Episode 2 On the Road 2014


Episode 2

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2014 is an extraordinary year for Scotland.

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So much is happening across the length and breadth of the country.

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And it's not all about politics and sport.

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We're here with a brand-new series,

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a journey to discover the events worth celebrating.

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And the stories behind them.

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Everything from theatre to comedy...

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Great music and festivals!

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..activities we can all get involved in.

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Birdie.

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Exploring what's happening inside our buildings...

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and what's going on on your street.

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We'll tell you about the quirky...

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and the exciting.

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We'll delve into Scotland's tastiest food and drink...

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..and meet the people creating these incredible experiences for all of us.

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So plan your summer with us. Join us as we head On The Road 2014.

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BEEP-BEEP

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Our route tonight - I'm in Inverness proving dying is easy.

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Phew... Tough crowd.

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Comedy is hard.

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What do you do for a living?

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Nothing.

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LAUGHTER

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We're joined by weatherwoman Carol Kirkwood...

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They are enormous!

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..who's exploring the £22 million extension

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of the Forth and Clyde Canal.

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Some fine sailing ahead.

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And Martel reveals how one Glasgow company is leading the world

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in a Commonwealth sport.

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This is a family business - father, then passed to son -

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-is it a marriage made in heaven?

-No.

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But first, this...

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I'm heading to Kirkwall in Orkney, where islanders are preparing

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for the magnificent St Magnus International Festival.

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This group of 70 islands - yes, 70! - has stunning scenery,

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incredible wildlife and is infused with 10,000 years of history.

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But today, I'm in search of some culture.

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For 30 years, the stunning scenery of Orkney has formed the backdrop

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to one of Britain's most highly regarded

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art and music festivals,

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with world-class musicians performing alongside home-grown talent.

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And as it's the 80th birthday of festival founder

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Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, it's going to be a bumper year.

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The week-long musical celebration will attract

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thousands of visitors to 42 events across Orkney.

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And the St Magnus Cathedral, which is almost nine centuries old,

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is its epicentre.

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Here, eight events will take place.

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It just takes your breath away, it's incredible.

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And it's no wonder this is the focus of the festival.

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But none of it would happen year after year

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without the dedication of local people.

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BELL RINGS

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One of whom is festival chairman

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and expert bell-ringer here at the cathedral, Leslie Burgher.

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That's amazing!

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Totally not what I expected at all!

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BELL RINGS

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Leslie's job is to make sure this year's festival is a belter,

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and to help him do that are a ream of volunteers.

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We've got people doing things like being behind the stage,

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we've got front of house,

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and on top of that we've got over 400 local people

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taking part in the performances as well.

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So, it gives people here the chance to see these top-class performers

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in action, and it gets them the chance to be alongside them.

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And this year, what are you looking forward to most?

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I will always have to say that I look forward to the Festival Chorus.

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It brings well over 100 of our local singers,

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and I think that's going to be something really special this year.

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And here they are.

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# ..Shall be found... #

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They've been rehearsing since February

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for a performance of William Walton's contemporary Belshazzar's Feast,

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which they'll be singing alongside the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra

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and the BBC Singers.

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The St Magnus Chorus is a choir of architects, policemen,

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farmers, shop assistants, who come from all over Orkney to rehearse -

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a feat of organisation in itself.

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# ..Shall be found... #

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Well, I live and work on one of the outlying islands,

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so it involves an hour-and-a-half commute into the rehearsal,

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and an early start in the morning to get back out to the island

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in time for work.

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Being involved in this choir

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means that I am taking part in something

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that's bigger than just myself.

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I'm an architect working from home, so when I come to the choir

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I meet with a whole team of people and work together with them.

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# ..Sing us one of the songs of Zion... #

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The main thing about singing in the choir,

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it's completely different from my day job.

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It makes a change from milking cows 24/7.

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'I'll say!'

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# ..Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! #

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The choir sound fantastic - full of passion, energy and talent.

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You can tell they're almost ready for the big day.

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And what's so great is to see a community come together

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and make this happen.

