Talk of the Town: Caught out by park fly fishing practice

WE'RE all aware of the threat of global warming, but Talk of the Town was nonetheless slightly alarmed to walk past Montgomery Street Park recently to see two people apparently fly fishing.

Surely the tide hadn't come in that far? Closer inspection reassured us that the fishermen were standing on dry land and just using their friendly local park for a slightly more unusual kind of sports practice than the usual kickabout. JR Hartley would be proud.

Plaque marks for Kenny

HAS plaque envy broken out in the Scottish Government?

At the SNP conference, Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill recalled visiting Edinburgh's Forrester High School and seeing a plaque saying the building was opened by Finance Minister and former pupil John Swinney. On another visit to Jewel & Esk College, he spotted a plaque to mark its opening by the First Minister.

Mr MacAskill acknowledged there were also plaques bearing his name in a library in Stirling, a gym in Perth and a hall in Edinburgh. But he told delegates: "They are all behind great big walls and, unless you join the prison service, I hope you never see them."

Mary mystery's a carve up

AFTER two years of fundraising, the Bathgate Historic Conservation Society announced earlier this year that it was finally ready to restore the 7ft marble statue of Robert Burns and Mary Campbell, aka Highland Mary, which had been badly vandalised in the 1970s.

So it will no doubt have been less than thrilled at new research which suggests the mysterious Mary may never have existed.

Academics at the University of Glasgow claim the legend of Highland Mary was largely constructed through statues and objects, rather than long disputed written accounts.

Still, in spending 50,000 restoring the statue, the society will take some comfort in knowing it is helping keep the legend going.

Wills has been mugged

A CAPITAL charity is among those to benefit from Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding and their charitable gift fund.

But the prince may feel less charitable to the makers of a certain royal wedding souvenir mug pictured on the web. The cup is supposed to feature the groom and his bride-to-be, but his brother Prince Harry is shown beaming next to the royal fiancee instead.

The correct names of the couple are under the pictures and on a website advertising the piece, it states it commemorates the wedding of "HRH Prince William and his stunning lady bride to be, Miss Kate Middleton". Oops.