Archives for December 2010

The lights are dimmed, the audience are now here, and the party is in full swing here at Pacific Quay.

We hope you are enjoying the show, and it's providing a great soundtrack to your night.

Bryan and Janice

Our wonderful Hogmanay Audience

The Meat Men

We're getting set to turn the BBC staff restaurant in Glasgow into the best party venue in Scotland tonight. The bands are here soundchecking, the nibbles and drinks are here , and the lights are dimmed......

In just 4 hours we'll have 270 audience members here to party to the sounds of Ceilidh Minogue and rockabilly group The Meat Men, all hosted by Bryan Burnett and Janice Forsyth.

You can leave messages for family and friends too, just email [email protected] or leave a comment here.

So if you are having a night in the house and need a party soundtrack make sure you tune in from ten tonight.

Instead of just playing old interviews from throughout the year and labelling them "highlights", we asked some of our most insightful contributors to break their holiday and look ahead. So we have Gerry Hassan, Joyce Mcmillan, Mary Kaldor, Murray Pittock, John Peterson, and Trevor Royle on domestic and global issues. We let them talk at length to allow their arguments to unfold and let them get into their stride. They rise to the occasion. The aim is give you something to think about that isn't related to sprouts, sherry, tinsel and those annoying, noisey, inconvenient festive accoutrements that in my house we call the children.

I enclose some biographical details of our expert guests. I commend our January 1 programme to you and hope you find time to listen in. I suppose world peace is too much to hope for, so from the producer Pauline and myself we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Derek.

We're right up to date now as we reach December with our look back at 2010 through the eyes of the BBC Radio Scotland blog.

December has been all about the weather, and this was reflected both on the station with extra travel reports throughout the day and here on the blog, where we asked you to send us your winter photographs. Here's a tiny sample...

Take the Floor moved their gig guide to the blog this month, to make it easier to find weekly event listings. This is a great resource if you're looking for folk, traditional dancing and ceilidh events to attend.

December saw the return of Doric sketch show Desperate Fishwives, both on BBC Radio Scotland and the TV pilot on BBC Scotland.

Desperate Fishwives, 2010

Edith Bowman had some great guests on her album show including Lissie and Goldfrapp. Shereen featured an extended interview with actress Siobhan Redmond.

Well that's it from our look back at 2010. Thanks again for reading these blogs and on behalf of everyone at BBC Radio Scotland I'd like to wish you a very happy new year.

Here is the new BBC Radio Scotland Take The Floor events guide featuring traditional music, Scottish country dances and folk music events throughout Scotland over the next seven days.

FRIDAY 31ST DECEMBER

Edinburgh - Lauriston - Lauriston Hall - Ceilidh - HLI / Wild Geese with Ken Gourley - *Tickets £15/£20*

St Andrew's In The Square - Café Source - Hogmanay Ceilidh - 7:30pm - *Tickets £37.50*

Ceilidh & Old Time Dances

Inverness - Kirkhill Com Centre - Lindsey Weir - 8:30pm-12:30am - *Tickets £5*

Cardross - Geilston Hall - Stuart McKeown - 9pm-12:30am

Stirling - Albert Halls - Ian McCallum - 8pm-1am - *Tickets £47.50*

Law - Tom Craig Centre - Keith Robertson

Glenlochar - Hogmanay Dance, to Purrrfect Ceilidh (Scottish old time dancing) in Glenlochar Community Centre, *Tickets £5* including light supper

Scottish Country Dances

Roseisle - Village Hall - Jennifer Wilson - 7:30pm - *Tickets £5*

SATURDAY 1ST JANUARY

Dundee, Wighton Centre, Dundee Central Library - Fiddle with Karen Hannah - improvers' class - 11am

Dundee, Wighton Centre, Dundee Central Library - Whistle with Helen Forbes - 12:30pm

Fife - Largo Ward Village Hall - Live Music - 8-11pm - *Tickets £5*

Ceilidh & Old Time Dances

Glencarse - Village Hall - Johnny Duncan - 7:30-10pm - *Tickets £2.50*

SUNDAY 2ND JANUARY

Arbroath Accordion & Fiddle Club

Fife - Old Parish Church Hall - Kirk Wynd - Ceilidh, Old Time & Social Dance Club - 2-5pm - *Tickets £3*

East Kilbride - Girl Guide Hall - Ceilidh, Old Time & Social Dance Club - 7:30-10pm - *Tickets £2*

MONDAY 3RD JANUARY

St Andrews, SCD Club - live music from Dierdre Adamson on Accordion (learners welcome) - 7:30pm

Pitlochry, Recreational Grounds (Town Hall if wet) - Highland Nights

Dumbarton - St Patrick's Hall - Strathleven Place - Ceilidh & Social Dance Club - 7:30-10pm

Glasgow - Whitecraigs Tennis Club - Hot Jazz with Alastair McDonald - 7:30pm

Ceilidh & Old Time Dances

Foulden - Village Hall - Dod Hutchison - 8pm-12am - *Tickets £5*

TUESDAY 4TH JANUARY

Dundee, Wighton Centre, Dundee Central Library - Scots Song - suitable for beginners - 2pm

Westerton Summer Dancing - Bearsden, Westerton Village Hall, Maxwell Avenue, Westerton - Musicians John Renton and Rickie Francie - 7:30-10:30pm

Humbie - Village Hall - Ceilidh, Old Time Club & Social Dance Club - 7:30-10pm - *Tickets £3*

Campsie Accordion & Fiddle Club - Glazert Country House Hotel - Lennoxtown - Liam Stewart SDB - 7:30pm

Islesteps Accordion & Fiddle Club - Locharbriggs Social Club - Willie McRobert SDB

WEDNESDAY 5TH JANUARY

Carnoustie Scottish Country Dance Club - Carnoustie, Beach Hall, Links Parade - Various Bands - 8-11pm

Newtongrange - Dean Tavern - Live Music - Ceilidh & Old Time Club - 7:30-10pm - *Tickets £3*

Glasgow - St Andrews In The Square - Live Music - Ceilidh & Old Time Club - 8-9:30pm - *Tickets £5*

Midlem - Village Hall - Live Music - Old Time Class (GB Scott) - 8-10pm - *Tickets £2*

Dingwall Accordion & Fiddle Club - National Hotel - Colin Donaldson Band

Montrose Accordion & Fiddle Club - Park Hotel - Andy Kain Trio - 7:30pm

Stonehouse Accordion & Fiddle Club - Violet Social Club - Club Night - 7:15pm

THURSDAY 6TH JANUARY

RSCDS - Alva, Summer Dance, Cochrane Hall, West Stirling Street - various musicians - 7:30-10:30pm

Penicuick - Town Hall - Ceilidh Class - 8-9:30pm - *Tickets £2.90/£1.50*

Isle Of Skye Accordion & Fiddle Club - Ross MacPherson Scottish Dance Band

Rothbury Accordion & Fiddle Club - Queen's Head Hotel - Club Night (Buffet Supper) - 7:30pm

David Flynn who produced the programme Stan Laurel's Glasgow has written a few words about what inspired him to make the programme. It's still on the iPlayer and it's a fascinating story. Here's what David sent me:

I've been a Laurel & Hardy fan since the days when BBC2 used to show them at 5.30pm followed by Harold Lloyd - yes, that shows my age.

