full coverage and reaction see next Friday’s Dunoon Observer.
Fell free to comment on this story below.
| | | ![Toward School]() | Toward School | | Added: 12 Aug 2011 | At the heart of the community
THIRTY years ago Toward was a proper village. Those of us of a certain age remember the Coach House tea room, the shop and post office – both now private houses. Although the steamer pier is long gone the village still boasts a church, a Stevenson-design lighthouse and a school.
However, if Argyll and Bute Council has its way Toward Primary School will be closed by next year, its 20 pupils making the daily journey to Innellan school instead. At a recent council meeting education spokeswoman Ellen Morton said that she was ‘very comfortable’ with putting the merger of Toward and Innellan schools forward for consultation.
There has been much talk from politicians and pressure groups about the future of Toward and other threatened rural schools in Argyll and Bute, but what do the users of Toward School – the children –think?
When we visited the school last week we saw a school at the heart of its community. We saw enthusiastic children who are genuinely proud of their school and its achievements and who are clearly benefitting from a Toward Primary School initiative - its membership of the Forest Schools movement.
Forest Schools see pupils take some of their lessons from the classroom to the woods. While it may appear that the children are climbing trees and building a bonfire - playing, they are doing so under instructive supervision and developing important life skills in the process. Apart from Toward, only Kilmodan, Tighnabruaich, Sandbank and Inveraray schools offer this initiative locally.
It is clearly important to the Toward children.
One boy said: “If we had to move to another school we wouldn’t be as close to the beach and get to do as many activities.
“The school at Innellan doesn’t do Forest Schools, which we all enjoy and get a lot from.”
Another boy came from Innellan to Toward in the last year. He said: “I wouldn’t like to go back. It’s better here because it’s smaller, we do work on the beach and in the forest. In a bigger school you don’t really get to talk to the teachers as much.”
And it wasn’t just the boys. One girl, almost bursting with enthusiasm, said: “I haven’t been at Toward that long but I love it. The forestry is great – and the teachers know you better here.”
Toward school is certainly in an ideal location. Just over the wall from the playground is a beach with rock pools inviting small people to guddle in them. The school is powered by a vast array of solar panels, won recently in a Scottish Gas competition. The school actually makes money for the council as the extra generated electricity is sold back to the National Grid.
Alan Stewart, Parent Council chair, explained that it was a condition of the prize that, in the event of the school’s closure within five years, the council would have to repay the cost of the solar array – some £12,500.
And it’s not only the children who would be affected by the school’s closure. One parent said: “I would be absolutely devastated if the kids had to move.
“I have nothing against Innellan but the situation here is fantastic and they get an excellent education.
“This school is part of the community and, in order to sustain this rural community, we have to keep schools open so that people can see this as a place to move to.”
Another said: “This is a lovely school. I moved my son here last year and he has become immersed in everything that goes on in the school.
“I have eight children and we have found that smaller schools serve children much better. They are able to get more one-to-one time with the teachers, and more interaction with each other. In a large school they can be just a small fish in a very large pond.
“Toward is a very close-knit community and a lovely area to be in. The school is central to that.”
As part of the council’s pre-consultation process Cllr Ellen Morton visited Toward School for half an hour before putting it on the list of schools put forward for closure consultation.
We wonder if the councillor visited the same school we did, or spoke to the same group of kids who, even at home-time on a Friday, seemed entirely content to stay in the building – which is clearly a second home and a secure environment to them. There was no itching to get home to their computer games – but an obvious fondness for their school and fellow pupils.
Would these children retain their enthusiasm if moved to a larger school? Is it worth risking the viability of an entire community to save a relatively small amount of money by closing its school?
A number of new homes are being built in Toward at the moment. Are they likely to produce more pupils for Toward Primary School?
These are now questions that the council’s officers and elected representatives must now answer and - for the sake of rural communities throughout Argyll and Bute - they will need wise heads to make the correct decision.
| | |  | Morrissey Plays Dunoon | | Added: 12 Aug 2011 | Morrissey played to a packed Queens hall in Dunoon tonight (Saturday). The audience chanted, sang and bounced along to the music with the people at the front reaching for the man as he in turn reached for them. The setlist included a brilliant cover of Lou Reed’s Satellite of Love and the encore of This Charming Man. Dunoon was charmed.
Last Updated on Friday, 24 June 2011 14:49
| | |  | Charlie Chaplins Nemesis | | Added: 12 Aug 2011 | FOR MANY years Dunoonites have been proud of one of the town’s internationally famous sons.
Eric Campbell, Charlie Chaplin’s burly villain, claimed to be from the Cowal town and, in 1996, the Scottish Film Council erected a plaque of Chaplin’s hairy enemy in Dunoon’s Castle Gardens.
Earlier this year, however, one of Campbell’s descendants contacted Argyll and Bute Council pointing out that Campbell actually came from Cheshire – and the council is set to remove the plaque.
Last Updated on Sunday, 24 July 2011 16:49
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