Aberdeen City Archives - Page 85 of 206

Changes For Help To Buy (Scotland) Scheme Welcomed By MSP

Aberdeen City, Featured, Opinion No Responses »

Oct 242014

With thanks to Gavin Mowat, Constituency Assistant to Christian Allard MSP

North East MSP Christian Allard has welcomed the Scottish Government’s announcement of changes to Help to Buy (Scotland) which will support more people get onto or move up the property ladder.

As of Wednesday, 22 October 2014, the shared equity scheme will only apply to homes worth up to £250,000, rather than the current maximum of £400,000.

This change will ensure that more people can benefit from available funding and help to target funding at lower income families and first time buyers.

With 85 per cent of all Help to Buy (Scotland) sales to date already at or below this new threshold, and an estimated 94 per cent of sales having been to first time buyers, most new build houses will not be affected by the changes.

Demand for the scheme has been high with Ministers allocating £275 million to the scheme to date, which is £55 million more than the industry’s original £220 million request. £100 million of that funding has been allocated to the 2015-16 budget.

Commenting, SNP MSP Christian Allard said:

“This is fantastic news for first time buyers and people who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford to buy a new build home. It is particularly useful here in the North East where there are many areas with higher than average house prices.

“The Scottish Government delivering changes to the Help to Buy (Scotland) scheme has opened up the housing market to thousands of house buyers. Buying a new Barrat Home in places like Inverurie will be a more realistic target for many.

“These changes along with arrangements for the Land and Buildings transaction Tax announced by the Finance Secretary recently, demonstrates the SNP’s commitment to making sure everyone in Scotland has access to good quality, affordable homes.”

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[Aberdeen Voice accepts and welcomes contributions from all sides/angles pertaining to any issue. Views and opinions expressed in any article are entirely those of the writer/contributor, and inclusion in our publication does not constitute support or endorsement of these by Aberdeen Voice as an organisation or any of its team members.]

Promising New Country Talent Makes City Debut 24.10.14

Aberdeen City, Opinion No Responses »

Oct 242014

With thanks to David Innes.

Ags Connolly, described as ‘the closest we’ve ever come to an English Willie Nelson’ by Duncan Warwick, of Country Music People, makes his Aberdeen debut at The Blue Lamp on Friday 24 November following on from his last Scottish show at Perth’s Southern Fried Festival in July.
His debut album ‘How About Now’ was released in February 2014 and reviews have been incredibly positive, especially for a first outing, and he has just released a video for his first single ‘When Country Was Proud’

Almost Blue Promotions are excited about their coup in bringing Ags north, and this show is guaranteed to add to the agency’s already-excellent reputation in the city and its hinterland.

What the reviewers have said:

“One of the best records you are likely to hear this year…so strong is Connolly’s writing, dare I suggest that Ags Connolly is the closest we’ve ever come to an English Willie Nelson? Yes, he’s really that good, and his voice is unique.” – Duncan Warwick, Country Music People

“How About Now is a masterpiece of British country” – Maverick

“A compelling debut” – Independent on Sunday

“One of the most promising new talents on the Brit country scene” – Record Collector

“Drop all the qualifiers, discounts, and rhetoric about origin, Ags Connolly deserves to be considered right beside his Stateside counterparts as one of the carriers of the country music holy ghost whose carefully-crafted songs can speak to the human heart universally, irrespective of borders” – Saving Country Music

“Extraordinarily accomplished…hard to believe that it’s a UK product. As good a country record as you’re likely to hear from anywhere this year” – Flyinshoes Review

Tickets are available now for £8.80 from

http://www.seetickets.com/event/ags-connolly/the-blue-lamp/803674/ or http://www.aberdeenperformingarts.com/events/ags-connolly

Buying directly from www.almostbluepromotions.com/#!buy-tickets/cq91 will avoid the booking fee, or, if there are tickets left, they’ll be available at the door for £10.

Links:

www.agsconnolly.com
www.almostbluepromotions.com

Keeping It Peel: A Tribute – Tunnels, Sat 25 Oct

Aberdeen City, Opinion No Responses »

Oct 202014

With thanks to Mike Tyers.

