Silver City Stories: Granite Noir 2024

After reviewing Bloody Scotland in Stirling and Newcastle Noir in 2023, where I had a wonderful time, I was excited to add another crime writing festival to my list: Granite Noir in Aberdeen, which has been around since 2017.

While I missed a few big names, such as David Suchet and Sophie Hannah, earlier in the week, a long weekend in the Granite city gave me enough time to really immerse myself into the many fun festival happenings. Aberdeen might be located in the north east of the country, but I was pleasantly surprised how many audience members had made their way to the events from all over the UK and even as far as Canada.

My festival Friday started at the Lemon Tree with authors Kate Simants, Lauren James and  Oisín McGann discussing a hopeful approach to climate change writing and its impact on the world. Next were Catherine Kirwan from Cork and Ruth Mancini from London, who both juggle a successful legal career with one in crime writing. In the evening I headed over to the Music Hall for an incredibly entertaining panel with Denise Mina, Louise Welsh and Charles Cumming (pic above) whose latest books are set in fifteenth-century Florence, a Scottish university campus and the world of international espionage respectively.

Saturday was a busy festival day starting with an intriguing session with ‘bold new voices’ Adam Oyebanji, Briar Ripley Page and Maud Woolf. After a relaxed lunch with local friends I was back at the Lemon Tree for ‘Mysteries in Time Gone By’ with ES Thompson (1850s), Ajay Close (1970s) and Phil Miller (1990s). In the late afternoon it was time for an Icelandic Noir panel with Corylus Books authors Sólveig Pálsdóttir and Óskar Guðmundsson. It was great to see a translated fiction panel at the festival as it is clearly popular with readers plus there are several awards in the UK, such as the Crime Fiction in Translation Dagger Award and the Petrona Award.

I then headed over to the Music Hall for a fascinating session with Glasgow-based crime writer Alex Gray interviewing Marie Cassidy, former Irish state pathologist turned crime writer. One of my favourite events of the weekend was the thought-provoking ‘night-time noir’ panel at the Lemon Tree with Scottish BPOC writers network’s Amira Al Shanti, Katalina Watt, Zebib K. Abraham and Amanda Ajomale (pic below) speaking about their writing and interests, including speculative fiction, horror, mythology and folklore.

Way too soon it was the last festival day, but Sunday had another packed programme of events in store for us starting with ‘The Queen of Codes’, a biography of codebreaker extraordinaire and distinguished musicology translator Emily Anderson by Irish writer and historian Dr. Jackie Uí Chionna. Having seen Jean Kwok and Emma Christie at Newcastle Noir last December, it was wonderful to get another opportunity to have them on a panel together (pic below) and hear more about how their life stories inform their writing.

Another Sunday highlight, the award winners panel with Callum McSorley (McIllvanney Prize 2023), Sophie White (Shirley Jackson Award 2023) and DV Bishop (CWA Historical Dagger 2023), gave us an insight into what winning a prize means for the authors receiving it. The festival’s closing event with Lisa Jewell (pic below) had been moved to a larger venue, the Music Hall, due to exceptional demand and it was fantastic to see how popular writing events, and crime writing in particular, currently are in Scotland and the UK. All the festival venues I attended had friendly, dedicated staff and the Lemon Tree and the Music Hall had their own cafes, so it was easy to connect with other festival-goers.

While the festival provided plenty of food for thought and reading material for months to come, it would have been criminal (excuse the pun) to not also enjoy the fantastic February weather and venture out for a couple of walks to the beach and the Cruickshank Botanical Garden. They are both walking distance from the city centre and made for a welcome break from the bustling writing events.

In a world where things are going more and more digital, it is so heartening to see venues filled with lively crowds of book lovers and readers meeting their favourite authors, getting books signed and a chance to ask them questions in person. So if you need any excuse for a late winter weekend away, you certainly won’t regret travelling to Aberdeen. The silver city not only offers a host of museums, green spaces, a large beachfront and plenty of enticing restaurants and cafes to enjoy. It is also home to outstanding cultural events, such as Granite Noir, which is bound to go from strength to strength given the ever-increasing popularity of crime fiction in the UK and around the world.

Disclaimer: Life is a Festival was provided with review tickets for the festival events. Ⓒ Photography by Richard Frew Photography & Film (Louise Welsh panel, night-time noir panel, Lisa Jewell) and by Life is a Festival (food, Jean Kwok/Emma Christie, beach).

A Universe of Live Music: Celtic Connections 2024

It’s been another amazing year for Celtic Connections: 18 days, over 300 events and over 115000 (!) festival goers, just incredible! From 18 January to 4 February 2024 Glasgow was again buzzing with the sights and sounds of live music wherever you went. There just isn’t any better way of blowing away the cobwebs of the old year and starting the new one with a dance and a dram with friends old and new at one of the many festival shows around the city. 

