The SNP scandal

 Questions asked on Twitter

Scotland

Fraud

A question asked on Twitter this week is what happened to the Shetland Ferry the SNP promised to build for the islanders?

This case involves Nicola Sturgeon, then head of the Scottish Nationalist Party.

Her and her husband, derauded over £500,000 of money from the government, she claims it is a "financial error," how can it be an error, when your husband is the treasurer, and you have to verify the expenses?

The case is so complex, and involved, NO company in Scotland will have anything to do with it, as it will tie-up resources for decades. A firm in Manchester agreed to handle the case.

Back to the question. The SNP swindled so much money, it is now cheaper to build a new ship, than repair the older one, so the people of the Shetland Isles still have not got the ferry they were promised, and I doubt they will get one

Autumn sun

 Autumnal Weather in the UK

2026

RAF Lossiemouth

The autumn sun today reminds me of an incident I had at RAF Lossiemouth, Moray, Scotland.

I was on my way to collect some cameras from the aircraft when I turned a corner, and was hit in the face by the autmn sun, the glare was so intense it almost made me fall off the bicycle I was riding, and gave me a severe headache for hours

A Romantic Cruise

 Summer Holiday

Svitlana's dedication

Svitlana's wish

I haven't been on a cruise since a school trip to the Baltic, in 1970. I have been across the English Channel several times, back and forth to Germany, during my term in the Royal Air Force.

Being unable to afford a holiday as the money had to pay family bills, while I was married, the matter never arose.

I was considering a few trips next year, but they were mainly inland. If my friend, Svitlana wished for a relaxing, romantic, cruise, it is something we could plan for. 

My plans for next year, before I got chatting online with Svitlana, were trips to Exeter, Gloucester, and possibly Edinburgh. I've been though Edinburgh several times, on my way south when I served in Scotland, but I never had time for a day out

Alan Place - Avid Reader

Books I have read

My first Passion 

Another Life 

My late friend, Julia, who lived in Seattle was suprised by the scope of the books I have read.

My Opinions

Before I go further, I should clarify the distinction of "I have read".

The distinction is there are many books I started but never finished. I had always wanted to read Chekhov, at one time my wish to be regared the same as him, a great short story writer. That changed after I started a book of his stories, the storeis were so innane, to say the were boring is a big compliment.

The odd reason I read some books came from recalling a Monty Python Flying Circus sketch about a football match, involving philosophers. I recalled having a story by Marcel Prost on my shelf.

Another writer I read, but couldn't get into is Sartre'. The story I read started well, but soon got lost in its complexity of reason. The story began with a man being handed a stamp from the Spanish Civil War. From that good start, the story went awry, and devolved into why people make choices, I suppose I should have expected that from a philosopher.

As well as Chekhov, I wished to read Pushkin, another great writer from Russia, I don't have a "thing" for Russian writers, if the story seems interesting I will try to read it, no matter what the nationality, or gender of the writer.

Another writer I tried to read, and have been compared to, is Wilkie Collins. I pray my stories are not as boring as the one of his I tried to read. The Moonstone started well with the theft of a jewel from a statue in India, the story then came back to England, where the main story happens during a garden party. What stopped me from going on is he then spends over 30 pages telling the reader how to strip paint of a door, and the terrible smell of the stripper.

Who would I like to be compared to?

Now I have dismissed Chekhov, writers I would like to be compared to are the likes of Edgar Alan Poe, James Sheridan Le Fanu, and Cherie Priest, to name a few. If my style of writing had a direction it would be for Gothic.

Writers my friend was startled to know I read include Solzhenitsyn, again NOT a Russian trend, I was intrigued by his stories. One that stuck with me is about an eldery lady who each day takes her barrow across a railway line to do her shopping. Her routine is so defined, she never gets hit, until one day she is a little slow. I have also read the classic story, The Gulag Archipelago. 

Another story on the same theme, Russian Prisons, I started to read is Dolgun. This book is about the imprisonment of journalist Michael Dolgun from the USA. I never finished the story because I misplaced the book, and it costs too much to replace it.