Interesting Music Promotions are delighted to announce a special tribute night in honour of John
Peel.
Ten years on from his untimely death, we will honour his memory and legacy by having a whole evening of eclectic music, lots of fun & a dance floor rammed full.

This Saturday 25th October #KeepingItPeel, no less than 7 local acts present great value for a reasonable ticket price, and represent the variety and that enthusiasm for the unique and unusual which John Peel will always be remembered.

Kasule:

Longstanding friends of IMP, “the best band you have never heard of” are utterly sublime, producing a unique post rock/electronica/dancey vibe.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kasule/212273908783486?fref=ts

Min Diesel:

Local indie band who are definitely moving out of the lofi into even more interesting music territory.

“An impatient Dinosaur jr (or) Shellac with more soul” – The Fly

Debut album out very soon.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Min-Diesel/122142337808269?fref=ts

Autumn Hang (Dub Set):

Another local who is prolific at turning out cd’s and is starting (quite rightly) to get more live shows. His set tonight will be electronic based but we will “expect the unexpected” as we always do and we will delight in what he offers up.
https://soundcloud.com/autumn-hang

Kitchen Cynics (special Peel tribute):

Local music genius. There, I’ve said it. Expect something poignant and great for this special event.
https://www.facebook.com/kitchen.cynics?fref=ts

Sonically Depicting:

A new experimental band featuring Haylan Jay & John Cavanagh ( he of the walking music encyclopaedia & Scottish BBC). They are so new we don’t have a link to this project…yet.
https://www.facebook.com/john.cavanagh?fref=ts

Best Girl Athlete (Minty Fresh Records / Fitlike Records):

Without doubt one of NE Scotland’s best comedy acts, they are also very fine in the music they produce. Best new duo in Aberdeen in our opinion …Simply do not miss. They have just signed to the really cool American label Minty Fresh Records as recently highlighted in a superb review of them in the Evening Express.
https://www.facebook.com/BestGirlAthlete?fref=ts

Strawberry Wine DJ’s:

Spinning some Peel faves and beyond. Amazing music knowledge and depth, and always hearing great new (old) music from their nights at Cellar 35.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Strawberry-Wine/219642591474608?fref=ts

All proceeds after artist expenses to appropriate local or Scottish music charities to enhance musical inspiration.

Saturday 25th Oct 2014
Tunnels 1
Aberdeen
8 till late

Early bird tickets £7.50 available from – https://www.wegottickets.com/event/277357

Links:

http://keepingitpeel.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/keepingitpeel
http://www.facebook.com/interestingmusicpromotions.
http://www.twitter.com/IMP_aberdeen
https://www.facebook.com/events/760708197309272/

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President Guest At City Dickens Fellowship Meeting

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Oct 172014

By David Innes.

Aberdeen Dickens Fellowship was honoured to have Professor Jenny Harley as guest speaker at its October 2014 meeting. Jenny is President of the International Dickens Fellowship and Scholar in Residence at the Charles Dickens Museum.

She is well-known to Dickensians for her publications The Selected Letters of Charles Dickens (OUP) and Charles Dickens and the House of Fallen Women (Methuen). The latter topic was the Fellowship’s focus for the evening.

Angela Burdett-Coutts, a woman of considerable means, being the heiress to Coutts Bank fortune, was a significant philanthropist, funding Ragged Schools and concerned about the plight of homeless and other unfortunate women in London Piccadilly.

She turned to Dickens to assist in creating a refuge for such women, some who would have been sacked servants without references, others prostitutes and not a few ex-prisoners.

The relish with which Dickens took aboard the project in 1846 is remarkable. He planned the refuge to replicate a familial environment, drew up a behavioural code, based on Maconnochie’s reward scheme, micro-managing the establishment of the house, Urania Cottage, in London’s Shepherd’s Bush.

It aimed to educate its unfortunate residents with a view to helping them to become ‘good domestic servants’, the type that would be attractive to employers. Yet the agreement was that those who had passed through Urania Cottage’s rehabilitation would need to be cut off from former immoral associates for fear of backsliding into former ways.

