Orkney Crofts

What a Lady Part 11

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 09:26:00 +0200

KIRKWALL dental nurse Natasha Groundwater has made it into the top 20 of The Sun's Miss Scotland competition.

"It's absolutely fantastic, I'm still overwhelmed!" said Natasha, who was chosen to face the public vote after a photo shoot in Glasgow last weekend. "So far it's all been a really good experience, to have everyone from Orkney behind me would make it even better."

The final ten contestants will take part in the glamorous Miss Scotland final in Glasgow's Princes Square on May 25, where the judges will decide who walks away with the crown. The highly sought-after title comes with a £10,000 prize and contract with Scotland's fastest growing marketing agency, DADA.

The lucky winner will also jet off to Ukraine to represent her country at the glittering Miss World competition.

What a Lady

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 01:44:00 +0200

Pentland Ferries’ new catamaran was officially named in the Philippines on Tuesday.

Owner Andrew Banks, and his wife, Susan, travelled out to Cebu for the ceremony, which saw the vessel named Pentalina.

The Pentalina is due to be launched on Thursday 24th, and be sea trialled and completed, ready for the voyage back to the UK. She is expected to come into service in early summer.

May Madness

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:24:00 +0200

Orkneycrofts is offering a special for May 2008 only.

May 2008 Special Offers.

The fully stocked kitchen will be supplied to all guests free of charge this month only.

Yuri Blast Off

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 09:35:00 +0200

One of Scotland's most famous Neolithic sites - Skara Brae in Orkney - has commemorated a defining moment in the space race.

The pathway to the prehistoric village is lined with carved stones that form a time trail of major events in history.

A new stone was unveiled on Saturday, marking the anniversary of Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin orbiting the Earth on 12 April, 1961.

Despite bad weather, a number of locals turned out for the event.

Historic Scotland created the pathway to emphasise changes which have taken place since the settlement was inhabited 5,000 years ago.

Doreen Grove, Historic Scotland's head of access and understanding, said: "Uri Gagarin's mission was a defining moment in human history.

"At Historic Scotland we are delighted to commemorate an event of such importance by including it in the Skara Brae timeline."

The idea for the new stone was suggested by Russian Alexander Korobko, who visited in 2006 in search of his Orcadian roots.

Mr Korobko said: "I am delighted that Historic Scotland is commemorating the space flight of Uri Gagarin at Skara Brae."

Tatiana Danilova, trade marketing executive at VisitScotland for Central and Eastern Europe, said: "Russia is an important emerging tourism market for Scotland, thanks to its growing economy.

"I hope that the stone will be something Russian visitors enjoy seeing and will talk about when they return home."

Fishy Story

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 13:23:00 +0200

TOP rabbis have been flown in from America by a Scots herring company - to make sure their fish is 100 per cent kosher.

The Orkney Herring Company landed a deal to send 54,000 pots of the fish to the States every month.

But to meet strict Jewish religious laws, its preparation must be scrutinised by a leading rabbi - who makes sure it has not touched non-kosher fish such as sharks and eels.

Managing director Ken Sutherland said: "The first two rabbis flew in from New York, the third was from Germany and next week we'll be welcoming one from Glasgow

"It's for the whole Jewish-American market, so we have to cater for the more orthodox branches too. That means we'll be getting visits every few weeks, instead of just at Passover."

Herring is popular in Jewish cuisine, eaten with crackers on Friday evenings or for the Sabbath dinner on Saturdays.

The Stromness-based firm were set up in 1987 and produce sweet-cured herring from a secret family recipe which is hidden in a safe at a secret location.

They have produced herring for the UK market for more than 15 years and have once-a-year checks from a local rabbi.

Fulmarks

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 13:18:00 +0200

Orkney-born Raymond Besant has won first prize in a worldwide wildlife film festival, with a documentary charting the life of an Atlantic seabird, the albatross family Fulmar.

Ray worked for three years on his film, The Flying Dustman, which examines the challenges that pollution and climate change are posing for the Fulmar.

