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Irish Times
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Muckle Flugga by Michael Pedersen: Island life in a mythical world
Muckle Flugga Author : Michael Pedersen ISBN-13 : 978-0571387724 Publisher : Faber & Faber Guideline Price : £16.99 This debut novel by award-winning poet Michael Pedersen tells the story of a lighthouse keeper and his son on the island of Muckle Flugga, the northernmost inhabited point of these islands. Although a real island, the novel offers mythic versions of both Muckle Flugga and the Edinburgh of our other protagonist, Firth. In the world of Muckle Flugga, people are writers and lighthouse keepers and candlemakers, and although the real world provides a framework, it's easy to forget once immersed in the novel's lush landscapes. Pedersen's linguistic register encompasses both high drama and whimsy, and he excels at immersing us in the vivid seascapes of the island and its surroundings. The plot tracks the redemptive connection that blossoms between Ouse, the solitary but inspired lighthouse keeper's son, and Firth, the despairing and morally compromised writer who visits the island to fulfil a childhood dream before a planned suicide. The lighthouse keeper, known only as The Father, casts a shadow over proceedings. He is a convincingly-drawn tyrant and although twisted by grief, we come to understand the man he once was. The island itself proves a magnetic character, infecting the dreamscapes of the characters in a manner reminiscent at times of The Magus by John Fowles . Here, the natural world is transcendently beautiful but charged with agency: 'The same stars that reflect dreamily in Muckle Flugga's windowpanes are those that send ships spinning in circles until the sea's ready to claim them…' READ MORE As a debut, there are quirks in the writing that can prove frustrating – it takes a number of chapters before the dialogue between the characters begins to flow, with the omniscient narrator often telling us things we might enjoy discovering through real-time interaction between the characters. The italicisation of the dialogue has a similarly distancing effect. Although the descriptions are lyrical, there are times when a sentence such as 'What's outside hits him like a flying hug from a fond face in a faraway place' suggests a preference for profusion over precision. However, this is a singular and ambitious debut, and those who enjoy a serving of fantasy with their literary fiction will find this an absorbing and immersive read.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Edinburgh train passenger caught performing 'sex act' on man as probe launched
Transport police are appealing for witnesses after a woman was caught performing a sex act on a man onboard an Edinburgh train. The couple boarded the ScotRail Glasgow to Edinburgh Waverley service at Glasgow Queen Street at 7pm on Saturday, June 8. They sat in the seats closest to the doors at the back of the train and shortly after it departed, the female was observed performing a sex act on the man before they were caught by a guard doing his checks. READ MORE: Edinburgh police erect cordon near cemetery as officer stands guard READ MORE: Three 'sorry' as Edinburgh man 'unable to dial 999' after mum goes 'missing' British Transport Police detectives say the couple have since been identified but witnesses are being asked to come forward. The man was white, in his late thirties, of regular build, with a greying short scruffy beard, facial tattoos. He was wearing a black baseball cap, black hoody and jeans and was carrying a black backpack. The woman was white, in her thirties, of regular build with blonde hair and was wearing a dark fur coat and black trousers. Anyone with information is asked to contact BTP by calling 0800 40 50 40 or by texting 61016 – with reference 554 of 8 June. Information can also be given anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Join Edinburgh Live's Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages.
BBC News
10 hours ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Should Hearts' Shankland stay or should he go?
Heart of Midlothian travel to Spain for a pre-season training camp this weekend, just over two weeks out from their opening match of the new season against Dunfermline Athletic on 12 the travelling group, one name is conspicuous by its absence, that of talismanic striker Lawrence Shankland, whose contract with the club expires at the end of this month. Since Hearts brought Shankland back to Scotland in 2022, he has established himself as one of the most reliable goalscorers in Scotland's top has scored 68 goals in Hearts colours in 137 appearances across all competitions. There's an old adage about good strikers scoring one in two - and Shankland does that. That form, along with Shankland's contract situation, explains the long-standing speculation over the Scotland international. A mooted move to Rangers never transpired and links to West Bromwich Albion appear to have gone Hearts head coach Derek McInnes has made no secret of his desire to keep Shankland in Gorgie and tie him down to a new deal, with conversations between player and club is rife among Hearts supporters after Brighton and Hove Albion owner Tony Bloom completed a £9.86m deal to buy a 29% stake in the Edinburgh will Shankland hold out for a move to England or back overseas? Or will he want to be part of Bloom's "disruption" and lead the line in maroon again next season? Hearts can offer 'security' & ambition The fact that Shankland has not made it clear he is leaving is cause for optimism for both McInnes and Hearts is evidently and understandably excited at the prospect of working with the 29-year-old, but will Shankland sign on the dotted line to link up with the club's new team boss?Hearts will hope the chance to be part of their new project, with tried-and-tested performer McInnes in the dugout and Bloom's gravitas in the boardroom, is enough to persuade their star uncertainty over Shankland's future has been clouded further still as McInnes heads to Spain without