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The festival runs until 26th June,

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but if you can't make it up here,

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you can catch highlights on Radio 3,

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such as the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra's live performance

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at the St Magnus Cathedral on Wednesday 25th June.

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Last year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe was a record-breaker,

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though for budding comedians attempting to break through,

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there's another festival they consider to be even more important,

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as it's here they test their routines for the first time

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on what's probably their toughest audience.

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A Scottish one.

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This is like a secret gig,

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and we all have to know a password to get in here.

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So, shhh.

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It's called Happyness,

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and it takes place every May in the city of Inverness.

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So, we called a seasoned entertainer to investigate

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this dog-eat-cat world of stand-up comedy...

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and when he wasn't available, we decided to send Fred.

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Ha-ha(!)

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Now in its third year,

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the Happyness Comedy Festival pulls in many big names -

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every one of them looking for laughs, free drinks

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and, more importantly, to make their routine the best it can be.

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It's not the easiest of career paths.

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I'll be honest with you, I've died on my ar...tistry a few times.

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More than I care to remember.

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I mean, asking yourself to stand in front of a room full of people

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and making them laugh. For goodness' sake.

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Any Highlanders in?

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WIND WHISTLES

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Phew... Tough crowd.

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DRUM STING

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Getting here requires not only an audience

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but also practice, practice, practice.

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Which is just one of the reasons comedian Stuart Mitchell is in town.

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Formerly part of a troupe,

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this year he's going solo at the Edinburgh Fringe.

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But first he wants to conquer Inverness.

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I'm trying to make it more personal to me. When I first started out,

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-it was all about telling jokes on stage.

-Aye.

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Whereas I'm now trying to tell more stories.

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And I'm a lot more confident with silence -

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-I was a bit scared of silence in the past.

-I think we all are!

-We are!

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Even the audience. Watch this.

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Scared them. Will you try some stuff

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that you think you might throw in for Edinburgh?

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Yeah. You know yourself, you've got to take risks.

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You've got to learn to test new material,

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and don't rely on the stuff that you know works.

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Currently, Stuart works for a charity organisation,

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but is hoping this will be the first step

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to a career that might pay even less - comedy.

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I'm sure you'll agree, when you're doing new material

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and you hear that laughter, it's the best feeling in the world.

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'But as well as polishing his act,

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'Stuart will also have to learn the art of grassroots advertising -

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'AKA handing out flyers...'

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Come to the Inverness Happyness festival tonight.

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..something comedians Patrick Monahan

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and Bec Hill are old hands at.

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In terms of the number of people that you get through the door,

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I mean, is that dependent on how much flyering you do?

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In Edinburgh, absolutely.

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Here I find that we're getting more and more audiences every year.

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Learning to be your own PR machine is essential -

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though, of course, the other essential ingredient is being funny,

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something Jason Byrne says he's more than happy to help me with. Cheeky.

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What do you do for a living?

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Nothing.

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LAUGHTER

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You do nothing?!

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I caught up with Jason pre-gig,

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and already he's been inspired by the locals.

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-I got the train up here, and I did a lot of listening on the train.

-Right.

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Oh, my God, I hope to have at least half an hour...

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-Right!

-..of new Scottish material.

-OK.

-Oh, it was great craic.

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Are you his wife or partner, or...? Who are you? A friend?

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No. Nobody. LAUGHTER

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Is it easier for you, because you've been going that length of time,

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to make a new hour, or is it just as difficult now?

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When I was younger I would go, "Is that funny? Oh, I'll try it."

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And it wouldn't be, and I'd go, "Oh, my God."

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So I tend to die less now on stage.

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But that means that the quality is higher,

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but that means that it's harder.

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Speaking of which, time for Stuart to road test his one-man show.

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At least there's a good crowd.

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Please welcome to the stage, the fantastic Stuart Mitchell!

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Wahey!

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Hello, hello!

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How you doing, Inverness, are you well?

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Yeah!

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Can I just start by saying,

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I'm very conscious there's doctors in the audience.

