A Visit To Hampden

With the World Cup excitement growing I was  at Hampden Football Stadium to do a photo call for the new exhibition Treasures of Scottish Football : A Virtual Reality Experience inside the Scottish Football Museum. A partnership between the University of Glasgow and football heritage chiefs.  It showcases football objects from the national collection, bringing to life some of the Scottish game’s most iconic trophies, artefacts, and memorabilia in a specially-curated virtual gallery. Fans will be able to view and ‘hold’ objects using VR headsets thanks to ‘groundbreaking’ extended reality technology developed by researchers at the university.

We managed to do the first set of pictures with the Scottish Cup in the stand where the presentations are made. We had some youngsters in Scotland strips delighted in wearing their VR headsets, there were some Hampden staff on had to join in the fun. Inside I got some pictures of Demi Boyd, curator of Hampden Museum, using the UNBOX VR machine at the Hampden Wall of Fame.

Scotties in the City Art Trail

I was asked to come along to The Scotties in the City Art Trail launch at the Riverside Museum. With 40 large sculptures in support of national cancer charity Maggie’s. The trail features 40 beautifully designed giant Scottie dog sculptures for people to find and admire across Glasgow throughout the summer. Each has been beautifully designed and painted by talented artists.

We had over 70 Scottie dogs and owners who were asked to come along to the unveiling of the giant Scottie designed by Pauline Paterson at the Riverside Museum by  Kirsty Wark, Lord Provost Jacqueline McLaren, the artist Pauline Paterson and Hayley Smith of Maggies. I didn’t realise that real Scotties are quite territorial. I thought they would all sit quietly together. It wasn’t quite how I imagined it,  but we did have a laugh as we tried to get them to stay still for the unveiling. There were a few growls and barks.

Good Taste at GLASCHU

I was in the super cool restaurant GLASCHU at Royal Exchange Square in Glasgow for the appointment of Conner Magee as Head Chef. The Glasgow born chef took charge of the flagship restaurant as it launched a new summer menu that reflects his vision for modern Scottish dining. He has a signature Beef Wellington for sharing and Buckfast Oysters, these were among the standout dishes. My favourite was the Barra’s Doughnuts.

We did get some looks as we posed with the Beef Wellington outside the Gallery of Modern Art with the Duke of Wellington with his traffic cones. We even had a local come up comparing his fish supper, which made us all laugh.

A Dram at the Science Centre

I like a dram and when I was asked to come along to the Planetarium at the Glasgow Science Centre  for the launch of a new limited-edition single malt whisky celebrating the character, culture and creative spirit of Glasgow, I jumped at the chance. The dram  had been unveiled through a unique collaboration between Glasgow Science Centre, The Good Spirits Co. and The Glasgow Distillery. It was a time exposure, as it is so dark in the planetarium, so everyone had to stand stock still as the shutter stayed open for second or two.

Worlds Oldest Football

I got the opportunity to photograph something really old this month. At nearly 500 years old, the world’s oldest football, which was discovered in the bedchamber of Mary, Queen of Scots, at Stirling Castle. I had the task of photographing it as it was brought in to be digitally scanned. The ball was heading off to the USA for the World Cup. Before leaving for America it stopped off at the University of Glasgow to allow the university’s world-leading 3D content creators begin the process of scanning the football to create a digital version in the metaverse.

Normally, it has a permanent home at The Stirling Smith Art Gallery & Museum. But it was going to make an appearance at the Scotland v Brazil World Cup game in Miami. Pictured with the ball is professor Pauline Mackay in her Scotland top.

Fanfare For The Crannog

The Crannog Centre had its official unveiling on the Banks of Loch Tay this month. The Centre a museum of life in ancient Scotland, had held a special ceremony to mark the building of the new crannog following a fire in 2021. I met folk singer Barbara Dickson there with with young fan Albie (age 4) playing his traditional horn in full costume on the bridge across to the crannog. We had a great day. Music, sunshine and no midges.

John Swinney the First Minister came along. He had a tour with with Laura Jaap , Project Manager of the Build Team.

Chelsea Comes To Glasgow

I was asked along to the Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice where the 2024 Best in Show garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show has been officially opened and named as the Malcolm Family Forest Bathing Garden. It was stunning and a really cool space to be in during the hot weather. Pictured were Andrew Malcolm , Lord Provost Jacqueline McLaren , Rhona Baillie (CEO) and Dr Sheonad Laidlaw in the main structure in the garden which looked great framing them all. The garden was made possible thanks to funding from Project Giving Back, a charitable organisation that supports gardens for good causes at RHS Chelsea.

Only An Excuse

I was a really big fan of Only An Excuse, the hilarious Scottish Football comedy sketch show.  For me it was the best thing on the TV at New Year. With this years World Cup in the USA it has been brought back by the Comedy Unit production company for a World Cup Special. I have photographed Phil Differ and Jonathan Watson loads of times over the years, even as far back at the time they used to do a comedy page for the Evening Times. I remember photographing them on the pitch centre spot at Hampden. There is a very cool brick wall near the Comedy Unit base and it makes a great background.

Marking 10 Years of Beyond Srebrenica

I was at a very emotional but uplifting event this month. I attended the 10 Year anniversary of the of Beyond Srebrenica, the Scottish charity which coordinates Srebrenica awareness activities in Scotland. The Srebrenica genocide was a mass killing of more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys in and around the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina in July 1995. I met the board at the event at The Trades House in Glasgow where there were talks and real histories of people who lived through the war. They were presenting the winners of the Beyond Srebrenica National Schools Competition. Open to secondary-aged pupils across Scotland, the competition invited young people to engage with the theme of ‘justice’ and to explore how we remember and respond to the Srebrenica genocide.
The standard of submissions this year was truly inspiring.

Tiree……. The Place To Be

I had another lovely visit to Tiree again this year. I love the place. It is fabulous for pictures and I love the beaches. I even used have my own range of postcards for sale in one of the shops Chocolate & Charms. I have been watching this wee traditional black house in my picture slowly disintegrating over the years. The Highland cows are always present. It was nice to get my picture  of it with the coos and the beach in the background. It got a lovely show in the Daily Mail Plus over two pages. 

BBC Young Classical Musician 2026

Another one of my favourite assignments happened this month. I got to watch and listen to three amazing musicians playing with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. The winner was  Cellist Finn Mannion. A lovely guy. He was telling me his cello was 300 years old. To be honest I could not have singled out one artist over the other, they all sounded amazing.

Panto Is Here and its only May

It was a fun day at the Pavilion Theatre for this year’s pantomime Goldilocks and the Three Bonnie Bears. What a laugh I had with fellow photographer John Young doing all the portraits and group shots of the cast. The patter was on form as always. I made the edit of cast member Valissa Scott’s Instagram film going through the theatre on the day. I got a great shot of the cast out on the street outside the Pavilion. The bus drivers passing us all had big smiles on their faces as did I.