Transportation to the colonies to begin new lives was seen as the solution to this potential issue. Unfortunately for history, Dickens’s Case Book in which he recorded personal interviews with Urania Cottage hopefuls has been lost. He was notorious for fits of consigning personal records to bonfires.

The focus then shifted to the portal of ‘fallen women’ in Dickens’s writing. Oliver Twist (1837) had already shown Nancy in semi-sympathetic light, but in the novels which followed the establishment of Urania Cottage, Little Emily and Martha (David Copperfield 1849), Charley and Esther (Bleak House 1852), Sissy Jupe (Hard Times 1854) and Little Dorrit and Maggie (Little Dorrit 1855) are each examples of women suffering misfortune, saved by education, altruism or personal effort.

In the case of the Peggoty family in David Copperfield, there is even a successful and prosperous migration to Australia.

It is reasonable to suppose, our guest commented, that character and outcome in these works were in some way influenced by Dickens’s Urania Cottage experiences.

In researching Charles Dickens and the House of Fallen Women, Jenny Hartley was painstaking. She described how her efforts eventually took her to Adelaide and Melbourne – “that was the fun bit” – to try to conclude whether or not the experiences of Urania Cottage had enhanced former residents’ lives.

Dickens himself made some comment. In Household Words, he wrote of seven successful marriages of Urania House women, but tracing those who had passed through its doors was difficult for Professor Harley, in no small way due to the reluctance of Antipodeans, in decades past, to acknowledge transportees in their family history.

The jewel in the crown, however, is Rhena Pollard, one of the more feisty and assertive of Urania Cottage residents, and on whom, Jenny mused, Tattycoram (Little Dorrit 1855) may have been based.

It was to audience delight that we were informed that Rhena was traced to Canada, married successfully in Ontario, bearing eight children to Oris Coles. Pictures of the prosperous-looking Mr and Mrs Coles and of a plaque commemorating Rhena’s story were a happy conclusion to a fascinating and highly-informative talk from a dedicated and genial Dickensian.

The local Fellowship’s next meeting is on Tuesday 11 November.

Our good friend Grahame Smith of the University of Stirling will kick off our series of meetings studying this session’s featured volume The Old Curiosity Shop, with a seminar, ‘Youth and Age in The Old Curiosity Shop: Nell as an Abused Child’.

We will meet at Grampian Housing Association, at the crossroads of Huntly Street and Summer Street, Aberdeen, from 1900-2100. Annual membership costs £20 and includes admission to all meetings. Entry to individual meetings costs £3. We are a welcoming and convivial collective.

Beauty And The Beast – HMT’s 2014 Christmas Pantomime

Aberdeen City, Articles, Events No Responses »

Oct 172014

By Duncan Harley

Pantomime season arrived early this week as one of Scotland’s most talented performers, Elaine C Smith, made an impromptu appearance at Aberdeen’s Bon Accord Centre.

In full costume and accompanied by Prince Sebastion, perhaps better known as the Beast, Elaine mingled with shoppers and posed for the cameras as a prelude to her star role as Mrs Potty in HM Theatre’s 2014 Christmas panto production of “Beauty and the Beast.”

This is Elaine’s sixth year starring in pantomime at His Majesty’s Theatre in Aberdeen.

“Some folk think that when you do panto it’s a sign that your stage career is over,” said Elaine “in reality it’s quite the opposite, this is Aberdeen’s very own panto not just a touring show … it’s a real pleasure to appear here.”

Now grandmother to new baby Stella, ‘Granny Smith’ has arrived to a warm welcome from the Granite City and she’ll not be leaving until the Beast is once again transformed into a handsome prince.

Produced by Michael Harrison, this years production has been written by Alan McHugh will don his frock for the 11th year running to delight audiences as Dame Kitty Brewster while Jordan Young will no doubt be up to some extreme mischief in his role as Boabby Brewster.

The Beast is played by Luke Newton while Anne Smith, of Madam JoJo’s West End Club fame, will play the Wicked Witch. Dundee born Maggie Lynne plays the role of the beautiful Belle and Paul Luebke, of Taggart fame, is cast as Harris McTweed.

