Susan Boyle to sing for the Pope

World famous Scottish singer Susan Boyle has described the opportunity to
sing for Pope Benedict XVI as “her greatest dream come true.” Speaking in a
television interview recorded by the Scottish Catholic Media Office, the
global singing sensation spoke of being “honoured and humbled” by the
invitation.

Susan will perform three times at Bellahouston Park in Glasgow on Thursday
16 September as well as singing with the 800 strong choir at the open air
Mass which will be celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI during his visit to
Scotland.

The Mass will begin around 5.15pm, while in the pre-Mass programme Susan
Boyle will sing the  hymn “How great thou art” as well as her signature song
“I dreamed a dream.” Following the final hymn at the end of the Mass, she
will also sing a farewell song to Pope Benedict as he leaves the park to
travel to Glasgow Airport for his flight to London and the continuation of
his four day British visit.

Speaking from her home where she was rehearsing for the day, Susan said:

“To be able to sing for the Pope is a great honour and something I’ve always
dreamed of – it’s indescribable. I think the 16th of September will stand
out in my memory as something I’ve always wanted to do, I’ve always wanted
to sing for his Holiness and I can’t really put into words my happiness,
that this wish has come true at last.”

Susan revealed that she had been approached by Cardinal Keith O’Brien to
participate, adding;

“My family will be there on the day on what will be a very special day for
all of us and I hope they will be proud of me.”

Speaking of her late mother she said;

“I know she won’t be there physically, but she was at Bellahouston Park in
1982 and I know she will be there again, spiritually, she will be with us.”

On the importance of her Catholic faith, Susan said;

“The Pope’s visit is a very big event for Scottish Catholics. My own faith
is the backbone of my life, I pray and say the rosary each day and am very
close to my religion. I am humbled and honoured by this invitation and I
hope I can do my best.”

Cardinal Keith O’Brien, President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland
said;

“I am delighted that Susan will be able to perform for the Pope, I think it
is wonderful that she will have this once in a lifetime opportunity and as
her Bishop I am hugely proud of her.”

Pope’s visit to Scotland

The Leader of the Catholic Church in Scotland, Cardinal Keith Patrick O'Brien,  is today
launching the St Ninian's Day Parade - a 'grand Scottish spectacle' to
welcome Pope Benedict XVI to this country next month, while also raising money for good
causes at home and abroad. To launch the event, the Cardinal will be joined by the
Minister for Culture and External Affairs, Fiona Hyslop MSP.

The Pope arrives in Edinburgh on the morning of 16 September - St Ninian's Day -
where he will meet Her Majesty The Queen at the Palace of Holyroodhouse. It is estimated
there could be as many as a billion people watching worldwide. To mark the occasion,
Cardinal O'Brien has invited over a thousand pipers, hundreds of school children,
dozens of historical characters plus two nominated charities to greet the Pope and
entertain the crowds who'll gather in the capital that morning.

 
The pipers will be drawn from bands from Scotland and further afield with

particular emphasis on school and youth pipe bands. They will lead the parade from

Regent Road to Princes Street where they will play 'Highland Cathedral' as the Pope

travels past in the Popemobile.

·       The school children are the parade VIPs - they are invited from all 14 schools

across the country named after St Ninian. That includes Catholic, Episcopalian and

non-denominational schools.

·       The historical characters will chart the history of Christianity in Scotland since

the days of St Ninian himself 1600 years ago. Characters will include St Columba, St

Margaret, Mary Queen of Scots, John Knox and, from more recent times, Eric Liddell,

George Mackay Brown and Muriel Spark.

The nominated charities that will benefit from fundraising at the parade are Marie

Curie Cancer Care and Mary's Meals. Marie Curie has two hospices in Scotland –

Glasgow and Edinburgh. It also has a network of nurses working in communities

across Scotland. Mary's Meals sets up and runs school feeding projects in communities
where poverty and hunger prevent children from gaining an education. It currently
provides daily meals for 400,000 children in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

The St Ninian's Day Parade will begin at 11am from Regent Road and will march along
Princes Street concluding at 12.30pm with the arrival of the Holy Father himself in the Popemobile.
The event is free and spectators are advised to arrive in plenty oftime.

Cardinal O’Brien said:-

“In centuries gone by St Ninian’s Day was always a great occasion for national celebration and charitable giving.

We’ve now got a fabulous chance to resurrect that noble Scottish tradition by raising money for

two wonderful charities.”