One series I did enjoy are the books written by a group of lawyers who use the penname Michael Slade, the stories delve into the dark areas of pyschology. When I was in Scotland, I began to read a book called The Minatour Factor by Stuart Stern, again I lost my copy when I was osted to Germany during my service in the Royal Air Force. This story is about the effects taking drugs can have on people, it is based in Chelsea, London. I came across a copy on Amazon for £20, but I didn'r wish to pay that, a few months later in St. Nicholas's Market, in Bristol, I got my copy for £1.50.

If you wonder, YES, I do read female writers, as I say it is the story that attracts me. One of my favourite, unkown writers, was Marianne MacDonald.

A Decorated Serviceman

  I rarely mention my medal

General Service Medal

The reason I rarely mention my medal is I don't think I deserve it.

True, as a person pointed out correctly, any British service personnel serving in Ireland during The Troubles was in a warzone. But our camp was well away from the fighting. 

I also served in Scotland, while you may not consider that a danger, I was in the Royal Air Force, on a former Royal Navy base. I was an Englishman serving in Scotland, and two of my freinds got attacked outside the base.

I served in Germany during a time when NATO was on permanent allert over the terrorist threat from the Red Army Faction, after the arrest and imprisonment of the Baader-Meinhof Group.

My grandfather was bayonetted during WW1, the ship my father was on got bombed in Alexandria, Egypt, en-roue to India. He served for two years in India at the time of the partition which created Pakistan.

I lost the medal in a house-fire several years ago, I could have bought a replica, but I never got to doing it.

Wartime Mysteries

 Helen Duncan

                                                                   Spiritualism

In 1941, Scottish meduim Helen Duncan created a mystery which has not been solved to this day.

She said she had a message from a dead sailor aboard HMS Barham. This caused a panic at the Ministry of Defence, HMS Barham had been sunk in action in the Mediterranean Sea with the loss of over 800 lives, but the MoD had limited the knowledge of the sinking to the families of the dead to protect the morale of the British public, still reeling from the loss of HMS Hood, a few months earlier. She was held as a a German spy, but released when no proof could be shown.

She had previoulsy predicted the loss of HMS Hood, which came as a shock to the public, but not to military experts as the Hood was outdated by 1939 being launched nearly 25 years earier.

Mrs. Duncan was later exposed as a fake medium in the last case of its kind in Scotland, that doesn't answer how she knew of the sinking of the Barham.

HMS Rawalpindi

One thing which puzzled me was why the captain of HMS Rawalpindi was not charged with a war crime? After all, his decision to go against admiraltry orders, and engage the Scharnhorst resulted in the deaths of over 800 men under his command,  in less than 15 minutes. To give a comparison the 2,000 deaths during the Bataan Death March took weeks.

I guess having your son aboard HMS Ark Royal outweighs your crime, but what a out the families who lost their men, where is there justice?

To show the disparity, Rawalpindi was an armed merchant cruiser, a converted passenger ship, she could defend herself from an aircraft attack. Scharnhorst was one of the most powerful ships of the time. Rawalpindi was doomed from the moment the captain disobeyed his orders. That is probably why he attacked, he knew his career was over, and a court martial would bring disgrace to the family.

The irony of the situation is Scharnhorst and Bismark, were responsible for sinking HMS Hood a week earlier, an action which sparked a hunt for the Bismark, the result was the officer of the watch when Bismark was spotted was the son of the captain of the Rawalpindi.

So, we return to Helen Duncan prophesying the sinking of HMS Hood, did she really prophecy the sinking of the most powerful ship in the Royal Navy at the time, or did she say what most people thought, HMS Hood should have been scrapped.

The Rawalpindi incident has a link to my history, my father said that he was aboard the Empress of India, which was being escorted when the Rawalpindi spotted the Scharnhorst. Even before the internet, I knew this was not true, why would a ship bound for India, go via the North Atlantic when the usual route would be to go via the coast of Ireland to join a convoy?

To add to the confusion, there is NO record of a ship called the Empress of India. A few years ago, my late friend, who lived in Seattle, told me her father was in the same convoy as my father had been in.

Years later, my mother cleared the mystery up.

Robert Goddard

 A Mystery unfolds

Wartime Mysteries

The idea for the short story, Cold Stream,came from a book I read by Robert Goddard.

His story is set in Scotland, and centres around a group of soldiers who become guinea pigs in psychological warfare. Their paranormal abilities get hieghtend, but their memories of what happened are erased, until one of the men, years later, passes the site on vacation.

