Latest news with #Trappist
The Herald Scotland
22-07-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Peggie tribunal shows a strain of delinquency in our public bodies
The Sandie Peggie tribunal, currently playing out in Dundee has seen a procession of highly-paid but wantonly incompetent civic automatons embarrass themselves and the Scottish education system. Each day, we can feast on a fresh flurry of statements that point to a strain of callous delinquency at the heart of our public bodies. There are hundreds more of these dismal Tamany Hall bureaucrats operating at every level of civic governance in Scotland. The fix is a simple one: pay them salaries well beyond their experience and ability so that they are yours forever to bend and manipulate into any shape you want. Read More: The traditional struggles of the UK Left for better jobs; affordable housing; equality in health and education have been replaced by genderism, climatism, Ukrainism and good old-fashioned Jew-baiting. Working-class families and communities now fear losing their jobs and their liberty for not being conversant in the clouds of psycho-babble that pass for policy-making in Scottish and UK politics. This though, isn't the scariest part. The chill sets in when you look around and find that your neighbourhood Tories seem more likely to support working-class people when they fall foul of the Bearsden Bolsheviks. Sometimes you catch yourself thinking unclean thoughts about backing the Tories or supporting the Union in the manner of a Trappist monk who inadvertently catches porn on his social media feed and can't unsee it. Tories are more likely to agree with you when you ask why the liberal elites of Scotland and the UK loathe women and working-class communities so much. In this scenario the Tories are the like the devil in 1 Peter 5:8: 'Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.' In these dark moments of the soul, when you are vulnerable to some of the temptations of the Right, it's good to be reminded of just why you and generations of your family harbour a righteous loathing of the Tories and all their vile stratagems. The announcement yesterday that a Public Inquiry is to be held into the sinister events at the Orgreave coking plant in Yorkshire in June, 1984 was one of those moments when you remembered why you loathe Toryism and all that it represents: all its empty promises. John Swinney may be the most cowardly and craven political leader Scotland has ever produced and the clown-show cabinet he heads at Holyrood often makes you cringe in embarrassment. But nothing they will ever do can match the vicious ferocity the Tories and Margaret Thatcher unleashed against working-class men and their families fighting for their livelihoods and the futures of their communities during the Miners' Strike in 1984/85. Forty years after the Metropolitan Police – then still contaminated by London gangland corruption – beat unarmed striking miners to a pulp, this is a long overdue first step in remedying an appalling miscarriage of justice against working people. The aftermath of this brutality by the British state against its own people was even worse than the blood-letting. Thousands of striking miners were arraigned to appear before hastily-convened kangaroo courts and handed punitive sentences on charges trumped up by corrupt police officers. It pointed to another lamentable truth: the judiciary had also been nobbled in Mrs Thatcher's psychotic desire to crush the trade union movement, using every lever of the state at her disposal. That though, was still not enough to slake the Tories bloodlust against working people who had dared to rise up against them. Miners and their families were black-balled from meaningful employment for decades afterwards, effectively putting their communities beyond social repair. A cadre of MI5 agents was able to infiltrate the National Union of Mineworkers and feed false stories to an all-too-willing media, including the Daily Mirror under the stewardship of the thief, Robert Maxwell. When, years later, the paper's 'award-winning' stories about NUM corruption were shown to be lies, they were forced to hand back the awards. But the damage had been done. Britain's mining industry was still profitable, but Mrs Thatcher simply wanted them gone, to the extent that billions were found – mainly from the hidden receipts of the new North Sea oil Klondyke - to pay huge settlements to long-serving miners. From this, another lie took root: that many miners became rich. But how much does a few hundred grand last when neither you, nor any of your descendants would never work again? It also overlooked another truth: that for many decades these men and their fathers and grandfathers had risked their lives every day to make Britain an industrial power-house. My own dad, a trade unionist to the end of his life, was in awe of the miners. 'Whatever they're paid, it'll never be enough for what they do for this country,' he once told me. He also told me something else: that it was these men and their working-class comrades whose ultimate sacrifice in two world wars contributed most to Britain's victory. And that when they were dying in their millions the British royal family and its aristocratic boot-lickers were preparing to make deals with the Nazis. Kevin McKenna is a Herald writer and columnist. He is Features Writer of the Year and writes regularly about the working-class people and communities of Scotland.
