Category: Featured

Home or away

6th December 2019

Welcome to this December issue of Shetland Life. This issue has a festive feel. We speak to Shetlanders who are spending Christmas home and away and Eileen Brooke-Freeman takes a look back at the sport of festive fitba in Shetland.

Stuck for a Christmas gift idea? Lindsay Tonner shares her pick of the best books of 2019 available in the Shetland Times Bookshop.

Elsewhere, Ali Grundon Robertson considers how we can all have a more sustainable Christmas without removing the joy and Gill Nadin shares a makkin project so that you can decorate your tree with some beautiful hand-crafted decorations.

December is a month filled with Christmas parties and to get your party started Alex Garrick-Wright has been to Mareel and sampled his pick of the best cocktails to get your celebrations off to a flying start.

All this and more in the December issue of Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

Remember to send any comments or suggestions you may have to sleditor@shetlandtimes.co.uk. And, whatever you’re up to, we love to hear about it, use our hashtag for the chance to be featured online or in the magazine #myshetlandlife.

As ever, have a great month and enjoy Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

Home or away Games:

The tissue box game
Toilet paper target practice
https://intelligentdomestications.com/2013/12/family-friendly-party-games.html

Face the cookie game
https://www.liveabout.com/minute-to-win-it-face-cookie-1396719

The cereal box game
https://10ways.com/save/activities/the-cereal-box-game/2224

Spaghetti tower marshmallow challenge
https://tinkerlab.com/spaghetti-tower-marshmallow-challenge

Celebrating youth

1st November 2019

by Shetland Life

Welcome to this November issue of Shetland Life. This issue is a celebration of Shetland’s young people who are doing wonderful things, and we explore these this month. You may have noticed the colourful cover? This is an illustration by talented Westside artist Marcus Johnston. Marcus tells Shetland Life all about his love of drawing, painting and writing. We meet local musical quartet Fjanna who are set to release their second studio album, and we travel to Northmavine where Roy Mullay shares his research on a fascinating piece of maritime history he has carried out about the 17th century Battle of Ronas Voe.

Elsewhere, Ali Grundon Robertson tackles recycling, the myths and the facts. This is a must-read for anyone who has concerns about what happens to our recycling in Shetland.

November is a month of remembrance, and Jon Sandison shares the story of the Hardy family and their strong connections to the War Memorial in Lerwick.

Dale Smith shares some photographic highlights from last month’s School of Ballet performance, Ebb & Flow and Alex Garrick-Wright meets the dinosaurs in Eid that have been brought back to life with a new lick of paint.

We would love to hear from you for our December issue. Are you going away for the festive period, or are you a home bird that plans to deck the halls at home? Does the thought of going away leave you feeling homesick or are you counting down the days till you jet off? Whatever you’re planning, we’d love to hear from you!

All this and more in the November issue of Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

Even if you’re not in Shetland, you can still keep up-to-date with all the latest. Remember you can subscribe to Shetland life online at https://shop.shetlandtimes.co.uk/pages/subscriptions#shetland-life and let us know if you have any comments or suggestions at sleditor@shetlandtimes.co.uk.

As ever, have a great month and enjoy Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

Autumn vibes

3rd October 2019

by Shetland Life

Welcome to this October issue of Shetland Life. This issue has a real autumn feel as we get under the skin of life in Shetland. We visit Bressay crofter Chris Dyer and fly south to Fair Isle in search of migrant birds with photographer and avid birder Rebecca Nason.

If tractors and binoculars aren’t your bag, then we journey to Germany with Shetland Classic Car Club and find out about their most ambitious road trip to date. Ryan Taylor explores the growing convoy of trucks that the Leslie brothers are accumulating at Northwards and Jim Gray takes to the skies and investigates a Second World War air crash at Sumburgh.

October is also the month of ghosts and phantoms, and with Hallowe’en around the corner, Alex Garrick-Wright takes a look at some of the spirits of the north – seeking out ghostly tales from Northmavine, Yell, Unst and Fetlar.

As the nights begin to draw in, we begin to think more about winter projects and how to look after nature in our garden. Peter Spriggs shares a hedgehog house that is great fun to make with the family. You may also be noticing the need to turn the thermostat up a notch or two as the cold sets in? So, Ali Grundon Robertson is looking at ways we can improve our homes, making them more energy-efficient as we move into winter.

All this and more in the October issue of Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

As ever, have a great month and enjoy Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

Summer has arrived – AT LAST!