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Cos I don't like waving at audiences,

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cos I'm missing the tips of my fingers.

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-Do you see that? AUDIENCE:

-Ooohh...

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It's not a magic trick.

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LAUGHTER

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Actually, I went to a rough school in Glasgow,

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where I lost that in a game of rock, paper and scissors.

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LAUGHTER

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After 20 minutes on stage which, believe me, CAN seem a lifetime,

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I think Stuart's solo career is off to a pretty good start.

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-Anyway, you've been a lovely audience.

-Woo!

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But what do the punters think?

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Stuart was fantastic.

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It was brilliant. I had a really good time.

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Definitely see Stuart Mitchell again.

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It was the best night you could imagine.

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Stuart did a really, really good job,

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so I think that augurs well for Edinburgh Fringe.

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Well done to Stu! Nice one!

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You can see Stuart at the Edinburgh Fringe,

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which runs August 1st to 25th.

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Meanwhile, the Happyness festival will return next May.

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And for more info,

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go to our website...

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Stay with us as Fred dips his toes...

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..and a few other things

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in one of Scotland's historic outdoor swimming pools.

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And journalist Cat Cubie explores our newfound love of gin.

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-Mm.

-HE LAUGHS

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No, that is really nice!

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But first...

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The Kelpies are not only Scotland's newest icon,

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they're also the centrepiece

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of a soon-to-be-opened £22 million extension

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to our much-loved lowland canals.

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And weather favourite Carol Kirkwood is taking an exclusive journey

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along this new waterway.

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Right underneath me is the brand-new half-mile stretch

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of the Forth and Clyde Canal.

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It is just lovely and tranquil today, so some fine sailing ahead.

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Opening in two months' time, this stretch of water makes it possible

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to leisurely sail all the way from the North Sea to the Irish Sea,

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enjoying some spectacular sights en route.

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The new extension has its beginnings in Grangemouth...

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and it bypasses the narrow tidal parts of the River Carron,

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so that now boats of up to 20m will be able to join the canal.

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Richard Miller from Scottish Canals thinks this will attract

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pleasure boaters from around the world.

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This new extension of the canal makes it a lot easier

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for boats coming in from Holland, from Germany and from Scandinavia,

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doing what it was always meant to do,

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which was a sea-to-sea navigation.

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Year on year out, it will deliver £1.5 million into the local economy.

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A fantastic result,

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and one that comes from a 16-year investment project,

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which allows boating enthusiasts to enjoy, at a pace of 4mph,

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everything form the Falkirk Wheel to the revamped Speirs Wharf in Glasgow.

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A far cry from the canal's beginnings,

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which are rooted in the industrial heyday of the late 1700s.

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The idea was really to develop freight,

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but also to develop passenger transport,

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and it was transformational,

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because the canal actually developed the first sleeper service.

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So you could travel from Glasgow to Edinburgh overnight,

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and it was very, very popular - over 200,000 passengers a year.

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The arrival of the railway signalled the end of the canals,

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and eventually they were left to rot.

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Thankfully campaign groups rallied to their cause

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almost as soon as they'd closed - and just look at the result.

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Oh, my goodness, they are enormous!

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They're fabulous!

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They were created by artist Andy Scott

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and called Kelpies after the mythical water spirits

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that haunted the ancient lochs and rivers of Celtic folklore.

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Inspiration also came from the heavy horses

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that once pulled the barges along the towpath.

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They are celebrating the industrial past, but also the future.

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I mean, just look at them!

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Named Head Up and Head Down,

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300 tonnes of steel were used in their construction,

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as well as 990 unique stainless-steel skin plates,

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and it was all assembled on-site in just 90 days.

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Well, apparently the thing to do when you come here is a Kelpie selfie.

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Everyone's doing it, so here goes.

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The new public park also offers visitors a concert space...

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a lagoon for watersports...

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and, for the very brave, an open-air swimming pool.

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But if you don't fancy getting your feet wet,

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this is the starting point

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of an additional 16 miles of brand-new cycle networks,

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all waiting to be explored.