My story is set in London, and is about a man who recalls a train station, that has been out of use for as long as records exist.

There is NO Mystery

 The Roman 9th Legion

Annihilation

An enduring mystery in military history, to many people, is what happened to the the Roman 9th Legion, they were fighting one month, then disappeared.

For  me, there is no mystery.

One thoery is they vanished fighting in Scotland, based on the find of an eagle standard. Not a chance of this happening. The eagle was so small it would have become invisible at around 15 paces, and Scotland was an area that the Roman fighting tactics could not be employed, plus it is too far to be supplied.

The most likely scenario is so simple, people never consider it, as the elite force, they were sent to battle first to break up any attacks. This meant they hit the opposition at its strrongest, and took the heaviest casualties. The legion probaly took so many casualties, it was disbanded, and mixed in with other legions

Seaforth Highlanders

 RAF Lossiemouth

Scottish Regiments

Many years ago, my interest in military history was piqued by a regimental badge I came across. I had a feeling from the badge the regiment was based in Scotland, I was correct, however, I was wrong about which regiment. I thought it could have been the King's Own Scottish Borderers, it is from another famous regiment, the Seaforth Highlanders.

The odd thing about the connection between my badge, and my history, is that the regiment has its base in Inverness, not far from Elgin, where I was sttioned when I was in the Royal Air Force. Having served in Scotland, I am entitled to wear the RAF tartan, not that I would as my knees show the scars of many falls.

I did consider the option when I was in Scotland, also I thought about buying a book on the history of the clans.

A little-known fact is I own some land in Scotland

I hope to start writing again

 Alan Place - Short Story Writer

The Fantasy Writer

I have several projects in my WIP files which I can enlarge. There are some Gothic stories, Romance stories, Horror stories, and several Fantasy stories I enjoyed writing.

The last time I wrote one of my Speculative Fiction stories, I had to stop.The story was so weird, it gave me bad nights for weeks, and I knew what was coming, perhaps that was the reason. That story was based on an event that happened which happened to me, when I was stationed in Scotland

Covid

 Classical Music

Germany

Last night, I was watching a classical music video on YouTube,taped in Germany five years ago. The effects of Covid were never more clear, with the 2 meter restriction on closeness, the hall was almost half-empty.

I wondered if the musicians seeing the spaces considered the concert like a rehearsal? Mind, the Gerrmans take things to an extreme, I read a report of a man who had over 200 vaccinations, where can you find a spot that hasn't been used with that number of injections, and it can't be good for you?

Covid claimed my wife this year, but she had been seriously ill for several years. I had a bout of Covid too, to the surprise of my family, with my health issues, which are many, I survived. I have only had the original booster, my view is if the booster didn't work that time, what is the point of the next one?

I view Covid as a scam. Each year, there are several new variations "claimed" to have been discovered, Covid can kill, but it is NOT the cause, you need to consider other factors.

There are diseases which killed many more people, even within my life of 69 years, Smallpox was a killer, until the 1960's when a vaccine was made; however, with the influx of illegal immigrants from the Middle East, cases have returned in Scotland.In the last century, there was the Spanish flu epidemic which killed millions of people

There is no point in NATO

 No Royal Air Force bases in Europe

                                                      Cyprus

NATO is a bone of contention for politicians, some wish the UK to stay in, others push for us to pull out.

I am in favour of pulling out, I am not left-wing in my view, it is a realistic view of life since the late 1980s.

NATO was set up in the 1950s, when the threat of war with Russia was a real concern, nowadays, Russia has other things to worry about; I have said since the late 70s, and still do say, there is a greater threat from an Islam state than from Russia.

The reality is there are NO Royal Air Force bases in Europe, the only base near Europe is Cyprus.

Successive governments have stripped our national defences to the point there are no Airborne Early Warning stations in Scotland.

What make me laugh, ironically, is the people who go on about our allies in the EU, who are they? The only people we could rely on have been the USA, and the Commonwealth states.

Enemy of the People

 Why don't we send Muslim terrorists to an internment camp?

Prisoner of War

During World War 2, anyone suspected of supporting Germany was interned in a POW camp, why don't we do that to the Muslim men who arrive by the THOUSAND eack month under this Labour government?