Of course, there are always difficult choices to make and you are guaranteed to miss ninety percent of the shows with many events happening at the same time. So my festival experience will have been very different from that of some of my friends’ or your own. What we all had in common though was how live music makes us feel: more alive, more connected and more positive. Just what we all need in the darker months of the year. Despite storms Isha and Jocelyn (surely someone has already written songs and tunes about them by now) wreaking havoc on some areas of the UK and musicians having to resort to plan b or c to get to their destinations, all the shows went ahead as planned. This is in no small part made possible by the many people involved behind the scenes in a festival of this size.

This year I was volunteering at the late night sessions at Drygate as well as the Mackintosh Church and it was wonderful to see how both venues and all the other ones I attended were buzzing with music fans having a great time. I not only got to know people from all over the UK, but also a duo of Finnish farmers, some Italians, Americans, Germans and Danes.

And no, it wasn’t all just ‘folk music’ that kept the masses up until well after midnight. While traditional music from Scotland and further afield makes up a large chunk of the festival offerings, genres such as indie, world music, orchestral, Americana, fusion, jazz and soul, blues as well as rock and pop are all also featured at Celtic Connections. Plus there is a huge variety of venues. From the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall with perfect sound and a huge auditorium with mostly seated shows to standing, or rather dancing, events at the Old Fruitmarket down to smaller venues, such as the lovely Glad Cafe in the Southside or the Hug and Pint in the Westend.

There were again opportunities to see live music for all budgets and ages. The free to attend Danny Kyle Open Stage events took place at the GCRH every day from 5-7pm and out of 285 acts who applied, 60 made it into the selection (not just from Scotland and all over the UK, but also from Canada, Australia, Luxemburg, Germany and various other places, winners/finalists pictured above). Schools were invited to attend the popular free weekday morning concerts (which included Skerryvore and other lively acts, who had the children up dancing and excitedly clapping along). The free family ceilidh at Kelvingrove Art Gallery was especially fun and had participants of all ages, including babes in arms, and various tourists from around the world joining in, too.

As there isn’t enough space to review everything I’ve been to this year in detail, I decided to do an Oscars style list instead, so here goes… and the Life is a Festival winners are:

• Best audience singalong: Dougie MacLean at the GCRH
• Best audience interaction: Darlingside (USA, first pic above) & Margo Price (USA, pic below) stepping down from the stage to sing amidst the audience

• Best dancing experience: Festival Club at the Glee Club (11pm-3pm on Fridays and Saturdays), this year it not only included brilliant Scottish and Irish bands, but also music from California, Australia, New England, Italy, Turkish music from Denmark and more, brilliant fun!
• Best band I had never seen before: The Bothy Band from Ireland, what a fantastic evening of Irish music at the GCRH
• Festival earworm: Lafayette by Beauxmont (Canada)
• Bands I really enjoyed seeing again after way too long: The Outside Track (Scotland/Ireland/Canada), The Good Lovelies (Canada)

• Best non-folky gig: Fatoumata Diawara at the Old Fruitmarket (Mali/France, pic above)
• Best free event: Danny Kyle Open Stage at GCRH every night from 5-7pm (just make sure you queue earlyish)
• Worst decisions I made at this year’s festival: not checking whether Skerryvore had a standing/dancing section at the GCRH, missing Su-a Lee: Dialogues
• Best family-friendly event: free ceilidh at Kelvingrove (pic below) with Celine O’Donoghue & band, great mix of all ages, including tourists from as far as Argentina

• Worst new trend: backdrop videos on a big screen (Old Fruitmarket), totally distracts from the actual performance, fine in the interval, but not during the show
• Most friendly and fun audience experience: Colonel Mustard & the Dijon 5 (Old Fruitmarket, pic below)
• Act which moved me to tears: Maxwell Quartet & James Ross (Mackintosh Church)
• Best new discovery: Beauxmont (Canada), Maxwell Quartet/James Ross

After my last late night sessions volunteer shift I had a nice chat with the taxi driver dropping me home and was pleased to hear he was quite keen to join the volunteer team next year after retiring. Whether you want to become a part of the festival team or are planning on visiting Celtic Connections to listen to some beautiful music, Glasgow will welcome you with open arms – just make sure you bring a waterproof jacket and your best smiley self!

Disclaimer: Life is a Festival was provided with review tickets for select festival events. All photography Ⓒ Life is a Festival.

Celtic Connections Preview 2024

Somehow another year has flown by and it’s almost time for Glasgow’s greatest winter music event again, Celtic Connections! I’m already super excited to see some of my favourite bands live in January 2024 and also to discover some new to me music. So I thought I’d get in touch with a few of the artists ahead of the event to hear about their CCFest plans. Darlingside have toured extensively in the UK before, for Beauxmont it’s their very first time in Scotland (!) and The Outside Track have graced the Celtic Connections stages many times.

And in case you’re still on the lookout for Christmas presents, any of the festival shows will make a great last-minute choice that’s guaranteed to bring joy to whoever receives it. See you in Glasgow next month!