him."I really feel Lawrence as part of a strong Hearts team can elevate himself," McInnes said earlier this week. "I think he's capable of scoring 25-30 goals a season in the right team and used in the right way."We can offer security. We can offer building a team and being part of a team that's trying to be successful."With Bloom aiming to "disrupt the pattern of domination which has been in place for far too long" in Scottish football, there is an expectation Hearts will attack the transfer Christian Borchgrevink, winger Alexandros Kyziridis, striker Claudio Braga, centre-half Stuart Findlay and midfielder Oisin McEntee have already signed in the early knockings of the window, while Elton Kabangu joined permanently after last season's loan the ambition of the McInnes-Bloom project, the prospect of playing under the immediate gaze of Scotland head coach Steve Clarke would be another perk of staying in Edinburgh for Shankland. Why do Hearts want to keep him? One word. Goals."When you get the ball into dangerous areas, Lawrence Shankland will score," former Hearts midfielder Michael Stewart said on Sportscene at the end of last season."A guy that is capable of banging in 20-plus goals a season doesn't grow on trees."Stewart is right. Shankland has passed the 20-goal mark in the Premiership twice in the past three seasons - no other player has done Furuhashi did it once for Celtic, Cyriel Dessers once for Rangers and Kevin van Veen once for Motherwell. Beyond that, Shankland brings experience and leadership, having captained Hearts during goalkeeper Craig Gordon's long injury has amassed more than 150 Premiership appearances in addition to 16 Scotland caps. Shankland 'looking to maximise earning potential' Had Shankland's contract expired 12 months prior, the suitors would have been piling up to sign him on a free given his goal-scoring feats in the 2023-24 season, during which he bagged 31 goals in all season just gone was less prolific and, as he approaches 30, Shankland is likely considering how many high-profile moves or high-paying contracts he has left in his career."He's at a stage in his career where he's looking to maximise his earning potential, which is completely understandable," Stewart explains why Hearts are yet to hear from him regarding the offer on the no deal has been done, suggesting any alternative offers received by Shankland were not to his liking. With pre-season about to get under way, things will come to a head in the coming Naismith, who was Hearts boss during Shankland's free-scoring 2023-24 season, added: "Like any player, there are more options when you're out of contract."It gives you a chance to sit and think what's best for you at this stage in your career, but he'll want it sorted before pre-season starts."
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Cancer-hit Goodburn secures 100m breaststroke gold
Scottish National Open Swimming Championships Venue: Royal Commonwealth Pool, Edinburgh Date: 27-29 June Coverage: Live on the BBC Sport website, app and iPlayer. Archie Goodburn has won gold in the 100m breaststroke at the Scottish Swimming Championships a year on from being diagnosed with brain cancer. Advertisement The 24-year-old from University of Edinburgh held off the challenge of Stirling University's Rafe Dobson in a comfortable one minute 2.42 seconds at Edinburgh's Royal Commonwealth Pool. Having been runner-up at 50m at the British Championships in April, Goodburn went into the race as strong favourite as he continues to train for this summer's World University Games and next year's Commonwealths in Glasgow. He will also be aiming to retain the Scottish 50m breaststroke crown this weekend. Meanwhile, Aberdeen University's Faye Rogers lowered her own S10 200m butterfly world record by more than half a second to 2:18.24 as she took bronze in the able-bodied final.
Fast Company
11 hours ago
- Health
- Fast Company
Scientists engineer bacteria to turn plastic waste into painkillers
Tales of turning water into wine or weaving straw into gold are one thing, but a new study shows that scientists can transform trash into . . . Tylenol? Scientists at the University of Edinburgh were able to convert plastic waste into paracetamol, aka acetaminophen, the active ingredient in the pain reliever Tylenol. Stranger yet, they pulled off the alchemical feat using the bacteria E. coli. 'We're able to transform a prolific environmental and societal waste into such a globally important medication in a way that's completely impossible, using chemistry alone or using biology alone,' says study coauthor Stephen Wallace, a chemical biotechnologist at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. The research team began with polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a common plastic found in food packaging and polyester clothing. Using established chemical methods, they broke down the PET plastic into a precursor molecule and then added it into a cell culture of E. coli that was genetically modified. Enzymes in the modified E. coli bacteria were able to convert the plastic precursor into paracetamol 92% of the time. The transformation relies on a chemical process known as a Lossen rearrangement, which can convert one kind of molecule into a different kind of molecule. Scientists have known about the Lossen rearrangement for more than 100 years, but generally observe the phenomenon in a flask or a test tube. The research group is now working with pharmaceutical makers including AstraZeneca, one of the study's sponsors, to replicate the same chemical transformations on a larger scale. The new research isn't the first to observe the way that bacteria can be deployed to usefully break down plastic. Researchers have previously studied how wastewater bacteria found in urban waterways use a special enzyme to chew up plastic trash and convert it into carbon-based food. As we grapple with the cascading environmental and health effects that decades of proliferating plastics have wrought on the planet, bacteria capable of converting plastic into harmless or even useful molecules is a promising area of research.