Earlier this year I was on attachment to BBC Radio Cumbria which allowed me to visit Stan's birthplace in Ulverston and it was there I first discovered his connections to Glasgow.

I slowly pieced together the five years that Stan and his family spent here and found in Alex Norton, the host of the show, a kindred spirit. The final programme really is a labour of love and I hope an illuminating tale -for fans and non fans alike.

Here are the BBC Radio Scotland highlights for November 2010, as reported on the BBC Radio Scotland blog.

BBC Children in Need this year took place on Friday 19th November. Bryan Burnett visited some of the projects who have benefited from Children in Need and recorded some moving stories which we featured on the blog. MacAulay and Co, Brian Taylor and Tom Morton all presented live shows from BBC Pacific Quay with special guests. In the evening Edith Bowman was backstage at Children in Need Rocks from the SECC.

Alexandra Burke with Edith Bowman

Also for charity, many of BBC Radio Scotland's male presenters took part in the Movember challenge - challenging men to change their appearance and the face of men's health by growing a moustache. Here are Bill Whiteford and John Beattie.

Bill Whiteford and John Beattie photographed halfway through their Movember challenge

Shereen Nanjiani had an eclectic mix of interesting guests on her show including Alistair Urquhart, Ashley Leiman OBE, James Cosmo and Caroline Lucas.

In music, Another Country came to the end of its current series with a Bruce Springsteen special and had an hour in the company of singer-songwriter Darrell Scott. Edith Bowman's Album Show returned for a new series, and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra celebrated 75 years.

Poet Norman MacCaig would have turned 100 in November 2010, and Out of Doors marked the occasion with a special programme from Assynt. Remembrance 2010 was marked on BBC Radio Scotland with a number of programmes including Poppies to Remember and The Forgotten 51st.

And finally, winter arrived earlier than advertised, with travel chaos and heavy snow. More on that tomorrow!

We've now reached October in our look back at BBC Radio Scotland's highlights of 2010 as reported on the BBC Radio Scotland blog.

October was the month when the Government unveiled it's spending review. BBC Radio Scotland held public spending debates across the country and we had blogs about each of them: The North East, The South West, The Highlands and Islands and The Borders.

Also on the subject of news and politics, Derek Bateman began writing us a weekly blog about the subjects covered in his Newsweek Scotland programme.

Shereen had some interesting guests in October, and we published extended interviews with all of them on the blog including Will Hutton and James Ellroy.

Vic Galloway had the Phantom Band in session and Scotland's Music filmed it for the website. On Another Country Ricky's guests included Frazey Ford and Eilen Jewell. Iain Anderson was joined in the studio by Mary Chapin Carpenter after her excellent gig at the Old Fruitmarket.

Ricky Ross and Eilen Jewell, Studio 1, BBC Radio Scotland, October 2010

October saw the launch of Family Legends, a collaboration between BBC Radio Scotland and the Scottish Book Trust to encourage people to write a short story about a family member or experience. BBC Radio Scotland presenters Nick Rougvie and Bill Whiteford shared their stories with us.

The BBC Good Food Show came to Glasgow in October. MacAulay and Co, Brian Taylor and Off the Ball came live from the show, and The Book Cafe pre-recorded their programme too.

The Scotland's Landscape season kicked off with a five-part radio series Walking Through Landscape, Stark Talk returned for a new series and new Beechgove Potting Shed presenter Theresa Talbot introduced herself.

Finally, Head of Radio, Scotland, Jeff Zycinski shared a halloween ghost story with us.

Here are the BBC Radio Scotland highlights for September 2010 as recorded on the BBC Radio Scotland blog...

The biggest story of September was the Papal Visit. Elizabeth Quigley wrote an interesting blog relating to her programme From John Paul to Benedict - A Tale of Two Popes.

By September we were receiving weekly blogs from Tom Morton (his Top Tales) and Cathy MacDonald. In this month Shereen Nanjiani joined the party sharing with us details of her programme and extended versions of her interviews, beginning with Ardal O'Hanlan.

Janice Forsythinterviewed Fran Healy and unearthed a couple of songs by his original band Glass Onion, she also had a session from KT Tunstall. Another Country with Ricky Ross had a show devoted to Johnny Cash and an interview with Avi Buffalo, Caitlin Rose and two of country music's living legends: Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson.

Janice Forsyth with Fran Healy

September saw the broadcast of the two part drama Legacy which came with an online game. Brendan Crowther, the producer of the game, told us more.

We also heard more about BBC Radio Scotland programmes Rain, Make My Teenager Sleep and The Culture Zone's Marshall and Me.

MacAulay and Co had Jean Michel Jarre as a live guest, they also heard about the psychology of food, and Richard Cadey modelled a pair of sexy blue stilletos...

Richard Cadey's stilletos

And last, but not least, Travelling Folk returned with new presenter Bruce MacGregor at the helm.

August on the BBC Radio Scotland blog was, for the most part anyway, all about the Edinburgh Festivals and that's the reason for the record number of posts that month - 61!

The Festival Cafe, The Comedy Cafe and MacAulay and Co came live from the Edinburgh International Conference Centre for two weeks, and the runners kindly took the time to take photographs and write us daily blogs about their experiences. I spent a few days there too and thoroughly enjoyed all the BBC Radio Scotland shows I saw.

MacAulay and Co 20 August, top left: Paul Merton, middle left: Fred and Susan, bottom left: Greg Davies, right: little and large aka Susan and Greg!

The World Pipe Band Championships took place in July and were featured on Pipeline and the dedicated pages on the Scotland's Music site.

A programme that proved very popular and aroused quite a bit of debate was the four part series "An Alternative History of Celtic and Rangers". Another programme that launched in August was the eight part series Scotland At Prayer.

Swots came to an end after eight entertaining weeks, as did Edith Bowman's Album Show, however this meant the return of Another Country with Ricky Ross. During July Ricky met Tom Jones and launched the Another Country Movie Club with A Coal Miner's Daughter.

Ricky Ross and Tom Jones

Here are the BBC Radio Scotland highlights for July 2010.

July saw BBC Radio Scotland favourite, Jimmie MacGregor return to the station for a special Celtic Zone featuring many of the programmes he recorded over the years. Also on the Zones, a golf special to coincide with the Open Championship.

