July 2024

A Life on the Ocean Wave

I am a fan of a boat, I used to love the paddle boats at Victoria Park when I visited my grandparents in Partick, I get Cal Mac’s MV Clansman every year to Tiree, I even have my grade 2 sailing certification but the Round The World Clipper Race is a whole new ball game. An amazing multinational crew of 200 plus non-professional sailors set off from Portsmouth and over the next 11 months and 40,000 nautical miles visited Uruguay, Panama South Africa, Australia , China, Vietnam to name a few places. I was on the Washington DC to Oban leg. Based in Oban of course. It was terrific to see the camaraderie and team work together. The bond behind each of the 11 crews was so fantastic. 

This was the first ever visit to Scotland for the Clipper Race and the final stop before heading back to Portsmouth. The boats got so much publicity as the whole thing was such a photogenic and picturesque event. I was there to cover the 11 clippers arriving when meant being out in a speedboat at 11pm in the evening. Its amazing how light it still was at that time. The winning clipper from that race held a giant St Andrew’s Cross.

The sight was one to behold as the 11 clipper crews set off from Oban for the very last race of their eleven-month Clipper Round the World Yacht Race. Oban gave a super pipe band parade in front of the sailors as they marched to the boats on their way to set sail from Oban harbour. We did a huge teams group picture on the harbour. It was a big group. I am just glad I was not asked for a left to right of their names.

As I said earlier the publicity was fantastic. Pictures in The Herald, The Scotsman, The National, Daily Record, STV , The Independent  to name a few. It also made the front page of The Oban Times.

Two Glasgow Polymaths

I am a fan of The Beatles and I got the chance to photograph the painting by John Byrne, which was used on the LP cover sleeve of The Beatles Ballads LP.  It was rumoured at the time that the original painting of The Beatles was lost by EMI Records, and makes this a unique work of art to be a surviving early version. It was amazing to see up close and personnel. I loved this image of Jessie Lloyd​​​​, Glasgow Gallery Manager holding it with the another giant John Byrne painting in the background. The work was part of an exhibition,  ‘Two Glasgow Polymaths’  also featuring Alasdair Gray was at Lyon & Turnbull’s  Bath Street office. Alasdair Gray & John Byrne are inarguably two of the most significant figures in 20th century Scottish culture, their work continuing to inspire and stimulate artists practising today.

Into The Limelight

As everyone knows I love photographing theatre. I was asked to come along to the Kings Theatre in Glasgow for the dress Rehersal of ‘’Into The Limelight’’ production by Showworks Theatre and the Creative Learning group at The Kings & Theatre Royal in Glasgow.  “Into the Limelight” is a brand new musical production celebrating 120 Years of the King’s Theatre Glasgow. The show was a culmination of a two week summer school course to rehearse and get to perform it on the iconic stage of the Glasgow Kings Theatre. The lead roles were transported back in time by a mysterious theatre cleaner and saw the theatre in its early victorian days through the two world wars, the 1960’s up to the present day. I loved this scene where the ARP warden was asking the audience to stay in their seats because of an air raid.

Celebrating on the Steps

I was asked once again to come along and photograph the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland honorary graduations. It is a super event. Also all the regular students were graduating too. What a feel good atmosphere in the building. I loved this shot of actor, director and activist Ivan Heng celebrating with acting graduates on the steps of the Conservatoire. It is one of the times I had said to someone, who had called me about another assignment, that I couldn’t speak because the musical theatre students were just out and were singing in full voice.