No 70 Autumn 2019

1

Clarion Autumn 2019 No 70 Contact :clarion@edinburghu3a.org.uk

The Clarion is the Edinburgh U3A magazine and is published bi-annually with contributions from individual members and groups. The Bulletin is published monthly on-line and contains brief updates on forthcoming events and group news.

In this Issue:

Letter from your new Chair

Other Committee News

Luminate Festival

Clarion Interview Richard de Soldenhoff

Monthly Meetings

Scotland’s Tapestry

Rebuilding the Borders Railway

Hidden Edinburgh

A Wooden Future?

One Night

Round the Groups

Journey to Nantes

Astronomy

Jogging

Scottish Authors: John Muir’s birthplace

Easy Hillwalking

Visits Summer 2019

Garden Groups Tour of Northumberland

Lunch Club

Film Appreciation

Other News

Hidden Edinburgh: the stories behind the photos.

Current Committee

Editor’s Note

Dean village: Moira Winton

No 70 Autumn 2019

2

Karyn Costa

Welcome to the

Autumn 2019

edition of the

Clarion. My first

as Chair!

Dear Members,

First, a little about me. After graduating from

Edinburgh University with a degree in French,

I spent the next forty-two years of my life in

France (along with a spell in Tahiti!) teaching

English. Returning to Edinburgh on retirement,

I immediately enrolled in the U3A…..and have

never looked back! I am delighted to participate

in this wonderful organisation and help extend

the social and self-help learning and friendship

opportunities and the challenges it offers.

I hope to carry on the good work done by Bruce

over the past three years and am delighted that

he has agreed to remain on the Committee as

Vice Chair, as well as taking on responsibility

for Internal Communications.

There are a few other changes. Patrick Leach is

taking over from Tony Trewavas on External

Communications. Our thanks and warmest

wishes to Tony. We are pleased to welcome

Jenny Clarke as Assistant Treasurer and Louise

Grimm as Group Coordinator 5. You will find a

full list of all the Committee and details of how

to contact them on your new membership card.

A Luminate event, focusing on “Creative

Ageing” held at Edinburgh Napier University’s

Craiglockhart campus in May was a great

success. Our members demonstrated their

musical, artistic, photographic and dancing

skills, among others, to a large audience,

showcasing how creative we continue to be as

we advance in age. You will find photos of the

event on the next page of the Clarion.

There has been much discussion recently about

our name. It is widely felt the word ‘University’ is

a barrier to people joining. The Third Age Trust

has therefore decided to concentrate attention

on the unadorned logo - U3A - and the strapline

‘Learn, Laugh, Live’, which sums up the

essence of what we are about.

Internal Communications? After three and half years as Chair, Bruce

Cowan is now co-ordinating ‘Internal

Communications.’ He explains:

Part of the job is to oversee our publications

which include the monthly Bulletin and bi-annual

Clarion and help co-ordinate and ensure

consistency. There are other internal

publications to be edited and printed e.g.

Groups Booklet and Guidance for Group

Leaders. Groups are continually changing, new

groups form, and old ones withdrawn, a group

changes leader, venue, day or time, and these

changes have to appear in the Bulletin, Groups

Booklet and the website updated. This is mostly

a routine process carried out by a number of

individuals, namely the Group Coordinators,

Bulletin Editor, Webmaster and Lachlan

Paterson who keeps a spreadsheet of Groups.

I also have the role of Beacon Administrator.

That means I have ‘superpowers’ to control who

has access to what data. So, for example, the

Membership Secretary can see, change, delete,

and email members, while other Committee

Members can only see and email them. The

Treasurer can use the financial functions such

as PayPal payments and renewal payments.

When all members are emailed via Beacon, for

example, sending out the Bulletin and

subscription renewal notices, I get messages

about any failed emails which I then investigate.

Along with the membership secretary, Ann

Ryan, I’m looking at how we communicate with

our 2400 members via e-mail and letter.

In the future we could use Beacon to, for

example, list our groups and allow Group

Leaders of larger groups to keep track of who is

in their group and email them easily. They could

also use the accounting functions for payments

for events, field trips and outings, lessening the

burden on Group Leaders. I will be investigating

these with Jenny Clarke.

Finally, I hope to tidy up our “cloud” files where

we store our various documents so that they are

accessible to all Committee members and

cannot be lost because of anyone’s computer

failure.

Letter from your new Chair Other Committee news

No 70 Autumn 2019

3

Luminate Festival

On Tuesday 28th May 2019 Napier University

hosted a Luminate event at Craiglockhart

Campus showcasing 14 different performances

from some of the groups we encompass. The

venue was filled to capacity with 140 guests

and positive comments would suggest it was a

great success.

Among the groups contributing were Art (1 & 2),

Archaeology, Cryptic crossword, Astronomy,

Raspberry Pi, Creative writing, Photography,

Science, Tapestry, Recorders, Ukulele, Blues,

Choir, Recorders, Jazz and Circle dancing. One of the venues we used was the “Rivers

Suite” named after the doctor who pioneered a

new treatment for casualties in the First World

War suffering from shell shock when the cam-

pus was a hospital. Two of those casualties

were the poets Wilfred Owen and Siegfried

Sassoon. Tours were arranged for anyone who

wanted to visit the museum displaying their

poems and other artefacts from the time.

Convalescing soldiers arrived in their uniforms

and it appears the seeds of some plants native

to France were carried on the soles of their

boots and took root in the garden. So there is a

little part of the Craiglockhart garden which is

forever France!

Our thanks go to Gary Seath and Nicole

Porterfield from Craiglockhart for their

assistance in making this Event possible

Doreen Barr

The promotion of the event raised some

interesting questions on how society in general

views “Arts and older people” The very

existence of such a category appears to want to

separate us from mainstream society. If you

haven’t already seen it, read Eric Midwinter’s

article in the summer 2019 Edition of TAM .

“The U3A was to be a practical demonstration

that older people (that term again!) had the

skills and resilience to run their own affairs and

in doing so invent their own destiny.”

MG

Circle Dancing and Ukulele. Photos by Geoff Gardner

Choir Photo Gary Seath

Tapestry, recorders and conductor, Jeremy Devlin-Thorp Photos by Geoff Gardner

Photo: Gary Seath

No 70 Autumn 2019

4

A life with Microscopes and Motorcycles Maggie talked to Richard de Soldenhoff about his time working as

a medic round the world and his adventures in retirement.

Clarion interview U3A members are not a typical cross- section of the population at large. We are an

independently minded bunch, achievers in many different ways, with extraordinarily

interesting & diverse backgrounds. We have one thing in common, we don’t like being put

into a category of “old people!” In retirement many want to continue contributing to a

better society. In each issue we feature one of our members but selection is difficult!

Where did your inspirations come from?

Your love of travel?

