There is very little drama about the border nowadays-many visitors are disappointed that the transition from England to Scotland and vice versa is so unremarkable. Where are the border posts, the demand for passports, the barbed wire, the dug in machine guns or even the lone Scottish Piper greeting the southerners with that most welcoming of refrains ' Will ye no go back again?' At the height of the tourist season there is indeed the occasional piper on the A68 south of Jedburgh where bus loads of trippers are forced off their coaches to admire the view and in some cases pay the piper. The view is worth it.

Less dramatic border scenes around here-the image is of an ancient track which runs down the wild frontier from near Paxton to the Whiteadder and the Tweed. Left hand side of the road is in England-hurrah! the right in Scotland -Boo*!. As the bover boys in their St George's Crossed tee shirts might have it. It seems a good place for an ambush amongst the crab apple trees and probably unchanged since Reiver times. On the busier roads such as the Berwick-Greenlaw one the border is graced with a sign 'England' Just that-watch it mate- although a few yards down the track it does actually say 'Welcome to Northumberland-England's Border County' The Scots are more cordially up front with a large 'Welcome to Scotland' And as in the Norn Iron/Republic of Ireland crossings the road quality changes. In our case the potholes and verge cavities are more noticeably third world on the English side en route from Berwick and I doubt if the Northumberland County Council is really aware that the road from the A1 signposted to obscure Scottish hamlets is their responsibility. Or care too much; if you want to leave civilised parts that's your problem, don't tell us about it.

Anyhow the second image of the Whiteadder at Edrington Mill would make a much better border crossing-gentle, snowdroppy bank, Scotland, towering forbidding cliff, Engerland. It however would mean moving the present border half a mile into Scotland-boo*! as the bbs, lagered and shaven skulls could put it

** Huttonian wishes to point out that these are bover boy sentiments not those of Huttonian. After being accused of anti Scottish prejudice in the Mail on Sunday and threatened with the race relations act by a well wisher locally he wishes to make this clear. After all some of his best friends are..... and so are many of his relations. Blogg-ed

  ¶ 10:00 AM