Filmed in Aberdeenshire, Orkney, St Kilda and the island of Texel - off the Dutch coast - the documentary won the amateur section of the International Wildlife Film Festival in the USA, and picked up a merit award for scientific content.

As an amateur filmmaker - this is his first film - Raymond said it was difficult to judge how well he was doing. “You’ve only got yourself as a reference. You don’t know if you are really doing the right thing.”

He will attend the awards ceremony in Missoula, Montana, next month.

Skyline Concern

Sun, 06 Apr 2008 01:18:00 +0200

Orkney Skyline Concern have gone online. Visit them to register.

Airport Parking

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 13:02:00 +0200

KIRKWALL Airport now has 40 extra car parking spaces.

Kirkwall Airport manager David Blackman said that he was delighted the first stage of the development is now complete, taking just four weeks of construction.

He added that the next stage, creating an additional 18 or 19 spaces, should be finished in another couple of weeks, depending on the weather.

The car park extension is expected to make a massive difference to the parking situation at the airport, which in the past has seen travellers complaining that spaces were in such short supply that they had to park on grass areas so they would not miss their flights.

Freebie Weekend

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 11:58:00 +0200

Historic Scotland’s annual free weekend will take place on April 12 and 13 – allowing visitors access to some of Orkney’s best-known historic sites completely free of charge.

Over the weekend, admission charges will be dropped at the Bishop’s and Earl’s Palaces, the Broch of Gurness, Hackness Battery, Maeshowe and Skara Brae.

Visitors will have the opportunity to sign-up for annual membership for Historic Scotland over the weekend, with a special offer of three months free.

Tesco's are coming

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 11:53:00 +0200

SUPERMARKET giant Tesco last week extended its retail dominance to every corner of Scotland.

The company now has a store in every Scottish postcode area. The firm has just snapped up properties in the last Tesco-free' areas with the purchase of six stores from rival company Somerfield.

It means Tesco will now have a presence in Paisley and Wester Ross and also Orkney, The Shetland Isles, and Lewis, despite campaigns to block the store chain moving to the islands.

The supermarket giant said 470 jobs at the six stores would be safeguarded and confirmed there would be further investment and jobs in each store. It would not reveal what it had paid for the Somerfield stores.

Beach Plumbing

Mon, 17 Mar 2008 10:31:06 +0100

March 16, South Ronaldsay -- A plumber found what appears to be a piece of a Neolithic chambered tomb on a beach on a Scottish island.

Julie Gibson, the Orkney County archaeologist, said that the carved stone must have been buried and exposed by recent storms. The carvings on soft sandstone would not have survived centuries in the water.

David Barnes said he thought when he first spotted the stone at Sandwick Bay on South Ronaldsay in the Orkneys that it had simply eroded in an interesting way. Then he realized that the circular markings were manmade.

"This piece is really a once-in-50-years discovery," Gibson said. "I was very pleased to find out David really had such a piece of Neolithic art. It's not something that happens every day."

Gibson believes that the stone, carved as long as 6,000 years ago, was part of a chambered tomb.

Highland Fling

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 14:52:24 +0100

American whisky expert Paul Pacult named Highland Park 18 year old single malt whisky the best spirit in the world, judged against spirits across the globe.

The accolade was announced in the latest edition of the US drinks publication Spirit Journal 100 listing of the world’s best 100 distilled spirits.

Birmingham families ship out to the Orkneys

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 14:46:43 +0100

Bustling Brum may be the country's Second City but it seems workers tired of the rat race are deserting the city in favour of the simple life on the weather-beaten islands off Scotland's north coast.

More than one in seven people who moved to the capital, Kirkwall, in the second half of last year were from Birmingham, according to new figures. Orkney Islands Council deputy leader James Stockan said he was not surprised families were tempted by the lifestyle on offer.

"Orkney has been assessed as probably the best place to live for well-being in Scotland and there has been quite a lot of migration here in the last five years, we have a very low crime rate and lots of people have come for a better way of life. The only problem we have is the weather!" he said.