That was largely down to my parents. The

family weren’t wealthy. My father studied in

Edinburgh and then got a job with the Indian

Medical Service. After some years he returned

to Edinburgh to study and met my mother, who

was from Canada. Both encouraged me to look

beyond the confines of Edinburgh and one of

my first short posts as a medical student was in

Pakistan with a friend of my parents. They were

fundamental Baptists and their outlook was

somewhat different from my own, but I faced

many situations that I would never have had to

deal with at that stage in my life had I stayed at

home working for the NHS.

While I did return home, I found the draw of the

challenges and responsibilities that came with

working in the “Third World” was too great,

despite the attraction of the camaraderie and work ethic that was typical of the NHS at that time.

Your love of music? My father was an obstetrician and worked from home. His waiting room was our dining room but unfortunately this had no soundproofing. After one patient disclosed that they found the overheard conversations “so interesting”, speakers were installed playing Bruckner, Wagner and Mahler at top volume. I think that my love of music must have started then. Luckily, most years I was able to come back to Edinburgh for the Festival and a cultural “top up” of my batteries, enough to keep going for another year.

What were the highlights of over 30 years?

Few countries can match working in the South

Pacific “paradise” of Vanuatu (New Hebrides)

where I worked as District Medical Officer for a

year in 1977 after

training in general

practice back in

Edinburgh. Imagine an

archipelago of 82

islands of lush tropical forest and fertile volcanic

soils. Moreover, because the islands were

administered jointly by France and Britain, good

food - salami, French cheese and even fresh

baguettes were readily available, unlike many

former British protectorates.

What was the most beautiful?

The mountainous and fiercely independent

country of Nepal where I worked as a project

leader for a leprosy control project in the east of

the country for 5 years between 1988 and 1993.

I learned to speak Nepali and still visit regularly,

as well as surprising Nepalese restaurant staff

in Edinburgh. No secrets there! Your most frustrating experience?

Once considered a centre of learning and the

Buddhist religion, very few foreigners apart from

Buddhist pilgrims visit Bihar. With a mainly rural

population, Bihar has lagged far behind other

Indian states in terms of social and

economic development & health care. I spent 9

months there trying (but failing) to get a leprosy

project off the ground.

The best country to live in?

Without a doubt, Indonesia.

A stunning

combination of

islands with some of

the world’s best

cuisine. Altogether I

spent 10 years there

working on leprosy

and tuberculosis

programmes.

No 70 Autumn 2019

5

The most challenging?

I was working in Zambia between 1982 and

1988, 20 years after independence and just at

the start of the AIDS epidemic. I was working for

the Zambia government which involved signing

their official secrets act and was contracted to

set up a new leprosy management programme,

my first big job in leprosy as well as being

responsible for TB control in the country.

What about retirement?

I’ve kept busy volunteering in residential centres offering respite and holiday care and as a sighted guide on walking holidays for visually impaired. Having become a specialist in leprosy, I’ve been a guest lecturer for the University of Glasgow; Diploma Course in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

But the best thing I’ve ever done was to donate a kidney. I remember visiting a friend who was unlucky enough to get an infection which led to kidney failure and realised what a miserable quality of life dialysis allowed. Altruistic donation carries no reward other than, in my case, a letter of thanks from the recipient. It also carries fewer risks for the donor than many popular activities such as scuba diving, horse riding and skiing. Many donors have medical backgrounds and are well aware of the odds. The selection process is rigorous so only those physically and mentally suited to being donors are accepted.

Six weeks after the operation, I was back climbing “Munros.” See above! Do you have any regrets?

Never having stopped long enough to settle

down and have a family. Having been to

boarding school, I wouldn’t send my children

there. Nevertheless, I am full of admiration for

those who take on responsibility for nurturing

the next generation.

Bucket list?

I plan to travel to Bhutan in 2020 - for a holiday!

Monthly Meetings

Scotland’s Tapestry In June, Andrew Crummy, the designer for the

Great Scottish Tapestry, came to tell us about

how this remarkable work came about. Andrew

was the son of Helen Crummy, founder member

of the Craigmillar Festival and a community

activist with a determination to improve the lives

of local people through the arts. He remembers

his home as being full of colour, laughter, music

and drama. Like many artists, he was dyslexic

and school was not for him but he went on to

train as an illustrator at Dundee and Glasgow

Art Schools and became involved in community

and public art through the creation of large

scale murals, often depicting local history, and

in the Battle of Prestonpans tapestry in 2010.

This unique project was to tell the entire story of

Scotland’s history from the end of the ice age in

8,500 BC to the creation of the Scottish

Parliament in 1999. The idea for the project was

conceived by Alexander McCall Smith and the

story line by Alistair Moffat. It involved over

1000 stitchers led by Dorie Wilkie who ran

workshops, visited the stitching groups to offer

advice and co-ordinated the volunteers. It is

actually cotton & linen fabric embroidered with

wool rather than tapestry.

Logistically, the task was challenging. The

designs for the panels were devised by

Andrew who prepared sketches and translated

these to full sized drawings for the 160 panels

which were then traced and sent out to the

teams of volunteer stitchers from all over

Scotland. As they learnt and shared new skills,

(and a bit of Scottish history) this generated a

real creative buzz as well as creating new social

groups. More than 1000 stitchers took part and

the finished tapestry measures 143 metres.

The tapestry was exhibited throughout Scotland

including 2 visits to the Scottish Parliament

where it was seen by more than 5000 people a

day. The project generated such enthusiasm

that it generated spin- offs amongst the groups

of stitchers and many went on to create other

smaller scale tapestries using their new skills.

Maggie Gilvray

No 70 Autumn 2019

6

Rebuilding the Borders Railway

On July 17th, author and railway enthusiast

Ann Glen, gave a most interesting and very

well attended talk on the rebuilding of the

Borders railway line.

Ann comes from a family of engineers. She is a

graduate of Glasgow and Strathclyde

Universities and a Fellow of the Royal Scottish

Geographical Society. While writing the book,

she visited the site on numerous occasions,

walking several parts of the route and speaking

to workers on the line to gather material. She

was one of the first to travel on the new line

between Waverley Station and Tweedbank.

Her book, ‘The Waverley Route – Its Heritage

and Revival’ was on sale at the meeting.

The Borders railway was first constructed during

the 1850’s and completed in 1862 by the North

British Railway Company. It ran from Edinburgh

to Carlisle, a distance of 98 miles, and quickly

got a reputation as the toughest main line in

Britain to operate because of its twisting curves

and steep gradients. It was christened the Wa-

verley Route after Sir Walter Scott’s novel and

was extremely popular for day excursions taking

as many as 300,000 passengers per year.

