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LONDON – They went to Mexico for their honeymoon, they came back with swine flu. A Scottish couple who are Britain's first confirmed cases of swine flu had just returned from their Mexican honeymoon, neighbors confirmed Tuesday. Dawn and Iain Askham became ill over the weekend, a few days after returning from Cancun. .

A SCOTTISH Muslim convert, dubbed the "Tartan Taleban", has re-emerged in Pakistan where he has reportedly been arrested as a terror suspect. Pakistan television paraded images of a man said to be James Alexander McLintock, who had been detained in the north-west city of Peshawar in late February. The 44-year-old father of four, originally from Dundee, converted to Islam in his 20s but came to international attention in December 2001 when he was arrested in Afghanistan on suspicion of being a foreign fighter. Mr McLintock was released five weeks later after strenuous denials of links to terror organisations and sent...

Democrats began to press Mr. Specter, saying he would get the $10 billion increase only if he promised to vote for the eventual bill. Mr. Specter pushed back, saying he was concerned about the size of the bill and its mix of tax credits and spending. “I really do not make deals,” he said. And while he had promised Mr. Durbin nothing, the Illinois senator had made him a promise. As Mr. Durbin recalled, at a Super Bowl party at the White House on Feb. 1, “I told him, ‘I’m keeping my word.’ ” More hard bargaining was ahead. Mr....

Smokers in deprived communities of the Scottish city of Dundee will be offered cash to quit the habit as part of a new program coming in the fall. Organizers working with the Scottish government say the $986,000 pilot program aims to help 900 of the city's 36,000 smokers to stop over the next two years. Participants in the new initiative will be offered $25 per week credited onto an electronic card for a maximum of 12 weeks. They can redeem the money in their local supermarket for fresh food and groceries — but not alcohol and cigarettes.

Irish and Dutch vessels found in Scottish graves Evidence that some of our prehistoric ancestors travelled considerable distances has come from two graves in Upper Largie, near Kilmartin in Argyll and Bute. One grave contained three distinctive beakers which Alison Sheridan, of the National Museums Scotland, describes as belonging to an early, international style, best paralleled by finds from the lower Rhine region of the modern-day Netherlands. Radiocarbon dates of 2500-2280 BC from hazel charcoal from within the grave confirms an early Bronze Age date. Though no bone was found because of the acidic nature of the local soils, the...

SCOTTISH MASONS' MYSTERIOUS SIGNATURES IN STONE TO BE RECORDED By 24 Hour Museum Staff 08/02/2008 Courtesy Historic Scotland Mysterious symbols carved into Scotland’s medieval churches, castles and bridges are to be studied and recorded in a new scheme supported by Historic Scotland. Masons’ marks are enigmatic signatures cut into stone wherever they worked, and hold clues as to dates of construction as well as the craftsmen who worked on the structure. However, little is known about the identities and life stories of these men who played such an important role in creating the country’s most cherished buildings from the Middle...

Scottish festival bans 'American' Hallowe'en By Tom Chivers Last Updated: 3:31pm BST 26/10/2007 A Scottish Hallowe'en festival is banning "consumerist" pumpkins in favour of turnips. Jack O'Lantern: persona non grata north of the border The spooky celebration, at Scone Palace, Perthshire, is being organised by Scottish firm Herald Events as a riposte to the Americanisation of the traditional autumn festival, based on the ancient Celtic ritual of Samhain and co-opted by the Church. Speaking to the BBC, Jock Ferguson from the company said: "We will be having none of that pumpkin or trick-or-treat rubbish. "Pumpkins are banned and will not...

New book claims Merlin had Scottish roots By David Sapsted Last Updated: 1:52am BST 28/08/2007 Merlin the magician - hirsute confidant of King Arthur and the architect of Camelot - was, in fact, Scottish, according to a new book. The English, Welsh and French have laid claim to Merlin the magician Not only Scottish but, to be precise, hailing from Ardery Street, just off the Dumbarton Road, in the Partick area of Glasgow. While the English, Welsh and even the French have laid claim to the wizard with the peaked hat for centuries, this is the first time that anyone...

UK Citizens Abandoning the UK in Greater Numbers July 25, 2007 - Press Dispensary - Increasing numbers of people are taking the decision to move overseas as a result of the UK’s current immigration policy, according to www.globalvisas.com, a specialist immigration consultancy that provides immigration advice and visa services. As numbers of immigrants to the UK from the new European Union Accession states continue to grow, more and more people in the UK are choosing to take their experience and skills overseas. The consultancy caters for immigrants to the UK as well as British people who wish to emigrate to...

HAVE SCOTTISH ARCHAEOLOGISTS FOUND ROB ROY'S HOME? By Graham Spicer 10/04/2007 The large boulders may be part of the foundations for a 18th century turf-built longhouse. Photo NTS Archaeologists are excavating a house they think may have belonged to legendary Scottish outlaw Rob Roy. The National Trust for Scotland (NTS) dig is examining the lower slopes of Ben Lomond at Ardess, where Rob Roy is known to have lived in early 18th century. “Documentary evidence records that Rob Roy owned land at Ardess in 1710-11 and the Duke of Montrose became his feudal superior,” said Derek Alexander, NTS archaeologist. “However,...

