This is a special podcast about Scotland’s culture and its tenacity over centuries of denial, marginalisation and nae seemin posh enough.

Lesley heard these two in action at an Independence Forum Scotland event in Perth and thought the craic was so good it deserved this wider audience.

So Stuart McHardy a writer, occasional broadcaster, and storyteller who has been Director of the Scots Language Resource Centre in Perth and President of the Pictish Arts Society is in conversation with Roger Emmerson, a distinguished architect who surprised many in his own profession by running the first Scottish architecture course in the 1990s.

We discuss the irrelevance of ‘clown characters’ like Neil Oliver and David Starkey, delve into the Scots embrace of contradiction and the ability to (happily) be in twa minds and ponder the success of Department Q. Amongst many other fascinating cultural themes.

Stuart McHardy books include The Quest for Arthur, On the Trail of Scotland's Myths and Legends, Tales of the Picts, Strange Secrets of Ancient Scotland, Tales of Whisky and Smuggling, The Wild Haggis an The Greetin-faced Nyaff.

View Stuart's books at Luath Press

Forthcoming Edin Book Festival gig Weds 13th August about book at printers now Scotland's Sacred Goddess (and if new book link appears then slot in here)   

Roger Emmerson books include

Scotland in 100 buildings

Land of Stone – a journey through Modern Architecture in Scotland

View Roger's books at Luath Press 

Nicola Sturgeon and her book is absolutely everywhere with the press full of the tiniest revelations. We have a look, neither of us having read the book, but take a look at really what's sitting behind some of the more serious revelations, particularly over the wisdom of pressing on with the gender recognition reforms, and behind the scenes, what was really happening. We ask the whether we going to learn anything that helps us with creating a more democratic country in Scotland that isn't so reliant on leaders and top-down instruction through all of this? Or just promote Nicola Sturgeon's book sales?

All of that and news from the big wind farm convention that was held in Inverness where Lesely was present making a new film.

Are these guys just NIMBYs who need to knuckle down and accept the hardware the same as everyone else for the green transition? Or has planning for it and democracy about it just gone completely out the window? And some culture from Fèis Rois.

Links
Nicola Interview
https://www.itv.com/watch/news/nicola-sturgeon-reflects-on-her-arrest-and-her-trans-policies-in-exclusive-interview/7qr93nf

Fèis Rois

https://feisrois.org/

Robin McAlpine
https://robinmcalpine.org/this-is-the-one-tall-tale-that-matters/

https://www.thenational.scot/politics/25385625.wholly-political-campaign-independence-terrible-idea/

Shona Craven
https://www.thenational.scot/politics/25382339.lessons-must-learned-loss-rationality/

A blowy week in Scotland and for Scottish Politics, we speak about Kate Forbes's decision not to stand in next year's Holyrood Election. We look at the huge question of childcare, not just for her, but for everyone, speculate on who might stand in her constituency. We analyise the the disagreements on concience and policy issues from the stance gay marriage to Kate's economic strategy, and look at the suggestion that infrastructure has to come first before you can get to wealth creation, and childcare is infrastructure.

We also discuss Kier Starmer and his guttural position on Palestine and John Swinney's much interrupted Edinburgh Fringe gig over the question of whether he has condemned Israel's genocide. All of that with a little swatch of Belladrum and a lot of speculation and the wind.

Links
Mike Mackenzie column about the inability of a devolved government to properly finance infrastructure; https://www.thenational.scot/politics/25361743.highlands-islands-will-win-scottish-independence/

Jon Shafi column about all parties in a state of collapse and flux not just the SNP.

https://www.thenational.scot/politics/25365016.politicians-fleeing-stage-old-certainties-collapse/

Kate Forbes - Mum guilt means my daughter comes with me
https://www.thetimes.com/uk/scotland/article/kate-forbes-snp-mum-children-interview-2zfvjn8pr

Donald Trump comes to Scotland and don't we know it! President Trump, with saltires fluttering on his motorcade instead of the union flag descended this week on Turnberry in Ayrshire and then up to Aberdeenshire. He's described John Sweeney as a terrific guy despite not really having met him yet and he suggests that all the proceeds from removing tariffs should go to Scotland, not to the UK. We discuss whether he's just mixing it, whether he actually favours Scotland in some way or is it all just rubbish that will be reversed next week.

We also talk also about John Swinney's suggestion that there should be a constitutional convention. Again, that's suggested now, having been ruled out in previous weeks. We look at the SNP's strategy, such as it is, that there can be no move forward for Scotland without a referendum and that a referendum will only come if the SNP somehow manages to get over the line as the largest party in 2020. Simples! We take a look at the latest announcements. We also discuss the action that's ongoing against supporters of Gaza and the emergency UK cabinet meeting.

Links
Dave Pearson article about private wires https://bylines.scot/news/scotland/retaining-scotlands-wind-wealth-a-strategy-for-renewable-power/

A 'good constituency MP'? how ‘hard working local politicians’ are facilitating a genocide
https://substack.com/home/post/p-169235829

There's a bit of a protest theme in this week's podcast. Obviously the Gaza Palestine demonstration at the weekend where Lesley was speaking. Thankfully there weren't arrests at the time, but could they be yet to come? There was also, if you like, the protest of Richard Murphy on Radio Scotland, interrupted continually on a program about bias and trust in the BBC.

We discuss the rebels who've been booted out of the parliamentary Labour Party, but oddly not all the rebels that voted for axing the welfare cuts that were put forwward by Kier Starmer. Will this produce more dissent within a party that's now polling about the same as the new left wing party created by Zara Sultana that dosen't even exit yet.

We talk about Trump and his potential comeuppance over his connections with Jeffrey Epstein. Forget to even mention that he's coming to Scotland. We'll take that next week and have a wee tribute to Dick Gaughan the master of Scottish traditional music. All of that and more!

Join the Pals and Buddies and support the Lesley Riddoch podcast

Links
Palestine letter to sign Protest is not terrorism
https://protestisnotterrorism.wordpress.com/

War Crimes CD - all income (not profit ) going to Gaza https://www.amazon.co.uk/War-Crimes-Champion-Doug-Veitch/dp/B0F3JY4KTL

Dick Gaughan special Travelling Folk with Anna Massie on BBC Sounds

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002ft8f

Donate to help Dick Gaughan try and retreive the rights to some of his most important tracks
https://www.gofundme.com/f/aatux2

Buy the 8 disc set of Dick's music

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2121905920/dick-gaughan-r-evolution-1969-84-an-8-disc-box-set/rewards

Donate to support the podcast
There's been a lot of missing in action in this week's podcast. Where is the Scottish government and the SNP when an energy supplier, Octopus, calls for zonal pricing that would give Scotland the cheapest energy in Europe? They're kind of missing in action. We talk about the latest proposals by Rachel Reeves, which looks like a bonfire of the regulations on the banking sector, which kind of prompted all the chaos post 2008.

Is that really going to be such a great advance? And back to Israel and Palestine, some shocking admissions, about the connections between the current Labour government and trips to Israel that were not declared by MPs. That and more news about the July 19 march in this week's podcast on lesleyridich.com and social media.

Scottish National demonstration Saturday 19 July Assemble 1pm foot of the Mound Edinburgh
https://www.scottishpsc.org.uk/event/eggec-nakba-demo-duplicate-1/

On this week's episode, we talk about the putative new Left-wing party possibly headed by Jeremy Corbyn. We speculate on why he hasn't said he will join it and what is happening on the Scottish front with a group that's promising a meeting in October. It's not very clear whether it supports independence or not.

We talk about the victory of a left candidate for the Democratic nomination in New York City with a program that would probably make Jeremy Corbyn's heart sing.

We're still talking about the wider question of Palestine and the shameful decision by the SNP group at Westminster to abstain on the vote on Palestine Action as they succumbed to Westminster bullying tactics and were outfoxed by Labour's procedural shenanigans. We reflect that in the previous parliament, with MPs like Tommy Sheppard, Dr Phillipa Whitford and Joanna Cherry, this would not have happened. That and much more besides, including bits and bits about the Western Isles and the, uh, glorious bounciness of Greenlanders.

And we have a guest spot with Mick Napier from the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign ahead of a planned demonstration.

1 pm meeting at the foot of the Mound, Edinburgh. 

Links
Finland Film  https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/finland---the-education-superstars-a-new-film

NHS App

https://www.digitalhealth.net/2024/10/scotland-s-digital-front-door-platform-to-go-beyond-the-nhs-app/

https://www.holyrood.com/inside-politics/view%2Cplaying-catchup-will-the-rollout-of-the-long-overdue-nhs-app-help-take-pressure-off-scotlands-gps

Cnoc Soilleir

https://www.nwh.uhi.ac.uk/en/about-us/campuses-and-centres/cnoc-soilleir/

Lesley Riddoch and Fraser Thompson

You can donate to support and keep the podcast going by becoming a Pal or Buddy of the Podcast at https://lesleyriddoch.com/podcast/subscribe

By the time you listen this, you'll know what we don't, which is the result of the disability cuts vote in the House of Commons, the revised package, which will now only put 150,000 people into poverty. And that's this year. Because next year, of course, is a whole new ball game for those wishing to sign up to PIP.

We speculate on what these reforms and the opposition to them means for Labour Party support, for Keir Starmer's personal authority and popularity. We look also at, last week's Question Time where Lesley was on the panel, having just been stung in the throat by a wasp! Drawn no parallels or importance from that other than it was a strange way to prepare.

We also discuss the big events of the week, Iran, Israel, Palestine, Kneecap and Bob Vylan's and the BBC's decisions to broadcast and not broadcast, which are inadvertently helping to promote artists who are the only people able to bring this issue to the forefront. We also look at NATO spending via a quote from the late great Hamish Henderson, Fraser relfects on his time working in the Westminster Parliament and much more besides.

Links
Finland Film Crowdfunder
https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/finland---the-education-superstars-a-new-film

In this week's podcast, we discuss Trump's attacks on Iran facilitating attacks by Israel and then demanding a ceasefire. It's an odd way to get diplomatic results. We react to Donald Trump's four-letter outburst as he baulks at Israel's flouting of the cease-fire and Iran's response.

We also look at the attempts to proscribe Palestine action, which look very destined to simply encourage support for this soon-to-be-banned group. And we also look at the likely rebellion against labour's cuts to PIP payments.

Listen to the end for some great tributes to Pat as he goes for his 3rd retirement so far.

Help support the Finland crowdfunder - make a donation

As the hostilities go on between Israel and Iran we try and get beneath the "We support the right of Israel to defend itself" to why Israel decided to launch its attacks, why now , and the realities of nuclear proliferation in the region.
Meanwhile a  report by the Centre For Media Monitoring has forensically examined the BBC's coverage of Gaza. The results are damning in terms of revealing BBC bias.
We take a look at the spending review  not only the decisions made but especially what impact Labour's decisions may have on Scottish politics. 
Lesley's latest article in The National not only covers this but asks if the SNP’s old attack lines are now almost gone and its claims of success belong largely to the old glory days. Will John Swinney's Scotland 2050 speech bring them back?
Despite Deputy Leader Keith Brown committing to an independence convention before the Holyrood elections at the 2024 SNP Annual Conference this has now been knocked firmly on the head by Angus Robertson. Was this a mistake? 
The trial of Kneecap member, Mo Chara, under Section 13 of the Terrorism Act will go ahead at Westminster Magistrates’ Court  tomorrow. What does this tell us about the nature of the state and its decisions on who and who not to prosecute under the Act's provisions?
As per usual there's other meanderings and maybe a wee mention of the golf.