On 6 June 1987 Fulton Mackay, the well known Scottish actor, died.

Fulton Mackay achieved huge popularity for his portrayal of Prison Officer Mr Mackay, in the highly successful television comedy series, Porridge, alongside Ronnie Barker. Mackay also appeared in the films Local Hero (1983), and Defence of the Realm (1985). He was also well-known for his numerous theatrical appearances, and made some forays into writing for the stage.

On 6 June 1838 Thomas Glover was born in Fraserburgh. A leading figure in the industrialisation of Japan, Glover was the first non-Japanese to be awarded the Order of the Rising Sun - one of the top honours of the country.

It was he who brought the first steam train to Japan, and founded the fore-runner of the great Mitsubishi yard which dominates Nagasaki harbour today - also the main reason for the targeting of this city in the atomic bomb attack. Ironically, Glover's main business was arms dealing and the selling of ships. Another claim to fame is that Glover's Japanese wife Tsuru, whom he married in 1867, is said to have been the inspiration for Madame Butterfly.

Today in 1891, Sir John MacDonald, the Scottish-born Canadian statesman, died. MacDonald was considered to be the architect of the Confederation of Canada and served twice as the first Prime Minister of the unified Dominion, between 1867-73 and 1878-91.

Already an experienced local politician, he helped form the 1854 coalition with Upper Canadian reformers and French Canadians, creating the Liberal-Conservative Party. Within this coalition government, Macdonald was promoted to be attorney-general, and later acted as co-premier between 1856 and 1862. In 1864, MacDonald accepted that constitutional change was necessary for Canada, and spent that summer preparing proposals for a Confederation. He was a leading delegate at all three Confederation conferences, and was knighted for his work towards union.

Today's recipe: why follow the herd when you could serve up this feast of roe deer?