'She's had some very bleak times': Interviewer Julie Etchingham on Nicola Sturgeon's personal side
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Daily Record
9 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Thousands of Oasis fans queue ahead of Gallagher brothers' final Murrayfield show
Fans have been pictured outside of Murrayfield ahead of Oasis' final show in Edinburgh. Thousands of Oasis fans have queued up to Murrayfield in anticipation for Gallagher brothers' final show in Edinburgh. Oasis' Supersonic run of shows at the home of Scottish rugby will come to a close tonight with their third show in the capital after the Mancunian rockers played their first show together in Scotland in 16 years on Friday and Saturday. Over 200,000 fans will have attended the sold-out shows once tonight's performance ends and eager oasis-lovers have already began queuing to get the best spot possible before the doors open at 5pm. Around 67,000 more Oasis fans are set to pack the venue tonight. Those queuing have been pictured decked out in Oasis memorabilia from bucket hats, which are being sold from vendors outside the stadium, to football shirts branded with the band's logo. Excited fans who have travelled from across the world, including as far as South Korea, spoke to the Record earlier as they waited in line for the"biblical" gig. Civil servant Meeho Lee, 33, and data analyst Ra Young, 31, came from Seoul to witness their favourite band play in Edinburgh. Meeho said: 'I was a huge fan of Oasis since I was a high school student. After I heard they were reuniting, my friend and I got tickets to come here. 'It was a lot of preparation with plane tickets and hotels. It was expensive but it's been worth it. 'Edinburgh is a very attractive city and the beer is delicious.' Support act Richard Ashcroft is set to take the stage at 7pm followed by the main event at 8.15pm. A curfew for fans exiting Murrayfield has been set at 10.30pm. Fans took to social media to share their memories of the experience after Saturday's show, hailing it "biblical" and "truly magical". ScotRail has confirmed that they are laying on extra late-night services and more seats to get music-lovers to and from the gig "in comfort". Late-night trains will operate to key destinations such as Glasgow Queen Street, Dundee, Perth, and Dunblane following the show. Although, with the Oasis gig clashing with the Festival Fringe, public transport in the city has been significantly busier. ScotRail is advising fans to make their way promptly to Haymarket station after the show, where a designated holding area is in place on Haymarket Terrace to manage crowds safely and efficiently. ScotRail said: "We're encouraging everyone to plan their journey in advance, make the most of the extra services, and soak up the atmosphere of a great night in the capital." Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
Scotsman
39 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Edinburgh Book Festival round-up: Ruth Jones Leor Zmigrod Gabriel Gatehouse
From a Gavin and Stacey star reading from her latest novel set on a Scottish island, to talk of shutting down the internet to save the planet with Amitav Ghosh and the psychology of extremism with Leor Zmigrod, it's been another varied few days at the Book Festival for David Robinson Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... It's good to have expectations challenged, so when Ruth Jones – as Welsh as the red dragon tattoo on the arm of Nessa, her character in Gavin and Stacey, read from her latest novel, By Your Side, largely set on a Scottish island, and with a Hamilton-based first person narrator, I wouldn't have been the only one in the audience to be mildly surprised that she not only sounded like Lorraine Kelly but looked a bit like her too. Ruth Jones | Contributed After a bit of faff over feedback at the start, this turned out to be a very enjoyable event as she spilled some of the behind-the-scenes stories from Gavin and Stacey (there'll be more in October the book she and James Corden have co-written), and traced her writing career from Fat Friends onwards. Most of us, though, were there for Vanessa Shanessa, and she didn't disappoint, slipping into character at the end to tell us that she and event chair Val McDermid were collaborating on a novel, When Bryn Found The Barry Body. 'I have been mentoring her,' she said, 'and I'm not going to lie, it's going to be quite dark.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Most writers who come to this book festival tend to say nice things about the Scottish Enlightenment, so it was refreshing to hear Amitav Ghosh tear into it as the font of every bad idea around. In fairness, the Dutch East India Company also got a kicking for pioneering genocidal capitalism, but Adam Smith is clearly a Ghosh bête noir. 