SYSTEM©Happy New Year, and welcome to the very first sneak peek of the year. Willie Shand braves the frost to take in the views of a beautiful Perthshire valley in the January 1, 2022 issue of “The People’s Friend”.
Join Willie as he goes for a winter walk in Strathardle. On our route is Bannerfield, the venue for the annual Strathardle Highland Games.
While in the area we’ll also take a look in at the old kirk. The present church dates from the 1700s, and it is from the Church of St Michael that we get the name “Kirkmichael”.
Kirkmichael sits on the 64-mile long Cateran Trail – a long-distance walk that links Strathardle, Glen Isla and Glen Shee. We join part of the trail. There is snow on the ground and a chill in the air. Best wrap up warm!
Goodnight, Gwyneth
Picture courtesy of Family Handout/PA Wire.
Features Ed Alex bids a fond farewell to “Take The High Road” star and one-time “Friend” columnist Gwyneth Guthrie.
“Take The High Road” was a big hit for Scottish TV, airing across the UK and later in Ireland, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the United States.
Beloved by its fans it made a star of Gwyneth, who played the larger-than-life Mrs Mack.
Sadly, Gwyneth passed away in November last year and all of us at “The Friend” were saddened to learn of the loss. Read more about her in the magazine.
Long Live, Sooty
Photograph by Shutterstock.
On a rainy, windswept day in Blackpool, just after the war, a little yellow bear was discovered in a joke shop on the North Pier.
Later named Sooty, he went on to become the star of the world’s longest running children’s TV show.
The man who bought him, for seven shillings and sixpence, was Harry Corbett, a nephew of chip-shop king-pin Harry Ramsden.
Corbett initially bought the glove puppet to amuse his two sons, David and Matthew. However, Sooty would go on to entertain so many more children than he originally anticipated.
Read more in the magazine as Douglas McPherson celebrates 70 years of TV’s naughtiest bear.
What An Epiphany
Photograph by Shutterstock.
Christmas may be over but for many the party continues into the new year, as Laura Brown discovers.
The Feast of the Epiphany, commemorating the day the Three Wise Men visited Jesus in the manger, is more important than Christmas in some countries.
From chalky blessings to ice-cold dunks, there are lots of wonderful (and sometimes weird!) ways to celebrate. See more inside our pages.
These are just a few highlights from the January 1, 2022 issue. Elsewhere, we have a collection of delicious recipes for a happy Hogmanay. Plus we have a knitting pattern to make a draped cardigan.
We hope you enjoy it. Let us know what you think.
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