#BestOf2020

Dec 30, 2020
2 min

2020 Vision: Looking Back At The Cultural Year…

A wee bonus SWH! podcast for the end of the year… Earlier this year we recorded podcasts with Ali and his brother Andy (right) where they discussed their favourite albums from the 1980s through to the 2010s: Musical Youth: The SWH! Podcast Talks To Andy Braidwood… Yesterday Once More: The SWH! Podcast & The Music Of The ’90s… Noughtie But Nice: The SWH! Podcast & The Music Of The ’00s… A New Decade: The SWH! Podcast & The Music Of The 2010s… Just before Christmas Day they got

Dec 11, 2020
2 min

That Was The Year That Was: The Best Of 2020 Podcasts – Films…

In the year when cinemas were closed for most of it, and film release schedules were pushed back to who knows when, you might think it would be tough to talk about the Best Films of 2020 for any length of time. Well think again, as Chris Ward, Wesley Shearer, and Ali reunite for their annual chat about their favourite movies of the past 12 months. Picking five each, they share their enthusiasm for films you may have missed first time around, and we’re sure you’ll find somethi

Dec 8, 2020
2 min

That Was The Year That Was: The Best Of 2020 Podcasts – Books (Part II)…

This year was such a great one for Scottish writing that we had to split our Best Books of 2020 podcast into two parts to fit in everything we wanted to talk about. This is Part II. Ali was once again joined by Publishing Scotland‘s Vikki Reilly (right), who became a published author herself this year. The two pick their favourite books from the last 12 months, (most Scottish, but some not) and take many detours and diversions along the way. These are always among the most pl

Dec 4, 2020
2 min

That Was The Year That Was: The Best Of 2020 Podcasts – Books (Part I)…

This year was such a great one for Scottish writing that we had to split our Best Books of 2020 podcast into two parts to fit in everything we wanted to talk about. This is Part I. Ali was once again joined by Publishing Scotland‘s Vikki Reilly (right), who became a published author herself this year. The two pick their favourite books from the last 12 months, (most Scottish, but some not) and take many detours and diversions along the way. These are always among the most ple

Dec 3, 2020
8 min

The Good Word: SWH!’s 10 Best Books Of 2020…

There are plenty of ‘Books Of The Year’ lists around this time competing for your time and attention, but we like to think that Scots Whay Hae!’s selection is one for the more discerning book lover with something for everyone. It’s a good old-fashioned Top Ten which this year features dystopian sci-fi, historical fiction, northern noir, coming-of-age, unconventional travelogue, environmental thrills, the birth and death of love, psychological mystery, politics, pop music, per

Dec 2, 2020
4 min

Young Guns: A Review Of Andrew O’Hagan’s Mayflies…

With Christmas hoving into view, we’ll be posting reviews of some of the best books of 2020, (a few of which have appeared in different versions elsewhere) and offering suggestions as to what to get the book lover in your life. If this year has shown us anything it’s that the arts in all forms are central to a nation and its people’s well being. People have turned to music, TV, film, and, of course, books to get through the Lockdown days and beyond. For those with an interes

Nov 27, 2020
3 min

Daydream Believer: A Review Of Stewart Ennis’s Blessed Assurance…

With Christmas hoving into view, we’ll be posting reviews of some of the best books of 2020, (a few of which have appeared in different versions elsewhere) and offering suggestions as to what to get the book lover in your life. Sometimes a novel comes along which reminds you why you fell in love with books in the first place, one which delights in language, wrong foots you at many turns, and mixes the unusual with the familiar. They become part of your story, helping to make

Nov 25, 2020
2 min

Ballads For The Bereaved: A Review of Peter Ross’s A Tomb With A View…

With Christmas hoving into view, we’ll be posting reviews of some of the best books of 2020, (a few of which have appeared in different versions elsewhere – see bottom of the review*) and offering suggestions as to what to get the book lover in your life. Peter Ross’s previous books, Daunderlust: Dispatches from Unreported Scotland and The Passion of Harry Bingo: Further Dispatches from Unreported Scotland collected examples of his journalism and through it a picture of a Sco