“Our Manifesto was designed by Scots for Scots with no final decision being made by London. “

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://theorkneynews.scot/2026/02/14/our-manifesto-was-designed-by-scots-for-scots-with-no-final-decision-being-made-by-london/

“Are we on the radar ?” Labour’s Branch Office in Scotland.

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://theorkneynews.scot/2026/02/11/are-we-on-the-radar-labours-branch-office-in-scotland/

I suspect Sarwar knows this. Successive opposition leaders in Holyrood, from Ruth Davidson to Douglas Ross and now Sarwar – have always come up against this glass ceiling. ...
"Are we on the radar ?" Labour's Branch Office in Scotland. https://theorkneynews.scot/2026/02/11/are-we-on-the-radar-labours-branch-office-in-scotland/ #AlecRoss, #AnasSarwar, #Epstein, #KeirStarmer, #Labour, #LordMandelson

Abraham Lincoln & Robert Burns

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://theorkneynews.scot/2026/01/24/abraham-lincoln-robert-burns-4/

The speaker was famous for his rich and sonorous Midwestern drawl, but the accent tonight was unmistakably Ayrshire. It’s not clear whether the assembled dignitaries had wanted Burns with their Brandy. Then again, when the performer is Abraham Lincoln, who the hell is going to object?
Abraham Lincoln & Robert Burns https://theorkneynews.scot/2026/01/24/abraham-lincoln-robert-burns-4/ #AbrahamLincoln, #AlecRoss, #Culture, #News, #Opinion, #OrkneyNews, #Poems, #Poetry, #RobertBurns

It’s been many years since I watched the once unmissable Sports Personality of the Year programme on the BBC, largely because it has long been a deeply unserious piece of broadcasting.
“Nobody ever celebrated devolution day” (Alex Salmond) https://theorkneynews.scot/2025/12/24/nobody-ever-celebrated-devolution-day-alex-salmond/ #AlecRoss, #Football, #Independence, #Scotland, #WorldCup

“Nobody ever celebrated devolution day” (Alex Salmond)

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://theorkneynews.scot/2025/12/24/nobody-ever-celebrated-devolution-day-alex-salmond/

Since the Ryder Cup, a number of friends who are not golfers or golf fans like me have asked me why the ugly scenes at Bethpage happened. No doubt they’re surprised because they are more used to the genteel atmosphere of Augusta or St Andrews...
When did we stop being nice? https://theorkneynews.scot/2025/10/04/when-did-we-stop-being-nice/ #AlecRoss, #Golf, #Politics, #RyderCup, #Sport

At the Kirkcudbright Fringe Festival last week, I chaired a discussion on Scotland’s constitutional status and possible direction, twenty-six years since devolution, with the writer and broadcaster Lesley Riddoch and the former First Minister Henry McLeish (Home Truths for Home Rule).
"Scotland needs to show the world what it is, because we won't get a second chance." https://theorkneynews.scot/2025/09/17/scotland-needs-to-show-the-world-what-it-is-because-we-wont-get-a-second-chance/ #AlecRoss, #Devolution, #HenryMcLeish, #LesleyRiddoch

"I suggested to him that while the former First Minister’s personal thoughts and fears came across as entirely human and genuine – and they are – perhaps it was far too early for her to try to defend a legacy that will take years to determine. "
The End of the Affair https://theorkneynews.scot/2025/08/14/the-end-of-the-affair/ #AlecRoss, #Books, #NicolaSturgeon