Rehearsals begin soon and the theatre doors open on Saturday 29th November with performances up to and including Sunday January 4th.

Tickets are available from Aberdeen Box Office on 01224 641122 and on line at www.boxofficeaberdeen.com

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Finalists Announced In City And Shire Tourism Awards

Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire No Responses »

Oct 172014

With thanks to Eoin Smith, Tricker PR.

Two distilleries, a fish and chip shop and a colourful display of dolphin sculptures are among those announced as finalists in the 2015 Aberdeen City and Shire Tourism Awards (ACSTA) today (October 15, 2014). Entrants in 14 different categories now face an anxious wait until January 30 next year to learn if they will be crowned winners.

There was a 25% increase in the number of entries received by the awards scheme, which is organised by the Aberdeen City and Shire Hotels’ Association (ACSHA). It took place for the first time earlier this year.

Two additional categories were also introduced and the sections are now aligned with the national VisitScotland-backed scheme, The Scottish Thistle Awards. It is intended that ACSTA will become adopted as the regional final for the Scottish Thistle Awards by 2016.

ACSTA chairman Iain Watson says the level of interest took organisers by surprise. He commented:

“From the moment we opened for entries in July, there was a steady stream of nominations coming in. Overall we were 25% up on the number of nominations received last year and while we have two additional categories, the increase was seen across the board.

“We have received entries from many of the operators who took part in our inaugural awards in 2014, but also many new faces who are taking part for the first time. It is clear that operators across the city and shire have been inspired by the 2014 event and recognise that this is an opportunity for them to shine.

“I can honestly say that every single facet of the tourism industry is represented in this awards scheme, from small one-man operators through to large multi-national organisations. And that is the wonderful thing about ACSTA – there is a place for everyone at the table.

“This is not about rewarding the organisation that has the most budget or manpower at its disposal: the awards are about recognising operators and individuals who make a real difference to the visitor experience and who are dedicated to ensuring that customers, whether they are here for business or leisure, leave with a first rate impression of what we have to offer.”

Contenders in one of the most hotly contended categories – Most Hospitable Hotel – are this year’s winner Meldrum House, Oldmeldrum; Holiday Inn West Aberdeen; and Tor-na-Coille, Banchory.

Calum Richardson from The Bay Fish and Chips in Stonehaven, who was a finalist in the Ambassador category in 2014, has once again made the shortlist, along with tour guide Pam Wells and Stephen Gow, the general manager of the Thistle hotel group in Scotland.

Final judging will take place before the end of the year and winners will be announced at a ceremony at Ardoe House Hotel and Spa in Aberdeen on January 30, 2015. Host for the evening will be broadcaster Tam Cowan. Further information about the awards is available at www.acsta.co.uk

The shortlisted nominees in all categories are:

Our Warmest Welcome – Holiday Inn Aberdeen West; The Jays Guest House, Aberdeen; Ardoe House Hotel and Spa, Aberdeen.

Best Informal Eating Experience – The Bay Fish and Chips, Stonehaven; Buchanan Foods Ltd, Banchory; The Mariner Hotel Ltd, Aberdeen.

Best Event or Festival – Run Balmoral; Bon Accord Steam Engine Club; Wild in Art for Wild Dolphins.

Green Tourism – Holiday Inn Express City Centre, Aberdeen; The Bay Fish and Chips; Mains of Scotstown, Aberdeen.

Creative Ambition – Glen Tanar Estate, Aboyne; Thistle Aberdeen Airport Hotel; Visit Royal Deeside.

Friendliest Pub/Bar – Orchid, Aberdeen; The New Inn, Ellon; The Illicit Still, Aberdeen.

Best Visitor Attraction – Glen Garioch Distillery, Oldmeldrum; World Horse Welfare, Aboyne; Glen Dronach Distillery, near Huntly.

Most Hospitable Guest House – Durn House, Portsoy; Struan Hall Guest House, Aboyne; Glendavan House, Aboyne.

Best Restaurant Experience – Ardoe House Hotel and Spa; Banchory Lodge Hotel; Atlantis Restaurant, Aberdeen.

Best Holiday Accommodation – Ythan Valley Campsite and Little Lodge; High Seas Hobbit, Rosehearty.