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Meanwhile, there are five companies offering boating holidays

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and barges for hire along this stretch of water.

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Or you could explore Scotland's other famous canals,

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such as the Crinan and the Caledonian.

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Let's just hope the summer weather is good.

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MUSIC: "A Fistful of Dollars (Theme)" by Ennio Morricone

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Lawn bowls.

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A game that requires power...

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precision...

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and steely determination.

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Yes!

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And right here in Glasgow is the oldest

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and biggest manufacturer of bowls in the world,

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supplying many of the ones being played

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at next month's Commonwealth Games.

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But before I discover what goes into making a world-class bowl,

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I've come to the beautiful Kelvingrove Lawn Bowls Centre,

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where the Commonwealth bowls will be held.

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In fact, that's the Scottish team practising right now,

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and I'm going to find out how a good bowl can help my game.

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'Mind you, as I am a complete and utter novice...'

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Am I holding it correctly?

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'I'm relying on the skills of para-athlete

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'and world champ Robert Conway, along with his coach Ron McArthur.'

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-Oh, excellent!

-Oh, beautiful!

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-You've done this before.

-Yes.

-No!

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-She's probably a champion.

-You're being kind.

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'Even more surprising than my natural ability

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'is the fact that bowls aren't actually round -

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'they're weighted so they run in a curved line.'

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It's a real family sport - it's one of the best sports in the world.

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Doesn't matter what disability you've got -

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physically impaired, physically disabled...

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But it does have a wee bit of a reputation as an old man's sport.

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I'm here quite a lot, and I see young kids, teenagers,

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who you would never expect to play bowls, come to try bowls.

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World indoor champion is an 18-year-old girl, Katherine Rednall,

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and she beat a 24-year-old to win that.

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And just a few minutes into my training,

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I can definitely see the game's appeal.

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Oh, great, again!

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Now I know how a good bowl can help my game,

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I want to find the perfect size and weight for me,

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so my next stop is Taylor Bowls in Bridgeton,

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a local company that's the world leader.

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In fact, it's been going for almost 220 years,

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and in all that time has only been owned by two families -

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the Taylors and, more recently, the Herons,

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father and son duo, Alex and Grant.

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This is a family business - father, then passed to son -

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-is it a marriage made in heaven?

-No.

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Might as well be truthful about it!

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-We've had a few issues over the years.

-Well, I'm officially retired!

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He's officially retired, yeah.

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Well, they must be doing something right...

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as they're now producing roughly a quarter of a million bowls a year.

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Wow! It's massive!

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And just in case you were wondering...

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..this is how it's done.

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First, take a few scoops of powdered melamine...

0:17:560:17:59

It then goes into these little machines at the side here,

0:17:590:18:02

which are radio wave preheaters, very similar to a microwave.

0:18:020:18:06

..heat to 130 degrees Celsius, until it forms a dough,

0:18:060:18:11

then place into a cast and apply 150 tonnes of pressure.

0:18:110:18:16

And it'll turn that dough into something like a treacle.

0:18:160:18:20

Next, cool for 12 hours, then remove all the rough edges...

0:18:200:18:26

and add the detailing.

0:18:260:18:27

OK, Martel. So, that's the process finished.

0:18:270:18:30

Happy bowling.

0:18:300:18:31

Wow! Our very...

0:18:310:18:33

On The Road ball, how cool is that?

0:18:330:18:36

Right, don't tell the rest of the crew, I want to keep this one myself.

0:18:360:18:39

You're welcome!

0:18:390:18:40

Because now I have the training and the equipment,

0:18:400:18:42

it's time to get competitive!

0:18:420:18:44

Judging my efforts, the entire ladies team of the Blantyre Bowling Club.

0:18:460:18:50

-ALL:

-Yes!

0:18:500:18:52

No pressure, then(!)

0:18:520:18:53

Well, Ella, I've got a lot of ladies to impress here.

0:18:530:18:56

I hope I do an OK job.

0:18:560:18:58

And thanks for holding my umbrella, Ella.

0:18:580:19:00

-Ahh!

-Ella.

