When corner shops didn't have a little spot dedicated to government sponsored gambling and the queue at the supermarket kiosk was for cigarettes and not the lotto rollover.

But cast your mind back to the furore when the then Conservative Government decided to introduce the game.

Critics described it as a tax on the poor while others claimed it simply legitimised gambling.

Few were won over by the argument that 28 pence in every pound spent would be used for nominated good causes - arts, sports, heritage, education, environment, health, charity and voluntary projects.

If the government wanted to give to charity, why not do it directly, instead of setting up state sponsored gambling?

Fast forward 15 years and it's quite a different landscape. Quite literally.

From new buildings like Dundee Contemporary Arts and Our Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh, to the restoration of old buildings like Kelvingrove and even older - Rosslyn Chapel. The Falkirk Wheel, the RSS Discovery, Ben Nevis, Hampden Park - there's barely a project created in the last decade which hasn't had lottery money.

And it's not just buildings. Money has been used to restore old paths, support woodlands and even protect endangered species - the basking shark and black grouse among them.

Even those who initially opposed it are happy to take their share of the windfall - religious groups in particular, have been happy to apply, even though many individuals still oppose the use of lottery money for personal reasons.

There have been casualties. The Big Idea in Irvine - a variation on the science centres which continue to prosper in Glasgow and Edinburgh - was an early loss. And talks are still underway about the future of the Lighthouse, which went into adminstration at the summer.

But on the whole, Scotland's track record in lottery investment seems to be a solid one, something Colin McLean, chair of the Scottish Lottery Forum puts down to good partnerships and preparation (applicants complain about the amount of paperwork - he says it's vital to make sure every project is carefully thought through.)

The only downside - at least for the Heritage Lottery Fund - is that the funding is set to decrease, thanks in part to the demands of the London Olympics.

"We've probably seen the last of the big projects - the multi-million pound museum refurbishments like Kelvingrove," he says.

"But we remain one of the largest funding sources for heritage in Scotland and we may just see a different sort of application in the future."

Perhaps more applications from communities like Govan - where grants so far have helped refurbish a row of derelict shops for artistic groups, employ staff at the Pierce Institute and a film production company, and upgrade community football pitches at Ibrox.

They're hopeful they can also get further funding for plans to turn the Fairfield Shipyard Offices into a modern workspace and restore the little fountain at Govan Cross.

And while Heritage Lottery Money is down, the other pots of funding are apparently predicted to increase over the next few years, meaning many communities, if they're sharp, can secure funding for the things that matter most to them.

Step forward Paisley born actor Gerard Butler - star of 300 and PS I Love You - in Glasgow for the European premiere of his new film Law Abiding Citizen.

An American fan - who follows Mr Butler to most of his premieres - presented him with her usual gift of a piece of chewing gum (thankfully fresh and still in its wrapper).

Mr Butler happily took the gift and chewed away as he posed for the photographers on the red carpet.

But as he arrived inside Glasgow's Cineworld to do his various TV and radio interviews, it became clear the gum just had to go.

And as he searched frantically for a suitable spot, a smartly suited gentleman stepped forward, whispered in his ear and quietly deposited the gum (used) in his own trouser pocket.

Service beyond the call of duty.

The 40 year old actor - who read law at Glasgow University - says he was taken aback but delighted by the hundreds who gathered at the the cinema for the premiere.

"I used to joke that Glasgow was the one place I could come where I wasn't recognised - or at least didn't attract the same level of interest as elsewhere," he says.

"This is something else - but it's lovely."

In the 12 years since he gave up law and gave acting a try, Butler has become one of Hollywood's most bankable leading men.

Mrs Brown was his first film role - playing Billy Connolly's younger brother Archie Brown - and since then he's notched up more than 20 films - from romantic comedies (PS I Love You) to horror (Wes Craven's Dracula 2000) to musicals (The Phantom of the Opera) to his best known role - in the ultra violent epic 300.

Law Abiding Citizen - his first venture as producer as well as actor, through his own production company Evil Twins - is also extremely violent (I watched most of the press preview through my fingers).

In it he plays Clyde Sheldon, a seemingly ordinary man who goes to extraordinary lengths to avenge the murder of his family.

