Jonathan Ditchburn

In an unannounced visit to American troops, the US president says the “Taliban wants to make a deal”.
BBC News – US & Canada

You might not expect a debate over new regulations for the mohair trade to ignite strong passions.
BBC News – Africa

The town of Elgin in Moray is one of those towns which due to its remote location is often missed when considering a Scottish excursion. This is a shame as Elgin is steeped in history, remarkably dry and temperate […]

Arbroath in the County of Angus is the place to visit if you like your seaside port towns mixed with a bit of historical significance.  It is a town that has thrived throughout history as the base for importing […]

If you have been to the wet and wild west coast of Scotland, then Irvine is the third place you will have stopped, after Ayr and, if the Viking festival is on, then Largs, too.

Irvine is pretty. It’s s […]

Wishaw was once a North Lanarkshire industrial powerhouse before the steel mills closed and it was forced to seek a new identity. The one place in Scotland that is greyer than the overcast sky. There is a theory […]

Clydebank is exactly where you think it is… on the banks of the River Clyde in West Dunbartonshire. Although there are several other towns and cities perched on the banks of the Clyde, this is the only one that c […]

Cambuslang is a nice place, we natives like it particularly because there are trees there. It sounds stupid, but there comes a point where you hit this radius around Glasgow where the only trees are in […]

Rutherglen is in South Lanarkshire, although it is could be in Glasgow given it has a Glasgow postcode. However, in 1996 it was designated South Lanarkshire and given a County Council of its own. In short: nobody […]

Some 370 positions will be hit by the closures as TSB aims to revive itself following an IT crisis.
BBC News – Business

Troops fire live rounds in Nasiriya and Baghdad on one of the bloodiest days of unrest so far.
BBC News – Middle East

Tens of thousands joined peaceful marches, with many holding up photos of the teenager.
BBC News – Latin America & Caribbean

The French leader says alliance members needed a “wake-up call” as they were no longer co-operating.
BBC News – Europe

Both main parties are not being honest ahead of the general election, an influential research group says.
BBC News – UK

Beijing’s warning comes after President Trump signed a bill in support of pro-democracy activists.
BBC News – US & Canada

Five-time African champions TP Mazembe of DR Congo announce plans to construct a 50,000 seat stadium next year.
BBC News – Africa

NFL 2019 Week Twelve  – Are We Heading For A Super Bowl XLVII Re-run?
In a week where things normally begin to take shape, the only thing we learned was that Cincinnati won’t be in the postseason and that there […]

The Arkon Zips ended a season they will hope to forget with not even a whimper as they crashed to 0-12 thanks to a 52-3 trouncing at home to Ohio.  Thus ends the worst season in Zips history and they have now […]

CFP Rankings Buckeyes edge into the No 1 spot
This week we got the fourth set of CFP rankings and to be honest we are still no clearer regarding their thinking process, but we do agree with them moving Ohio State […]

A bottle of water costs four times more on the motorway than in a supermarket, mystery shoppers say.
BBC News – Business