0:19:000:19:01

# Eh, eh, eh

0:19:010:19:02

# Under my umbrella

0:19:020:19:05

# Ella, ella, eh, eh, eh... #

0:19:050:19:09

-Woo!

-Well done.

0:19:110:19:14

9!

0:19:140:19:15

If my attempts have inspired you,

0:19:160:19:18

there are hundreds of bowling clubs across Scotland you can join,

0:19:180:19:22

and you can see Commonwealth Games athletes

0:19:220:19:24

compete at Kelvingrove Green from July 24th.

0:19:240:19:28

And whether you decide to pick up a ball or just watch the games

0:19:280:19:31

from the comfort of your own sofa, remember,

0:19:310:19:34

the bowl you see in play was probably made in Glasgow.

0:19:340:19:37

# Un-reroute the rivers

0:19:400:19:42

# Let the dammed water be... #

0:19:420:19:44

Think home-grown booze and, of course, you think whisky.

0:19:440:19:48

Though maybe not for much longer, as, surprisingly,

0:19:480:19:51

Scotland's becoming increasingly well-known for its gin.

0:19:510:19:55

We're even celebrating World Gin Day on June 14th.

0:19:550:19:59

So, to find out more about its spike in popularity,

0:19:590:20:02

we've sent journalist Cat Cubie to Edinburgh.

0:20:020:20:06

Go into almost any pub or club or restaurant these days,

0:20:060:20:09

and you're likely to find a whole array of different gins.

0:20:090:20:12

It's seriously trendy, and increasingly popular -

0:20:120:20:16

and what's more, a lot of those bottles are likely to be Scottish.

0:20:160:20:20

Because around 70% of gin made in the UK comes from Scotland -

0:20:220:20:26

like whisky, gin starts out as ethanol,

0:20:260:20:29

a pure spirit made from grain,

0:20:290:20:31

meaning whisky distilleries can easily switch to gin production.

0:20:310:20:35

But unlike whisky, gin doesn't take ages maturing.

0:20:350:20:38

In fact, it can be produced and sold almost immediately.

0:20:380:20:42

It's one of the main reasons we've seen so many new bottles

0:20:420:20:45

appearing on the shelves in the last few years.

0:20:450:20:47

So, what prompted the gin revolution?

0:20:470:20:50

Food and drink editor of the List Magazine Donald Reid

0:20:500:20:52

is going to tell me.

0:20:520:20:54

We're becoming more expressive,

0:20:540:20:56

and I think gin's a great example of that.

0:20:560:20:58

People are more interested in ingredients

0:20:580:21:01

and the distinctiveness of ingredients

0:21:010:21:04

going into different products.

0:21:040:21:06

This explosion in flavour has seen seven new Scottish gins

0:21:060:21:09

hit the market over the last decade.

0:21:090:21:12

But it's not just the big distilleries

0:21:120:21:13

who are getting in on the act.

0:21:130:21:16

This is Pickering's,

0:21:160:21:18

the first artisan gin distillery to open in Edinburgh in 150 years.

0:21:180:21:23

Run by Marcus Pickering and Matthew Gammell.

0:21:250:21:27

-Are you guys going to show me what you would do to make some gin?

-Yeah.

0:21:270:21:30

-Yeah.

-Absolutely.

-We can show you the process.

0:21:300:21:32

Their unique mix contains nine botanicals -

0:21:320:21:35

that's flavourings, to you and me -

0:21:350:21:37

including the likes of angelica, lime and fennel.

0:21:370:21:40

Mind you, some gins have as many as 31! Others as little as four.

0:21:400:21:46

But I digress. The botanicals are added to 96% proof alcohol.

0:21:460:21:51

And this is heated by a bain-marie.

0:21:510:21:54

Now, a bain-marie, that's what I usually use

0:21:540:21:56

when I'm cooking chocolate - is it the same thing?

0:21:560:21:58

Very similar principle.

0:21:580:22:00

Heat is applied to the outer tank, which contains water.

0:22:000:22:03

This gently heats the inner tank, which has the gin,

0:22:030:22:07

turning it into gas.

