Although the journey was long and a bit arduous, it was worth it as the winding road weaved its way through the spectacular scenery of the Scottish Highlands and led to Lady Claire Macdonald’s establishment on the Isle of Skye. In fact, the famous cookery writer’s restaurant was the main attraction and the focal point of the trip. I had…

The exam results days in Scotland and the rest of the UK were nine days apart. Young people learnt how well they had done in their SQCs and GCSEs respectively. Although I’m selfishly in a very comfortable position of not being bothered – neither personally nor as a parent – the subject was unavoidable unless I had gone completely off-grid.…

“See that you are dressed for action.” Part of this opening line of today’s gospel reading could be a neat slogan you can put on a T-shirt: Dressed for action. But ‘would it be a proper outfit for just any action? I suppose an entire line of fashionable sportswear could be produced and marketed with such a catchy phrase but…

A report from half a year ago: “Oil giant BP said it has “more cash than we know what to do with” as it revealed profits near £ 10 billion while households face a devastating rise in energy bills.” I recalled it a couple of days ago when more energy companies posted their eye-watering profits, in one case a five-fold…

Having lost my car in an accident (not my fault since you asked) I was desperate to get a replacement. Don’t be alarmed, the story happened nearly a quarter of a century ago. Short of money, my only option was to buy a second-hand car which was at that time rather risky. People running such businesses were infamous for flogging…