Darlingside (USA)

Life is a Festival: What are you most looking forward to about returning to Glasgow? I saw your band mascot is the Unicorn of Friendship, so seems to align well with Scotland having the unicorn as its national animal!

Darlingside (Auyon): I did not know that Scotland’s national animal is the unicorn! I have been reading a bit about ancient Indian history, and learned that unicorns were also common symbols in the Indus Valley Civilization (which lasted from 3300BCE through 1300BCE in the northern bit of South Asia). The band and I are honored to be linked with both modern day Scotland and ancient India through our unicorn connection. Re: Glasgow, I’m a big fan of Scottish terminology – both “neeps and tatties” and the demonym “Glaswegian” come to mind as examples. I’m excited to use both in conversation upon arrival.

LF: Have you got any fond or quirky memories of your last CCFest appearance or your visit to the city, e.g. a favourite place or food?

D: Yes! We were presented with a beautiful bottle of Scotch by some friends at our last appearance in Glasgow, which powered the rest of our UK tour. I also recall a lovely solo lunch of haggis and ale on a rainy afternoon in town.

LF: What can we expect from your upcoming Celtic Connections show, new songs, projects etc.?

D: We released an album called “Everything Is Alive” in 2023, and we’ll be playing several songs off that record. To fill out the rest of the set, we’ll be accompanied by a couple of our most musical friends: Ben Burns (drums, banjo, and guitar) and Molly Parden (bass and harmony vocals). We toured across the US with Ben and Molly for the album release tour, and we’re so excited to bring them to Glasgow to kick off our UK album celebration!

LF: What are you working on right now? 

D: I’m currently writing from the back of a Connecticut-bound van, en route to one of our last New England album release shows. Outside of bandwork, I’m also working on an Indian cookbook with my mom (hence the Indian history and cultural research that revealed the unicorn link).

Darlingside are playing Celtic Connections on 20 January 2024 at St. Luke’s, tickets here.

Beauxmont (Canada)

LF: What are you most looking forward to about playing in Glasgow and visiting Scotland?

Beauxmont (Felix): None of us have ever been to Scotland before, so we are definitely excited to learn about the different cultures, meet new people, hopefully make new friends and see what the music industry is like down there. We’ve heard nothing but great things, so we definitely look forward to it! It is an honour to have been chosen to be part of the CCFest line up filled with lots of immensely talented artists/bands. Hopefully we can catch a few shows while we are there.  

LF: What’s unique about your band and sound? 

B: Our band is heavily influenced by traditional acadian and cajun music. We try to blend the two styles together with components that we like from both, and create our own sound. Our music is very upbeat and fiddle oriented. The goal is for people to dance and have a great time with us. 

LF: What can we expect from your upcoming Celtic Connections show? 

B: High energy, upbeat songs. We are currently working on a new album that will be released in the summer of 2024. We will most likely play a few songs from our upcoming record, as well as songs from our first record and traditional acadian songs. 

LF: What other plans do you have for the coming year? 

B: As we are currently wrapping up the songwriting/creation portion of the record, when we get back from Scotland, the band will head into the studio to record the new album. 

Beauxmont are playing Celtic Connections on 31 January 2024 at the Drygate Brewery, tickets here.

The Outside Track (Scotland, Ireland, Canada)

LF: What’s unique about your band and sound?

The Outside Track (Ailie): We’re one of the few Scottish bands who perform songs and tune sets in equal measure, and our lineup including fiddle, harp, flute and accordion is quite unique. 

LF: Your band members are based in various countries, what are your tips for writing music and touring together so successfully despite the geographical distance? 

T: These days tools like Zoom and smartphones make everything much easier. It of course makes it harder for us to take one-off gigs or practise spontaneously, but when we’re on tour together we make up for all that and spend lots of time creating together. 

LF: What can we expect from your upcoming CCFest show, new songs, projects etc.? 

T: This Celtic Connections we’ll be performing mostly material from our Rise Up album and over the course of 2024 we’re excited to be working on new material ready for our next recording!

LF: Do you have any particularly fond or quirky memories of your previous appearances at Celtic Connections?

T: Celtic Connections is always the best time of the year in Glasgow – it feels like Christmas to get to see all your friends and fans from around the world in one place. It definitely holds a special place in our hearts. 

The Outside Track are playing Celtic Connections on 22 January 2024 at GRCH, tickets here.

The full Celtic Connections 2024 programme can be found here.

Once Upon A Time in the West End: Byres Road Book Festival 2023

This year I finally managed to dedicate more time to Byres Road Book Festival (21-24 September 2023), which it fully deserves as the festival had an impressive number of events for all ages and from various genres: fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and even TV adaptations. The free to attend festival started in 2017 and is organised by the Byres Road & Lanes Business Improvement District and their partners Glasgow Life, Waterstones, the Gaelic Books Council and Oxfam. Festival venues include Hillhead Library, the Byres Road Oxfam shop, the Waterstones bookshop, Oran Mor and the Ubiquitous Chip. 