It was closed in 1969 as a result of the

Beeching report and re-opened in 2015

following the route of the original line along a

distance of 30 miles from Edinburgh to

Tweedbank. The full extent to Carlisle was

considered but thought, at the time, too

expensive to construct. The promise was that it

would open up the Scottish Borders to tourists

and commuters, encouraging people to move in

and stay in the area.

When the line was first surveyed prior to its

re-opening it was beset with obstacles such as

collapsed structures, blocked tunnels and

culverts. It was overgrown in many places and

in others it had been taken over for agriculture.

Occasionally newly-built houses and agricultural

buildings had been erected. Protected species

such as badgers, bats and lampreys had to be

safeguarded and rehomed. Old mineworkings,

particularly at Monktonhall, had flooded and

extensive areas required to be stabilised. Two

hundred miles of drilling took place in

preparation for 4,500 tonnes of grout which was

pumped into the ground. The project also

included refurbishing the 23 arch Newbattle

viaduct at Lothianbridge and the nearby

Glenesk viaduct. The latter, built in 1829, is one

of Scotland’s earliest railway bridges. It was part

of the horse drawn Edinburgh Dalkeith railway.

Where cables had to be laid, fibreoptic was the

choice instead of copper which was too

attractive to thieves. The track is mainly

single but doubled up at passing places.

Crossovers were manufactured off site and

wagons used specifically for laying new tracks

were used. Borthwick was the steepest section

of track to be laid. There are no traditional

signal boxes but small electrically operated

boxes. All infill material in use on the railway

was taken from Falahill Quarry. One hundred

and thirty two bridges were reconstructed, 97 of

which had radical refurbishment, one main

reason being to take emergency vehicles. The

bridges were painted in Railtrack green. 1,100

workers were employed in its reconstruction.

Sherrifhall roundabout and Hardengreen viaduct

were probably the largest structures the railway

had to negotiate.

The Waverley line was opened on time and on

budget for £300,000,000. The contractors were

BAM and Nuttal. It has proved popular both with

Borderers visiting Edinburgh and Edinburgh

residents on day trips to the Borders with four

million journeys being made in the first three

years.

Gill Baldwin

Photo: Edinburgh reporter Sept 2015

No 70 Autumn 2019

7

Hidden Edinburgh How well do you know your city?

Photos contributed by U3A members. See page 19 for the “answers” 1. Peter Jones 2. Peter Jones 3, Marjory Combe 4 Peter Jones 5 Penny McKee 6. Morag Pirie 7. Bob Douglas 8. Bob Douglas

1

2

3

4

5 6

7

8

No 70 Autumn 2019

8

9. Peter Jones ,

10. Maggie Gilvray 11. Peter Jones 12. Bob Douglas 13. Ruth Hannah 14. Bob Douglas 15 Eileen Holttum 16 Maggie Gilvray 17. Catherine E. Dignan

9 10

11 12

13

14

15 16

17

No 70 Autumn 2019

9

A Wooden Future? Professor Tony Trewavas. FRS.

In a previous article in The Clarion

(Treeconomics) I indicated that the trees

growing in Edinburgh provided services

equivalent to £400 million and I suggested the

Scottish government should increase its

ambition for tree coverage of Scotland to at

least one third of land surface. I think that

should go now to 50%.

Why? Because cars, planes, batteries, and

even skyscrapers can now be built out of wood.

Not the ordinary planks that can be purchased

at the local buildings store but something called

cross laminated timber (CLT), engineered by

materials scientists. It is made from sheets of

wood usually spruce or beech that are

mechanically dried, stacked together at right

angles to each other and glued over the whole

surface reducing expansion and contraction to

negligible levels. Each panel consists of

between 3-7 boards.

Currently Scotland imports CLT. With a large

increase in forest coverage, it could be

manufactured here with the benefits that forests

confer on wildlife, soil stabilisation, water

run-off and climate change.

A major use of CLT is in the building trade. It

can be used like Jenga blocks placed one on

top of the other and fixed with appropriate joints.

An 18 storey student residence in Vancouver is

currently the highest but shortly to be overtaken

by a building in Norway. Although the tallest

here is only 7 Storeys, there are plans for an 80

storey building , 300 ft high, in London. But mid

-height blocks of 7-8 storeys can be

prefabricated and put together using cranes in a

few days, saving construction times.

Building this way replaces an estimated 80% of

concrete and steel normally needed. Concrete

is still needed for foundations but much smaller

in depth because wood is lighter. The wood

construction starts above the damp course.

Wood is an excellent insulator against winter

temperatures but does require external cladding

against the elements. Concrete and steel

production are primary sources of global

emissions; different authors quote anywhere

from 8-15% of the total. Using wood in this way

locks the carbon fixed during tree growth for 60-

70 years contrasting with the mistaken

approach of burning wood in power stations

thus immediately releasing this source of stored

carbon. So the benefits to climate change are

substantial.

So how does wood achieve this? It consists of

three basic constituents:-

1. Cellulose, long strong fibres similar in

structure to Kevlar in bullet proof jackets and

now finding use as a petrochemical substitute in

paints, glues, electronic components, nappies

and potentially clothing.

2. Lignin, a mixture of organic compounds that

have potential in replacing petrochemical

products in adhesives, coatings and resins.

Chemical modification of lignin can provide

sources for many other valuable chemicals.

One group has found how to completely remove

lignin from wood leaving a transparent structure

useful for skylights and in due course windows.

3. Hemicellulose, a mixture of different

carbohydrates polymerised into a branched

chain structure. The potential is to use this to

replace plastic. Already several products,

including carrier bags and Sulupacs, equivalent

to the plastic bottle have been made. When

buried they degrade within a year. Sulupac

aims also to produce cutlery, pens, combs etc.,

directly from wood.

The Toyota “Setsuna” is a roadster made

almost entirely of wood. Batteries have been

made by embedding appropriate materials into

the wood fibres.

Finally, densified wood, made by partially

removing lignin and hemicellulose followed by

hot pressing, produces a high-performance

structural material with a more than tenfold

increase in strength, toughness and ballistic

resistance and with enormous dimensional sta-

bility. Its specific strength is higher than that of

most structural metals and alloys, making it a

low-cost, high-performance, lightweight

alternative. It bounces when dropped and

sounds like steel. Its potential uses are

enormous.

No 70 Autumn 2019

10

Helen Welham read this short story out

at the Luminate event as a contribution

from her Creative Writing Group

One Night

Moira awoke suddenly. She had heard a

noise. Her heart started to race as she realised

what it was. Someone was in the bedroom.

She could hear quiet breathing. Why hadn't the

burglar alarm gone off? Five years ago, after

they'd been burgled, she had insisted on having

one fitted. Ian had grumbled about the cost,

but he knew it made her feel safer. She always

set it at night when he was away. She was sure

it was on when she came to bed.