Fiona Hyslop MSP, Minister for Culture and External Affairs, said:-

"The St Ninian's Day parade will be a wonderful occasion as crowds gather in the streets of Edinburgh
to extend the world-renowned warm Scottish welcome to the Holy Father.  This is a great opportunity
for all of Scotland to celebrate the positive contribution all our

faith communities make to the life of our nation."

Head of Community Fundraising for Marie Curie Cancer Care, Paul Thompson, said:-

“We are delighted to have been chosen as one of the beneficiary charities for the Pope’s visit.

With tens of thousands expected to turn out for both the parade and the Pope’s journey through

Edinburgh, it’s a fantastic opportunity for Marie Curie to raise substantial funds for the services

we provide here in Scotland”.

The founder and Chief Executive of Mary’s Meals, Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, said:-

“The St Ninian's Day Parade promises to be a wonderful event, bringing together people from
across Scotland to welcome the Pope. Mary's Meals is thrilled to have been chosen as one of
the charities to benefit from the celebration and our staff and volunteers are looking forward to
 being involved on the day. Any monies raised by Mary's Meals will help provide school meals
for hungry children in some of the world's poorest countries, enabling them to access education
that will help them to escape poverty in the long term.”

The Leader of Edinburgh City Council, Councillor Jenny Dawe, said

“This is a superb opportunity for Edinburgh to be seen on the world stage and to showcase the city as an excellent host of major events. While many people overseas already appreciate Edinburgh’s qualities as a place in which to work, study and holiday, I hope that some of the millions watching the Pope’s arrival in the UK are encouraged to come and see our city for themselves. It is undoubtedly a significant visit and I’m sure that the city will, as usual, rise to the occasion.“

JK Rowling – philanthropist extraordinaire

The Edinburgh author JK Rowling has donated £10million to Edinburgh University to establish a research centre in the name of her late mother Anne.

The University announces the news here.

The author resigned as patron of the MS Society Scotland in 2009 following a conflict with the charity’s London management and vowed at the time to donate money to a research project.

The Broughton Spurtle – Issue 186 on the way!

The next issue of the Broughton Spurtle will hit the streets tomorrow 1st September.

Content promises to be as controversial and sparkly as always…… Unscrambling of Edinburgh News reportage…..
More details on their website. Pick up your copy from tomorrow.

Do you know of any other community newspapers like this relating to other areas in the city? If you do then please tell us!

Attack in Edinburgh’s New Town

Lothian and Borders Police are appealing for witnesses after a teenage girl was assaulted in the capital.

The incident happened around 2am on Friday 20th August in the West Scotland Street area of the city.

The 17-year-old was walking home when a male approached from behind and pulled her into West Scotland Street Lane, where she was knocked to the ground and assaulted.

The male attempted to remove the girl’s upper clothing but she was able to call for assistance and several members of the public came to her aid.

The suspect then fled the scene up Scotland Street where he was lost to sight.

Detectives are now appealing for anyone who was in the area and witnessed anything suspicious to come forward.

The suspect is described as white, between 20 and 30-years-old, 5ft 9ins tall and wearing casual clothing.

A police spokesman said: ‘Thankfully, the victim was uninjured and was quickly assisted my members of the public following this incident.

‘Nevertheless, given the apparent sexual motivation of this assault, we are treating this extremely seriously and are urging anyone who was in Scotland Street or the surrounding areas and saw anything suspicious to come forward immediately.

‘Similarly, anyone with information that can assist with our enquiries or who recognises the description of the suspect should also contact police.’

Suspicious Fire in Wester Hailes

Lothian and Borders Police are appealing for information following a suspicious fire in Edinburgh.

The incident happened around 6pm on Monday 30th August in the Wester Hailes area of the city.

A wooden building on Dumbryden Road, which is used by a local youth charity, was set alight causing massive damage.

Fire service tackled the blaze for over two hours while officers from Lothian and Borders Police assisted with road closures and maintaining a cordon.

The building’s roof and interior were completely destroyed resulting in around £30,000 worth of damage.

Officers are now appealing for anyone who was in the area and witnessed anything suspicious to come forward.

A police spokesman said: ‘Those responsible for this mindless act of destruction not only put the safety of the public at risk, they have also destroyed a valuable community asset and caused thousands of pounds worth of damage.

‘Anyone who saw any suspicious activity in or around the building or in the Dumbryden Road area is asked to contact police immediately.

‘Similarly, anyone who can assist us in identifying the suspects responsible for this fire are also asked to get in touch.’

MBE medal stolen

Lothian and Borders Police are appealing for information after a Queen’s honour medal was stolen from a house in Edinburgh.