However the most talked about event of July was BBC Radio Scotland's 80s day.

Miss Babs and Bryan Burnett (in the 80s!)

Another Country producer Richard Murdoch put together an 80s pop quiz (here are the answers) and we managed to dig out the Radio Times BBC Radio Scotland schedule from 23 July 1985.

Singer-songwriter Karine Polwart exchanged a stage for a radio studio to present The Studio One Sessions, featuring guests such as Tim Eriksen, Emily Smith and Chris Stout and Catriona McKay.

Karine with Chris Stout, Catriona McKay and Growler

Pennie Latin took us behind the scenes of her feature A Painful Business, Mark Stephen shared a story from Past Lives and Colin McKay wrote about A Life in Question.

Merry Christmas from all of us at BBC Radio Scotland, thanks for listening to the station, visiting the website and giving us your feedback.

June was another busy month on BBC Radio Scotland and here are some of the highlights as featured on the BBC Radio Scotland blog...

Our very first blog in June came from the MacAulay and Co team who provided information on writing the perfect letter.

A brand new series of Swots broadcast on the station featuring Miles Jupp as headmaster and Susan Morrison as school secretary. We were there for all the recordings to take photos and film some behind the scenes action.

Photographs taken at the recording of Swots at the CCA, Glasgow, June 2010.

It was a big month for music on BBC Radio Scotland. Ricky Rossmet up with Willie Nelson on his tour bus and recorded a session with Annabelle Chvostek, both for broadcast later in the year.

Annabelle Chvostek in Studio 1, BBC Scotland, June 2010 recording a session for Another Country with Ricky Ross.

Edith Bowman began a six week series of her album show, and Davie Scott's Classic Scottish albums continued with features on Big Country's "The Crossing" and The Jesus and Mary Chain "From Westwood to Hollywood".

The annual Rockness Festival took place and Classics Unwrapped visited Orkney for the St Magnus Festival.

The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra celebrated its 75th anniversary and the Young Jazz Musician of the Year took place at the Old Fruitmarket.

There were two other big events in June. The World Cup took place over in South Africa, and although Scotland weren't represented on the field, there was a fair amount of coverage on the station, not least about the summer craze of the Vuvuzela which Sports Report presenter Liam McLeod tried out for us.

The other major event was the Royal Highland Show from Ingliston. BBC Radio Scotland had a large presence at the show this year with many shows coming live from the grounds including MacAulay and Co, Brian Taylor's Big Debate and Janice Forsyth. We were there to take photos of all the programmes, exhibitions and animals.

And, finally the Cybermen visited BBC Scotland at Pacific Quay.

The big story of early May 2010 on BBC Radio Scotland was the UK General Election. Nick Rougvie found the time to share stories from the newsroom.

Tom Morton had a session from Neil Hannon from The Divine Comedy which was filmed for the website. Another Country with Ricky Ross featured sessions and interviews with Mary Gauthier and Ben Glover; and Davie Scott presented a new series of his Classic Scottish Albums featuring, in episode one, Sunshine Superman by Donovan. Classics Unwrapped went to the Ardnamurchan Music Festival.

Head of Radio, Scotland, Jeff Zycinski, answered your questions.

Sportsound won Sony Gold for Best Sports Programme.

Sportsound production team winning the Sony Gold Award.

The football season came to an end, which saw some new series on BBC Radio Scotland - Managing the Old Firm and Knives with Wives (and Spoons and Tunes).

Finally, for May, Jackie Bird went to Afghanistan and her experiences were recorded in ER Afghanistan and Clare English told us more about the new series of Women on Top.

Jackie Bird in Afghanistan

BBC Radio Scotland's Take The Floor events guide featuring traditional music, Scottish country dances and folk music events throughout Scotland that'll keep you warm over this frosty festive season. Merry Christmas.

FRIDAY 24TH DECEMBER

Ceilidh & Old Time Dances

Black Isle - North Kessock Hall - Sheila & Jim - 8:30pm-12:30am - *Tickets £5*

Westhills - Ashdale Hall - Garioch Band - 8pm-12midnight - *Tickets £7.50*

SATURDAY 25TH DECEMBER

Dundee, Wighton Centre, Dundee Central Library - Fiddle with Karen Hannah - improvers' class - 11am

Dundee, Wighton Centre, Dundee Central Library - Whistle with Helen Forbes - 12:30pm

Fife - Largo Ward Village Hall - Live Music - 8-11pm - *Tickets £5*

SUNDAY 26TH DECEMBER

Fife - Old Parish Church Hall - Kirk Wynd - Ceilidh, Old Time & Social Dance Club - 2-5pm - *Tickets £3*

East Kilbride - Girl Guide Hall - Ceilidh, Old Time & Social Dance Club - 7:30-10pm - *Tickets £2*

Ceilidh & Old Time Dances

Glencarse - Village Hall - George Rennie - 7:30-10pm - *Tickets £2.50*

MONDAY 27TH DECEMBER

St Andrews, SCD Club - live music from Dierdre Adamson on Accordion (learners welcome) - 7:30pm

Pitlochry, Recreational Grounds (Town Hall if wet) - Highland Nights

Banchory Accordion & Fiddle Club - Burnett Arms Hotel - Graeme Mitchell Band - 7:45pm

Fintry Accordion & Fiddle Club - Sports Centre - Neil MacEachearn - 7:30pm

Dumbarton - St Patrick's Hall - Strathleven Place - Ceilidh & Social Dance Club - 7:30-10pm

Glasgow - Whitecraigs Tennis Club - Hot Jazz with Alastair McDonald - 7:30pm

Ceilidh & Old Time Dances

Kirkwall - St Magnus Centre - Live Music - 8-10:30pm - *Tickets £2.50*

TUESDAY 28TH DECEMBER

Dundee, Wighton Centre, Dundee Central Library - Scots Song - suitable for beginners - 2pm

Westerton Summer Dancing - Bearsden, Westerton Village Hall, Maxwell Avenue, Westerton - Musicians John Renton and Rickie Francie - 7:30-10:30pm

Humbie - Village Hall - Ceilidh, Old Time Club & Social Dance Club - 7:30-10pm - *Tickets £3*

Couper Angus Scottish Dance Club - Couper Angus Town Hall - Nicol McLaren & The Glencraig Dance Band - 7:30pm - *Tickets £6*

WEDNESDAY 29TH DECEMBER

Carnoustie Scottish Country Dance Club - Carnoustie, Beach Hall, Links Parade - Various Bands - 8-11pm

Newtongrange - Dean Tavern - Live Music - Ceilidh & Old Time Club - 7:30-10pm - *Tickets £3*

Glasgow - St Andrews In The Square - Live Music - Ceilidh & Old Time Club - 8-9:30pm - *Tickets £5*