'Free trade was the whole justification for poisoning millions of Chinese and Indians in the Opium wars of the 1830s', he said, where the 'mainly Scottish opium traders operated like a mafia'. His solution for the world's present-day ills? Back to nature, support indigeneity and vitalism. Give rivers and mountains legal rights, live in greater harmony with nature (yes, fine) and if you really want to stop the illegal migration, shut down the internet. Er, not too sure about that one. Political neuroscience is new to me, and so is psychologist Leor Zmigrod, so I'll start with Jacob Chansley instead. If you don't know who he is, you've forgotten all about the bare-chested spear-wielding QAnon shaman wearing a racoon fur hat with bison horns who stormed the US Capitol on 6 January, 2020 along with 6,000 other conspiracy theorists who refused to believe Donald Trump had lost the US election. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Zmigrod's fellow-panellist Gabriel Gatehouse, then Newsnight's international editor, had a sinking feeling when he saw those scenes on television. He had, he realised, just missed a scoop. Back in November, he'd talked to Chansley but not filmed him. Pleasant chap, apparently, but what with believing all that stuff about the US being ruled by Satan-worshipping paedophiles, obviously crazed. This is where Zmigrod comes in. When we look at political extremists and conspiracy nuts, she says, we shouldn't look at things like their age, education, class, race – or bison-horned headdresses. We should look instead at their minds. If we do that, and give them a few card-game psychological tests, it's easy to work out who will be a dogmatic, possibly extremist thinker, and who won't. Apparently, this works with leftists, rightists – and even dogmatic centrists. The roots of conspiracy theories are varied and Gatehouse explored them engagingly in his two events on Tuesday. Social media spins more of us into them than newspapers ever did, and children are increasingly prey to them – though education can promote the kind of flexibility of thinking that doesn't allow them to seed. Creativity helps too, said Zmigrod. And so, I suppose, do book festivals.
Daily Record
39 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Oasis fans travel across the globe for Gallagher brothers final Scottish show
Thousands have headed through to the capital tonight, including fans from Japan, Mexico, South Korea and Columbia to hear their favourite tunes. Oasis fans have travelled across the globe to attend the final Scottish show of the Gallagher brothers reunion tour. Excited music lovers are counting down the hours until the reconciled brothers will belt out hits including Wonderwall, Roll With It and Morning Glory. Over 200,000 fans will have caught the Scottish leg when the curtain comes down on Oasis 25 at Edinburgh's Murrayfield Stadium tonight. Thousands have headed through to the capital tonight, including fans from Japan, Mexico, South Korea and Columbia to hear their favourite tunes. Many didn't believe a reunion could happen and can't wait for the once-in-a-lifetime show to begin. Among the fans who are 'mad for it' in anticipation of the latest concert are civil servant Meeho Lee, 33, and data analyst Ra Young, 31, who came from Seoul, South Korea. Meeho said: 'I was a huge fan of Oasis since I was a high school student. After I heard they were reuniting, my friend and I got tickets to come here. 'It was a lot of preparation with plane tickets and hotels. It was expensive but it's been worth it. 'Edinburgh is a very attractive city and the beer is delicious.' Council worker Olly, 27, and retail employee James Saunders, 25, travelled from Carlisle having caught the shows in London and in Cardiff James said 'We're lucky with this being the third show. Seeing the camaraderie and hearing everyone join in on Cigarettes and Alcohol is something special. The audience is so loud.' Olly added: 'Everyone is having a good time, but I can't believe the weather. It's sweltering in Edinburgh.' Offshore worker Scott, 47 and nursery assistant Vicky Reid, 46 travelled down with daughters Aimee, 19 and Callie, 16, from Aberdeen to catch the show. Scott said: 'Having seen them in the '90s, it's just amazing to come with the family. It's all about the experience of seeing Oasis in person and the whole buzz here at Murrayfield in the capital having come from Aberdeen. 'The only thing is it's far too hot to be honest. The weather is brilliant. It adds to the occasion. 