As her eyes adjusted to the dark, she saw the

faint outline of a figure, bending over the chest

of drawers. One drawer was being eased out,

so softly that, if she hadn't been already awake,

the sound would never have disturbed her.

Concentrating on breathing steadily, she tried to

think what to do.

Best to pretend to be asleep. If it was money

and jewelry the intruder was after, he could

have them, she didn't care. Not that there was

much left since the last burglary. Coming

home to a ransacked house had been so

disheartening, she had decided not to replace

the necklaces, brooches and rings. Instead,

that year, they had flown to Italy for a week's

holiday, paid for with the insurance money.

Now the figure was rifling in the bedside

cabinet, still making scarcely a sound. He

stopped, looking over at the bed. Had he

sensed something? Snoring softly, Moira

turned on her side, facing away from the

intruder. She realised that he was searching

through her handbag. Thank goodness she

always kept fifty pounds in her purse. And her

credit cards were all there too. Surely that

would satisfy him? Every sense alert, she lay

rigid, forcing herself to breathe steadily, willing

the thief to leave.

After what seemed an age, she thought she

heard the bedroom door click shut. Moira lay

still, straining to hear any sound until, satisfied

she was alone, she turned to reach out for

Her mobile phone. When Ian was away, she

kept it near, under the pillow on his side of the

bed.

"So that's where it is."

A scream died in her throat as the light was

switched on and she saw her husband smiling

down at her. "Ian. I thought you weren't getting

back till tomorrow." "The meeting ended early.

Thought I'd surprise you but you were fast

asleep. Early night?"

Moira nodded. "What were you doing?" she

asked. What are you looking for?" Ian held out

his hand. "Your mobile. Mine's knackered.

Thanks. Still the same code, 6078?"

She nodded. "Right. Got to tell John what was

decided. Shan't be long. You go back to sleep."

He blew her a kiss as he closed the bedroom

door.

She lay back, calmer now, thinking how lucky it

was that Derek had cancelled. That was too

close a call. Then, heart thudding once again,

she sat up. On her phone. The texts. Derek's

texts.

Had she remembered to delete them as usual?

Would Ian find them? Trembling, she lay down,

………...waiting.

Helen Welham

Publication by Creative Writing

Group 1

Five years after our first publication, Friday

Mornings in Blackhall, the members of

Creative Writing 1 have produced a new

booklet. Its title Capturing the Essence reflects

the work of the group through our short stories

and poetry.

The booklet costs £2.50 and all profits will go

to St.Columba's Hospice. You will be able to

buy it at the monthly meetings, from St

Columba's charity shops and also from

members of the group. It will make an ideal

stocking filler for Christmas!

I hope that you will enjoy reading it as much we

look forward to hearing one another's work at

our monthly meetings.

No 70 Autumn 2019

11

No

French Conversation: A journey to

Nantes.

The French Network Group's week long

exchange visit to Nantes began on what

should have been an historic day, the 29th.

of March. This was the date that was

planned for Brexit!

The group of 14 were hosted by students at the

Nantes Universite Permanente (UP) which

gives "learning for pleasure" courses mainly for

third agers. A list of interests was given to their

hosts by the Edinburgh Group prior to their visit

and naturally France and the French language

were at the top. So of course there were

language classes, but there was much more.

Concerts, an afternoon ramble, a visit to the

River Erdre museum followed by a river cruise

were organised for them by their welcoming

hosts. Jules Verne was born in Nantes so a visit

to see his birthplace was included. The group

found a memorial to the abolition of the slave

trade very moving and thought provoking.

They all thought that there was so much to see

and learn about in Nantes. There was the

history of Brittany and the history of Nantes.

The latter was once a great shipping hub whose

ship yards have now been spectacularly

redeveloped. You can tour these riding on a

huge mechanical elephant 12 metres high,

made from wood and steel and carrying up to

50 people! (See photo in summer 2019 TAM)

The Botanical and Japanese gardens are also

popular with visitors.

The visit came out of Anglophone culture group

formed in Nantes by Brian Frost Smith and the

group are very grateful to him and to their group

leader Dorothy Buglass for arranging such an

enjoyable trip.

Jean Cuthbert

Round the Groups

On these pages we try to reflect some of the breadth of interests and activities represented by a few of our 200 interest groups.

Photo: Shauna Dickson

City of real and imaginary journeys

Harbour of slavery and of Jules Verne

L'Espoir de Nantes, Nantes L'Aimable*

Camellias and suffering, magnolias and bomb sites

Time’s carousel stops for no one.

*These are the names of slave ships that journeyed from Nantes to Africa and America and back.

All the journeys are recorded on the Nantes quayside as part the memorial.

No 70 Autumn 2019

12

Astronomy

New to Edinburgh, I received such a warm

welcome from the then fledgling U3A

Astronomy Group in Morningside Library that I

happily joined the U3A, took on the role of

Group Leader, and stayed.

The defining characteristic of this group is

curiosity. How did the Universe begin? Is there

life on Mars? How did the elements evolve?

What will the night sky look like this month?

What did the scientific literature recently report?

And so much more.

Do you remember where you were when the

first image of a black hole was published? We

do. On Wednesday April 10th 2019 at 14:00 our

speaker Nic Ross was scheduled to talk about

black holes. On that same date, at that same

hour, the very first image was published. We

were thrilled to be part of this event, albeit in a

very small way.

Group member Alan Pickup at the Luminate Event

Many other experts, including Prof. Dame

Jocelyn Bell Burnell, willingly gave of their time

to share their knowledge with us. We had

studied Prof. Charles Cockell’s “Astrobiology

and the Search for Extra-terrestrial Life" on

YouTube and were delighted when he came in

person to speak to us. We are currently

studying “How the Universe Began” a

Smithsonian DVD kindly donated by one of our

members. Speakers receive the same warm

welcome that I did, and some have stayed to

join the group, adding a level of professional

expertise. Members too, give talks about

subjects which intrigue them, some having

never given talks before.

Our away trips to dark sky sites, observatories,

the National Space Centre in Leicester were a

mixture of learning, improving our navigational

skills, often in the dark, getting to know each

other better but, above all, having fun.

At Kielder Observatory we were fortunate to see

an aurora, albeit not nearly as impressive as

this one. We observe in the hope of clear skies

and stunning vistas.

Credit: Swedish Traveling World Press 2014.

We are very grateful to both the Morningside

Library staff for hosting us and, when the group

outgrew the library, to Gary Seath of Napier

University for facilitating our move to the

Merchiston Campus, the first U3A group to

meet there. I personally am very grateful to the

GPS - group members who help plan our meet-

ings - and to all members for contributing to the

group with such enthusiasm.

Pat Williams. https://u3asites.org.uk/edinburgh/

page/59668

The Astronomy Group on a visit to the

Royal Observatory Edinburgh 2016.