They have no intention of attempting to mix with us, the majority of the "refugees" are men of fighting age fleeing like rats, to start a war of terrorism in Europe. Europeean countries, even the lax government of Sweden have closed their borders; while we cannot close our borders, if they know when they are tracked they'll be sent to a camp with no contact with their families, and minimal requirements provided, they will not be so happy to come.

People concerned about humanity, should realise we are being invaded by a religion which class ladies lower than cattle, and forbid them to show their faces; shouldn't they be regarded the same?

These men set up "grooming schools," so they can have sex with girls under-16, in the civilised world that is a serious crime. You talk about humanity, what about the victims of these men whose lives are ruined?

To build these camops wouldn't cost a lot, there are many isolated islands around the coast of the UK suitable, one such is off the coast of Scotland, not far from Glasgow. During the Cold War, it was a testing ground for Anthrax, it was only declared "safe" in 2012. They can be sent there. There is also Dartmoor Prison, the prison is home to the hardest criminals in the UK, yet it is an "open prison," the reason for this is the prison is over 25 miles from the nearest village, Launceston, there is no point in trying to escape when you kow you can recaptured with 20 minutes. It isn't only the remoteness which keeps the men there, as  Sherlock Holmes says to Doctor Watson in "The Hound of the Baskervilles," "one step off the tracks, and the mire will claim you."

Even locals take great care when crossing the area as the paths are not easy to follow.

Back to my pre-RAF Lossiemouth days

 R.I.P. Linda

No dairy

In the days since my wife passed away, I have reverted back to the days before I was posted to RAF Lossiemouth, Morayshire, Scotland. While I was stationed there, I got to know some USAAF airmen who introduced me to coffee, before then I was a tea drinker.

Since January, 2025, I have gone back to drinking tea, this has improved my mental health, and as I don't need to take milk with my tea, the change has helped my finances as I am a pensioner.

Cutting coffee out has also helped me control my weight as I don't use as much sugar, and don't eat sugary biscuits. Another factor in my weight loss is changing from cooking with fats, to cooking with oil, often garlic oils as garlic is good for many health reasons.

The Great Pretender

Bonnie Prince Charlie 

England Vs Scotland

Charles Edward Stuart - Bonnie Prince Charlie, the Young Pretender, should really be called the Great Pretender, why?

Though he was a descendent of the Stuart line, he was born, died, and spent most of his life in Italy. The house he was born in was the property of the Pope.

Whilst being the leader of the Jacobite Rebellion, he is also known for escaping dressed as a woman with the help of his lover, Flora Macdonald.

This shows the hatred between Scotland, and England in as much as they sided with a man who was more Italian than a Scotsman.

Another famous Scotsman whose actions raise questions is Robert the Bruce; if the legend is to be believed, and there is no proof it did exist. Robert was trapped in a cave, and after watching a spider try to spine her web several times before succeeding, he resolved to defeat the English at any cost.

Though the story has gone down in history, I doubt it was what happened, why?

At the time, the Scots had suffered several bad defeats at the hands of the English, who would follow a leader who has lost so many times?

The more probable outcome was like so many armies before, and until the recent war in the Ukraine, the soldiers thought, "Why are we here, fighting battles hundreds of miles from our families?" The English probably pulled back realising the fight could go on for years, and was becoming to costly.

What Happened to the Roman 9th Legion?

  A Theory of Amalgamation 

One of the eternal mysteries in history is what happened to the Roman 9th Legion?

One of the most common theories is they got massacred in Scotland; a theory I don't believe for a minute, why?

Logistically, Scotland was too far north to be supplied. The lands of Scotland are hills, and valleys, unlike the vast plains the Romans were used to fighting on with their legions of soldiers protected by armour on all sides. Also, they had been savaged by the Germanic tribes in recent memory, so they would be unlikely to wish to re-enact a battle they had lost.

The premise that they were in Scotland is based on the finding of a Roman Eagle in one of the valleys; the problem here is the eagle is so small you would not have been able to see it from more than about five feet away, not exactly something the men could rally round to fight.

There have been very few Roman finds in Scotland considering the time they were in Britain.

So, what did happen?

I agree with the theory that being the elite legion, and spearheading most of the battles, they took such heavy casualties, they could not get enough replacements to keep the unit together. they were probably amalgamated into other units over time, to defend cities they could hold.

Besides which, would you wish to join a unit which despite the honour, you knew you would probably never be released from, other than a muddy grave in some far-off land?