Midlem - Village Hall - Live Music - Old Time Class (GB Scott) - 8-10pm - *Tickets £2*

Glasgow - St Andrew's In The Square - Cosmopolitan Big Band - 9pm - *FREE*

Scottish Country Dances

Forres - Town Hall - Fine Blend - 8pm

THURSDAY 30TH DECEMBER

RSCDS - Alva, Summer Dance, Cochrane Hall, West Stirling Street - various musicians - 7:30-10:30pm

Penicuick - Town Hall - Ceilidh Class - 8-9:30pm - *Tickets £2.90/£1.50*

Edinburgh - The Scottish Fiddle Orchestra - Usher Hall

Ceilidh & Old Time Dances

Windygates - Greig Institute - Bruce Lindsay - 7:30-10:30pm - *Tickets £3.50*

FRIDAY 31ST DECEMBER

Hogmanay Dance, to Purrrfect Ceilidh (Scottish old time dancing) in Glenlochar Community Centre, tickets £5.00 including light supper, contact Donald, on 01556 670275 .

April was a busy month on BBC Radio Scotland, here are some of the stories, as told on the BBC Radio Scotland blog...

April saw both bad weather and volcanic ash from Iceland disrupt travel plans. Tom Morton awoke one morning in Shetland and found a layer of ash covering the island, and Annie McGuire was stranded in the South of France.

Tom Morton's hand showing volcanic ash from Iceland

The Cafes underwent a facelift with the creation of the Comedy Cafe and Culture Cafe and The Music Cafe. The first series of Scotland on Song presented by Barbara Dickson was launched was broadcast.

Another Country with Ricky Ross had a number of great sessions including Avett Brothers, Sparrow in the Workshop, and Woodenbox and a Fistful of Fivers.

Meanwhile Mary Ann's Global Gathering had a session with Tigerstyle, filmed by our colleagues on Scotland's Music, and Janice Forsyth chatted to Del Amitri's Justin Currie.

April saw BBC Radio Scotland gearing up for the May General Election and Good Morning Scotland went on the campaign trail.

Finally, there were also some interesting features on BBC Radio Scotland in April. Read about Forgive and Forget, The Spielberg of Gaming, My Life in Five Songs and Black Watch, 3 Scots: A War in Their Own Words.

This is just in from Edith ahead of Friday's show:

I can't believe how quickly this series has gone, only 2 shows left on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve as we celebreate some of the best albums of 2010. It's quite hard to cut that down to 4 hours of radio as it's been a good year for quality music.

So get the mulled wine in, don your best Christmas jumper, get your mates round and I'll see you for a wonderful journey through some of the best music of 2010. Part 1 of our 2010 audio delights include everything from jazz to classical, soul to pop with the obligatory Rock, be rude not to.

See you on Friday at 8pm

Merry Xmas xxxxx

Over the next ten days we'll be looking back at the first months of the BBC Radio Scotland blog, and pointing you in the direction of some of the interesting posts you might have missed.

The blog launched in March 2010, and any worries we might initially have had about finding things to write about were quickly put to rest. There are so many interesting things happening at BBC Radio Scotland to share with you and we were quickly inundated with blogs from producers and presenters too!

So what happened in March?

David Stenhouse, producer of The Gorbals Vampire wrote a great article about the programme and the story behind the "vampire".

As part of the BBC Radio Scotland Motivation season, Bryan Burnett decided to try his hand at street dancing. In March he unveiled his new dancing skills to the nation...

Bryan Burnett learning to street dance.

The Beechgrove Potting Shed decided to create an allotment on the grounds of the BBC in Aberdeen.

Tom Morton sent us some gorgeous photographs from his home in Shetland.

Boats on Shetland, by Tom Morton

Fred MacAulaylooked back at thirteen years with the BBC and shared one of his Freddietorials from 2005.

And, finally, Kaye Adamsreflected on her first month as presenter of Call Kaye.

We also answered some of your questions - madmacfraeclydebank asked... "what's better, blogging or facebooking?" and Scotchgit asked how do the Get it On team find the music requested?

Come back tomorrow for April highlights.

Over the past few weeks there has been some work done on the pages which offer programmes and news bulletins for Orkney, Shetland, North East, Highlands & Islands, Borders and South.

We're changing the pages to offer a better service and audio quality. However we've had a few teething problems and anyone who's attempted to look at the pages or listen since Wednesday 8th December may have had problems.

If you look at the pages today you'll see we've put the old version back up. We've done this until we are certain the new version is working and that we've sorted all the problems. Please bear with us.

Today's studio guests were journalist and political biographer David Torrance, STV's on line editor Robert Dawson Scott, and writer Kirsty Scott.

David Torrance remarked on the contrast between the way the Westminster Transport Secretary dealt with it compared to our own transport Secretary who was forced to resign.

All of them took much delight in reading that petrol head Jeremy Clarkson had to be rescued from the snow having abandoned his car. Kirsty said she hoped they picked him up in a Prius.

Once again there was fiery debate which began before we were even on air. This week the subject that got them going was Wikileaks man Julian Assange. Kirsty and Robert had a right ding dong. It doen't take much to get Kirsty going. She's furious at Assange's new found folk hero status, with celebrity followers like Jemima Khan calling him "the new Jason Bourne". She thinks he's a man with a massive ego and that the rape allegations against him undermine any credibility Wikileaks might have. Robert senses conspiracy. I practically had to pull them apart.

As well as this week's big talking points we looked back on the year gone by. There was the formation of the Coalition (David told us how he blagged his way into the Downing Street Rose Garden for the Nick and Dave love-in), Gordon Brown's demise and subsequent re-invention, and the feelgood story of the year, the Chilean miners.

Lots of contenders for pictures of the year from Gordon Brown with his head in his hands after his "that bigoted woman" gaffe, to Charles and Camilla under siege in their car, to the satellite picture showing the entire UK covered in snow.

It's been quite a year. Next week I'll have a Boxing Day special of my favourite interviews of 2010. For now have a very Merry Christmas.

In amongst all the Christmas preparation is a list I always forget to make - and naturally I only remember it just as I need it. Music to play throughout the festive period. It's one of the few times in the year that I get to indulge my own musical tastes and to play them for as long and as loud as I like. But there's nothing worse than scrambling around just before the main course goes on the table because you've forgotten that Barbra Streisand CD or a Del Amitri track you just fancy listening too - worse still you're in the middle of doing the roast potatoes and you're in the mood for Van Morrison and your favourite CD isn't there.