The opening event on Thursday night was with Scottish historical fiction author Sally Magnusson (pic above) on her new novel Music in the Dark, which vividly brings to life the time of the Highland Clearances. Both the reading and the discussion chaired by Glasgow writer Sarah Smith were intriguing and I love how historical fiction, while characters are of course inventions of the author, can almost be like a portal into the past and unearth a lot of hidden history.

I next managed to make it to the festival on Saturday, which had a fantastic and varied line-up. First up was a talk by academic, author and singer Alasdair Whyte from the island of Mull on Glasgow’s Gaelic Place-Names. We learned that Gaelic had been a community language in the city for around a thousand years and that the names of many local places have roots in the language. Whyte also performed a beautiful short rendition of a Gaelic song for the festival audience.

Having not experienced a live event with Coinneach MacLeod, aka The Hebridean Baker, before, I finally understood what all the hype was about. You didn’t even have to have an interest in baking (but who doesn’t or at least enjoy eating homemade baked goods!), his stories of island life on Lewis were incredibly entertaining and the cook book signing queue unsurprisingly long. He had even brought along some shortbread for us to try – don’t mind if I do!

Sunday was another packed day for me starting with a writing workshop by author and architect David F. Ross chaired by podcaster Alistair Braidwood (pic above). While there wasn’t enough time for participants to actually put pen to paper, all the essential ingredients of good writing were discussed, from creating memorable characters to giving the readers a reason to care about them.

The rest of the afternoon was spent upstairs at the Ubiquitous Chip down the road listening to Ringwood Books true crime writers Tom Wood and Allan Nicol (pic above) talk about their books and the cases they were based on. This event was fascinating as the authors had worked in the criminal justice system in the past and shared many details about their research into the historical crimes the books were based on.

The final event of the weekend for me was also the most remarkable (pic below). Author Andrew O’Hagan was in discussion with screenwriter Andrea Gibb and Claire Mundell, producer of Synchronicity Films, on their collaboration to create the TV adaptation of his novel Mayflies. Part of the session was a reading from Mayflies, a reading from the screenplay and a short excerpt of the film. In a time when AI seems to be threatening many roles in the creative industries, it was incredibly inspiring to hear how talent and teamwork can combine so impressively.

Alas, I missed most of the poetry events and some other great-sounding sessions, due to clashes and prior commitments, but everything I attended was informative and entertaining and gave me lots of new writing ideas. I also loved the enthusiasm of the festival volunteers and the relaxed and welcoming atmosphere at all the events.

As Byres Road Book Festival takes place in the heart of the West End of Glasgow, it is the perfect excuse for a weekend in Scotland’s largest city, browse the many local shops, visit the nearby Botanics or enjoy a cocktail in one of the cosy bars and cafes.

Disclaimer: All pictures taken by and used by kind permission of the photographers, Jamie Williamson (first picture, Sally Magnusson) and Robert Perry (all others).

Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival 2023

I had heard lots of good things about Bloody Scotland before, but nothing prepared me for just how fantastic this weekend actually is. It somehow manages to be an event for readers and book bloggers to meet their favourite authors while also being a get-together for both established and aspiring authors, publishers, agents and anyone in between. The festival weekend is centred around The Golden Lion Hotel in the middle of Stirling, which is a great place to spend time at or in between talks, buy the latest books by festival authors and hang out with other attendees and speakers, all in a lively, super welcoming environment. The other two main venues, The Albert Halls and Trinity Church plus the Central Library weren’t too far away either, so it was easy to switch between them.

The festival programme was one of the most intriguing and packed I have ever been to (and I’ve been to a lot as most of you know). At times, there were up to four sessions on at the same time, so it was impossible to not feel you were missing out on something. However, absolutely every event I attended was so good, I ended up just mixing and matching different themes and events with new authors and others with long-established ones. The panels often had up to three authors plus excellent chairs (who can make or break a good talk) and echoed the general relaxed feeling of the festival, which allowed for lively, humorous and often incredibly fascinating discussions.

There were truly too many highlights to mention, but here are a few that particularly stuck in my mind:

• Lin Anderson’s session with guests soil forensics specialist Professor Lorna Dawson, forensic pathologist Dr. James Grieve and advocate Donald Findlay KC (the last two being clearly each other’s nemeses, which made for the most hilarious session of the whole weekend!)
• The appearance of some great Nordic Noir authors, such as Thomas Enger, Heidi Amsinck, Joern Lier Horst and Karin Smirnoff (pic above)
• Lots of talks with newer or debut authors, which all proved super fascinating with many good tips being shared and my reading list getting longer by the hour, including Lucy Clarke, Karen Hamilton, Sarah Clarke, Will Dean, Amy McCulloch, Catherine Cooper, Jo Callaghan, Martin Griffin, Fulton Ross, Alex Hay and many more
• There were also plenty of well-known authors in attendance, such as Val McDermid, Mick Herron (pic below), Liz Nugent, Adele Parks, Lisa Jewell, Denise Mina (pic above) and Chris Brookmyre
• A fascinating session on travellers and showpeople in fiction with William Hussey, Graham Bartlett and Tina Baker
• From the Inside Out with Dr. Shahed Yousaf and James McIntyre talking life behind bars, inequalities and gangland crimes

For those not able to attend the festival in person, there was a digital pass with many of the sessions being live-streamed during the weekend plus a whole day of masterclasses on the Friday for those wanting to get stuck into the nitty-gritty of crime writing themselves.