0:22:070:22:09

Next it's condensed back into a liquid, water's added,

0:22:090:22:13

and the alcohol content becomes a much more drinkable 42%.

0:22:130:22:17

In the distillery we only have it neat.

0:22:170:22:20

Mm. HE LAUGHS

0:22:240:22:26

No, that is really nice!

0:22:260:22:27

-It's actually quite palatable.

-Yeah.

0:22:270:22:29

But it's not just the gin that's undergoing a transformation.

0:22:310:22:34

According Paul Reynolds, owner of this specialist gin bar in Glasgow,

0:22:340:22:38

the humble slice of lemon has had its day.

0:22:380:22:41

Gins are all about tasting the botanicals.

0:22:410:22:44

-So you want to complement the flavours.

-Correct, yes.

0:22:440:22:47

Paul has three garnishes for me to try.

0:22:470:22:49

Cucumber with some Hendrick's...

0:22:490:22:51

Yeah, it's really refreshing, and I-I love cucumber anyway,

0:22:520:22:56

but you get that mix.

0:22:560:22:58

..apple with this Speyside Caorunn...

0:22:580:23:01

-Oh, that is so much sweeter!

-Yep.

0:23:020:23:05

..and lemongrass with The Botanist from Islay.

0:23:050:23:07

It is very smooth. In the other two,

0:23:090:23:11

you're getting more of the flavours coming through from the garnish...

0:23:110:23:14

-Sure.

-..where that's kind of a little bit more subtle.

0:23:140:23:17

To learn more about gin and other spirits produced here

0:23:170:23:20

in Scotland, there are distilleries you can visit across the country.

0:23:200:23:24

And for more info on any of the items

0:23:250:23:27

on tonight's programme,

0:23:270:23:29

go to our website, at...

0:23:290:23:30

With summer here and the swimming season finally upon us,

0:23:440:23:47

I want to pay tribute to a special part of our history -

0:23:470:23:50

or, to put it another way...

0:23:500:23:52

time for me to take a dip

0:23:520:23:54

in one of Scotland's last remaining open-air public pools.

0:23:540:23:57

At one stage, we had around 25 of these little beauties

0:23:580:24:01

up and down the country.

0:24:010:24:03

# We should be swimming... #

0:24:030:24:07

It was here we socialised, entered knobbly knee contests

0:24:070:24:11

and even fell in love.

0:24:110:24:13

But these days, only three remain,

0:24:140:24:17

something that makes Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire

0:24:170:24:20

a very special place indeed,

0:24:200:24:22

as, here, this Art Deco gem has not only survived against the odds,

0:24:220:24:26

it's actually thriving.

0:24:260:24:28

And this month it celebrates a very important anniversary -

0:24:280:24:31

its 80th birthday.

0:24:310:24:32

That's right, twice as old as me(!)

0:24:320:24:34

This impressive Olympic-sized pool

0:24:380:24:40

filled with 250,000 gallons of seawater first opened in 1934,

0:24:400:24:45

though, by the '90s,

0:24:450:24:47

cheap holidays abroad meant it was facing the wrecker's ball.

0:24:470:24:51

Fortunately, the locals swung onto action,

0:24:530:24:55

forming the Friends of Stonehaven Pool.

0:24:550:24:59

We started in the mid-'90s, when the pool was threatened with closure.

0:24:590:25:04

And there it was, "Backs to the wall,

0:25:040:25:06

"we must keep this open at all costs."

0:25:060:25:09

Eventually, the locals succeeded in lobbying the council,

0:25:090:25:12

and 20 years on, they still play a role in keeping the place tiptop.

0:25:120:25:17

There's a lot of work gone into this, from lots of volunteers.

0:25:170:25:21

-We've over 4,000 volunteer hours.

-Is that a fact?

0:25:210:25:24

Yes. Yes.

0:25:240:25:26

But we can't sit on our laurels -

0:25:260:25:28

we've got to keep the place looking good.

0:25:280:25:30

'Thanks to the dedicated volunteers lending a hand...'