No 70 Autumn 2019

13

Jogging

Have you noticed that we have a Jogging

group? Perhaps you thought that it is not for

you? Perhaps you were wrong. Jogscotland

claims 170 members in their 70s and several in

their 80s! The health benefits for joggers are

well-known, but for older people some are

particularly relevant - increased bone density,

better balance, muscle mass as well as

endorphin release.

Our group jogs along different routes in the city,

usually about 5-6k in distance, always ending

with a coffee stop, so it is a social activity as

well as a physical one. We take it easy, stop

when we want to, go on when we are ready; no

one is left behind. We loved the NHS “Couch to

5k” starter programme. All you need is a mobile

phone and earphones, then you just download

the programme and follow the

instructions. Nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/get-

running-with-couch-to-5k. Try it! - then join us.

No, this is not a dogfood advertisement, but I

assure you that jogging Prolongs Active Life!

David Syme

Easy Hillwalking

This Group has only been running for a little

while, but already we have scaled the heights of

three of Edinburgh’s Seven Hills on our Monday

afternoon walks. We had a rare, beautifully

sunny day for our outing to Arthur's Seat which

was mobbed, but it was great to be up there.

Unfortunately, our first assault on Corstorphine

Hill had to be postponed due to thunder and

flooding. July 22nd was another fine hot

summer’s day and six of us tackled the “twin

peaks” of Craiglockhart to enjoy the fine views

of the city from the summit of Wester

Craiglockhart, the highest of Edinburgh’s Seven

Hills. We were sustained by wild

raspberries on the way and refreshed by tea or

ale in the “Kilted Pig” .

Susan Whitehead

Scottish Authors visit john Muir’s birthplace in Dunbar

“I care to live only to entice people to look at

nature’s loveliness.” John Muir

(Words inscribed on the stone in Makars Court,

near the Writers’ Museum)

After studying the works of Robert Louis

Stevenson our group moved on to study other

Scottish authors –Neil Munro, Naomi Mitchison,

Nan Shepherd, Lewis Grassic Gibbon, James

Hogg and so many others. Then each summer

sees us off to visit some site associated with

one of our authors. But we still celebrate Robert

Louis’ birthday with a meal each year!

In July six of us travelled to John Muir’s

birthplace in Dunbar. The museum is in the

original old house on three different levels, but

there is a modern lift for those who want to

avoid the steep stone stairs.

John Muir is world famous as a conservationist

who promoted the idea of National Parks. There

is a photo of him enjoying a cigar with

President Roosevelt in what would become

Yosemite National Park. His Scottish childhood

is portrayed on the ground floor. It had a strong

influence on him throughout his life and the

excerpts from his autobiography tell of a severe

upbringing in a very religious household, but his

God was in the cathedral of the trees and it was

his grandfather who took him out to the woods

where he gained his love for nature. The family

moved to North America when he was 11 and

here he spent many years travelling mostly on

foot. On one occasion he walked the length of

the USA. His many books are full of his

thoughts and deeply inspiring words and these

adventures are shown in words and

photographs upstairs in the museum. He wrote

many books, one of the last being an

autobiography of his Scottish childhood.

After a scrumpious tea in the cafe down the

street, some of us went off to the harbour, a

little changed from John Muir’s day but we could

still see the rocks where he scrambled even if

we couldn’t find the pool he was bathed in!

Margaret Roy

Descending from Wester Craiglockhart Hill

No 70 Autumn 2019

14

Visits Summer 2019

February: V&A Dundee.

Our first visit of the year was to Dundee’s

celebrated V & A Museum. It was a pleasant

drive to Dundee in brilliant sunshine with a

comfort and coffee stop at Glendoick Garden

Centre. Last winter’s Ocean Liners' exhibition

complemented our visit to the Fairfield Heritage

Centre in Govan on the history of shipbuilding

on the Clyde, and showed the opulence of the

interiors and fashions of the Ocean Liners of the

20th century. The Design Galleries, which are

permanent, are dedicated to telling the story of

design in Scotland and its relevance to our lives

They cover architecture, furniture, fashion and

jewellery, displaying the magnificent tiara with

diamond wings created for the Duchess of

Roxburghe; and even Dennis the Menace comic

strip, to name but two.

Yvonne Michelson

May: Huntingtower & Stanley Mills

This was the first of the summer visits but was

dogged by winter weather! It was raining hard

when we left Edinburgh and it was raining even

harder when we arrived at Huntingtower just

outside Perth!. The day of my recce had been

warm with bright autumn colours so we planned

that the 50 members should divide into two

groups, one to explore the tower while the other

strolled on the lawns around the tower … but

pouring rain hadn't been in the plan!

Fortunately, Dobbie's Garden Centre is just

across the road so while one group braved the

rain, the other took refuge and supped coffee.

The gloomy day made admiring the painted

ceiling and walls a challenge as they hadn't

installed lighting in the 16th century. Mobile

phone lights came to our rescue and provided

illumination. However, we sheltered in the

Historic Environment Scotland ticket office to

hear an excellent summary of the history of this

tower and its importance in Scotland's story.

Hot soup, sausage rolls and mounds of

sandwiches in The Glovers' Arms, warmed and

restored the travellers ready for the afternoon at

Stanley Mills.

These cotton mills are situated attractively on a

curve of the River Tay. The buildings and the

history of the mills are similar to those at New

Lanark but Stanley has not developed as a

tourist attraction, so the realities of a working

mill are easier to visualise. There is a huge

amount to see and the site manager Eilidh

kindly acted as guide directing our attention to

key points and describing the erratic progress of

the mill from cotton in 1785 to acrylic in 1989.

Isobel Miller

June: Kellie Castle & Kirkcaldy Art

Gallery

A group of 50 U3A members were expecting a

visit to Kirkcaldy Art Gallery and Museum to see

the collections of Wemyss ware and Scottish

paintings and enjoy a coffee stop.

Unfortunately, a thunderstorm and resulting

water ingress closed the gallery. Instead we

visited St. Andrews Museum where we were

made most welcome and learnt much about the

history of St. Andrews.

We then set off to Kellie Castle where we had a

substantial lunch provided by National Trust of

Scotland catering staff. The castle comprises

two tower houses joined in the early 17th

century and later restored in the 19th century by

the Lorimer family. It has an interesting mixture

of features including fine plaster ceilings,

painted panelling and tapestries. The drawing

room features a lovely painted panel by

Phoebe Anna Traquair, well-known to us in

Edinburgh as a leading proponent of the Arts

and Crafts style.

The 17th century garden was popular, as was

the art installation of coloured sheets flapping

on washing lines, part of the East Neuk Festival.

A good day was had by everyone despite the

last minute change in arrangement and we were

very fortunate in the weather.

