Scottish Lifestyle News

I REFER to one of our two standard fuchsias, now at least 20 years old. They had been in the unheated greenhouse right through that period of low temperatures, until two weeks ago. The entire above-ground part of each plant was dead, so I cut it off near soil level.

1. Surprise your loved one with breakfast in bed. Make heart-shaped pancakes with this cute and kitsch pan and then stamp your toast with this “I Love You” stamp, £6 for the set. To make it extra special, why not serve up champagne in these beautiful heart flutes, £5 for a pair, all from Matalan.

WHEN you enter a two-storey home, you usually find the reception rooms on the ground floor, with the bedrooms upstairs.

WHETHER you are cuddling up on the sofa for a cosy night in or planning an indulgent night on the town, treat your beloved with a smouldering look and captivating scents he will find irresistible.

EDINBURGH is by far my favourite city in Scotland but, until now, the majority of the time I have spent there has involved wrapping up in at least six layers, enjoying a flask of hot tea (or something slightly stronger) while shivering violently in the stands at Murrayfield Stadium.

WHEN Clint Eastwood walks into the room, followed by Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon, ready to talk about their film, Invictus, the sense of expectation is palpable.

MICHELLE Meek, 41, can vividly remember the day that her life suddenly changed. “It came on suddenly. I can remember it exactly,” she says.

AS A meal, the Sunday roast offers endless variation and has become an institution in its own right.

I COULD see a look of mild disappointment cross my mother’s face.

THE ride up the Floibanen mountain railway gives little indication of the majestic view of Bergen which awaits.

ALASTAIR Campbell welcomes me into the lived-in, spacious kitchen of his north London home and then settles himself into a squishy sofa with his King Charles Spaniel, Molly.

THIS year will be a big year for sports fans with the Winter Olympics, Fifa World Cup and Commonwealth Games all being staged alongside other high-profile sporting events such as Wimbledon – all of which will no doubt provide plenty of “water-cooler moments”.

ABERDEEN-BASED Empire HR has been inundated with requests for help from businesses throughout the north-east following the recent winter weather.

CANADA is entering a major infrastructure and building drive thanks to stimulus programmes introduced by its government last year as well as demand for new residential housing.

THOUSANDS of young Scots have been made redundant since the recession started, but a growing number of these are taking the future into their own hands by setting up in business.

GAINING a first degree is a major step forward for most of us, but it can be tricky to find the right balance of professional and academic experience as the years fly away.

FOR people from all walks of life, teaming up with a coach to enhance performance – for example, in the sporting or business arenas – often proves to be an extremely beneficial move.

ANYONE who has been watching ITV’s latest reality music show Popstar to Operastar will realise that belting out arias is an extremely impressive skill, and one that does not come naturally to everybody, whether they perform to sold-out crowds as part of a rock band or a pop band.

BE AFRAID, be very afraid – the Circus of Horrors, with its weird and wonderful cast, is on the prowl and looking for victims willing to be scared, thrilled and entertained in equal measure.

(12A, 133 minutes)

PART of the pleasure of taking youngsters to a pantomime is seeing the excited expressions which cross their faces as the action unfolds on stage.

AT THE tail-end of last year, a story ran about a Thai holiday resort which, rather cheekily, used an image of one of Scotland’s top Scottish beaches in its marketing material.

TUNE Up tours were introduced into Scotland seven years ago by the Scottish Arts Council and the National Lottery to promote music touring. Since 2003, they have enabled hundreds of bands to put on thousands of concerts, bringing both home grown and international music to communities around the country.

WHATEVER the detractors say, there will always be a place in the market for family-size SUVs.

WITH hindsight, a trip to the Alps as a test for the Skoda Yeti wasn’t strictly necessary. But then hindsight is a wonderful thing, and who could have predicted that the UK would bring in 2010 with some of the coldest temperatures on record – apart from the Met Office, of course.

IF YOU want to get ahead in the car business, small is the biggest game in town. Superminis, compact hatchbacks, call them what you want, the small-car sector is the one to be in.

TOYOTA has launched its new Auris with a raft of styling updates.

PEUGEOT has added a new flagship petrol variant to its 308 CC line-up.

THE Infiniti FX line of performance crossovers now features a limited-edition model.

MAZDA has announced that a face-lifted version of its Mazda6 model will be unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

THE Land Rover Discovery 4, the new generation of the celebrated model, has been crowned Best 4x4 at the What Car? Awards 2010.

CAN the Germans really produce a superbike capable of rivalling the Japanese and Italians at the first attempt? It appears about as probable as me beating Valentino Rossi to the chequered flag.