The obvious answer of course is to get it all sorted and organised way in advance - but of course the downside of all of this is that it takes time - usually because most of that time is spent listening to those old favourites. I like to start off on the day itself with some good old Christmas Carols - it puts everyone in the mood. Then I like to switch the radio on and tune in to whatever I've ticked off on my programme list ( haven't organised that one either)- then around midmorning I like a bit of lively Scottish music. In fact I like the broadest mix possible - but very definitely Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, Van Morrison and the Chieftains, a good mix of Gaelic music, Amy Macdonald is there, Del Amitri, Pink Floyd - nothing is off limits. That's probably why I need a list and several days to wallow in my favourite pastime. I ought to have taken notes throughout the year of the songs I enjoyed - then I wouldn't have this problem. Maybe that should be my resolution for 2011. Happy Christmas to you all, wherever you are.

"O'er the fields we go,

Laughing all the way,

Bells on bob tails ring,

Making spirits bright."



Actually it goes on for another verse which, when I read it, made me wonder if it would pass the BBC innuendo test.

(To the tune of Jingle Bells)

"I thought I'd take a ride

And soon Miss Fanny Bright

Was seated by my side

The horse was lean and lank

Misfortune seemed his lot

We got into a drifted bank

And then we got upsot...!"

Of course, I'm part of the Carry On generation and never miss the chance for a double entendre. So I can tell you we are going to gently massage our firm format and give it a bit of a tickle on January 1. We have asked some of our outstanding contributors to come together for a series of special discussions. We take stock of the world - yes, the entire planet - in the company of some of the best experts in the country... Murray Pittock, Simon Lee, Rosemary Hollis, Phillip Blond and Gerry Hassan among them. It may be just the tonic you need on Ne'er Day to keep your brain from turning to mince.

Meantime tomorrow we have our usual mix of domestic and foreign items... tuition fees - how did it come to this? After the financial crash we learned not to saddle ourselves with too much debt. So why in England are they proposing students start life with a mortgage for their education? What is the solution? We'll ask Gerard De Groot of St Andrews University, our oldest, founded 1413.

We tackle corruption in Kenya with an outstanding Scot, Professor David Anderson, Professor of African Politics at Oxford University, founded 12th century. Massimo Franco in Rome, a columnist with Corriere dell Serra, tells us what will happen in Italy as Berlusconi comes under more fire. He also lectures at the University of California Berkley, founded 1868. I went there myself but only for the day, to hear a lecture at their school of journalism. Pity I didn't listen. I might have learned something. As it is, I don't even know the words to Jingle Bells. Join me tomorrow at 8.

We were talking about the weird, wonderful and inexplicable things we might have seen. Marian from Waas in Shetland sent this in...



I haven't seen the Loch Ness Monster myself, but my husband Tom and all his family saw it in the summer of 1954 when he was 8 years old. They were all staying at his granny's croft on Loch Ness side and one day for a joke his father (a minister of the kirk!) said ' Look there's the monster' but in fact it was!! They all saw it, a long hump and a small head, and the most amazing thing was that they stood and watched it swimming up and down for 20-25 minutes - it didn't just appear and then disappear. Granny had lived on the loch side for over 80 years and this was the first and only time she had seen it. My sister-in-law who was 4 at the time remembers hiding under the car seat as she was so frightened....... so 9 people, all honest and upstanding citizens , can't all be telling porkies!!!

Marian Macintyre, Waas

Here is the new BBC Radio Scotland Take The Floor events guide featuring traditional music, Scottish country dances and folk music events throughout Scotland over the next seven days.

FRIDAY 17TH DECEMBER

Salmon Bothy Folk Club - Portsoy - *Ticket £5*

Tattie Jam Dates - 2010 Late Tour

Aberdeen - The Lemon Tree - 5 West North Street - 12:30pm

Ceilidh & Old Time Dances

Meikleour - Village Hall - Gordon Pattullo - 8-11:30pm - *Tickets £4*

Berwick-on-Tweed - Hutton Village Hall - George King - 8-12midnight - *Tickets £5*

Ellon - Station Hotel - George Rennie - 7:30-12midnight

Scottish Country Dances

Stirling - Albert Halls - Colin Dewar - 7:30pm - *Tickets £7.50*

Read the rest of this entry

It's that time of year again when people start looking back at the past 12 months to create lists of their favourite books, music, films etc. BBC Radio Scotland's Book Cafe published their list of recommended books on the blog earlier this week, and you can now find Vic Galloway's albums of 2010 on the Scotland's Music blog. The Another Country team have been asking listeners for their favourite Americana and Country albums on their Facebook page.

The Movie Cafe will be discussing the best, and worst, films of 2010 on 23 December, and Brian Taylor and his panel debate some of the big stories of 2010 on 24 December.

If you have any recommendations from 2010, please share them below - it doesn't matter if it's music, books, films, live music, or even your favourite BBC Radio Scotland programme!

Following last Friday's episode of Desperate Fishwives on BBC Radio Scotland I spoke with the producer Margaret-Anne Docherty. She was filling me in on the TV version of Desperate Fishwives and wrote these words about the process of making a programme for radio and migrating it across onto TV:

Hello from Radio Comedy or should I say radio with a wee touch of telly! Our much loved Doric jewel Desperate Fishwives is set to hit the small screen tonight, BBC 2 Scotland at 2200.

The transition from Radio to TV wasn't an easy one. The main problem was thinking in pictures. Radio by its very nature is more verbose and D.F. radio sketches can be between 3 and 5 mins long!

That length just wouldn't cut it on TV so you need to abridge the narrative using pictures, basically you SHOW and don't TELL. So after years of TELLING on Radio Scotland we had to think about pictures for the first time. Hopefully you will think that we have cracked it ...watch the show and let us know.

Best, Margaret-Anne Docherty

Producer, Desperate Fishwives

Desperate Fishwives on TV and Radio

RADIO - BBC Radio Scotland

Friday 10 December: Desperate Fishwives - Festive Frolics

Saturday 25 December: Desperate Fishwives Christmas Special (repeat of the 2009 programme)

Friday 31 December/ Hogmanay: Desperate Fishwives New Year Special

Saturday 1 January: Desperate Fishwives New Year Special (repeat of the programme from the previous day)

TV - BBC TWO Scotland

Tuesday 14 December: Desperate Fishwives

It's been announced today that the go ahead has been given to complete the missing link on the M8 motorway. This will be great news for all those who sit, stuck in traffic, between Baillieston and Newhouse in North Lanarkshire. (I've been one of those drivers on many occasions!)

The news reminded me of our Adventures on the M8 site where you can see photographs, watch videos and read little known facts about the motorway. For example, did you know that it's Britain's only east to west motorway north of the M62?

M8 taken in 2009

On yesterday's Book Cafe (13 December 2010) on BBC Radio Scotland we were joined by Karen Howlett (from online book group Cornflower Books) and Vanessa Robertson (of The Edinburgh Bookshop) to discuss the literary highs of 2010.