You could shoot peas through the plot it has so many holes - would two violent house-breakers knock on the front door first and sweep antique clocks off the mantlepiece into their swag bags?

Why do all the police interviews happen inside an enormous cage a la Silence of the Lambs? - but if you're prepared to take it all with a very large pinch of salt - possibly smelling salts if you're in the least squeamish - then it is enormous fun.

It's hard to discuss Clyde without giving away the twists and turns of the plot but suffice to say he's not the simple character we first assume.

"That was part of the challenge,"says Butler.

"You feel sorry for him because he loses his family but then some people will think he goes too far, and some people will still feel sorry for him and other people just can't make up their mind how they feel about him. And that's what I like about him."

The other sign of a Hollywood A-lister is the speculation about Hollywood girlfriends and Butler has had his fair share.

"Was it true that he was dating Jennifer Aniston?"asked the reporter next to me.

"Do you think if I was dating Jennifer Aniston, I'd be keeping it quiet?" was his suitably Scottish reply.

"I'd be parading her up and down Sauchiehall Street."

Instead, it was a Scotswoman on his arm last night - his mum Margaret.

But somehow I missed the Big Man Walking around Bute, Buckie, Kirkcaldy, and Invergordon over the last month.

I did, however, make it to Inverclyde at the weekend and took a stroll round Gourock with Big Man (and hundreds of locals).

The whole point of the project, created by The Puppet Lab and Puppet Animation Scotland, was to literally allow the Big Man to walk through communities and let them show the best of their area.

Thus in Bute, the locals made lanterns while in Buckie, they made a big blanket and tucked him up in bed.

Despite the rain on Saturday morning, there were little mini performances about the history of the area (one centred on sugar manufacturers Tate and Lyle) and cheerleaders running through a routine in the playground.

Hundreds of people - myself included - walked with him around the park.

He's such an amazingly elaborate puppet - including joined limbs and blinking eyes - that you can't tire of watching him.

Many more watched from their windows - a rare opportunity to look a giant in the eye.

The 12 puppeteers may have been pulling his strings but the community was well and truly in charge of their event, making it a properly local arts event.

And from what I hear, the events across the rest of Scotland were equally impressive.

The big question for the Big Man is what happens to him next?

I'm told he has one date in his diary - December 31st - as he's been signed up to appear as part of Edinburgh's Hogmanay celebrations.

While Alan Clements, director of content at STV, tried to remain upbeat about the complete lack of any nominations for the broadcaster (the first time since 2004), others were worried it was symptomatic of a much wider problem for the industry.

Best TV actress Daniella Nardini was shocked to discover there were no female nominees at all in the Acting in Film category while Robert Carlyle - who won Best TV Actor - told reporters he was so dismayed with the lack of work here that he is considering relocating his family to Vancouver, where he's making the Hollywood sci-fi series Stargate Universe.

Carlyle made similar headlines last year after winning an award for his film Summer.

Back then, he warned the industry was being squeezed by a drop in private investment.

Good films, he said, simply weren't being made and that, he says, is even more noticeable a year down the line.

But despite the one-horse race (the BBC had 32 nominations, with some categories containing only BBC programmes) most guests were adamant that the awards were vital to the industry.

Since reintroducing the awards in 2004, both Bafta Scotland directors (first Alison Forsyth and now Helen Anderson) have tried to increase the pzazz and shuffle the categories to hide the sparser areas of production (like last year's Best Film Actress category, which solicited only one entry, Sophia Myles, who duly took home the prize without needing to even leave her own house).

While it is working, it does only highlight just how small and fragile the home-grown industry is.

The biggest appeal of the evening - aside from the chance to wander round the Science Centre with a glass of champagne in hand - is the networking and the talk of the evening was the revival of Taggart and the demise of Scottish Screen's film production fund.

While Scottish Screen is confident the fund will, like Taggart, also be brought back from the dead, it's unlikely to have any funds to release in 2010, when the process of merging Scottish Screen with the Scottish Arts Council to create the new Creative Scotland agency will continue.

That, say many of the more experienced film-makers there last night, could create real problems for the next generation of film and television talent who'll simply have to put their projects on hold, and it may create talent vacuums for Bafta Scotland in ceremonies to come.