2nd August 2019

by Shetland Life

Welcome to this month’s issue of Shetland Life! We have another action-packed issue in store for you this month, bursting with fantastic features. It seems that our long-anticipated summer finally did arrive last weekend as we basked in some record-breaking temperatures. It’s been long-awaited, and it was great to see so many of you out and about, using the hashtag #myshetlandlife to share with us your summer holidays. Have you taken part in any of our bucket list suggestions? If so, we’d love to hear from you. Please email any photos to sleditor@shetlandlife.co.uk.

Not only has summer arrived, but Shetland received another accolade – third best in the UK and Western Europe for cruise passengers. In this issue, Ryan Taylor considers the impact of cruise tourism on the islands. We meet a few of our most loved four-legged friends, the Shetland pony. In this month’s Life Story Ryan Nicolson chats with Carol Fullerton on the Ramnaberg Stud and we meet the Shetland Pony Breeders in the latest of our features from Promote Shetland.

Elsewhere, Ali Grundon Robertson considers sustainable swaps that we can all make to make our lives more sustainable, and Akshay Borges gives us the lowdown on what it was like to work in a Michelin-starred kitchen for a week.

All this and more in the August issue of Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

As ever, have a great month and enjoy Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

Summer bonanza! July issue OUT NOW

5th July 2019

by Shetland Life

Welcome to this month’s issue of Shetland Life! Not only is this the day that your favourite monthly magazine is released, but it’s also the first day of the summer break for schools across Shetland, and all the children (and their parents and carers) will be gearing up for a summer of fun, adventure, and hopefully the odd ray of sunshine to boot. Shetland Life wants to help get your holidays off to a flying start, so the July issue contains an action-packed summer holiday bucket list for all the family. This cut-out checklist can be folded away in a jacket pocket, pinned to a fridge or snapped on a smartphone for quick reference. We want to thank all of you who got in touch with your suggestions – they have all been included in the list. Simply tick them off as you go, and remember to tag #myshetlandlife in your photos so we can see where your adventures take you.

Elsewhere we find out more about the sea-eagle in Shetland’s history with Eileen Brooke-Freeman as part of a new exhibition at Shetland Museum & Archives that traces the history and persecution of this impressive bird, now absent from our landscape.

Ali Grundon Robertson challenges the reader to go plastic-free for July, and our own editor gets challenged and put through her paces with the Tingwall barbarians as part of the Challenge the Editor series.

We have a fantastic sporting feature as Dougie Grant takes a look back over 90 years of hockey in Shetland, and Alex Garrick-Wright goes inter-galactic as he takes a look at the Shetland Space Station in Unst.

All this and more in the July issue of Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

As ever, have a great month and enjoy Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

Simmer Dim

6th June 2019

by Shetland Life

Welcome to this month’s issue of Shetland Life. This is the Simmer Dim, or midsummer, and we are spoiled with daylight – basking in it for up to 19 hours a day. This means more opportunities to get out and about. With this in mind, Shetland Life have been getting out too. This month we head to Fethaland, Hoswick Visitor Centre and Alex Garrick-Wright takes to the water to find out about competitive rowing as the season kicks off.

Having so much daylight has other implications, and demands other aspects of our time – in the garden everything is bursting into life. Shetland has a very short growing season – under 100 days – that means that most of our growing is done now. With this in mind Ali Grundon Robertson visits local producers at Turriefield in Sandness and Misa shares some of her tips for the garden this month.

And you’ll remember Fenton and Friends from last month? Yes, they’re back for more adventures this month!

Next month the schools break for the summer holidays, and we would like to help you make the most of them. We’re compiling a summer holiday bucket list for you to cut out and take on your adventures. But we need your help. Do you have a favourite place to visit, picnic or play? If so, get in touch and let us know and maybe it will be added to the list. Send your suggestions to sleditor@shetlandtimes.co.uk. And, whatever you’re up to, we love to hear about it, use our hashtag for the chance to be featured online or in the magazine #myshetlandlife.

As ever, have a great month and enjoy Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

Intergenerational working

8th April 2019

by Shetland Life

In our April issue of Shetland Life, we feature a piece on intergenerational working and the Inspiring Purpose Project which saw Shetland scoop the top prize at an awards ceremony in Edinburgh last year. The full feature is available in the April issue (out now). The following are the stories written about the servicemen who were selected and researched as part of this fascinating project.

We have also included a piece from the Shetland Life archive which looks at the story of ‘A Shetlander who influenced the course of World War One’ (Shetland Life, August 1987).

We hope you enjoy these stories as much as we did and please give them a share on Facebook!