The titles came thick and fast, so in case you missed any of it here were some of their book recommendations:

Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson

The Small Hand by Susan Hill

The City & The City by China Miéville

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

The Tiger by John Vaillant

Jo Nesbo

Anne Holt

Travels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck

I Capture The Castle by Dodie Smith

Hugless Douglas by David Melling

Poppy Fields Murder Mysteries

Wasted by Nicola Morgan

Firebrand by Gillian Philip

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell

The Lost Recipe for Happiness by Barbara O'Neal

On Fire with Fergie by Stuart Donald

The Tapestry of Love by Rosy Thornton

Star Gazing by Linda Gillard

Dark Matter: A Ghost Story by Michelle Paver

Corrag by Susan Fletcher

South Wind Through the Kitchen: The Best of Elizabeth David by Elizabeth David and Jill Norman

The Gentle Art of Quilt-Making by Jane Brocket

Lotta Jansdotter's Handmade Living: A Fresh Take on Scandinavian Style by Lotta Jansdotter

Room by Emma Donoghue

Our Twitter audience were getting involved too. Here's what some of them suggested:

Karen Campbell's The Twilight Time & Tony Black's A Long Time Dead. Both Scottish, both great

Shiver by Maggie Steifvater

'The Help' was my favourite book

My favourite book of 2010 has been "Cooking Human" by Cynthia Flambe-Fry.

Portrait of an Addict As a Young Man by Bill Clegg. I simply could not read it fast enough or fail to feel utterly absorbed.

'The Lacuna', by Barbara Kingsolver. A truly stunning novel. For me it was a life-changing read.

I think Purge by Sofi Oksanen might be my fav book of the year though am debating as it's been a great year for books!

Sylvia Loch "An Algarve affair" her first novel it's very good.

This Night's Foul Work by Fred Vargas

Sophia's Secret by Susanna Kearsley and Wasted by Nicola Morgan.

The Dead Beat by Cody James

Let us know your best book of 2010, or what you think may make a great Christmas gift. You can join in the conversation on Twitter by following us @BBCBookCafe, you can email The Book Cafe or leave your suggestions in the comments section below this blog.

And you can listen again to the programme in full on the BBC iPlayer.

After two days of respite from the freezing weather the thaw came to an abrupt end on Sunday morning. Back to scraping down the car and negotiating treacherous black ice on the way to the BBC Radio Scotland.

Perhaps that's why my panel seemed in a particularly bad mood this week, well two of them anyway. Ewan Crawford, former SNP advisor and now media lecturer at the University of the West of Scotland, was still smarting after being stranded overnight in Hamilton on white-out Monday. Meanwhile, journalist Christine Jardine was seething (like many of us) that we could be so unprepared for the Arctic onslaught. Lyndsay Moss, The Scotsman's Health Correspondent found herself piggy in the middle when the other two got going on the show.

First it was the resignation of Transport Minister, Stewart Stevenson. Ewan felt the media, especially the newspapers, had gone over the top in casting Stevenson as the villain. But Christine, a card carrying Lib Dem, was adamant that the whole mess was ultimately his fault and he had to go. It all got decidedly heated so I moved them on to the next item. Big mistake. The next item was the student protest against tuition fees. Christine had some defending to do and Ewan wasn't going to let her get away with it. They were practically at each other's throats until I called time.

My big interview with Scottish film-maker May Miles Thomas couldn't have come at a better time. May has some fantastic tales of growing up in Glasgow's slum tenements and has also launched a rather spooky website which has won a BAFTA award. It's called The Devil's Plantation and it occurred to me that Christine and Ewan might want to spend some time on it to let off some more steam after the show.

Shereen with guest May Miles Thomas

But as often happens after a major barny on air, the guests came out of the studio all sweetness and light as if nothing had happened. Still don't think they'll be exchanging Christmas cards.

The extended interview with May Miles Thomas can now be heard below, please accept our sincere apologies for the delay... I hope you enjoy.

It was with a combination of bewilderment and bemusement that I watched matters unfold on Monday morning. I was pretty certain it was going to snow - not that it stopped me from heading for Glasgow, but little did I realise quite how serious it would become. By lunchtime it was obvious that the wise man would have stayed at home - but that's not always an option. By some miracle, I can only assume, I chose to take the train and avoid the M80 - years of driving through Auchenkilns and those repetitive roadworks, had convinced me, it was a habit I had to break - and especially so on a Monday morning. Add snow to the mix and you're in trouble.

It was Tuesday morning before I really appreciated the extent of the problem - one of my friends was caught up in the gridlock - and it was a full 24 hours before he reached his destination. It's no joke when travel is interrupted by delays - and it takes every fibre of your patience to put up with it. I was one of the lucky ones, I got home without too much trouble, but again I was relying on other people to complete the journey for me. My journey from Stirling to Glasgow might have been reminiscent of a scene from Dr Zhivago, but that was exclusively aesthetic - the rest was a combination of luck and determination - I ended up walking the 2 miles or so from BBC PQ to Queen Street.

The sharp cold helped me focus on the plight of those who weren't so lucky and who were struggling to get to their various destinations without the choice I had. I couldn't help thinking of that Talking Heads song "Road to Nowhere" and then it was Stealers Wheel with "Stuck in the Middle with You" - that one came to me on the train - along with the Doobie Brothers "Long Train Coming"... and I know there are more. What songs capture this last weeks travel chaos for you? If you've been in a similar situation what songs best describe your feelings? Let me know and we can include them on the show - get in touch by emailing [email protected]

The producer says I have to write the blog without using the S word - S**W. (There may be references to white stuff and freezing ice goblets) But on Newsweek we will be discussing the aftermath of the big freeze which has had one happy consequence - listening figures are up hugely across Radio Scotland! That's small comfort if you were trapped on the road like a friend of ours who left a birthday party at our house in Glasgow and took 12 hours to reach Blantyre in Lanarkshire with a three-year-old in the car...

Maybe it will make people think twice about commuting. I have an advantage in being close enough to walk to work and to shops, railways etc. The only problem was a water leak in a flat above so our water was off for a day.

We discuss the political witch-hunt for someone to blame and, like a witch, it seems Stewart Stevenson is guilty either way. If he sinks, he drowns. If he floats, take him out and burn him. I'm sure that's how it feels but then this kind of chaos and uncertainty probably requires someone to take full responsibility. Maybe he still will but if the opposition failed to oust the minister in the chamber, it looks unlikely they'll move him over the weekend. It raises questions about our planning too because we have emergency planning officers in ever part of Scotland. Where were they, and what did they do? We'll ask one of them.

Also what does the Chinese 19-country boycott of the Nobel Peace Prize tell us about Beijing and some of the places our soldiers are dying to help... Iraq and Afghanistan? Why are they signing up to China's version of human rights rather than ours?