'We got £150 tickets in the pre-sale but even that, for four people, in the times just now for any act is a lot of money so the dynamic pricing fiasco that led to some paying more was ridiculous.' Nurse Fiona Delanay, 46, from Newton Grange near Edinburgh, said: 'I last saw them in '96 at Knebworth. I can't really remember much about that because it was so long ago. 'I'm looking forward to seeing them live again after not seeing them live for such a long time having always been an Oasis fan. 'I got tickets relatively easily compared to most people and can't wait to hear the first song, Hello. 'The atmosphere is electric. I'm here very early because I want a front spot.' Bakery worker Mark Porter, 53, from Portadown, near Belfast, said: 'I just flew in this morning and I'm flying back tomorrow morning. 'The first time I came to see Oasis was at Loch Lomond and this is my 13 th concert. I've been to Barcelona and saw them at Slaine Castle. I'll be trying to get a ticket for Dublin at the weekend. 'The show is amazing.' Store manager John McAllister, 49, and wife, facilities coordinator Teresa, 47, from Aberdeen travelled down to celebrate their 18 th anniversary. Teresa said: 'We were both at Loch Lomond 29 years ago, but we weren't together back then. We were there separately, and this is the first time seeing them together, and this is our 18 th anniversary celebration. 'The bonus is we won hospitality tickets and an apartment for two nights, which is brilliant. John added: 'It's just as well Teresa and I didn't meet at Loch Lomond because I would have been out my t**s and we wouldn't be together. 'We came down yesterday. It's such a friendly atmosphere here. We have waited a whole year for this.' Banker, Yusuke and Beveridge company worker Yoshiki, both 25, travelled from Kagoshima, Japan. Yusuke said: 'We could not get tickets for the tour in Japan, so we come here. 'It's very good here. It is very hot. We had been told to expect rain and clouds so this is surprising for us. 'The scenery in Scotland is very good. It is different for London. It is more beautiful. 'This is the first time for us and the best song will be Morning Glory.' Agave spirit brand owner Alan Subert, 36, arrived from Vera Cruz, Mexico with friends, photographer Navila Alcaraz, 35, oil industry worker Hugo Ortega, 34, and finance worker Ricky Low, 32, from Columbia. Alan said: 'We tried to purchase tickets and got them at 2am for Edinburgh. It's the first time in Europe for all of us. This is the main event. We are very excited to be here.' They met Mexican restaurant owner Baruc Rodriguez, 37, from Berlin. Baruc, originally from Mexico, donned a kilt for the occasion. He said: 'I got a few days off to spend time with my friends. It has cost us more than expected to be here but who cares? We arrived yesterday.' Chris Dixon, 16, from Paisley, said: 'I came with my girlfriend. It's very exciting. I can't wait to hear Morning Glory, Acquiesce and Cigarettes and Alcohol. My mum got the tickets for us on resale which cost £250 each.' Archive manager Theresa McLeod, 48, and Lexy Gunn, 14, travelled from Wick. 'I originally had tickets for Friday through my brother and my partner who is Lexy's dad managed to get tickets for Tuesday as well. 'I gave up the Friday to come on Tuesday and because I'm older I remember them from different festivals. Lexy has grown up with her dad listening to Oasis so it's a different experience for her.' Royal Corps of Signals Corporal Troy McGonigal, 30, from Beith, Ayrshire, said: 'I drove here on Sunday from Aldershot to come with my twin brother, Jordan. 'Last year I spent six months in Somalia. I listened to Half the World Away every single day counting down to one less day each time before I can go home and see my mum and my family. 'Our dad is from Manchester, My brother and I were born a stone's throw away from Murrayfield so this is a home from home. It's also a once in a lifetime thing for us because it could be the last time Oasis play Scotland. 'I've listened to them since I was 10 years old and I can play every song on guitar. I'll start crying when I see the show.' Pharmaceuticals worker Grant Taylor, 43, from Irvine, arrived with his son Evan, 10. Evan said: 'I'm buzzing. I started listening to Oasis when I was seven and we got tickets last year. It will be mental. I am looking forward to Cigarettes & Alcohol and Live Forever.' Grant said: 'I saw them at Hampden in 2005. We stood on the hills when they played Irvine Beach and tried to hear it but it was lashing down. 'We got tickets for this in the pre-sale before everybody else was struggling with Ticketmaster's site crashing. I'm looking forward to Cast, Richard Ashcroft and Oasis and will be reliving my youth. This will blow us away.' The Gallagher brothers will be occupied with the tour until the end of the year, with performances scheduled up to late November. The final night of their tour is November 23 in Brazil.
