Musings from the Merse
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Coldstream pulled out all the stops, as only the First (or last) Toon in Scotland can to mark the 250th anniversary of Burns' birth with a special commemoration of the Bard's visit to Coldstream with his Dinger friend Robert Ainslie and his dramatic foray onto English soil. The gory details are here
It is never been satisfactorily explained to Huttonian why the Rabbi's visit to England (his only one?) was so brief. Late Running Stage coach to Dumfries to catch? Expected for a pint or three at the Black Bull in Duns? No convenient toilet facilities in Northumberland? Did he take such a scunner to Enger land that he could not bear to be a way from his native hearth a minute longer?
Apparently he never returned to Coldstream either.
That's more easily explained.
(The image from the Berwickshire shows Burns and Ainslie looking quite chuffed at being on English soil.
Aa so they might)
Ye may be scared of English Folk
And timorous venture across the Tweed
But summon forth Alba's might
And do not the bluidy Saxon heed
Aye, put on woven hose and Aussie hat
Jimmy may chuckle behind your back
Care Not the sniggers of your mates
Come on.Ye are no Sleekit Beastie
A Man's a man for 'A' that
(From 'Undiscovered Burns'-awaiting publication)
Labels: Coldstream, Rabbi Burns, The Homecoming
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Will ye No come back again? (For a brief visit?)
An article in the recent Berwickshire News starts thus (see the rest here)
MANY Borderers are set to put pen to paper and invite their friends and family back to the region to 'Return to the Ridings'.
The Border common ridings and festivals have launched the Return to the Ridings invitations, a selection of iconic postcard images for each of the participating events, which residents can send to all their friends and family.
The Return to the Ridings is part of the Homecoming Scotland programme, extending the invitation to Border Scots throughout the world to return to their ridings and join a series of co-ordinated ancient festivals across the Scottish Border towns
The Homecoming Scotland is making use of a Big Burns Commemoration in 2009 to attract expat Scots to revisit the Hameland and spend many Dollars, Euros and Muckles* (a prototype currency for a future Independent Alba)to revitalise the depressed Scottish economy. So out of tax exile will come the fervent patriots Sean Connery, Donald Crump, Gordon Brown et alios attracted by (says the blurb) the whisky, the golf and the music. Donald Crump may not quite appreciate the irony of the Golf.
The image above is one of the 'iconic' postcards now winging their way (Lost Christmas mail bags permitting) to exiled Borderers urging them to revisit the ancient Ridings festivals some of which go all the way back to the 1950s.
Next year will see a lot of this sort of thing.
Ad Nauseam
springs to mind
* At current rates of exchange many Mickles equate to a Muckle.
Labels: The Homecoming, The Year of the Return