Ann Kerrigan

No 70 Autumn 2019

15

Garden Groups Tour June 2019

The Garden Tour this year visited the counties

of Northumberland and Durham, and the

recurring theme was THE WEATHER. It

seemed that many visits started with ‘thank

goodness you weren’t here yesterday’ or ‘it’s

been terrible all morning’. We could see rain on

the horizon but the luck of Edinburgh U3A held

and we only caught one or two brief showers.

Forty members set out from the coach station

on St Andrew’s Square at a very reasonable

hour. Everyone was on time (thank you) and

everyone seemed cheerful. A quick drive down

the A1 brought us to the Mindrum estate,

Cornhill-on-Tweed. Our host was very

enthusiastic and knowledgeable and gave us a

tour of the gardens, first designed in the late

19th century with 7 acres of romantic planting –

roses, violas, hardy perennials and scented

shrubs. The garden sloped steeply down

through the woods to a rather full river. Our

host’s family meanwhile were busy preparing

refreshments, and later, our lunch.

Afterwards we travelled a short way down the

road to visit Kirky Cottage. In just six years the

owner had created a beautiful garden

overlooking the surrounding Bowmont Hills. The

garden was a wonderful example of how gravel

can be used around a central water feature with

plants seeding themselves at random, including

soft pastel shades of antirrhinums, which I, for

one, would not have thought of sowing in

gravel. There was a large area strewn with

poppies which was quite magical too.

The second garden of the afternoon was

Ferndene Garden near Ryton. This garden was

under an acre in size and surrounded by trees.

Here we saw espaliered apple trees and wild

flowers. A scarlet border was planted in 2014 to

reflect the modern interest in hot colours in

contrast to the pastel borders of recent years.

From there we travelled to our hotel, the Holiday

Inn in Jesmond, on the outskirts of Newcastle

city centre.

After breakfast on Saturday we set off for

Hexham, passing through the attractive old

market town to Loughbrow House at the top of

a steep hill. If we thought that we were at the

top of the hill on reaching the entrance to the

house, we were wrong. The ‘100 yard’

driveway, as described by the owner, was steep

indeed and turned out to be about half-a-mile.

Members were flagging but the advance party

notified the 92-year-old owner who drove down

to pick up those who needed a lift. We were

treated to a large garden with a part-walled

kitchen garden and paved courtyard. There

were some colourful borders with a wild flower

meadow and specimen trees. The owner had

baked cakes for us and had home-made jams

and chutneys to sell as well.

Lunch on Saturday was taken at the Boatside

Inn just outside Hexham where the North and

South Tyne meet – an idyllic spot.

After lunch we travelled for 15 minutes to the

garden of a partly-retired accountant. Imagine a

house, doubled in size by McAlpine (who also

diverted the road that used to pass close to the

house) surrounded by a number of immaculate

gold-medal-standard gardens of herbaceous

perennials, grasses, a formal pool with bronze

statue and clipped formal hedging. We were

served tea, which came free of charge, under a

green oak open building, built by local

craftsmen using trees from the surrounding

woodland: Truly astonishing (as was the inside

of the house too).

On Sunday we ventured into County Durham to

Bishop Auckland, narrowly avoiding a car which

had come down a slip road towards us in the

wrong direction. Our destination was Woodside

House at Witton. The 2-acre garden had been

superbly landscaped by the owners with island

beds and borders, rhododendrons and 3 ponds,

and has featured in the Daily Telegraph and

Amateur Gardening. The garden has also been

the winner of ‘Bishop Auckland in Bloom’.

Plants were for sale and we took advantage of

that. Our next stop was for lunch and an afternoon

visit to the historic Raby Castle at Staindrop.

The castle, the seat of the Barons Barnard, is

still a private home and partly open to the

public. The gardens and parkland cover 22

acres which we couldn’t manage in one

afternoon, but thought it was a place to consider

revisiting one day.

We set off for our return journey to Edinburgh

on Monday morning looking forward to our final

garden visits. (Continued on next page)

No 70 Autumn 2019

16

Garden Groups Tour: continued

The first was Bide-a-Wee near Morpeth.

Coffee and biscuits were served and we were

delighted with the garden set in an old stone

quarry with a lake at the bottom. The garden

holds the National Collection of Centaureas

(Cornflower and Knapweed family) with 90

species and cultivars to spot. The immaculate

nursery was a treat, and we were able to fill up

a bit more of the coach’s storage space!

After lunch at the Shoulder of Mutton in Long

Horsley we travelled to our final stop at Howick

Hall, the ancestral seat of the Earls Grey since

1319. The hall is not open to the public but has

a small information centre illustrating the

history of the house and its occupants.

The garden and estate is very large and we

only had time to visit part of it, some members

opting to visit the tea room to sample the

family’s famous blends of teas! A recent

addition was a new sensory garden, opened in

2018, with the help of funding from the National

Autistic Society.

Then it was back on the coach to return to

Edinburgh in bright sunshine with views of the

North Sea coast, glimpsing Bamburgh Castle

and Lindisfarne in the distance.

Thanks go to Michele and Bill Terrell and Ella

Bruce; Glentons Travel for the transport and

the Holiday Inn at Jesmond for making our trip

so enjoyable.

Ann Taylor

Lunch Club

Welcome to the Lunch Club. Join us to

sample some of Edinburgh’s varied cuisine in

good company! There is no fixed membership

and everyone is welcome. Please chat to

everyone around you, especially anyone on

their own.

Guidelines

• The time is 12.15 for 12.30pm.

• Please pay for your drinks as you get them.

• Payment for the meals varies. The money is

usually taken at the table (if it is a fixed price

menu) or individually at the till. Keep a note

of the cost of your meal and ANY DRINKS

ordered. It is your choice to give a tip.

• Book the next meal at the previous lunch, at

an Open Meeting or by telephoning the

organiser for the month. See below for

organiser’s telephone number.

• Remember to cancel, even on the morning

of the lunch, by telephoning the organiser.

• Recommendations for venues are

appreciated. These should be easy to reach

and able to accommodate 15-20 people.

• Lunches are on the 1st Tuesday, 1st

Wednesday and 2nd Thursday of each

month (except in January)

September - 3rd, 4th and 12th,

Apiary, 33 Newington Road (Buses

3,5,7,8,29,31,37,47), 2 courses £12 or brunch £8,

Contact Jess Timms, 07947 319157 or

jesstimms@yahoo.com

October - 1st, 2nd and 10th,

Clay Oven, 86 Morningside Road (Buses

5,11,15,16,23,36), lunch £6.95,

Contact Pauline Macdonald, 447 9056 or pauline-

macdonald2005@yahoo.co.uk

November - 5th, 6th and 14h,

Verdo, 21 Newington Road, (buses 3, 7, 8, 31,

3747 and 49), £11.99 for 2 courses + soft drink,

tea or coffee,

Contact Judy Mitchelson, 554 5690 or judymitch-

elson@gmail.com

December - 3rd, 4th and 12th,

Kweilin Cantonese Restaurant, 19/21 Dundas

Street, (buses 23 and 27), £11.50 for two courses

+ 10% tip,

Contact Jenny Di Rollo, 311 6998 or 0787

0132479 or jennydr@hotmail.com

February 2020 - 4th, 5th and 13th,

Papilio, 158 Bruntsfield Place (Buses 5,11,15,

16,23,36), 2 courses £11.50,

Contact Pauline Macdonald, 447 9056 or pauline-

macdonald2005@yahoo.co.uk

PLEASE DO NOT TELEPHONE THE

RESTAURANT TO BOOK / CANCEL.

