A version of this article first appeared in PRODUCT magazine In my early teens, with music an increasingly integral part of life, a friend’s dad would periodically sit us down and sermonise as to who and what was worthy of our devotion, and what we should avoid. There was no room for opinion or debate – this was the gospel according to Jim Jackson. Examples included his decree that Bob Dylan had only ever written one bad song (although he never disclosed which one – we would

Scottish Opera's revival of The Marriage of Figaro works as the perfect gateway opera for those who are unsure if it's an art form for them. The storyline will be recognisable from books, film and TV in terms of style and structure - literally a comedy of errors, as individuals are manipulated, lies are told, identities are mistaken, and just when it looks like it's all going wrong, it resolves before the final curtain falls, with hopefully lessons learned. Set from dawn till

For the latest Scots Whay Hae! podcast Ali spoke to musician and composer Kenny Inglis. Kenny was a recent artist of the week on the Scots Whay Hae! Show (which is on CamGlen Radio every Sunday between 7-9pm, and available to catch up with after that) but we thought he had so much more to say, and that this was the place to say it. Kenny spoke about his unusual road into making music, working in record shops, setting up his own studio, playing in bands, life on the road, and

For the latest Scots Whay Hae! Podcast Ali spoke once again to Ann Campbell who is the Festival Director of the Dunoon Film Festival which this year runs between 8th - 10th May, and has the themes of 'Film, Food & Fun. Ann talks about those themes and how the programme relates to them before the two go through just some of the highlights of this year's festival, which include The Orkney Dive which celebrates the sustainability and value of scallop diving and low-impact seafoo

For the latest Scots Whay Hae! podcast Ali spoke to writer Frances Crawford to talk all about her debut novel A Bad, Bad Place, which is published on the Bantam imprint of Penguin Books. Frances gives a brief description of the book (avoiding spoilers), before talking about why this was the story for her first novel, and the long and winding road to publication. The two then discuss the two central characters of 12-year-old schoolgirl Janey and her Nana Maggie and how the nat

For the latest Scots Whay Hae! podcast Ali spoke once again to Jess Orr, the Associate Programmer for the Paisley Book Festival, to learn all about this year's programme - and what a programme it is! Jess explains this year's theme 'Everyday Heroes, Everlasting Icons' as well as breaking down the various strands of the festival which include Reclaiming History's Heroines and What Nature Does For Us before the two go into details about just some of the individual events across