Mind you, you could argue that the way Julian Assange has been hounded for releasing embarrassing information and the brutal commercial pressure on companies like Amazon from the Americans that human rights are shaky in the West.., exactly the point Vladimir Putin made this week. Human rights are a two-way street. We'll get the view from Sweden on what their government is up to.

We're in Cancun where it's warm and, in case you've forgotten, the climate change conference is on, and we have surprising news for you if you send a child to private school. Most of them stayed open during the freeze... did I mention they made it through the... (that's enough - Ed) See you tomorrow at 8.

The latest BBC Radio Scotland station playlist has now been published.

Added this week are the new singles from:

• Hurts - All I Want For Christmas is the New Year
• Cheryl Cole - The Flood
• Nell Bryden - Glory to the Day (Helen's Requiem)
• Bruno Mars - Grenade
• Michael Jackson feat. Akon - Hold My Hand
• James Blunt - So Far Gone

Cheryl Cole

Hear songs from the playlist on The Janice Forsyth Show and Tom Morton Show.

You'll also find recommendations from the programming teams on their albums of the week (or month). For example, next week's Iain Anderson album of the week is the new release from Kate Rusby - Make the Light.

Edith's just sent us this ahead of tomorrow's show (December 10).

It's so nice to be back and doing the album show again, I'm getting into my stride now and at such a great time of the year. I know a lot of you will have been affected by the weather one way or another, but what better thing to keep you warm and smiling than a fresh batch of tunes.

Edith Bowman with Alison Goldfrapp, BBC Scotland, November 2010

Last week's show was my favourite so far, such a great mix of music and with the added bonus of a session from Lissie - she sounded incredible. This week you can hear me chatting to Alison Goldfrapp who is a bit of a legend and great fun. Also Mark Ronson picks the first and last albums he loved, we get excited about a new soundtrack album and a handbag moment you won't want to miss.

Edith Bowman's Album Show is on BBC Radio Scotland every Friday between 2000-2200

I just caught up with Desperate Fishwives producer Margaret Anne Docherty and Lauren Mackay.

Desperate Fishwives, 2010

There are a number of treats coming up for fans of the Doric sketch show - both on Radio and - for the first time - TV. Here's the schedule of where and when you can catch the Fishwives over the coming weeks.

RADIO - BBC Radio Scotland

Friday 10 December: Desperate Fishwives - Festive Frolics

Saturday 25 December: Desperate Fishwives Christmas Special (repeat of the 2009 programme)

Friday 31 December/ Hogmanay: Desperate Fishwives New Year Special

Saturday 1 January: Desperate Fishwives New Year Special (repeat of the programme from the previous day)

TV - BBC TWO Scotland

Tuesday 14 December: Desperate Fishwives

One of our audio engineers here at BBC Radio Scotland, Aberdeen, entered into the spirit of things at the Beechgrove Potting Shed. Ron McCaskill decided he'd do his bit to add some colour to our collection of plants and bring on some chillis...

Back at the end of summer, we got a few small chilli and sweet pepper plants. These were going cheap at a well known DIY store as it was a bit in the season, so as an experiment, we wondered if they would grow in the office. Although all the plants put on good growth, the flowering was very late, and the pollination very poor. We did put them outside for a couple of weeks, and a lot of the flowers did set, but most of the pods dropped off when very small.

Read the rest of this entry

Here is the new BBC Radio Scotland Take The Floor events guide.

FRIDAY 10TH DECEMBER

RSCDS - Aberdeen - Christmas Dance - David Oswald and his Band

Edinburgh - Lauriston - Lauriston Hall - Ceilidh - HLI / Wild Geese with Ken Gourley - *Tickets £8/£10*

Clydebank And District Highland Association - Napier Hall - Ceilidh - 7:30pm - *Tickets £5*

Ceilidh & Old Time Dances

Foulden - Village Hall - John Morgan - 8-12midnight - *Tickets £5*

Irvine - Volunteer Rooms - Lindsay Weir - 7:30-11:30pm - *Tickets £7*

Penicuik - St Mungo's Church Hall - Gordon Pattullo - 7:30-11:30pm - *Tickets £5*

Helensburgh - Commodore Inn - Charlie Kirkpatrick - 8pm-12:30

Read the rest of this entry

Ian Stephen has sent these photographs from Galashiels in the Scottish Borders...

Early morning in Galashiels

Galashiels on A7

Gemma needs to go!

Thanks Ian.

There are more winter photographs on the BBC South Scotland pages.

Do you have any great winter photos? - we'd love to post them on the blog, so please email them to us.

Jim Reilly has sent us these winter photographs taken in the Glasgow Botanic Gardens:

Frozen berries in the Botanic Gardens

Snow girl

Thanks Jim! If you'd like to see your photographs here please email them to us.

Due to the severity of the weather and the continuing problems experienced on the roads and public transport, BBC Radio Scotland has amended its schedule from now until 13 December. And of course, the BBC travel pages are being continually updated.

Cycling in the snow

Wednesday 8 December

1400-1430 FM/MW - Tom Morton Show: Bill Whiteford will be joining Tom to give listeners regular updates throughout the show.

1430-1500 FM only - Tom Morton

1430-1500 (approx) MW only - Newsdrive Special presented by Bill Whiteford including the Transport Minister's statement and responses.

1500-1530 FM/MW - Tom Morton Show: Bill Whiteford will be joining Tom to give listeners regular updates throughout the show.

1810-2000 FM only - Get it On with Bryan Burnett. Bryan will be joined by a member of the travel team for regular updates.

includes 1900-1906 FM & MW: News, sport, travel, weather and outdoor conditions.

1810-2000 MW only - Sportsound.

Thursday 9 and Friday 10 December

1400-1530 FM/MW - Tom Morton Show: Bill Whiteford will be joining Tom to give listeners regular updates throughout the show.

1810-2000 FM only - Get it On with Bryan Burnett. Bryan will be joined by a member of the travel team for regular updates.

includes 1900-1906 FM & MW: News, sport, travel, weather and outdoor conditions.

1810-2000 MW only - Sportsound.

Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 December

A normal schedule, but there wil be extra travel and weather throughout the weekend.

Lindsay Gilles, a producer on the MacAulay And Co programme has been in touch to say the following:

More people than ever are sending ecards in place of the traditional one, so we thought we'd get in on the act on MacAulay & Co. Photographer Cameron McMurdo's been in taking a photo of Fred and his co-hosts Anna and Karen this morning (Susan Calman should have been in shot too but she couldn't make it in through the snow, here's hoping she can get in to present the show on Tuesday!)

Fred's ecard

I was pretty surprised by the organisation that goes into one photograph - Cameron took at least 30 shots - he'll be kicking himself when he uses the very first one.

We'll be chatting to Cameron on Tuesday's MacAulay & Co; to hear how to get the best from your e-Card tune in to hear his top tips. And if you want your very own copy you can download this one or get in touch with your email address and we'll send a copy out.

Trish Santer has responded to our request for snowy pictures, and sent us these three from Balerno:

Great tit gets stuck in

Pot plants?

Today (6 December 2010) in Balerno - Trish's back garden

See more of our winter photographs, and why not send us some of yours?

We've had more pictures sent to us at the Radio Scotland webteam to share.

The first two are sent from Emma Shanks and Emma tells us she's had 18" of snow where she lives. Emma's photographs were taken on Gallangad Farm, Gartocharn, West Dunbartonshire.

Douglas Carruth sent us this photo of some birds trying to navigate the ice at Pollok Park. Douglas says:

"This was taken in Pollok Park Glasgow by the River Cart. The ducks were being fed bread and the heron wanted to get in on the action."

The River Cart, Pollok Park Glasgow, by Douglas Carruth

The River Clyde, taken from BBC Scotland Glasgow, Monday 6 December 2010

Send us your pictures and we'll put them up too.

Well, what a week it's been. Since I regaled you with the tale of my abandoned rear wheel drive car when the snow started last Sunday, the entire country's been engulfed by the white stuff. The only difference is this week I'm feeling smug having borrowed my Dad's four wheel drive (thanks Dad!). Unfortunately that didn't stop me slipping and falling on my backside on my way to the car.

But never mind the safety hazards of black ice. My main gripe is I've had to go a whole week without wearing heels. Sartorial suicide in my book! On Saturday night I arrived at a black tie event in full evening dress accessorised with thermal socks and wellies. Not a good look, though I wasn't the only one changing into my heels in the loos.

Wellies have become this season's must have. Apparently John Lewis have completely run out.

I interviewed the actress Siobhan Redmond this week and she tells me there are none to be had in Edinburgh. Siobhan's in the capital to star in "The Secret Garden" at the Festival Theatre. We talked about her career on stage and TV and about her own family background. She spoke very movingly about losing her mother very young to cancer and the effect it had on her.

My studio guests this week were feisty journalist Jane Graham, Martin Raymond, always the voice of reason, and new boy to the show, Magnus Gardham who's political editor at the Daily Record. We talked snow (of course), Wikileaks, and England's failed World Cup. Jane and Magnus were already having heated discussions over breakfast. Having got the measure of him, Jane tried to wind Magnus up on air by accusing him of being too tabloid. He gave as good as he got. I think he'll fit in.

Unusually for a Sunday, and for obvious reasons, we had a live weather report from Judith Ralston who told us the cold snap shows no sign of abating. Looks like another week without heels.

Listen to the extended interview with Siobhan Redmond, currently starring in the new production of "The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett" and listen again to the programme on iPlayer.

The picture below was taken earlier in the week close to where I live. It's just like a Christmas card - the perfect winter scene, and despite the fact that winter provides us with the most amazing photo opportunities, it also throws obstacles in our way - making travel and communication a real challenge.

Maybe we've all learned something from last year's Big Freeze, because this week as I struggled through the snowy streets of the capital, in my very sturdy red wellies, I got a sense that everyone had a shared feeling of "all being in the same boat" - a knowing smile, a shrug of the shoulders as everyone went about their varied tasks, of clearing the snow from the pavements, dodging the messy sludge and teetering with indecision over where the pavement ended and the road began. That's why my wellies won't be far from my side.

Out in the country, fields of undisturbed snow glistened in the watery sun - and not a breath of wind. Winter is unquestionably the mightiest of the seasons, and possibly the prettiest. What songs remind you of Winter - we played one in todays show that first the bill - Wintersong - by Sarah McLachlan, but there are scores more. Not Christmas - the season of winter. Send me your favourites and your suggestions and we'll find room for them on the show

Up to my ears in snow... meteorologically and professionally. I had to get the boat overtrousers out to wade through the stuff and we spent far too much on salopettes for the wee ones to keep them dry. It's their birthdays this week so I'll cheat and tell them the trousers are a birthday present. Don't want to spoil them...

There's been an avalanche of viewer and listener interest in the topic...I don't just mean whose school is open (BOO!) and where's my train gone... I think people want to know how others are coping and we like to nurture our sense of indignation that nobody saw it coming and took action. Mostly, though I think we just get stopped in our tracks by the effect of snow - Nature's cake icing. It makes us stop and wonder. How COULD that happen, we ask. It's like England not getting the World Cup - unbelievable.

So it's Newsweek on Ice this week. I sit in the warm studio with hot chocolate and a bank of tellys so I can watch the rugby and the cartoons. Meanwhile our reporters around the country stand in remote locations for hours on end to bring us the news. Listen out for James Cook who's in Altnaharra in the Flow Country of Sutherland...he'll be frozen like a lollipop but will sound as enthusiastic as a 10-year-old when school's shut.

Saturday is a big activity day so while those fresh-air lunatics on Out-of-Doors (just before us) tell you ever dafter things to do in the snow, we'll keep it sensible and tell you what conditions are like around Scotland. And we chat to a weather guru about types of snow. For all you historians out there we hear how a bitter winter contributed to Scotland joining the Union in 1707.That's not the kind of info you're going to get from Wikileaks.

We look at the phenomenon of those revelations with, among others, an old newspaper chum of mine from the Scotsman Ewan MacAskill now in Washington for the Guardian. We're asking a question few have so far...why are they treating Julian Assange as a terrorist when it was incompetence on an epic scale that allowed a junior staffer to download so much diplomatic traffic on to a memory stick. That's a case for prosecution at a senior level in the American government, surely?

As Frank Drebbin (deceased) would say:Don't call me Shirley. Join me tomorrow at 8.

Every week the BBC Radio Scotland Take the Floor team have been publishing a traditional music events guide on the programme home page. From now on this guide will be published here on the blog. Sam Brennan from the programme team in Aberdeen brings us this week's guide:

FRIDAY 3RD DECEMBER

RSCDS - Glasgow - Nicol McLaren and his Band

Read the rest of this entry

This beautiful shot of the River Clyde was taken by Robert Hamilton this morning at 0820 and he has just sent it in. Send us your photos and we'll add them!

View of the River Clyde taken by Robert Hamilton, 0820 Friday December 3, 2010

Following on from the photographs Margaret Miller sent us this week, John Craig sent these two to share.

John says: "Spuggie party in Guthrie, Angus, and cheesed - off blackbird!"

If you'd like to share your pics with everyone, send them here and we'll pop them up.

This week on Edith Bowman's Album Show we've reunited three members of The Belle Stars who have just released a double album of all the songs they recorded in the early 80s.

Friday night from 8pm on BBC Radio Scotland.