The prize-giving events were also really fun. The Debut Prize went to Kate Foster for The Maiden (historical crime fiction, yeah) and the McIlvanney Prize to Callum McSorley for Squeaky Clean. Shane McGinley from Ireland, who had actually travelled all the way from Dubai to get to the festival, won the Pitch Perfect book idea pitching event on Sunday morning, which featured short pitches by 8 authors and was one of my favourite events all weekend as the creativity of the authors and the feedback they received was really interesting learning for anyone into writing.

The festival’s Crime in the Spotlight initiative gives new and emerging published crime authors a chance to shine as they get to take to the stage before some of the official Albert Hall events to read an excerpt from their novels in front of a packed auditorium. This year’s authors included Danielle Devlin, Liza North, Amanda Cassidy and Sarah Clayton.

As I was travelling to Stirling from Glasgow each day, I sadly missed out on most of the fun late evening events, such as the Crime at the Coo night of song, poetry, comedy and more, The Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers gig and the CrimeMaster gameshow with a Bloody Scotland twist. I was glad the traditional torchlight procession was early enough though and it was a sight to behold with the participants’ lit torches illuminating the path from Stirling Castle to the Albert Halls led by the Stirling and District Schools Pipe Band.

From discussing TV adaptations of their works, to practical writing tips on getting published and learning from rejections, it was a weekend full of writing inspiration in a lovely small Scottish city with many great little cafes and shops to explore in between the events. Even if crime is not your preferred genre, anyone with even the slightest interest in reading, books and publishing should get a huge deal out of attending this event and come away filled with renewed enthusiasm.

P.S. The yearly crime writers football match in King’s Park may have finished with a 12:3 score for Scotland against England, but whatever the outcome, Bloody Scotland is a win-win for absolutely everyone attending, so you’d better put next year’s dates in your diary right now!

Disclaimer: Life is a Festival was provided with review tickets for the festival events. All photography Ⓒ Life is a Festival.

How to Make the Best of Your Visit to Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival 2023

Scotland’s much loved Bloody Scotland festival will be taking place again from 15-17 September 2023 in Stirling and far from being a stuffy event, it has actually been described as “the literary festival where you can let down your hair and enjoy a drink at the bar with your favourite crime writer”.

All the author events are easily reachable on foot as they take place in central locations around Stirling, such as the Albert Halls, the Central Library, Trinity Church and the Golden Lion Hotel and most venues are fully accessible for wheelchair users while BSL interpreting will be provided on request (email info@bloodyscotland.com for any specific queries). While the festival allows you to meet many bestselling authors of the genre, I would highly recommend you also get to know the newest talents during the Bloody Scotland debut prize reading or Alex Gray’s New Crimes event. If you fancy giving crime writing a go yourself, Friday’s online masterclasses are an excellent choice.

What makes Bloody Scotland truly stand out though as far as I’m concerned, is its exciting programme of creative fringe events, which are popular with locals and visitors alike. From the traditional Torchlight Procession (pic below) on the opening night, the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers concert with festival authors to the crime writers’ take on the football rivalry between Scotland and England to win the Bloody Cup in King’s Park plus True Crime Walking Tours there are plenty of fun activities to keep you busy all weekend.

Festival board member Craig Robertson also had some excellent tips in the latest festival newsletter:

“If this is your first visit to Bloody Scotland and you’re wondering how to get the best out of the weekend, my advice is to pick out a few panels and authors you definitely want to see and work your schedule around those. Remember to leave time to eat and drink, to chat with other readers and explore Stirling a bit. There will be tickets available across the weekend so if you fancy adding to your itinerary, you can do that. You’ll be in the company of authors and other book lovers, so you can trust that you’re among friends. Just have a great time.”

So if you haven’t got any plans for this September weekend yet, or even if you do, check out the Bloody Scotland programme, pick an event or more that take your fancy and join the many other booklovers in Stirling for chilling fiction, sparkling conversations and drinks in a chilled atmosphere. And in case Stirling is a little too far to travel for you, there is no need to worry, as you can also live-stream many events online via the digital festival pass option from anywhere in the world.

Disclaimer: All pictures provided by and used by kind permission of Bloody Scotland Festival/Paul Reich.

Celebrating the Arts in the Highlands: Nairn Book & Arts Festival 2023

After having had such a great time at Speyfest earlier in the summer, I was excited to head back north at the end of August for Nairn Book & Arts Festival (30th August – 3rd September 2023), a long-established and much-loved festival with a wide-ranging programme of author talks, writing workshops, film and theatre, live music, art exhibitions, guided tours plus a large variety of family-oriented community arts events.