See the BULLETIN and the U3A Webpage for any

changes, further details and directions.

No 70 Autumn 2019

17

Film Appreciation Group

The Film Appreciation Group 5 (FAG5meets

monthly in the premises of The Edinburgh Cine

& Video Society, originally known as

the Waverley Cine. Founded in 1936, it is one

of the oldest amateur movie making society in

Scotland. The Society has occupied premises

in Fettes Row, in the New Town of Edinburgh

since its inception. The property at Fettes Row

was the first building in the New Town to be

restored under the auspices of the New Town

Conservation Society in the 1970s. Today the

membership is much smaller than it was in the

heyday of amateur film making. However its

small 54 seat cinema is ideal for showing films

to groups.

As a member of the E.C.V.S. I thought that this

would be a unique venue in which to host a film

appreciation group, as the premises also have

a meeting room with tea and coffee making

facilities. Unfortunately there is no disabled

access to the premises, which are in a

basement area. We are over the closed

summer months upgrading the club facilities,

including a hearing loop in the cinema.

Group members participated in the selection of

the films included in the 2019-20 programme,

which is listed below. The viewings take place

on the second Wednesday of each month at

2.00pm in the clubrooms at 23a Fettes Row,

Edinburgh, followed with refreshments and a

discussion of the showing. It’s a very informal

and friendly group; if you wish to join us please

email stewart.emm@yahoo.com.

Wednesday 11th September La Vie en

Rose is a 2007 Biopic of the iconic French

Singer Edith Piaf.

Wednesday 9th October The Man Who Knew

too Much. An American physician and his wife

take matters into their own hands after

assassins planning to execute a foreign Prime

Minister kidnap their son.

Wednesday 13th November Argo. Acting

under the cover of a Hollywood producer

scouting a location for a science fiction film, a

CIA agent launches a dangerous operation to

rescue six Americans in Tehran during the U.S.

hostage crisis in Iran in 1979.

Wednesday 11th December Cinema

Paradiso. A filmmaker recalls his childhood

when falling in love with the pictures at the

cinema of his home village and forms a

deep friendship with the cinema's projectionist.

Wednesday 8th January The Little Shop of

Horrors. A nerdy florist finds his chance for

success and romance with the help of a giant

man-eating plant who demands to be fed.

Wednesday 12th February No Country for Old

Men is a 2007 American neo-Western crime

thriller film written and directed by Joel and

Ethan Coen. A cat and mouse thriller starring

Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, and Josh

Brolin, it follows a Texas welder and

Vietnam War veteran in the desert landscape of

1980 West Texas.

Wednesday 11th March Belleville Rendez-

Vous. A hand drawn animation; there is little

dialogue and much of the narrative is

conveyed through song and pantomime. It tells

the story of Madame Souza, an elderly woman

who goes on a quest to rescue her grandson

Champion, a Tour de France cyclist, who has

been kidnapped by the French mafia for

gambling purposes and taken to the city of

Belleville.

Wednesday 8th April Pan’s Labyrinth. The

story takes place in Spain during the summer of

1944, five years after the Spanish Civil War,

during the early Francoist period. The narrative

intertwines this real world with a mythical world

centered on an overgrown, abandoned

labyrinth.

Wednesday 13th May Eyes of Laura Mars.

A famous fashion photographer develops a

disturbing ability to see through the eyes of a

killer.

Stewart Emm

No 70 Autumn 2019

18

Other news

Christine Hawkridge

As you may know by

now, our former Chair,

Christine Hawkridge,

died of heart failure

suddenly on the night

of 17-18 July in her

home in Bournemouth.

Though never having joined any of Christine's

U3A groups or activities, I knew how much she

valued the U3A and entered wholeheartedly

into taking part and contributing as a group

leader in many ways. She was interested in

Buddhism and her groups included Buddhist

Philosophy, Introduction to Buddhism and

others. She used her own personal and

research knowledge, her teaching and

leadership skills and excellent organisational

skills to the full in all she did.

I knew her before she discovered the U3A and

would like to pay tribute to her as a friend.

When she first came to Edinburgh, she

volunteered in the Amnesty Bookshop. There,

she proved a good manager and a warm friend,

forming a close group almost all of whom have

kept in touch. She volunteered also with Victim

Support and helped run sessions with Marianne

Ferguson Rice for the 'Alternatives to Violence'

programme.

Christine loved music, was a fine writer and

found time to write 2 books, Krishna’s Flute and

The Tiger and the Rose, both about cross-

cultural love affairs. She was a gifted story

teller and thanks to the Creative Writing group

in the U3A, she produced a range of short

stories. Her sense of humour came out in these

and in the poems she wrote for more personal

or political events.

We extend sympathy to the Bournemouth U3A

and the Humanists in which Christine had

become actively involved, and to her family:

Morn, Helen, Joel, Phine and Lara, and to her

sister, Jackie and to the wider Cambodian

family. We will all miss her.

Pat Bryden

New Swim Buddies session at Warrender

There is a new addition to the Ageing Well

Buddy Swim Programme at Warrender baths

on Wednesdays 10am – 11am. This will run

all year round and might suit those living on the

southside of the city. See article in Autumn

2017 Clarion .

If you would like any further information on

our buddy swimming sessions or any other

Ageing Well activity please contact the

team on Tel: 0131 458 2183 or e-mail

ageingwell@edinburghleisure.co.uk

Memory Research at Heriot-Watt.

Heriot-Watt University Memory Lab are

conducting several projects that require healthy

older adults and would like to recruit through

the EU3A. The studies in question pose no risk

and reimbursement is offered for travel

expenses. Some studies involve the use of Low

and High density EEG to measure brain activity

although the main project does not use EEG. If

at all interested, please contact Dr Michael

Craig on m.craig@hw.ac.uk or on 0131 451

8009 or 07932037913

I volunteered and had an interesting couple of

hours in the Oriam Building at the Riccarton

Camus (EH14 4AS). This involved simple

memory tests while having the electrical

impulses of my brain being recorded. Dr Craig

is still looking for more normal, older volunteers

to build up a bank of base-line data or

information which they can use to detect early

dementia and start useful interventions.