Community Involvement Award – Aberdeen Performing Arts; Marriott, Aberdeen; Park Inn by Radisson, Aberdeen.

Most Hospitable Hotel – Meldrum House Country Hotel, Oldmeldrum; Holiday Inn Aberdeen West; Tor-na-Coille Hotel, Banchory.

Young Ambassador – Stuart McPhee, Harding Ltd, Aberdeen; Adelle Chessor, VisitAberdeen; Craig McDonald, Glen Tanar Estate.

Ambassador – Calum Richardson, The Bay Fish and Chips; Pam Wells, Pam Wells Ltd; Stephen Gow,Thistle Aberdeen Altens Hotel.

Sunset Sons Kick Off UK Tour At Drummonds

Aberdeen City, Gigs and Concerts No Responses »

Oct 172014

With thanks to Chuff Media.

After a great year that has seen them play the prestigious Reading and Leeds and Boardmasters festivals, Sunset Sons, are heading out on a UK headline tour to support their new EP ‘No Bad Days’ (Polydor).
The tour starts at Cafe Drummond in Aberdeen on October 24th.

The Anglo-Aussie four piece have unveiled the official video for ‘Remember’, the lead track taken from their upcoming release,

Shot in the idyllic French surf commune of Hossegor where the band currently live, the ‘Remember’ video perfectly encapsulates Sunset Sons, cutting between shots of friends and locals living in the town and blistering live performance footage.

The tour includes a stop at the riverside venue Tamesis Dock for an intimate 150-capacity show before heading to Koko to play Club NME.

‘Remember’ is being released as part of the No Bad Days EP which is out on October 26th. This EP follows their debut release earlier this year, the Le Surfing EP which garnered much attention and firmly established Sunset Sons as the band to watch for 2015. Building on a dedicated community of fans in coastal UK towns, the band are picking up steam with huge support at national radio and champions in Fearne Cotton and Zane Lowe.

Tour Dates:

October 24th – Café Drummond, Aberdeen
October 26th – Sound Control, Manchester
October 28th – Oporto, Leeds
October 30th – Tamesis Dock, London
November 1st – Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar, Brighton
November 2nd – Sin City, Swansea
November 3rd – Cavern Club, Exeter
November 5th – The Hub, Plymouth
November 6th – The Watering Hole, Perranporth

History Of Aberdeen Protest Website Launched

Aberdeen City, Featured, History 1 Response »

Oct 172014

By Andrew Macgregor.

A new website which aims to tell the history of protest in Aberdeen has been launched.
The resource features potted histories of individuals, groups, community spaces and co-operatives which have campaigned on various issues – economic, military, political or religious.

Most of the individuals and groups are from the left of the political spectrum but others have been non-political and protested about specific local issues.

There are groups which are branches of Scottish or British organisations, yet others which are just local to Aberdeen. Lastly, the groups are not just historical as current groups are included as well. The website also has a directory of active local groups, a list of further web and printed resources and information on a current campaign for an Aberdeen Social Centre.

This resource has been created in order that these campaigns are not forgotten. The stories are part of Aberdeen’s history and although individuals and groups may be long gone, their influence still lives on in their writings, speeches and actions. The importance of the documentary record is emphasised as well, as any archival sources created by the campaigns are noted in the histories.

Currently around 40 histories, ranging from the 19th century to current, have been added to the website and just one example is:

“The Aberdeen University Peace Society existed between 1912 and 1914 with the aim of encouraging critical debate on the subject of war and the possible ways it could be prevented. Lectures and discussions included topics such as war and social evolution, international courts and how economic ties could bind nations together. The life and death of the Society’s secretary, William Henry Sutherland, illustrates at once the fate of the Society and the tragedy of war. In March 1913 he had enlisted in the 4th Gordon Highlanders and in October 1917 after many years fighting at the front, he was mentioned in dispatches and was awarded the Military Cross. He tragically fell in action soon after, on the 23rd March 1918.”

– Sources: papers held at University of Aberdeen Library. Minute book from 1912 – 1914 and a journal called ‘Concordia’ from 1913.