Getting to Nairn by public transport was quite straightforward, a train or bus to Inverness and then another shorter bus trip to the friendly Highland town with the most stunning seaside location. Once I arrived on Friday afternoon, I headed straight to the Nairn Community and Arts Centre, which functions as the festival hub and also had a fabulous exhibition of paintings mostly by local artists Mary and John Wilson. The festival team was a super friendly bunch of mainly locals and mostly volunteers, who clearly all care greatly about their local arts scene and welcoming people to their town.

The first event I caught was a discussion with Murray Pittock, Professor of Literature at the University of Glasgow, based on his new book ‘Scotland: The Global History,’ which examines the role of Scotland and Scottishness within the country and in an international context. A little later, I attended Chitra Ramaswamy’s (pic below) talk about her award-winning creative non-fiction book ‘Homelands: The History of a Friendship,’ an intriguing story about her friendship with Henry Wuga, a now 99-year-old German Jewish refugee, and dealing with topics of migration, racism and belonging among others. In the evening, I headed to The Bandstand hotel and pub for a live session with The Fonsecas band.

My Saturday morning started with a sunny walk along Nairn beach down to the little harbour. While I didn’t spot dolphins or basking sharks, which had been regular visitors recently, I met a lot of dogwalkers and other friendly locals. On the way back, I popped into another art exhibition and art boot sale at the WASPS Links Studios. The rest of the morning was spent in a most fascinating bilingual Gaelic and English talk and reading with author Ruairidh MacIlleathain (pic below). We had a really lively discussion afterwards and it just went to show how important it is to promote bilingualism and language learning in a variety of cultural contexts. This session was followed by a screening of Dùthchas, a beautiful documentary portraying life on the Hebridean island of Berneray through archive footage and interviews in Gaelic and English.

In the afternoon, I caught some of the ‘Wine & Crime’ talks, the first of which was with the very popular and really entertaining JD Kirk (pic below), who started out as a children’s author and is now a successful crime writer for adults, publisher and screenwriter. Next up was well-known Glasgow fiction and non-fiction author Douglas Skelton whose historical fiction novel ‘A Thief’s Justice’ revolves around a murder mystery set in 18^th century London.

Mid-afternoon I joined Manchester-based festival writer-in-residence Anitha Sethi and a group of other festival attendees in an enjoyable nature writing ‘walkshop’, which involved short bursts of creative writing while going on a walk to the nearby harbour together and taking in the sights, sounds and scents of the surrounding area. In the evening, it was time for a live show by popular Scottish comedian Fred McAulay after which I called it a night in order to digest the many exciting experiences and connections made that day.

Way too soon it was my last morning in Nairn, but before I had to catch my bus to Inverness, I joined the ‘On the Wing’ parade (pic above) at Nairn beach, which fitted in nicely with the festival theme of ‘journey’. It was great to see so many people of all ages and backgrounds involved and the handmade silk banners of endangered bird species were especially wonderful to see.

Those of us living in bigger cities, such as Glasgow, might take it for granted to have a large choice of cultural events available to us throughout the year. Putting together great events in smaller towns and villages and finding the funding and volunteers to make them happen can indeed be quite a challenge. Having never been to Nairn before, I was therefore pleasantly surprised to see such a vibrant and welcoming local cultural community. Nairn Books & Arts Festival, which has been going for 20 years this year, is definitely the event for you if you are looking for a relaxing weekend by the sea (including stunning sunsets like the one pictured below) combined with some top-notch author and other arts events in a stimulating and fun environment.

Disclaimer: Life is a Festival was provided with review tickets for the festival events. All photography Ⓒ Life is a Festival.

Live Music At the Beach: Butefest 2023

Butefest (28-30 July 2023) was a bit of an experiment for me as I only knew one of the bands on the line-up. However, that of course also meant I was going to discover lots of new to me music, hurrah! Butefest was dreamt up by a group of islanders in 2015 and is a very community-oriented festival, which is also reflected in the extremely diverse line-up ranging from rock, to traditional Scottish music, country, ska and many others in between to suit a variety of musical tastes.

The festival site is located in a field right next to Ettrick Bay on the west coast of the beautiful Scottish Isle of Bute and there are two stages, one larger and one slightly smaller tent, which was a godsent as it allowed the music to go on pretty much uninterrupted even though the weather was fairly windy and rainy on two of the three festival days.

There was also a fun disco tent, which functioned as a crafts tent for the younger festival goers and often had some kids staggering about in giant minion, big bird and similar costumes (pic below), which was the funniest, cutest thing I had seen in ages.

All three headliners, The Lafontaines, Skerryvore & Big Country, drew a big crowd and I was especially excited to see Skerryvore (pic below) again. With their bagpipes, powerful rocky sound and exquisitely crafted songs, they are a reliably great Scottish live band who seem to just get better every year.