Monster of the Deep

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 14:12:05 +0100

Orkney angler Peter "Jocky" Robertson won the club's three-day weekend competition with the help of a big conger.

It might not be a monster in the conger world but, at 13lb 7oz, it's still a significant fish because it is a new record for the Orkney Shore Anglers Club.

Takahiro Kondo

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 13:49:01 +0100

Acclaimed ceramic Japanese artist Takahiro Kondo's "Orkney Monolith" series incorporates his unique gintekisai ( “silver mist”) overglaze and luminous layers of cast glass. Each piece in the Orkney Monolith series stands between four and a half and six and a half feet in height and is covered with Kondo’s distinctive gintekisai overglaze.

The technique coats the porcelain surface with tiny droplets of a precious alloy of gold, silver, and platinum (representing “water out of fire”), which catch and refract light, mimicking the appearance of rain-drenched stone.

The works, which recall the ancient standing stones found throughout Scotland’s Orkney Islands, go on display in the U.S. (New York), for the first time this month.

Pentland Pull

Mon, 25 Feb 2008 12:04:22 +0100

The Pentland Firth has been called the greatest untapped source of energy Scotland has ever had, offering northern Scotland an equivalent to the Californian gold rush. 25% of the European tidal energy resource is said to be present in the turbulent waters where the Atlantic and North Sea merge.

This week the huge reserves in the stretch of water between Orkney and the mainland, and the opportunities they present, will be detailed to industry experts.

Members of the British Wind Energy Association, which also promotes wave and tidal power, are on a two-day fact-finding trip to the area, starting today. They will be encouraged to work with local firms and public agencies, and to use Caithness and Orkney as a base.

Skylarks at East Heddle

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 11:19:06 +0100

I did a couple of hours tree maintenance down at East Heddle to day, 3 Skylarks for a while, 50+ Twite passed over, Greenfinches now seem resident. 240 Greylag around all day, 34 Fieldfare feeding with the starling flock were the first i have seen for a while.

Selkies are transformed

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 02:03:26 +0100

The myth of the Selkie, long thought to be Scottish in origin, in fact originates on the Farne Islands, a nature reserve off the coast of Northumberland — according to a North East solicitor, Colette Stroud.

The Selkie is a mythical creature said to be a woman with the ability to transform itself into a seal. Selkie's are able to transform to human form by shedding their seal skins and can revert to seal form by putting their Selkie skin back on. The myth has long been thought to be Scottish in origin, and is widely attributed to the Orkney Islands.

She said: "The Selkie myth can be found along the North East coast, throughout Scotland and Scandinavia. The origins of the myth are lost in time so I assume Scotland has simply claimed it for its own on the basis of no known facts. Since the Farne Islands have always been home to one of Europe's largest seal colonies, I feel it is perfectly possible that the myth originated here, and then migrated North".

The idea that Northumbrian myths have been hijacked and re-written is not new. Many experts believe Joyous Guard or Broomlee Lough in Northumberland to be the original site of the King Arthur legend.

Guided walks around the Ring of Brodgar

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 17:06:42 +0100

Guided tours led by Historic Scotland's expert guides are back by popular demand.

The Orkney World Heritage Site ranger service is offering free guided walks around the Ring of Brodgar.

This year, people of all ages will have the chance to attend the walks every Thursday at 1pm. No advance booking is required for the guided tours and visitors are advised to wear appropriate outdoor clothing. The guides are very enthusiastic with a both natural and cultural history expertise.

Sunday Times and North Ronaldsay Lamb

Tue, 05 Feb 2008 01:03:30 +0100

The Sunday Times
February 3, 2008

Lucas Hollweg: the virtues of North Ronaldsay lamb

MEAT AND GREET

Warning: vegetarians might want to look away. I’ve been having rather a meaty time of late. I only have to think about North Ronaldsay lamb and I start salivating. The native sheep of Orkney’s most northerly island are confined to the seashore by a stone wall, so they survive almost entirely on seaweed. This gives intensely savoury, dark, gamey meat – I devoured two chops before I even got them to the table.........