The incident happened sometime between 10am on Saturday 21st and 8pm on Monday 23rd August at an address in the Liberton area of Edinburgh.

The suspects gained entry to the rear of the property and made off with an MBE medal belonging to the elderly occupant’s husband.

The medal, which was presented in 1953 for services in Africa with the Colonial Medical Service, is engraved with the recipient’s name and is of great sentimental value to the victim.

No other items were stolen during the robbery.

A police spokesman said: “This has been a callous and cold-hearted theft from the home of an elderly woman who is deeply distressed at the loss of her husband’s medal.

“These honours are not usually inscribed and so this one is easily recognisable. Anyone who comes across it is asked to contact police immediately.

“Similarly, anyone with information that can assist us in locating those responsible is also asked to come forward.”

Book Festival closes with tribute to Morgan

The Edinburgh International Festival public programme closed last night with a moving tribute to Scotland’s first national poet, Edwin Morgan who died last week.  Richard Holloway chaired the final event in Charlotte Square Gardens which featured readings and personal tributes from 14 of Scotland’s top poets including Douglas Dunn, Janice Galloway, Hamish Whyte, Liz Lochhead and Jackie Kay.

The 2010 Festival has featured over 750 participants from 50 countries including Nobel Laureates Joseph Stiglitz, Amartya Sen and Seamus Heaney, Poets Laureate Carol Ann Duffy and Keorapetse ‘Willie’ Kgositsile from South Africa as well as 10 of the 13 authors long-listed for the 2010 Man Booker Prize.  Highlights of the 17 day festival included the first appearance in Edinburgh of A S Byatt, the delivery of the Donald Dewar Memorial Lecture by ex-Chancellor Alistair Darling, exclusive pre-publication readings from Seamus Heaney, Will Self and Michael Frayn and launches of memoirs from Candia McWilliam, Vidal Sassoon and Nicholas Parsons.   Amongst the international authors, Alberto Manguel, Joyce Carol Oates, Garry Trudeau and D B C Pierre were welcome additions to the programme.

Peter Mandelson spoke at his first public event to promote his memoir, The Third Man to a capacity audience, and closed his event with his proposed Oxford Dictionary definition of the new word ‘mandelsonian’ as “subtle, strategic, hard working and ultimately very loyal.”

Around 200,000 people visited Charlotte Square Gardens during the Festival, to enjoy events, browse the bookshops and to relax in the sunshine.  Ticket sales were on a par with 2008 with 76% of all tickets sold.  A figure marginally down on 2009 which was an exceptional year.

Nick Barley, Director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, said “My first year as Book Festival Director has been a hugely fulfilling and enjoyable experience that has fittingly culminated in the tribute to Edwin Morgan in a year when we have welcomed more outstanding poets than ever before.   We have built upon the core of a hugely successful festival by introducing new innovations including the UNBOUND ‘festival within a festival’, the Readers First Book Award and working with a range of Guest Selectors.  These have been extremely well received both by authors and audience alike. I am delighted with the level of ticket sales which demonstrates that despite the uncertainty in the economy, arts and culture continue to play a vital role in people’s lives.”

The RBS Children’s Programme enjoyed sell out events and record signing queues for Robert Muchamore, Cressida Cowell and Julia Donaldson as well as welcoming new writing from John Boyne, Garth Nix, Cornelia Funke and Francesca Simon.  The RBS Schools programme welcomed over 12,000 children from primary and secondary schools across Scotland, culminating in 3,000 primary school pupils enjoying exclusive access to events in Charlotte Square Gardens today.

The Book Festival will continue on-line through the autumn and winter months with new, specially commissioned writing from Scottish, international and children’s authors on the subject of ‘Elsewhere’, which is supported by the Scottish Government’s Edinburgh Festivals Expo Fund.   Video recordings featuring highlights of events with authors in the Elsewhere programme will be available for download.  In addition, audio recordings of many of the events from the 2010 Book Festival will be available at www.edbookfest.co.uk from mid-September.

The 2011 Edinburgh International Book Festival will run from 13 to 29 August 2011 and the programme will be announced in June.

Capuchins at the Zoo

Edinburgh Zoo’s brown capuchin monkeys have had a record breeding season with six new infants joining the two groups. The youngest, born on 29 July 2010, is now just over a month old and was born to first-time mum Penelope.

The capuchins live with common squirrel monkeys in two mixed communities in the East and West sections of the Zoo’s Living Links Centre. Three youngsters were born to the group on the East and three to the group on the West. The new youngsters join a further 18 capuchin adults and juveniles in the Centre and all are still to be sexed. This will be confirmed as the new arrivals become independent and start coming off their mums’ backs.