Details of the project are available from

Shannon Strickland at the Memory Labs. E-mail

s.strickland@hw.ac.uk 0131 451 8009

Richard de Soldenhoff

No 70 Autumn 2019

19

Hidden Edinburgh

The stories behind the photos

Dean Village (Cover)

In 1883 Sir John Findlay who owned the

Scotsman at the time, appalled by the state of

the tenements housing tannery workers,

commissioned architect Sydney Mitchell to

design Well Court as model housing in Arts and

Crafts style. All the flats are different, there was

a hall to socialise and the clock to remind

workers to be home by 10.00 on weekdays.

1. Detail from the sculpture “Going to the

Beach" Saltire Square, a new square in the

centre of Edinburgh Waterfront. The sculpture

was cast at Powderhall Bronze.

2. Mural Autonomous Centre of Edinburgh West

Montgomery Place, Leith.

3. HINC SANITAS (FROM HERE HEALTH) the

motto of the Royal College of Surgeons outside

Surgeons Hall. The sculpture is by Denys

Mitchell and shows a gigantic pair of

stylised hands holding an enormous scalpel. It

emphasises "the importance of manual

dexterity in the healing process."

4. Wildlife Mural by artist Ian Tayac, Figgate

Park, Portobello.

5. John Smith by Eduardo Paolozzi. His bust of

John Smith, the former Labour leader, was

commissioned for the House of Commons. This

is one of six casts and is to be found in the

Scottish National Portrait Gallery.

6. Toby James Clerk Maxwell, the eminent

physicist loved animals. His terrier Toby rests at

his feet in Alexander Stoddart’s statue in

George street. Maxwell apparently used to

explain his theories to Toby .

7. Derelict pier beside Ocean Terminal. At the end of the pier is the last of 6 Antony Gormley figures along the Water of Leith.

8. Pavilion in Queen mother’s Memorial

Garden, Royal Botanic Garden. The structure is

built from Caithness stone, The shells and

pebbles were collected by school children from

across Scotland,

9. One of a pair of old figures in a small yard off

West Harbour Road, Granton next to Depot

Studios.

10. Let the people sing

Those members who were at the monthly

meeting in June might recognise this sculpture

by Tim Chalk of Helen Crummy giving her son

Philip a violin. It sits outside the Craigmillar

library. He placed the sculpture symbolically in

an open doorway.

11. Wooden badger, London Road Gardens

12. Entrance to the Museum of Edinburgh, High

Street.

13. Hygeia

Detail from the statue of Hygeia, Greek

goddess of health inside St Bernard’s Well,

Stockbridge. The building was designed by the

painter Alexander Nasmyth in 1789. A natural

spring was discovered on the Water of Leith in

1760, and was soon a visitor attraction as at

that time ‘taking the waters’ was thought to be

very good for the health. Some claimed that the

water could cure everything from a bruised leg

to ‘total blindness’, but others described the

taste as having the ‘odious twang of hydrogen

gas’.

14. Plaque marking where Sir Walter Scott’s

Birthplace stood. It is now in Guthrie Street but

the original name of the street was College

Wynd.

15. Horse & Rider by Eoghan Bridge 1992

Rutland Court. This sculpture was

commissioned by Baillie Gifford, and is beside

their former building. Eoghan Bridge was born

in Edinburgh and his work is on show at various

galleries and international art fairs. This is one

of two of his large bronze public sculptures in

the city, the other being at Silvermills.

16. “Iron Age” Round House in Redhall walled

Garden. This 2 acre walled garden is managed

by SAMH as a Community garden with a team

of 50 people recovering from the challenges of

mental health problems.

17. “To Edinburgh and beyond“ The Lochrin

Basin, Fountainbridge. The swan sculptures are

by Shona Kinloch, Glaswegian artist who is the

winner of several awards including the Saltire

Society Art in Architecture Award (1992).

No 70 Autumn 2019

20

Editor’s note

A big thank you to all those (25 of you!) who

contributed articles and photos of lesser known

corners of our city for this edition, and especially

those from groups that are recently established

and those who we haven’t previously heard

from.

Remember, it’s your magazine and everyone

can have a story to tell - amusing or thought

provoking, factual or imaginative.

For the next edition, due out in early March

2020, we are looking for your articles and

anecdotes on the Joy of Food. - growing,

cooking, eating, literature of food, food in music

and song, science of food, photographs, food in

archaeology, food banks. Something for

everyone!

Contributions and any comments should be

sent, by 14th January preferably by email, to

clarion@edinburghu3a.org.uk

Guidance

Roughly 225 - 300 words (half A4 page) or 450

– 600 words (full A4 page) will give an article of

the right length accompanied by photographs.

Articles should be saved as a Microsoft Word

compatible document or as a plain text file or

e-mail. If you use a free program such as Open

Office or LibreOffice, please use ‘save as’ and

pick the ‘Word’ or ‘text’ option as the file type. If

you include photographs, these should be sent

as a separate image file (JPEG or TIFF) rather

than embedded in articles or e-mails

I am most grateful to the “editorial team” -

Norma Emm and Fiona Smith, for their

continuing support and Joanna Morris and

Peter Verity for proof reading.

Further information on themes and guidance for

the Spring edition will be available in the

Bulletin and on the Website.

Paper version. If you want a paper version of

this magazine, contact the membership

Secretary, Ann Ryan

membership@edinburghu3a.org.uk

Maggie Gilvray

Clarion is produced by The Edinburgh University of the Third

Age, Scottish Charity Number SC020301 and printed by

Dupliquick , 22a Great King’s Street, Edinburgh EH36QH

Current Committee

Chair: Karyn Costa

Vice Chair & Group Coordinator 2 (Groups D-I ): Ann Keating

Vice Chair and Internal Communications: Bruce Cowan

Treasurer: Hugh Young

Secretary: Kathy Wrench

Membership: Ann Ryan

Safeguarding Officer & Group Coordinator 4 (Groups Q-S): Jane Garrett

Group Coordinator 1 (Groups A-C): Doreen Barr

Group Coordinator 3 (Groups J-P): Joanna Morris

Group Co-ordinator 5 (Groups T- Z): Louise Grimm

New Members: Sheila Harvey

External Communications: Patrick Leach

Technical Support: Andrew Robertson

Webmaster: Chris Newman

Others behind the scenes

Assistant Membership: Sally Ann Urry

Assistant Membership: Graham Golding

Assistant Treasurer: Jenny Clarke

Groups Information: Lachlan Paterson

Monthly Meetings Speakers: Cathy Balfour

Bulletin: David Baird

Volunteers: Trishia Allan

Assistant Webmaster: Jean Knox

Assistant External Comms: Vacant

Clarion Editor: Maggie Gilvray