Big week of solo Highland games contests ahead. Would all secretaries, parents and pipers snap away and send us your shots. We now have an Instagram account so any that don’t make the main PP site can be posted there. Inveraray is tomorrow July 17, South Uist 18th, Benbecula Young Piper 19th, Tobermory 19th, 21st Tomintoul, Taynuilt, Lochearnhead, Inverness and North Uist. Isn’t that just tremendous? Thanks are due to all the volunteers who give up so much of their spare time to put on these games. I hope they get the support they deserve.
I hope everyone is now getting used to the new PP site. These things always take a little time to settle down and we are working at knocking off the rough edges as I write. The readership figures over the weekend show that we are almost back to normal. Anyone who receives a security alert message should ignore it, click for more information and take the ‘proceed anyway’ option. The security certificate will be in place today. The new site is faster, more efficient and designed to accommodate our ever-growing number of readers and articles – still spin free; still subscription free. If any subscriber finds that they do not receive a notification please re-subscribe using the facility top left on this page. Equally bookmarks may have to be deleted and re-saved. All contact details remain exactly the same. If anyone notices any glitches anywhere in the site please get back in touch via the usual email and we will sort things out. I repeat my thanks to Elliott and his team for their work over the last several weeks.
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Alan Clark on the Lochaber picture from last week: ‘Nice to see the old photo from Lochaber. I’d say it’s more likely from the 90s though. I was there as a kid (outdoors) and only started on the pipes in the early 90s. I’d need to check back through the scrap-book my mum kept. Perhaps I’ll get it next time I’m home; could be some interesting stuff in it. And Strath and Conon were a were bit younger than myself and Darach as well which makes me think it’s a wee bit later. My memory is not what it was but I wonder if it is Graham Mackintosh on the far left. He was one of the Kyle crew. To the right of him, I wonder if it’s maybe Sandy Cameron. He hailed from about Maryburgh or Conon Bridge I believe. Not sure on the lassie. Ruth Young from about Ullapool was playing a bit back then but I don’t think it’s her. I could be wrong though… Perhaps someone else with better memory can confirm.’
Darach Urquhart: ‘I saw the picture you put up on the blog. The names right to left: Graham MacKintosh, Sandy Cameron, my brother Strath, ?, P/M Angus, my other brother Conon, me and Alastair Brown. Sandy was a pupil of Andrew Venters’ I think and we met through the Queen’s Own Highlanders Cadet Pipe Band that most of us in the picture played in at that time. Incidentally Sandy used to get told he looked like a young Alasdair Gillies and by chance ended up with Alasdair’s cadet sporran! The year would be 1998 I think as P/M Angus died the following year.’
Seen on the steps at Waverley Station, Edinburgh: