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Times
14-07-2025
- Sport
- Times
Runners demand refunds after being sent the wrong way
It was scorching in Dundee on Sunday. So hot was it that organisers of the city's annual half-marathon feared some runners would not manage the full 13 miles. As it happens, none of them did. At the very beginning of the race, a marshal accidentally sent competitors the wrong way, cutting the course short by more than a mile. As he headed for the finishing line, one competitor, Allan Penman, thought that despite the unseasonable weather he had set a new personal best. Only afterwards did he learn of the routing error. 'It is basic logistics and the wrong way should have been marked off,' Penman, 58, from Kirkcaldy in Fife, told The Dundee Courier. 'It wasn't done on purpose, but there should have been safeguards in place. I thought this was going to be my third half-marathon, but I'm still stuck on two. 'I was injured before last year's event, so I'm still to complete the Dundee half-marathon. I would like an explanation as how it possibly happened. It seemed to go wrong in the first few hundred metres, which seems ridiculous.' Penman's wife, Marie, was even more critical, saying the mistake made Dundee 'look a bit of a joke in serious running circles'. About 670 people took part in the race, which is branded the Half-Dram and costs more than £20 to enter. Some runners are now demanding refunds. The route began at Camperdown Park in the west of the city and followed the Tay east all the way to the suburb of Broughty Ferry. It is understood a steward at the park got mixed up. Some internet jokers have offered their own solutions. One Facebook user said the 1.1 missing miles should be added to next year's race. Not all competitors were angry with the organiser, Eventfull Management, however. One runner, Michael Craik, wrote on Facebook: 'I get the fault, overall, lands on the organising party but no organisation can mitigate for human error. 'It's a lesson learnt. They have run this race for a few years with no errors but the one time one of the volunteer marshals makes a mistake, all hell breaks loose.' He added: 'I ran the race. I'm not too bitter about it simply because humans make errors. I know next year this error won't be repeated.' Nicholas Kydd, director of Eventfull Management, said he had apologised over a megaphone as runners crossed the finishing line. He added: 'An unfortunate mistake near the beginning of the event resulted in the race being 1.1 miles shorter than the marked 13.1-mile route. 'Our biggest worry before the race had been the hot weather, and two people needed medical assistance.' Kydd said the route had been marked correctly. Earlier this year a prankster baffled dozens of runners in a 10k in Linn Park, Glasgow, by ripping down route markers. Organisers said this 'pettiness' had put competitors in danger, moving them away from first aiders.
The Herald Scotland
12-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Scots Word of the Week: heard any diddling lately?
Another kind of diddling is noted by Charles Murray in his Sough o' War (1917): 'A mither's diddlin till her bairn can bring the sleep that flees fae fussle, trumpe or string'. A mother's soothing voice is preferrable to any musical instrument! Later in the 20th century, Betsy Whyte commented on the conviviality of Traveller life in Red Rowans and Wild Honey (1990): 'We would have our friends and relations there with their musical instruments, their diddling, canterach and singing'. In March 2002, the Press and Journal reported on a local competition: 'Mr Easton ended up winning the Scots verse, bothy ballads and diddling sections, while nine-year-old Natalie Chalmers of Fraserburgh became the first winner of the junior verse and singing competitions'. One might think that, with instant access to music now the norm, diddling competitions could be a thing of the past. Luckily not. The following report from the Dundee Courier in November 2022 covers what is reputed to be the UK's longest running mountain film festival: 'It kicks off on Thursday with former Lochaber Mountain Rescue guide, Royal Marine and rock climber Mick Tighe presenting a selection of archival films from his Scottish Mountain Heritage Collection, accompanied by live music and 'diddling' from Steven Gellatly and Denis Shepherd'. Scots Word of the Week comes from Dictionaries of the Scots Language. Visit DSL Online at
The Citizen
14-05-2025
- The Citizen
Former Dundee police captain sentenced for conspiracy to murder SAPS head
Former Dundee police captain Roshanlal Banawo has been sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment after being found guilty of conspiring to murder SAPS Umzinyathi head Major-General Francis Slambert. Dundee Courier reports that Newcastle Magistrate Ian Colditz also found Banawo unfit to possess a firearm. The two Section 204 witnesses, William Dlamini and Sthembiso Mdlalose, who were part of the conspiracy but testified against Banawo for the state, were discharged from prosecution. A Section 204 witness in South Africa is a person who, under Section 204 of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977, is called to testify against others in exchange for indemnity from prosecution for their own involvement in the same crime. This means they are essentially granted immunity from prosecution for their role in the crime if they testify truthfully and fully. Banawo was arrested in November 2023 when the plot against Slambert became evident. Slambert survived at least two assassination attempts between May and August 2023. Banawo, who was dismissed by the SAPS around 2019, has been in custody since his arrest. He is still appealing his dismissal. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
The Herald Scotland
26-04-2025
- Climate
- The Herald Scotland
Scots Word of the Week: Wheech (be quick or it will be gone)
In January 1948, the Forfar Dispatch used the term to depict the aftermath of fierce winds: 'The Granny [chimney cowl] on the lum-heid [on top of the chimney] gaed wheekin up ee air afore it fell throwe the sky-licht ee washin-hoose'. The vagaries of the Scots' spelling dilemma are illustrated by Sheena Blackhall in Wittgenstein's Web (1996): 'I dinna recollect ae relation, stoppin mid-ben a spikk an wheekin oot a dictionar tae see gin a wird wis richt standart Scots or nae!'. In 2000, the term appeared in Davie Kerr's A Puckle Poems: 'As the tourists wheech thro', they wad gey aften fail ti appreciate, caa'in it 'Sweet' Armadale.' Of course, such a handy term remains in widespread use in the 21st century. Take this example from the Dundee Courier in December 2022 which perfectly captures the spirit of the post-Christmas period: 'Notes carefully written to thank absent, distant relatives for their kindness. Videos and photos taken to capture moments that would otherwise wheech past in the blink of an eye'. Scots Word of the Week comes from Dictionaries of the Scots Language. Visit DSL Online at