Perth Now
17-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Trappist inspired quadrupel is the answer to your prayers
Tabarnak! Belgian Quadrupel Artisan Brewing Holy moley, this is one big beer. Belgian beer connoisseurs Artisan Brewing continue to celebrate a decade of beer making with the latest in a collaborative series, this time a quadrupel inspired by Belgium's Trappist monks and their ancient brewing traditions. The Denmark-based brewers have joined forces with Caversham-based Homestead Brewery and independent liquor store operators Grain Cru to deliver Tabarnak!, the seventh of 10 anniversary beers, all at 10 per cent, all promising 10 out of 10 for flavour. Artisan is committed to what it considers an oft-neglected ingredient in brewing - yeast - with its range of beers collectively yeast-forward, the aromas and flavours expressing themselves as complex fruits and spices. The Tabarnak! is no exception. The Belgian dark strong ale is made using Marris Otter, Abbey, Carabelge and Special B malts, Noble hops, Abbey Ale yeast and the addition of Clarex for gluten reduction. It pours a dark brown with a creamy off-white head. Tabarnak! Belgian Quadrupel Credit: supplied It is a full-bodied ale with a creamy mouthfeel and has a warmth ideal for those cold winter nights still ahead. For those with a taste for traditional Belgian beers, in the spirit of the Trappist monks, your prayers have been answered. Like the others in this anniversary series, it comes in at a hefty 10 per cent, making it a little dangerous as a sessionable beer, instead being best shared with friends. $11.99 each or two for $18.99
The Herald Scotland
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Team behind The Pot Still reveal plans for pub near Hampden Park
The family-run team behind one of Glasgow's most celebrated whisky bars is preparing for a busy summer season after taking ownership of a popular Southside pub near Hampden Park. Late last year, it was announced that the Murphys would be taking over The Clockwork in Mount Florida after more than a decade at the helm of city centre institution, The Pot Still. Though the news came as a pleasant surprise to some, others familiar with Pot Still were well aware of the strong connection Frank Murphy holds with the bar. 'I've always wanted Clockwork, and waiting for it to come on the market felt like a long time coming,' he told The Herald. 'I started working there when it had just been opened by Robin and Gay Graham as the Clockwork Beer Company on Cathcart Road in 1997. 'I had learned a fair bit about beer and whisky while working with my dad, who used to own pubs like The Arlington, and various other hospitality roles after that, but this place was another level. 'A six-foot double fridge full of German beers at a time such fridges were usually rammed full of Bud, fruit beers from Belgium, varieties of Hoegaarden I never knew existed, magnums of Trappist ales, and over 20 draught beers. 'I was working half of my time at the bar and half at the brewery, learning how to brew beer. 'But then the chance to reinvigorate the Pot Still came along, and it was too good an opportunity to pass up.' Both Frank and his sister Geraldine had previously worked at the Pot Still in the early 00s under then-owner Kenny Storrie and knew they could be the perfect fit for the small but characterful unit on Hope Street. With the help of their father, Brian, who had decades of experience running high-profile pubs in and around Glasgow, the Murphys officially took over the bar in 2011. Since then, they have gone from strength to strength, continuing the family-run tradition of The Pot Still and building a collection of over 1,000 whiskies from all over the world on the gantry. Pictured: Mad Men star Christina Hendricks visits The Pot Sill (via Instagram) (Image: The Pot Still) Famous faces to have visited over the years include everyone from Mad Men star Christina Hendricks to English heavy metal outfit, Iron Maiden, while of a weekend, locals sit side by side with international visitors from all over the globe in search of the finest whisky Scotland has to offer. Brian eventually retired in 2023, with daughter Katie Ritchie taking over his place, not long before another opportunity would present itself with The Clockwork. 'We had been on the lookout for another pub for years and went for a few we didn't get, maybe because we were too timid or not fast enough.' Murphy continued. 'The Clockwork isn't exactly what we would have picked as our second venue because it's such a large unit. I mean, the function space upstairs is probably bigger than the entire Pot Still. 'But we couldn't not take the chance, because we knew if we didn't go for it now, someone else would.' Taking over from the Three Thistle Pub company, Murphy and his family team are now hard at work to re-establish Clockwork's standing as 'one of the best pubs in Glasgow'. 'There will always be a bit of overlap between The Clockwork and Pot Still, but there's no point in trying to do the exact same thing in both pubs. 'What we want to do is try and get the guys who drink in Pot to come to the Southside and see us over there, where it won't have to be quite as classic. 'We're focusing a lot more on blended malts because that's where a lot of the action is at the moment, thanks to guys like Woven Whisky in Leith.' As well as reintroducing a selection of German and Belgian beers, the bar also takes lead from events at Hampden Park stadium to explore a range of worldwide spirits. 'When the women's team were playing the Netherlands recently, I put up a bottle of whisky from Millstone in the Netherlands, and when Scotland play Iceland this month, I've got a smoky whisky from Floki in Iceland. 'They don't have peat, so they have to use another form of rapidly decomposing vegetation to smoke their barley, which is sheep s***. "...It's really not as bad as it sounds. 'Then there are big gigs at Hampden with Lana Del Rey, Kendrick Lamar and Chris Brown. 'The only problem with that is that they are three very different acts, and I have no idea what those crowds will drink. 