Charlotte MacDonald, Head Keeper of Primates at Edinburgh Zoo said:
“This has been a really exciting time for our brown capuchin groups – not only have we seen more births than ever but also new first time mums too. For the capuchin community it is also good for other members to see the rearing of young in the group setting which is very important for social primates. As a curious species, and just like our visitors seeing these new additions for the first time, other members of the group can’t fail to be interested in the youngsters.”

Living Links is a field station and research centre for the study of primates, developed by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (the charity that owns Edinburgh Zoo and the Highland Wildlife Park), and the University of St. Andrews. Living Links is home to over 50 brown capuchins and squirrel monkeys, which often associate in the wild. The Centre opened in 2008. These species of monkeys are very curious and inquisitive, making them ideal subjects to support studies about primate communication, intelligence and behaviour. As well as their indoor enclosure, the brown capuchins and common squirrel monkeys at Living Links have extensive outdoor areas where visitors can enjoy great views of them frolicking and playing on rope structures.

Found mainly in Guyana and nearby regions, brown capuchins scent mark by rubbing or “washing” their fur with their own urine. They are omnivorous, eating mostly fruits, seeds, and insects, and sometimes small lizards, frogs, or birds.  They are diurnal, meaning they are active during the day, and spend most of their time in the understory and mid-canopy of the forest. Typically weighing between 2 – 5 kg, males are larger than females.

After a gestation period of 6 months, capuchin monkeys give birth to a single baby and in rare situations twins.  Young males leave their group once they reach sexual maturity. Male brown capuchin monkeys are considered sexually mature at 7 years of age. Females mature earlier and may give birth to their first offspring as early as 4 years old.

Although widespread, they are hunted for food by humans, and are often illegally captured to be sold as pets.  They are also threatened by habitat destruction and populations have declined in some parts of the brown capuchins’ range.

450 years after The Reformation

A fascinating selection of original printed books, manuscripts and letters is to go on display at the National Library of Scotland from tomorrow to mark the 450th anniversary of the Scottish Reformation.

The Reformation can be dated to 1560 when the Scots Confession of Faith (which confirmed the abolition of the Pope’s authority in Scotland) was ratified by the Scottish Parliament – now visitors will have the chance to see a copy of this iconic document first hand as one of the key exhibits.

Also central to the display will be the Bassandyne Bible (1576), the first complete Bible printed in Scotland. The church worked with the Edinburgh printer Thomas Bassandyne and merchant Alexander Arbuthnot to produce this edition of the Geneva Bible which had been translated by English and Scots Calvinists.

Anette Hagan, senior curator of rare book collections at the National Library of Scotland, said: “Our latest display is a fantastic showcase of key artefacts relating to the Scottish Reformation, which is one of the most important events in our country’s history and had repercussions reaching far beyond the dramas of John Knox’s quarrels with Mary Queen of Scots.

“It marked a switch in international alliances away from Catholic France and towards Protestant England, enabling the Union of the Crowns in 1603, and established Calvinism as one of the dominant influences of Scottish life, leading to centuries of hellfire sermons – but also to a society with a strong sense of social responsibility and the highest rate of literacy in Europe.”

The National Library of Scotland’s latest treasures display brings together an impressive collection of items illustrating this significant period.  Visitors can watch history unfold with a range of documents predating the Reformation including a papal bull issued by Pope Leo X in 1517, threatening the German monk and theologian Martin Luther with excommunication; and Archbishop Hamilton’s Catechism (1552), a text outlining the Catholic Church’s beliefs which is a major piece of Middle Scots prose.

The display also provides a chance to see a first edition of John Knox’s most famous and controversial work, The First Blast of the Trumpet, published just a few years later in 1558. For Knox, the Bible taught that women should not bear rule over men and this text was directed against Mary Tudor, Mary of Guise, Catherine de Medici and the youthful Mary Stuart, all Catholics. The tract was originally published anonymously as Knox wanted to conceal his identity until he issued another two ‘blasts’, but no more were published.

Other key highlights include a tract published by the prominent Catholic cleric Ninian Winzet (Abbot and Mary Queen of Scots’ confessor) in 1562, arguing against the Reformation and John Knox in particular, as well as the celebrated ‘Good and Godly Ballads’, a collection of popular Protestant songs compiled by the Wedderburn brothers of Dundee, probably in the 1530s.

If you would like the opportunity to view these spectacular items, and more, visit the National Library of Scotland’s public exhibition space between September 1 and October 31 – entry free of charge.

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