There will no doubt be gaps in information as research on this type of subject is very difficult due to the paucity of documentary sources. If it is difficult, perhaps even impossible, to trace the existence of the more radical political groups farther back in time (due to government suppression as just one example) and it can be just as difficult to capture the protest groups of today as they organise via social media and often leave no record.

I hope though that this resource will grow as others (perhaps those who were involved in the campaigns) fill in the gaps in the research.

The website address is – http://aberdeenprotest.wordpress.com/

If you were involved in some of these campaigns or have more information which you think would help me please get in touch. Also if you are interested in helping in the setting up of the social centre please contact Andrew MacGregor

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One World Week – Peace And Justice Concert

Aberdeen City, Events No Responses »

Oct 102014

With thanks to Jonathan Russell.

Aberdeen and District CND will be hosting a Peace and Justice Concert at the Blue Lamp on Sunday afternoon 2-5.30pm on 19th October as part of a number of events for One World Week. There will be Music, Poetry and Dance performed by local artists from Scotland, India, Nepal, Vietnam, Germany, China, Japan, Spain and South America.

One World Week aims to bring people together across the world in the cause of Peace and Justice. The event is dedicated to all people suffering injustice worldwide.

Artists playing will be Dave Davies and friends, Colin Edwards, Nigel and Mark Lammas, Precious Few from Köln in Germany, Nabin Chhetri Nepalese poetry, Rev Dr Isaac Poobalan and Dr Amudha Poobalan Indian music,

Mukal Dahal Nepalese poetry, Fuji Toyonobu and friends Japanese music, Colin Edwards poetry, Minh Tri Tran Vietnamese guitar, Yoleah You Li Chinese violin, Imagine ensemble, Tommy Campbell reading Hilda Meer’s poetry / Simon Gall sings Hilda Meers followed by Simon Gall and Xavier Ortiz sing Latin- Columbian music, Nepalese Dance, Javier Dominguez and friends Flamenco and Dance.

There will be a finale of Bob Marley’s One Love and Stand up for your Rights with everyone either playing instruments dancing or singing

The event is free but donations will be welcome for the Local CND group and the World Development Movement

Please come along and join in the fun

For further information please contact Jonathan Russell

E-mail: jhamiltonrussell@hotmail.co.uk
Mobile: 0758-245-6233

Ice Rink Returns To Union Terrace Gardens

Aberdeen City, News 1 Response »

Oct 102014

Aberdeen Inspired will once again be bringing festive cheer to the heart of the city, with plans for an ice rink in Union Terrace Gardens. With thanks to Paul Smith, Citrus:Mix.

Last year around 2,000 skaters took to the ice and the pop-up attraction is back by popular demand, in partnership with Aberdeen City Council.

The rink will be open from December 1 through to January 5 at its new home in the gardens. Last year the Castlegate was the venue.

Craig Stevenson, the Aberdeen Inspired director with responsibility for the organisation’s events programme, said:

“We decided to bring an ice rink back to the city centre last year after a long absence and the response was phenomenal. It created such a buzz and brought a real sense of fun to the Christmas period.”

Aberdeen Inspired is the banner under which the Aberdeen BID (Business Improvement District) operates. It is a business-led initiative within the city centre in which levy payers within the BID zone contribute. Proceeds are used to fund projects designed to improve the business district and driving footfall to the zone.

Craig Stevenson added:

“Aberdeen Inspired’s overarching aim is to bring more people to the business improvement district and the ice rink was a huge success from that perspective. We have moved to Union Terrace Gardens this year to add a fresh feel and to allow businesses in a different part of the zone to benefit from the positive impact.

“In saying that, the benefits last year were seen throughout the city centre and not just around the Castlegate. By bringing thousands of people to the heart of Aberdeen it helps support our members but also adds to the atmosphere and feel-good factor surrounding Christmas in the city.”

The length of time the rink will be in place has been extended this year to allow more people to enjoy the attraction over the festive holidays. Admission will cost £3 per person, including skate hire, and all proceeds will once again go to charity. The rink will open from 11am to 8pm each day.

For further information on the work of Aberdeen Inspired visit www.aberdeeninspired.com.

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