'If it were someone like the Foo Fighters, we would be preparing to sell a lot of beers and Jack Daniels, but we'll figure it out.' Alongside catering to customers old and new in Mount Florida, Murphy is also looking forward to the chance to add his own mark to Clockwork, with an ultimate goal to reinstate the microbrewery side of the business so that the smell of hops will 'cascade through the building' once more. 'Clockwork was the last place I worked before we took over the Pot Still, so I know it very well, but over the years it's been refurbished within an inch of its life with a lot of the parts I liked the most cut away,' he said. 'We're now fixing that, but it's a daunting task. 'When my dad had pubs, he made sure that we understood why he would buy another place even if one was already doing well. 'While the Pot Still is still running absolutely fine and there's no reason to kill that golden goose, we lease it, which means that we will never fully own it, and there's a limit to the changes we can make. 'It's the engine of everything we do, but we could be kicked out tomorrow with nothing but our bottles of whisky. 'Every single brick at Clockwork is now family owned and ours to do what we want with, that's really important to us and offers a bit of security. 'It's brought us a new challenge, and it's a big one, but it can't be the last one. 'I want to continue what we're doing and spread the good word further.' The Clockwork Bar is located at 1153 to 1155 Cathcart Road, Glasgow.
The Herald Scotland
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Forgive us our press passes in love hate media relationship
In a way, I understand what she was getting at because the sports editor often says to me that the mere thought of reading this Tuesday twaddle sends a shiver down his spine. Shiver away, boss. Here we go again. This week, it's the Canadian Open. How the times flies. That's a whole 12 months since Robert MacIntyre won his first title on the PGA Tour with his dad, Dougie, beside him as caddie. It was one of the most heartwarming tales of the golfing year. It was a triumph that also produced a predictably dizzying frenzy on social media. I remember being particularly tickled by one post in the build up to the final round as MacIntyre sat on a sturdy four-shot lead. The radio broadcaster, Georgie Bingham, was so excited at the prospect of a Bob breakthrough, she stated on the Sunday morning that, 'I'm literally going to hold my breath for him all day.' Given that MacIntyre wasn't teeing off until about 7:30pm UK time, Georgia was going to have to perform one heck of a feat of respiratory endurance. Young MacIntyre is pencilled in for his defending champion's press conference today. Rory McIlroy, meanwhile, is also on the interview list at some point and could face such an inquisition, they've probably wheeled a rack into the media centre. McIlroy, of course, didn't speak at all during the four days of play at the US PGA Championship as the Masters champion remained as tight-lipped as a Trappist monk sooking on a woodbine. That was a week in which news emerged that McIlroy's driver had failed a random legality test. Given equipment is regularly tested to ensure it conforms, that wasn't an unusual occurrence, but the vacuum created by McIlroy's silence was inevitably filled with wild speculation and fevered assumptions. Before you could say, 'there's nothing much to see here', the molehill had become a snow-capped mountain. McIlroy has always been wonderfully obliging and candid with the media down the years so his no-show at Quail Hollow was somewhat out of character. Some would say, however, that his prolonged snub was an abdication of duty and responsibility, just weeks after completing a career grand slam which resonated beyond the game and confirmed his status as a golfing great. As for another golfing great? Well, Jack Nicklaus gave his own thoughts on media duties last week at the Memorial Tournament that he hosts. 'I've always felt that you guys and gals have a job to do, and for you to do your job you need to talk to me,' he said. 'And whether I played well or whether I played poorly, if you still want to talk to me, I'll talk to you. And I always have.' Unlike in certain other sports, golfers don't have a contractual obligation to speak to the press after a round. Imagine if they did? There probably would've been a clause etched in the small print of Colin Montgomerie's terms and conditions stating that, 'glowering, seething silences after a missed two-footer on the 18th still speak volumes.' In many ways, they did. Good old Monty was still a story even when he said nowt. Compared to more frenzied sporting arenas, golfers, by and large, lead a charmed media existence. There has, however, been evidence this season of a straining of relationships. After losing out on the Arnold Palmer Invitational title, two-time major champion, Collin Morikawa, side-stepped the media then, a couple of weeks later, gave a reason. 'I don't owe anyone anything,' he said. In this money-soaked land of milk and honey, where mollycoddled golfers have never had it so good, Morikawa's assertion did little for the perception that elite performers are an entitled bunch of so-and-sos. Forget cocking a snook to the media, such shrugging self-importance was hardly a good way to woo a watching public who have become wearied by the riches and ramifications of the arms race that has split the men's professional game. Of course, a couple of media snubs here and there is hardly a new phenomenon. In this hysterical age, though, it's often portrayed as a complete breakdown of the player and press relationship. I'm sure everyone will kiss and make up. If, that is, the agents and managers of said players allow us to get close enough in these days of increasingly limited access. Making a guest appearance in his father's book, 'Golf in my Gallowses', many moons ago, the dearly departed doyen, Jock MacVicar, wrote about his engagements with a variety of golfers at the time. Of the former Ryder Cup player turned BBC commentator, Ken Brown, Jock noted that, 'he rarely talks to the press, even on occasions actually running away from a man with a notebook and pencil.' Not quite 'Ken on the Course', as he would become known on the tele in later years, more 'Ken's ****ed off from the Course'. Now, what time is Rory doing his press conference again?