Orkney Rose

Tue, 05 Feb 2008 00:56:41 +0100

Run by Rose Grimond, Orkney Rose sells Orkney fish and meat to Londoners and London restaurants. The business represents 16 local producers. By uniting their distribution channels, Orkney Rose provides these small businesses with the infrastructure to reach the London market.

Jolly's kippers are something of a legend in Orkney, with the herring caught in the clean waters off Orkney, smoked on slow fires of oak chips and turned into plump, firm-fleshed kippers for grilling or lightly steaming.

Orkney Rose offers the kippers on a supply and demand basis, vacuum-packed individually or in bulk.

Loganair and Flybe

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 19:19:56 +0100

Tourists will find it easier to visit some of Scotland's most remote areas after a deal struck between a regional airline and a low-cost carrier, it was claimed.

A new franchise agreement between Loganair and Flybe will mean that connecting flights from cities across Europe to airports throughout the Highlands and Islands can be booked at the same time.

Loganair claim the deal, which comes into effect in October 2008, will make it easier for tourists to get to the communities it serves including Shetland, Orkney, Wick, Stornoway, Benbecula, Barra, Tiree, Islay and Campbeltown.

Radio 2 Young Folk Award

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 13:48:31 +0100

Jeana Leslie and Siobhan Miller have been crowned winners of the 10th BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award.

The duo claimed the title at the end of a night of music at The Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, London where once again six of the UK's most promising young folk acts performed for the chance to win a host of prizes and kick start their careers.

The prize for the winners includes a session for Mike Harding's Radio 2 show and slots at three of the UK's most important festivals – Cambridge Folk Festival, Fairport's Cropredy Convention and Towersey Village Festival.

Jeana Leslie and Siobhan Miller are third year students on the BA Scottish Music course at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow. Jeana is 19 and comes from Orkney, Siobhan is 20 and is from Penicuik.

For the Radio 2 Young Folk Award final Siobhan sang and Jeana played piano, fiddle and sang. The duo were presented with their award by singer, songwriter and musician Seth Lakeman, who collected two awards himself at this year's award ceremony.

Boots and Bog Myrtle

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 13:40:56 +0100

Boots PLC has plans to launch a range of products using essential oil extracted from bog myrtle as one of the main ingredients. However, to achieve this aim, there needs to be a ready supply of bog myrtle. Luckily for Boots, two institutions have provided grants to research how to cultivate the plant on a commercial basis. The companies, the Agronomy Institute on Orkney, part of the University of the Highlands, and Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) grants will be to the tune of £94,000 and £201,000 respectively.

The trial products made by Boots were said to have been a success with consumers. Boots new line of products will refer to bog myrtle as Sweet Gale which is expected to better appeal to consumers.

Best Building in Scotland

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 11:48:19 +0100

In the first 7 weeks since re-opening to the public in July of this year 16,500 people visited the Pier Arts Centre. Considering the population of Stromness is just over 2,000 this goes some way to quantify the worth and value of this restoration, refurbishment and new-build of the internationally acclaimed arts venue. Now, winning the biggest prize in British Architecture, the Pier Arts Centre is marked as a virtuous winner of the RIAS Andrew Doolan Award for Architecture 2007.

Uppies Triumph Again

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 11:34:42 +0100

The New Year's Day Men's Ba' proved something of a marathon for the Uppies... It was not so much a case of if they would defeat the Doonies - which they did in just over four hours - but who should win the coveted ba'.

Although Stephen Kemp touched the Uppie goal - Mackinson's Corner - at 5.20pm, it took a further 50 minutes to decide which player should be awarded the trophy.

Among the names who were contenders for the Uppie Men's Ba' were Sigurd Gibson and Neil Stevenson. But it was 37-year-old Neil Stockan of Kirkwall (who was eventually given the honour.

Read More.....

Merry Dancers

Wed, 12 Dec 2007 12:01:00 +0100

The Aurora Borealis gave us an unexpected and bonnie show on the night of Dec 11th.

Orkneybirds

Mon, 10 Dec 2007 11:29:00 +0100

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