Life Changes: Employment and Disability Journey

A rare insight 

Svitlana

I don't write about myself often; I don't see myself as interesting, that view is not shared by my friends.

I was born in Middlesborough, North Yorkshire. I say I was born in Yorkshire, as it was Yorkshire when I was born, since then the area has changed its name twice.

My family moved to the Bristol area of England in 1963 when my father got a job in the area. I lived in Clevedon, North Somerset from 1963, until 1986 when I got married, and moved to Bristol.

I spent two years in college, in my teens, before I joined the Royal Air Force, in in 1974. While in the Royal Air Force, I served in Scotland, Germany, and Ireland.

I was in Germany months after the Baader Meinhof group were sent to jail, for the period of my tour NATO was on full alert, expecting an attack at any moment.

I was in Ireland towards the end of the period known as The Troubles. Again, this was a time when an attack could come at any time; being English in Ireland at the time was almost as bad as being English during my time at RAF Lossiemouth, Moray, Scotland. Added to the nationality issue was that RAF Lossiemouth used to be Royal Navy base, so we had the Royal Navy against the Royal Air Force as well.

While I was in Ireland, I was awarded the General Service Medal, it wasn't until recently I felt worthy of the medal, when a man pointed out that any service personnel in Ireland wee liable to come under attack, at any time from a terrorist. I lost the medal several years ago in a fire.

While I have not been on the frontline, like people in Israel, and the Ukraine, I have been close, and I can empathise with the tensions they are under.

After leaving the Royal Air Force, I spent a year unemployed before I joined the museum service in Bristol, were I stayed for 15 years. I was made redundant under the Labour government under Tony Blair, when they implemented the Zero-hours rule; at the time, I was the last man on a regular contract.

Though I lost my job, I didn't see it as a loss, at the time I left, the museum had become a police state. again, going against a Labour policy of banning a closed shop where only certain people can get a job. In some jobs, it is accepted to get a job though your family connection, mainly because those jobs are high-risk such as mining, and fishing.

In 2011, an injury I had during my years in the RAF returned. The original injury was a slightly torn tendon in my left foot, on a rainy Friday in 2011, the injury became a torn tendon, leaving me disabled. I was fortunate, the injury happened while I was at home, five minutes either side of that time, I would have been about a mile from the house.

It was at this time, I decided to write short stories for my friends online. Mainly, because I am not a TV junky; I can watch TV, but I can't spend all day watching it, these days I do watch more, but that is more YouTube than TV.

My early rep as a writer came from writing ghost stories, which I still write, and enjoy. My most notable period came during 2012, when a collection of short stories I wrote earned an award, and my science fiction series - Forgestriker - sold well.

I class myself as a writer, not a genre-writer, I have written stories in many genres, but I cannot write a sex story; I have written stories with sex in, but not a story were sex is the theme.

My latest stories are spiritual stories, and stories based in, or around India.

My wife, Linda, to whom I had been married for 38 years, passed away in January 2025. Her death lead to a period of seclusion, then to the knowldege, to my amazement that ladies see me as attractive.

Since July, 2026, I have made a new lady friend, her name is Svitlana.  We are in our 70's, and have found romance in our later years.

Science Fiction Author Confronts Public Speaking Fear

  My Phobia

                     Book 2 of the Forgestriker series

The popular theory to beat a phobia is to tackle it head on, I tried that with my phobia of public speaking, and for me it was a disaster, not the speaking event but the aftermath.

I was invited to read a segment of one of my books at a meeting, the book I chose was the second in my science fiction series (shown above).

I was nervous, but once I started to read, I enjoyed the reading, and I was well received - or so I thought - things after the event took on a sinister tone. I think the cause could have been jealousy from one of the more well-known writers in the group.

Later that week, I re-posted a post against dog fights, and the leader of the group twisted the meaning to say I said I was in favour of the fights, as an animal lover I am very anti-dog fighting. I have had dogs for many years, and I love them like our children.

Before I had the opportunity to defend myself, the witch hunt was over, I had been tried, and convicted by a kangaroo-court. It had taken me years to get the courage to speak in public, the last tie before that night was when I was in college. My phobia is so strong, I turned down an opportunity to talk about birds to a scout group while I was stationed at RAF Lossiemouth, Moray, Scotland.