A History of Scotland by Neil Oliver

You probably know Neil Oliver from the very successful BBC series Coast. Fortunately Neil didn’t stop there and since he is from Scotland who could better tell and show you all...

You probably know Neil Oliver from the very successful BBC series Coast. Fortunately Neil didn’t stop there and since he is from Scotland who could better tell and show you all about the very rich history of Scotland? In ten thought-provoking, episodes Neil Oliver brings a fresh perspective to Scotland’s past and challenges many of the perceived notions of Scottish history. With stunning, BAFTA-winning cinematography and mesmerising narrative the series tells of battles and allegiances, political intrigue and religious conflict. This is one of the best Scotland DVD’s if you ask me.

The series charts the journey from the diverse tribes’ first stirrings of identity around 2,000 years ago through to devolution and the reopening of the Scottish Parliament. It reveals the fascinating struggles, power brokers, incidents and characters across the years from William Wallace, Robert the Bruce and Sir Walter Scott to the Highland-lowland rivalry, the Covenanters, the Darien disaster and the tobacco lords. Using the very latest in historical research, A History of Scotland is a sweeping and insightful chronicle of an often turbulent, but continuingly fascinating, nation.

A wee review: “Neil Oliver’s History of Scotland was absolutely enthralling and interesting from beginning to end. Visually, the series is stunning with wonderful landscapes, cities and historic buildings.The music perfectly complements and enhances the whole- and unlike many modern documentary series, the music did not drown out the narration. The dramatisations were not intrusive but added to the visualisation of the people and the periods. Neil Oliver clearly explains a long and complex social, cultural and political history and his constant appearances are not intrusive but add to the intensity of the story. His quirky little asides add a lovely element of Scottishness.”

To order and for more info visit A History of Scotland on Amazon

Updates on Scotland Info

The last weeks have seen some interesting updates on the Scotland Info website. First of all the page with Scottish Visitor Attractions now has a lot more five star attractions varying...

The last weeks have seen some interesting updates on the Scotland Info website. First of all the page with Scottish Visitor Attractions now has a lot more five star attractions varying from castle and distillery visits, to planes, boats and trains, mountain trips, gardens, museums etc. Each of the entries has a link to the attractions original website which makes the searching for a day out very easy and fun.

The page with Castles and Abbeys is completely renewed and now has a beautiful collection of the finest castles and abbeys in Scotland. The page doesn’t include all the castles in Scotland, the list would be endless, but I think this list is quite comprehensive and also very pleasing for the eye.

If there’s one country in the world where you can do some proper Island Hopping it’s probably Scotland with its dozens of beautiful islands west and north off the mainland. Read more…..

Self Catering Scottish Cottages

With the rising costs and financial uncertainty, many people are now choosing to holiday closer to home. If you are one of those who wants to minimise your impact on the...

With the rising costs and financial uncertainty, many people are now choosing to holiday closer to home. If you are one of those who wants to minimise your impact on the environment and spend less money, but still want to have a great time, it may be time to reconsider the many delights that Britain has to offer, including Scotland, the Lake District and Yorkshire. Holiday cottages in Scotland, for example, can offer a more economical holiday in an unspoiled environment.

Self-catering cottages are an excellent option; allowing you to see parts of the country you may never have visited before. From cottages in Yorkshire, to accommodation in Windermere or Edinburgh cottages will show you unfamiliar parts of our picturesque country, whilst still enjoying the comforts of home. Read more…..

North Kessock Views

Although North Kessock is just a dot on the map and is located next to the A9 road and Kessock Bridge it is an idyllic wee village. Why? If you sit...