Euronews
24-04-2025
- Euronews
In silence and prayer, thousands say farewell to Pope Francis at St Peter's Basilica
ADVERTISEMENT By midday on Thursday, more than 60,000 people had already passed through St Peter's Basilica to bid farewell to Pope Francis, as the public viewing entered its second day. The basilica had remained open continuously from Wednesday morning until 5:30 am on Thursday. Just half an hour later, at 6 am, the queue resumed as crowds once again began gathering in the cool Roman dawn, hoping to pay their last respects to the late pontiff. Among the early arrivals were Maria Luisa and Stefania, a mother and daughter from Sicily. Stefania now lives in Rome, and her mother had come to the capital for her granddaughter's baptism this Saturday. But when they heard the news of Pope Francis' death, their plans changed instantly. 'We didn't even think twice,' they said. 'We knew we had to try and see him one last time.' They had been there before — when Pope John Paul II died, they joined a group of pilgrims from Sicily. Back then, it took them 16 hours to see his body. People queue inside St Peter's Basilica to see the Pope Francis as he lies in state, 24 April 2025 Euronews Nearby, Anthony, a Canadian on his honeymoon, stood quietly in line with his wife. Born into a Catholic family of Italian immigrants who moved to Canada in the 1950s, Anthony didn't hesitate when he heard the news. 'We're only in Rome from Wednesday to Friday. But we knew this was something we couldn't miss,' he told Euronews. For Anastasius, a Trappist monk from Hong Kong now studying in Rome, the moment was deeply spiritual. 'First of all, I want to thank him for all his pastoral services to the Church over the past 12 years. I'm sure he has done a wonderful job for the people of God. And I hope the direction he has given to the Church will continue,' Anastasius said. Workers set up chairs at St Peter's Square, 24 April 2025 Euronews By 8:15 am, an hour and 45 minutes after the new queue had started, those waiting had reached the security checks under the iconic colonnade of Square. Journalists were not allowed to enter with cameras, but mobile phones were permitted. As the line advanced, workers were already placing rows of chairs in the square, preparing for Saturday's funeral at 10 am. Crossing the Holy Door to see Pope Francis's body Crossing the Holy Door in this context felt like a sacred passage for many. Most were silent. Those who spoke whispered reflections about Pope Francis — or quietly speculated about who might succeed him. Inside, the crowd moved slowly. Each person stopped for a few moments before the Pope's body, lying in repose, then exited in silence through a side aisle. Adora and Erma, two women from the Philippines who now work in Rome, woke up at 4 am to be among the first in line. 'We work today and we're tired,' they said, 'but we're happy and sad at the same time.' ADVERTISEMENT People queue at the entrance to St Peter's Basilica to see the Pope Francis as he lies in state, 24 April 2025 Euronews Father Joseph described the moment with emotion. 'I came to Rome in 2015, and since then, Pope Francis is the only pope I've known," he told Euronews. "Obviously, Pope Benedict was already retired. He accompanied my formation." "When I heard of his death, it was shocking — nobody expected it. Seeing his body was surreal. He looked so different. But I'm grateful to have come.' Related When is the Sistine Chapel closed? What to know about visiting Rome following Pope Francis' death 'It's so beautiful here but I miss the pope': Faithful and tourists in Rome mourn Pope Francis As the day goes on, thousands continue to arrive. The line shows no signs of shrinking. And inside the Basilica, the silence speaks volumes of love, respect, and the deep impression Pope Francis has left on the Catholic faithful.
