Duncan Harley

On 23 August 1989, Mary Webb’s ashes were scattered within the grounds of Kaimhill Crematorium at Garthdee. It's a fine place and worthy of a walk around. Mary however had actually been cremated at Oakley Wood Crematorium near Leamington during what Jack Webster recalls as “a brief and pathetic finale; few even in her own native area having the slightest idea of her significance.” So who was Mary Webb? When the Victorian era Aberdeen Music Hall closed for much needed renovations in 2016, a series of public events was organised during the weeks leading up to the closure. Titled ‘Lights Oot!’ the final performances showcased the diversity of the venue and celebrated the entertainments which had drawn the folk of Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire to the hallowed place over the years. Built to a design by architect Archibald Simpson the building opened in 1822, initially as a private membership only gentleman’s club, and over the intervening decades performers as diverse as Charles Dic...

Percussionist Evelyn Glennie has performed worldwide with international orchestras, conductors and artists and fondly remembers her first percussion concerto at The Proms in 1992. She recalls “My first experience with percussion was seeing and being inspired by my school orchestra at the age of 12. I knew I needed something else to go alongside my piano playing, which was my main instrument at the time. It was an inexplicable feeling but as soon as I saw the percussion section, I knew this was the family I belonged to”. Double GRAMMY award winner and BAFTA nominee Evelyn nowadays composes music for film, television and music library companies. The film ‘Touch the Sound’ and her enlightening TED speech remain key testimonies to her approach to sound-creation. Made an OBE in 1993 she has received some 100 international awards to date, including the Polar Music Prize and the Companion of Honour. Evelyn continues to inspire and motivate people from all walks of life. Her mastercl...

I was privileged to obtain a copy of Edi Swan’s splendid history of His Majesty’s Theatre a couple of years ago. I forget precisely how the book arrived in my hands. It was either via Amazon or, more likely via a swap for some Leopards. In the days when Leopard Magazine was on the go as an independent voice for the writers of the North-east, I was able on occasion to get my hands on a few writer’s copies. Just to oil the wheels you understand and not to oil my bank account. Artists, local businesses and heritage centres usually benefited from the spare copies. One may have ended up in Royal hands. But, of course, my tongue is tied to this day. Whilst researching a story, folk more often than not will ask when it will be published and can they get a complementary copy sent out as a reward for speaking onto the page. As politely as possible, the writer will usually resort to some excuse or other. “Ah, well, that’s an editorial issue” or “I’ll see what I can do” is often ...