0:25:330:25:35

Hey, Bruce.

0:25:350:25:36

'..that doesn't seem to be a problem.'

0:25:360:25:38

It nearly looks better than it did when it opened in 1934.

0:25:380:25:42

Is that right?

0:25:420:25:43

'And Bruce Whitelaw should know. He was actually there.'

0:25:430:25:46

I learned to swim in the pool in 1934.

0:25:460:25:49

-So you could work my age out.

-I'm going to guess 84, then.

0:25:490:25:52

That is dead on. 84.

0:25:520:25:54

And this year - what, will you do a few lengths a day?

0:25:540:25:58

No, I can't do a length any more.

0:25:580:26:00

-Across the way, a breadth?

-Oh, yes, I can do a breadth.

0:26:000:26:02

-Never miss one year...

-Uh-huh?

-..in the pool.

0:26:020:26:05

Here we go!

0:26:050:26:07

Not only is the pool an important part of this community,

0:26:090:26:13

it also represented a shift in our values.

0:26:130:26:16

That is, according to historian Alastair Durie.

0:26:160:26:19

This is the era when the body

0:26:190:26:21

-was starting to be...wanted to be seen as beautiful.

-Uh-huh, yeah!

0:26:210:26:25

-The Victorians had covered up. This generation is stripping off.

-Right.

0:26:250:26:30

And from what I can tell,

0:26:300:26:32

swimming wasn't the main reason people used to flock here.

0:26:320:26:35

In addition to what's going on in the pool,

0:26:350:26:37

you've got beauty parades, you've got amusement competitions -

0:26:370:26:40

-best-dressed and all that sort of thing.

-Right.

0:26:400:26:43

They even, in some places, staged naval battles!

0:26:430:26:46

-Did they?

-Yeah!

0:26:460:26:47

It's the centre of everything that goes on by way of popular amusement.

0:26:470:26:52

As for the future, I'd say this venue is definitely back in vogue.

0:26:520:26:57

One, two, three, up.

0:26:570:26:59

Over a good summer, it's attracting more than 30,000 people,

0:26:590:27:03

and it's also the perfect place

0:27:030:27:05

for local lifeguards to hone their skills...

0:27:050:27:08

You're going to get into teams of three instead of your teams of two.

0:27:080:27:12

..just one of the reason trainer Gillian Wood is grateful

0:27:120:27:14

to the Friends of Stonehaven Pool.

0:27:140:27:17

Do you think that the dedication that they've shown

0:27:170:27:19

will be echoed with the young ones?

0:27:190:27:21

I think it will, yeah.

0:27:210:27:23

Everybody's proud of the pool,

0:27:230:27:24

so I think you will see younger ones stepping up to the game.

0:27:240:27:28

They'll all do above and beyond what they need to do.

0:27:280:27:31

Stonehaven's Olympic-sized outdoor pool is open now

0:27:310:27:34

through till September.

0:27:340:27:36

And you'll also find similar pools dating back to last

0:27:360:27:38

century in both Gourock and New Cumnock.

0:27:380:27:41

Well, I've had an absolutely brilliant day

0:27:430:27:45

here at Stonehaven Open Air Pool.

0:27:450:27:47

I enjoyed being in the water - it's Baltic when you get out,

0:27:470:27:50

I'm away for a fish supper.

0:27:500:27:51

While we won't be here next week,

0:27:530:27:55

join us on Monday 23rd June at 7.30pm,

0:27:550:27:58

when I'll be showcasing

0:27:580:28:00

one of Scotland's multicultural festivals, the Mela.

0:28:000:28:04

Martel's back in Orkney celebrating the 70th anniversary

0:28:050:28:09

of the island's stunning chapel built by Italian prisoners of war...

0:28:090:28:13

Oh, wow!

0:28:130:28:15

..and DJ Ally McCrae will be swapping his headphones

0:28:150:28:18

for full battle gear as preparations get going for Bannockburn Live.

0:28:180:28:23

ALL ROAR

0:28:230:28:26

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