Zane Lee

Spirit of Tasmania IV has finally left Scottish shores, charting a course to Hobart on an epic 27,000 km journey — marking the next chapter for Tasmania’s ageing ferry fleet. Departure After Delays After months of anticipation, Spirit of Tasmania IV set sail from Leith, Scotland, on June 30.Its departure came later than planned. Back in May, technical issues with its liquid natural gas system forced the vessel to stay put. Now, the deep water berth in Devonport’s Mersey River — its future home — is still under construction, so its first Australian stop will be Hobart instead. The Route:…

Scotland’s GPs are drawing a line in the sand. The British Medical Association (BMA) has declared a formal dispute with the Scottish Government, accusing ministers of years of underfunding that has left surgeries unable to cope. Doctors are warning this is just the beginning. If nothing changes, a ballot on disruptive action — including potential service reductions — could be next. A Crisis That's Been Building for Years This isn’t just about spreadsheets. It’s about surgeries struggling to stay open, GPs burning out, and communities being left without access to basic care. In a strongly worded joint statement, BMA Scotland’s…

Hundreds of bus orders may still not be enough. That’s the blunt warning from Alexander Dennis boss Paul Davies, who told Scottish lawmakers that the company’s future in Scotland hangs by a thread. Even with new vehicle demand on the table, Davies says it’s "not guaranteed" the firm’s Falkirk and Larbert sites can be saved. Orders Coming In — But Still Not Enough Alexander Dennis is Scotland’s last major bus manufacturer. It’s built thousands of vehicles over the decades and has long been one of the Central Belt’s key employers. But now, it’s at risk of leaving Scotland entirely. Paul…

Shah Rukh Khan and Suhana Khan will head to Scotland in September for a crucial phase of filming for King, the father-daughter duo's first feature collaboration. Industry insiders say the schedule will be packed with action, emotion, and sweeping outdoor visuals. The much-awaited thriller, helmed by Pathaan director Siddharth Anand, has already kicked off production in Mumbai. Now, the film is set to make its next move in the Scottish Highlands — a location picked not just for its scenic appeal, but for the raw cinematic intensity it can bring to screen. A Family Affair On and Off Screen This…

Scotland has recorded a significant drop in child poverty since embedding legal targets into law — a stark contrast to rising figures across the rest of the UK, new analysis shows. 21,000 Fewer Children in Poverty in Scotland Since 2017 Since the Child Poverty (Scotland) Act 2017 came into effect, the number of children living in relative poverty has fallen by 12%, equivalent to around 21,000 fewer children affected. That’s no small feat. Over the same time period, England and Wales saw a 15% rise in child poverty, according to new research published by the Big Issue. The findings paint…

You might not know it, but your face could already be in a database the moment you walk into your neighbourhood shop. A growing number of retailers across Scotland are using facial recognition technology to spot repeat offenders and deter theft. While some store owners call it a game-changer, privacy campaigners see something darker: a surveillance state creeping in through the back door. Theft Is Rising — and Shops Say They're On Their Own Shoplifting across Scotland is up. A 16% year-on-year increase, according to the latest crime figures, has retailers scrambling for solutions. Many complain that police can’t —…

Scotland’s tourism sector is roaring back to life. After years of travel disruption, the latest stats from VisitScotland confirm what locals have been noticing for months—crowds are back, languages from every continent fill city streets, and visitor spend is spiking. International arrivals are booming. And the numbers don’t lie. Post-COVID Recovery Turns into Full-Blown Tourism Bounce The new data, published in the latest Great Britain Tourism Survey and shared by VisitScotland, shows that overseas visitor numbers rose significantly in 2024 compared to the previous year. That’s not just recovery—it’s acceleration. While full-year figures are still being finalised, the provisional estimates…

Forget celebrity red carpets—tonight in Glasgow, it’s the everyday heroes getting a standing ovation. The Pride of Scotland Awards 2025 are set to honour 12 remarkable people whose quiet courage and tireless kindness are anything but ordinary. Dubbed the “People’s Oscars,” this year’s ceremony is packed with emotion, surprise reunions, and stories that will stick with you long after the lights go down. Not Just Another Awards Night—It’s Scotland at Its Best Held at the Hilton Hotel and co-hosted by comedy greats Elaine C Smith and Sanjeev Kohli, the event blends glitz with grit. Yes, there’s a red carpet. But…

A sweeping new landfill ban will kick in on December 31. But with no clear plan for where all the rubbish will go, Scotland may be forced to export its waste — by the truckload. Scotland is staring down a garbage dilemma that’s fast approaching a national embarrassment. In just over six months, the country will outlaw the dumping of household and commercial “black bag” waste in landfills. But there’s a snag — there’s nowhere near enough incinerators or recycling infrastructure ready to deal with the fallout. And that means Scotland could be sending up to 100 trucks of waste…

In the early 1980s, Scottish music found itself at a crossroads. The punk momentum had waned, many post-punk trailblazers were decamping to London, and what remained was a vacuum — raw, uncertain, and wide open for reinvention. What happened next is the focus of Postcards From Scotland, a new book by filmmaker and cultural historian Grant McPhee, released this week to critical acclaim. Spanning the pivotal years between 1983 and 1995, Postcards From Scotland is an oral history told not by critics or industry suits, but by the musicians, label founders, fanzine writers, and gig-goers who lived it — and…