A band I discovered at Butefest and instantly liked were Edinburgh-based indie rock outfit Wrest (pic below). I generally tried to switch between the two tents to catch lots of different acts, but these guys simply had me glued to the spot, well, dancing in the main tent, for their whole set.

Other acts I personally enjoyed included Austral, country singer-songwriter Robyn Red, The Dughoose Ska Band (second pic from the top), James Harper, Pilgrim Society and Cody Feechan, but there were also much rockier bands on all weekend, so the line-up worked for a diverse audience and age groups.

I was volunteering with the marshall team for the weekend, which was both fun and due to the windy, rainy weather also a bit of a challenge. I ended up wearing all the warm clothes I had brought and was still freezing my backside off guiding cars to the right place to park on arrival. At least there were a few of us to share the pain, we kept the cold off with hot drinks and there was the energetic Skerryvore set to look forward to at the end of the wet Saturday night.

I slept really well in my cosy wee tent despite the rain hammering down on it pretty much the whole night, but awoke on Sunday morning to a water-logged and fairly depressing-looking site. I was so glad we had a crew catering tent, run by a cheerful couple from Yorkshire, to hang out in with hot water on tap and yummy snacks. I spent the morning guarding a gate by the beach, cuddling lots of wet festival dogs and humming the previous night’s Skerryvore songs to make the time pass faster. By the time the afternoon came rolling around, the wind and rain had finally let up a bit and the sun even came out for a while. The site filled with festival goers again, who made the best of the last day of Butefest.

Food-wise there was a good few stalls with chips and burger type offers, but maybe pizza or noodles would be a nice addition for future festivals. I loved the Japanese food (pic above) and Rothesay town was just a short bus shuttle (hourly from late morning to late evening) trip away for getting extra veggie supplies and for visiting the cafes and charity shops, like Musicker Cafe and Bute Oasis shop. I even spotted the Waverley paddle steamer go by (pic below) on Friday afternoon.

Travelling to Butefest by public transport was easier than I had initially thought. You can take a train or bus from Glasgow Central to Wemyss Bay and then catch a ferry from there to Rothesay. The festival shuttles are timed to meet the boats and there are also regular bus services across the island which serve Ettrick Bay. The campsite is right next to the beach where you are getting off the bus and the festival site just a two-minute walk further up the road. All in all it was a fun weekend of live music despite the weather and the island is well worth a visit any time of the year for its beautiful scenery and friendly community feel.

Disclaimer: All photography Ⓒ Life is a Festival.

Community Spirit Meets The Finest Scottish Music: Speyfest 2023

Speyfest (21-23 July 2023), which is based in the picturesque village of Fochabers on the banks of the River Spey between Inverness and Aberdeen, is the best example why you don’t need to be a mega event to deliver a brilliant festival experience. It’s firmly rooted in the local community and everyone pitches in to make it what it is today: a vibrant celebration for all ages showcasing traditional Scottish music in all its facets from young fiddlers from the local high school to well-known headliners, who often play much bigger stages at other events.

The friendly festival, which has been running for 26 years, boasts a diverse line-up of world-class musicians, ranging from traditional Scottish folk artists to more contemporary performers. Over 30 live music acts across the July weekend plus lots of music, song, dance and children’s craft workshops as well as a prosecco afternoon tea and whisky and gin tastings ensured there’s something for every taste.

The very impressive, packed weekend schedule of live music across two stages was more akin to one at much larger festivals. Friday’s line-up featured the much-loved John McCusker, Michael McGoldrick and John Doyle trio, Orkney fiddle sensation Fara and Skipinnish singer Norrie McIver and band. I was told the last act on Friday night would always be a little different and while ska ‘godfathers’ Bombskare strayed maybe a bit too far from the crowd’s musical comfort zone to really fit in, they nevertheless gave it their all until the early hours.

Saturday’s acts included highly acclaimed flautist and piper Calum Stewart, Scottish singer-songwriter Siobhan Miller, genre-defying Talisk (pic above) plus Scotland’s folk-rock superstars Mànran.

On Sunday afternoon Glasgow-based five-piece Ímar got the crowd going on the main stage and was followed by innovative female folk band Kinnaris Quintet plus energetic trad-fusion quartet Mec Lir. Celtic rock supergroup Skerryvore (pic below), who were joined on stage for a surprise tune by the Gordonstoun Pipe Band, closed the night and the festival with a brilliant set which had everyone singing and dancing along.

It was my first time volunteering with Speyfest and there was plenty to do for the various teams of mostly local helpers of all ages. Who needs a gym when you can keep fit by setting out and taking down hundreds of chairs a few times a day in the main tent and making sure the site stays nice and clean. Selling bar tokens and raffle tickets were also all in a day’s work and by the end of the weekend I felt like I had met half of the village’s population, which is definitely an advantage with smaller events.