Although North Kessock is just a dot on the map and is located next to the A9 road and Kessock Bridge it is an idyllic wee village. Why? If you sit beside the waterfront where the road ends at the point where the Beauly Firth and Moray Firth meet you often have the chance of seeing Bottlenose Dolphins. That is quite special if you keep in mind that across the firth is the bustling city of Inverness and next to you thousands of travellers drive over the huge Kessock Bridge each day. This wee village, which runs along the road, has a good hotel and other amenities. Have a look at the local community website for more info. Access is easy, coming from Inverness take the first exit left after you’ve crossed the bridge and turn left at the waterfront.


North Kessock Village


North Kessock Beauly Firth and Kessock Bridge


Kessock Bridge

St Andrews Kirk in North Berwick

Last weekend we visited the lovely village of North Berwick in East Lothian, east of Edinburgh. East Lothian has a lot to offer and is an area that can be easily...

Last weekend we visited the lovely village of North Berwick in East Lothian, east of Edinburgh. East Lothian has a lot to offer and is an area that can be easily overlooked by visitors of Scotland. North Berwick for instance is a village very much worth a visit, the sea side is beautiful and it’s here where you find the “Scottish Sea Bird Centre”, a five stars tourist attraction. Just besides the Sea Bird Centre are the remains of St. Andrews Old Kirk, picture below. This church was founded in the 12th century and was quite an impressive building. All that’s left now are the ruined walls and porched. A large part of the church collapsed into the sea in the 17th century. If you’re interested in wildlife and are looking for some more activity you might be interested in a sea trip to bass rock and other islands out to sea. Bass rock holds the largest population of gannets in Scotland.

If you want to find out more about East Lothian and everything it has to offer I can recommend the new page on Scotland Info about East Lothian and North Berwick


St. Andrews Old Kirk North Berwick

Scotland in the Autumn Travel Report

We have made a trip to Scotland in October 2010 and have only just arrived home. Although I have been to Scotland many times this was one of the best trips...

We have made a trip to Scotland in October 2010 and have only just arrived home. Although I have been to Scotland many times this was one of the best trips ever. We arrived on Friday the first of October in Hull in grey and misty weather. After spending the night in a Bed and Breakfast in East Lothian we travelled the next day to Cove in Wester Ross where we had a self catering cottage for the week. At the start the weather was grey and dull but just after Dalwhinnie the sky broke open and we had beautiful sunny and warm weather that lasted most of the week. The autumn colours on the hills and trees were amazing and after visiting Carrbridge for some shopping and to admire the old pack horse bridge we stopped for a picknick in North Kessock overlooking the Beauly firth and the city of Inverness.


Glen Torridon in Wester Ross

After lunch we headed for Wester Ross over the A832. Travelling over the pass between Achnasheen and Kinlochewe is always the best part of the journey into Wester Ross. The views from the viewpoint at the entry of Glen Docherty over Loch Maree in the west are amazing, specially on a clear and warm autumn day. After making several stops at Loch Maree, my favourite loch in Scotland, we headed on and arrived in Cove in the afternoon. The first week was spent in Cove in Wester Ross.


Storm Arriving at Loch Ewe

This tiny village is located on the shores of the north facing Loch Ewe which played in important role in WWII. This part of Scotland is very quiet, has many hills and a couple of interesting places such as Gairloch, Poolewe, Ullapool and several other lovely villages. Read more….

Dunfermline Abbey

Early 2009 I have visited Dunfermline Abbey together with Bruce and Linda from Scotland of the Roadside and we were surprised to find a wee sign with an interesting text. The...

Early 2009 I have visited Dunfermline Abbey together with Bruce and Linda from Scotland of the Roadside and we were surprised to find a wee sign with an interesting text. The Abbey itself is very beautiful although we couldn’t visit the inside. But thanks to the excellent weather we had a beautiful walk around the Abbey itself which is very much worth a visit!


Dunfermline Abbey

The sign, image below, can be found opposite the cafe and has the following text: 1303AD: There is a tradition that the mother of Sir William Wallace was buried at this spot marked by a Thorn Tree. This was the former site of the Abbey’s weeping cross.


Sign at the Thorn Tree

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