Insipring Purpose Stories

Christian Tait & Aimee Williams

Morag Nicolson & Vaila Thompson

Pat Christie & Elise Rendall

Sonia & James Inkster

A Shetlander who influenced the course of World War One

Magnus Nicolson Story

The Magic Toolbox

8th April 2019

by Shetland Life

Jane Cockayne shares with Shetland Life her short-story, The Magic Toolbox which is aimed at helping children deal with everyday emotions. In the April issue we published the first of a series of Tool Tricks which can help children identify and deal with their feelings and emotions. This is the full story and each month Jane will provide Shetland Life with a new Tool to use.

David is full of energy
David is cool
He rides his bike
to Scalloway school.

Some days David is happy in class
Other days he shouts, ‘NO’
He says to his mum;
‘I am NOT going to go.’

Mrs Fox was the head teacher
She has curly hair,
David waits outside her office
Sitting on a chair.

‘Come in David, tell me what’s up?’
He says, ‘my feelings are messy inside,
They feel too big,
I want to run away and hide.’

Mrs Fox looked at David
and had a think
‘I have a great plan’ she said
and gave him a wink!

‘Call all the children and Caroline too
She will come, she knows what to do,
In the basement is a dusty box
It’s time to look inside,’ said Mrs Fox.

Caroline came in a jiffy
Wearing stripy tights
The children tried to sit still
But they were high as kites

Caroline said,

“Inside the magic box
Are lots of feelings tools
You can use them anywhere,
At home, outside, in schools!

Feelings are visitors
Watch them come and go
Feelings can move fast
Or sometimes they slowly grow

Feelings are important
Each and every one
Lets open the magic box
Our work has just begun…”

All the children enjoyed
Using the feelings tools
They can use them anywhere,
Not just in schools

David tried using the Still Stone
‘Am I using the it the right way?’
Caroline smiled and said,
‘Yes! It takes practice each and every day…’

Shipwrecked!

4th April 2019

by Shetland Life

Welcome to this month’s issue of Shetland Life. April has come in with a bang, the clocks have changed, and we’re beginning to really feel the returning sun in the evenings.

Join Shetland Life for this April issue as we take to the seas again, but this time we’re heading underwater to discover the fate of the Spanish Armada vessel, El Gran Grifón, with Dr Colin Martin who led excavations on the wreck in the 1970s. We also hear the poignant and tragic tale of HMS E 49 which was lost in the First World War, and Laurie Goodlad takes to the water and discovers the joy of snorkelling in the first of a series where readers are invited to Challenge the Editor.

Elsewhere, Ali Grundon Robertson talks beach cleaning, and Alex Garrick-Wright meets Dirk Robertson on the eve of his exhibition at Shetland Museum & Archives. We also welcome Misa Hay to our team, and she talks us through all things gardening in Shetland. We’re delighted to have Misa with us. She has been growing from her garden in Tingwall for a number of years, producing food for her family and the table, fresh from the garden. She writes a very inspiring blog about gardening at 60 north which you can find at www.myshetlandgarden.com.

There’s so much to shout about in Shetland at the moment, and with the clocks springing forward we’re now enjoying longer days, so please let us know how you spend the light nights, are you getting out into the garden or perhaps packing a picnic after work and heading to the hills? Whatever you’re up to, we love to hear about it, use our hashtag for the chance to be featured online or in the magazine #myshetlandlife.

It’s been encouraging to see so many new subscribers joining our readership and signing up to the printed magazine subscription during the first three months of 2019. Remember you can subscribe to Shetland life online at https://shop.shetlandtimes.co.uk/pages/subscriptions#shetland-life and let us know if you have any comments or suggestions at sleditor@shetlandtimes.co.uk.

As ever, have a great month and enjoy Shetland Life – OUT NOW!

A new year, a new start

3rd January 2019

by Shetland Life

This month Shetland Life are set to dive into the New Year feet first and we hope that you will join us for the ride. We go through the keyhole, taking a sneaky peek behind the scenes of Squad 43. And, with Up-Helly-A’ looming, we meet this year’s Jarl, John Nicolson, and discover how he became the fourth Nicolson Jarl – following in the footsteps of his father and brothers before him.

For those opting for better health and wellbeing in 2019, look out for our new columnist, Ali Grundon Robertson who this month focuses on consumerism. Finally, our new feature – in collaboration with RSPB Scotland – introduces a monthly Nature Calendar and examines the health benefits of a daily dose of fresh air, ensuring that you put your best foot forward into the New Year.

What are you waiting for? Look out for this month’s Shetland Life, in shops and online now!