A Scottish whiskey manufacturer plans to reopen an Islay distillery that was put out of business 80 years ago by Prohibition in the United States. Executives at Bruichladdich, a private company that reopened another distillery on Islay in 2001, said their plan to bring the Port Charlotte distillery back to life is part of an effort to keep at least some Scotch-manufacturing in Scottish hands, The Scotsman reported. Seven of the eight distilleries now on Islay are foreign-owned. "The only Scottish one here is us. There are very few truly Scottish distilleries left now in the country," said Mark Reynier,...

His Royal Highness, Prince Andrew, the Duke of York today joined public officials and leaders of the Scottish and American spirits industry at Historic Mount Vernon to celebrate the official dedication of the restored George Washington's Distillery. The Duke, who cut the ribbon at the event, was celebrating the close Scottish-U.S. ties and paying tribute to Scotland's connection to George Washington's distillery. He noted that it was George Washington's Scottish farm manager, James Anderson, who convinced Washington in 1797 that distilling whiskey would be a lucrative business venture and a good use of the excess grain from the nearby gristmill....

Scottish mineral water 'kills cancer cells' By Auslan Cramb, Scottish Correspondent (Filed: 13/09/2006) The water of life – or “uisge beatha” in Gaelic - is a euphemism for whisky, but another Highland drink has been shown to have a more valid claim to the title. The water, sourced from near Balmoral Castle, has been said to possess healing qualities since 1760 A mineral water taken from wells near the Queen’s Balmoral Castle can help to slow the spread of cancer, according to scientists. Tests on Deeside Mineral Water suggest that it inhibits the growth of certain cancerous cells and kills...

With a roll-call of comics that includes Harry Lauder, Chic Murray and Billy Connolly, Scotland can claim to be the envy of the comedy world. But it all started more than 10 centuries ago with a joke so bad it ought to be accompanied by rolling tumbleweed and the tolling of a church bell. According to a new book, co-written by Sir Sean Connery and Murray Grigor, the documentary film maker, the oldest recorded example of Scottish humour, dates back to the 9th Century - reports The Times. The joke concerns a conversation between the priest Johannes Scottus — John...

Anyone else have issue with this? Banning a kilt? http://www.cnn.com/2005/EDUCATION/12/22/student.kilt.ap/index.html A petition in support of the student.. http://www.petitiononline.com/kilt05/

First Minister criticised for refusing to meet US peace campaigner The mother of the dead Scottish Soldier Gordon Gentle has branded First Minister Jack McConnell a disgrace to Scotland. Mr McConnell refused to meet the American peace campaigner, Cindy Sheehan, when she flew into Scotland today for a series of anti-war engagements. Cindy Sheehan has hounded President Bush and mobilised American public opinion against the war in Iraq. Today she was in Edinburgh to meet the Stop the War Coalition and a chance to meet with those, who, like her, have lost their sons in the conflict. Cindy Sheehan has...

SANTIAGO (AFP) - The claimed discovery of a 10 billion dollar 18th century treasure trove on Chile's Robinson Crusoe island has touched off an epidemic of gold fever among treasure hunters, residents and officials. The modern-day gold rush began Monday when Chilean security firm Wagner announced that its ground-scanning robot had located a legendary pirate hideaway containing a lost bounty of jewels and gold coins. Robinson Crusoe lies 600 kilometers (372 miles) west of Chile's central ADVERTISEMENT coast in the Pacific, and was a refuge for corsairs crossing the ocean as well as the home of Scottish castaway Alexander Selkirk,...

THE editor of a Scottish weekly newspaper is facing possible prosecution under Britain's anti-racism laws, following the publication of an article claiming that a massive refugee camp could be built in Scotland. Alan Buchan, the publisher and editor of the North East Weekly, a free sheet based in Peterhead, was arrested by officers from Grampian Police in connection with the publication of an editorial in the latest issue of the newspaper, headlined "Perverts and Refugees". Mr Buchan was charged under a section of the Public Order Act which gives the police powers to arrest any person whom they suspect of...

Three meetings between bishops of the Scottish Episcopal Church and leaders of Scottish Anglicans, a traditionalist lay and clergy group representing many of Scotland’s largest evangelical congregations, have failed to resolve an impasse which began with a March 4 statement on homosexuality by the College of Bishops. “The Scottish Episcopal Church,” the bishops wrote in response to the Dromantine communiqué, “has never regarded the fact that someone was in a close relationship with a member of the same sex as in itself constituting a bar to the exercise of an ordained ministry.” The statement upset traditionalist leaders, who charged the...

Cigar sellers argue for a smoking ban exemption WILLIAM LYONS wlyons@scotlandonsunday.com SCOTLAND’S independent cigar merchants have written to Health Minister Andy Kerr in a last-minute bid to have their shops exempted from the impending ban on smoking in public places. The letter, signed by Phillip Shervington, the chairman of the Association of Independent Tobacco Specialists, argues that it is essential for their business that clients are able to taste their products before buying. There are only 18 specialist tobacco shops in Scotland and it is hoped the small number can persuade the health minister to grant an exemption. The letter...