Apart from great music, dancing and singing, Fochabers also has other interesting sights on offer. You can visit the small but very well organised Folk Museum on the main street or take a walk around Gordon Castle gardens and stop by the attractive café with indoor and outdoor seating and excellent food. Greenacres Café is a nice place for a cuppa, too, and I found some great vegetarian food at The Quaich Café (pic below) plus there are several pubs with restaurants to try, a few takeaways and two Co-op shops for snacks and other supplies.

There is also an extensive network of lovely woodland and river walks, which I highly recommend, especially if the weather is good. I camped at leafy Burnside Caravan Site, which was a five-minute walk from the festival and had great shower facilities. Fochabers is surprisingly easy to reach by public transport, simply catch a train or bus to Aberdeen or Inverness and then hop on the hourly 10 Stagecoach bus to the village, which takes about 2 hours one way.

If there ever was an underrated Scottish festival for trad and folk music lovers, Speyfest might just be it, so put it in your calendar right now for an unforgettable weekend of music in a very beautiful part of Scotland!

Disclaimer: All photography Ⓒ Life is a Festival.

Booklovers Make Glasgow: Aye Write & Wee Write 2023

I’m glad I had made it back to Scotland from my travels just in time to catch the tail end of Aye Write Festival (19-28 May 2023) as it’s always full of inspiring talks with authors from Scotland and further afield. This year Glasgow’s annual book festival took place in its usual home at the Mitchell library as well as the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall (GRCH) in the city centre.

My first event was an interesting pairing of two speculative fiction authors, Eve Smith and Todd Westbrook. Both thrillers, Smith’s ‘One’ and Westbrook’s ‘S6’ are set in a climate future where things are not as they initially seem and sinister governments and dark family secrets threaten the characters’ lives. As Smith pointed out, however, while speculative fiction deals of course with an imagined future, we are not that far removed today from many of the scientific developments mentioned in her novel, which makes them all the more topical.

What’s so exciting about book festivals is the sheer variety of subjects you can dive into and learn about in a short period of time. Scottish architect and lecturer Roger Emmerson, for instance, gave us a brief overview of his book ‘Land of Stone – a journey through modern architecture in Scotland’. Charting the history of mostly contemporary Scottish architecture and its main influences along the way, he outlined what makes Scottish architecture Scottish, the ideas shaping its past and present and, ultimately, what contribution these buildings are making to Scottish culture as a whole.

English Comedian, broadcaster and author Robin Ince presented his book Bibliomaniac: An Obsessive’s Tour of the Bookshops of Britain (pic above), a pandemic project during which he visited over a hundred bookshops in the UK. From the minute Ince got on stage, he took us on a whirlwind tour of his many bookish interests and pointed out how valuable indie bookshops are for our communities. Hear, hear!

Another session I attended was a fantastic ‘Ones to Watch’ event with three debut crime writers, Alice Slater, Callum McSorley and Martin Griffin, who each read a short excerpt and talked about their writing process and how they stories came about.

‘Belonging in Nature’ (pic above) was the title of another talk I really enjoyed. Writers Amanda Thomson and Sarah Thomas both wrote memoirs centring around the concept of home, place and identity, one set in Scotland, the other in Iceland.

Rebecca Smith’s book Rural was one of the most intriguing ones I came across at this year’s festival. Charting the sometimes precarious lives of miners, foresters and other people who do not own land and whose housing is often tied to their jobs, we learned a lot about a side of the countryside many of us are not that aware of. The session was also very well chaired by poet Jim Carruth and had one of the best audiences with lots of thoughtful questions and a great atmosphere.

My last Aye Write event for this year was all about ‘Why We Sing and Dance’. Of course, as a festival blogger, this was of particular interest to me as my happy places are often those with lots of singing and dancing. Authors Julia Hollander (‘Why We Sing’) and Emma Warren (‘Dance your Way Home’) both had an infectious love for life and shared many anecdotes with us why both disciplines are so essential for wellbeing. To top it all off, we finished the session by doing a group dance and song around the room, which lifted everyone’s mood and was the perfect closing event to the festival for me.

But wait, there was also Wee Write, of course! On Saturday, 3 June, I volunteered at the Mitchell Library at a day of interactive and creative events for kids of all ages (and those of us who have decided to never grow up!). I had expected it to be fun, but it was even better than I had thought.

First up was a talk about 30 years of Horrible Histories (pic above) with its illustrator, Martin Brown, who did a fun quiz, got the young audience to help him create drawings of giant faces and generally encouraged everyone not to give up on drawing and creativity. This was followed up by story time with George Hoyle for the littlest booklovers, who got to hang out with Little Miss Princess and her friends, sing songs and even ‘make rain’.

Finally, illustrator Tom Morgan Jones (pic above) talked about his career, the workshop attendees got a chance to do some of their own drawings and got some great advice, including entering lots of drawing competitions. There was a really positive buzz all day and it was lovely to see so many young people interested in books, reading and drawing.

Disclaimer: Life is a Festival was provided with review tickets for a number of festival events. All photography Ⓒ Life is a Festival.