"You've never seen anything like this before!" it proudly declared.

Errr, unless you've read one of the greatest works of English literature or seen one of the myriad of stage and screen versions which have been churned out at regular intervals over the years.

Everyone from Alastair Sim to Patrick Stewart, via The Muppets, have offered their take on this Christmas tale of love and redemption.

The British Film Institute even got in on the act yesterday.

But in fairness to this version, it has achieved something new, not least introducing a new generation to the genuinely scary ghostly goings on.

In that sense, it's probably closer to the original Dickens' tale than other adaptations.

Capture animation - where the actors perform their scenes wearing special bodysuits and then the action is animated - is a technique used by director Robert Zemeckis before in The Polar Express.

But here, in a story which has the central character flying over London, crawling beneath the sewers and tumbling into graves, it really comes into its own.

Jim Carrey, who can create cartoonish expressions any way, is particularly impressive and it's very clear it IS him, not just in Scrooge but in the Three Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future, which he also plays.

The great advantage to the technique is that it means actors can play several different roles and the whole film - crowd scenes and all - is pretty much staffed by just 15 actors.

The doubling up makes sense, particularly with Scrooge, since aren't those ghosts just figments of his own imagination?

Last night's London premiere - attended by the film's stars Jim Carrey, Colin Firth, Bob Hoskins and Robin Wright Penn - coincided not just with the switch on of the Christmas Lights (this early? bah humbug!) but with simultaneous screenings of the film in 28 cinemas across the country, including Glasgow's Braehead Odeon.

Over a hundred representatives from the key heritage bodies were gathered for a brainstorming session, attended, and at one stage, chaired by culture minister Mike Russell.

With just a few hours to fit it all in, delegates had to keep it brief but several points were made loud and clear:

Heritage is not just buildings. It's archaeology, landscape and collections.

It doesn't matter if it's listed, if it's important to your community, it's important.

Too many people chasing too little money so communities have to start taking ownership of their heritage or accept it may be lost.

History needs to be taken to street level. Not just about cathedrals and castles, it's about people's homes and streets and the spaces between them.

Community involvement got a thumbs-up from the culture minister Mike Russell, not least because of the squeeze on government funding at local and national levels.

His question - to the assembled movers and shakers was how to persuade communities to take responsibility.

All well and good if it's an A-listed cathedral but what if it's a less likeable modern ruin.

Does the community in Cardross feel as strongly about St Peter's seminary as the people of St Andrews feel about their crumbling cathedral? I suspect not.

There's no way of controlling what old - and new buildings end up on your doorstep and, as several delegates pointed out, it's not just about buildings.

Can you rouse the same level of community support for an archaelogical find or a sprawling museum collection?

One issue raised by several delegates - including architect Malcolm Fraser - is the issue of VAT which, according to many people, is hampering attempts to restore and repair old buildings.

It's an issue that the newly arrived chief executive of Historic Scotland, Ruth Parsons is well qualified to discuss at length. Among her previous roles before taking up the post, she was a VAT inspector for the Inland Revenue.

No surprises there.

Since August when the Trust announced the company had gone into administration, following a string of funding problems, it's been only a matter of time.

This week, with the withdrawal of Glasgow City Council's funding, it was clear the trust's role in the building was over.

What now? Glasgow City Council is keen to keep the concept alive, perhaps as a business centre for the creative industries.

And unless it wants to go down the route of unravelling its funding - and returning some of the millions the Lottery gave the project when it first opened in 1999 - the council has to think beyond the realms of a business centre to something which appeals to as wide a range of people as possible.

Not an easy task as those who've run the centre for the past 10 years will admit.

It's position down a dark lane, and its esoteric subject matter don't help.

And with so many other cultural centres vying for public attention and money - not least the newly opened Trongate 103 and the newly refurbished Tramway - it's going to be a tough one for the council to justify.

Despite a high profile petition, it's likely they'll all be issued with redundancy notices, with the Chambers side of the business transferring to London and the Harrap operation, which publishes foreign language reference books, transferring to Paris.

There are a lot of reasons to rue the closure - not least the fact that it brings to an abrupt end 200 years of publishing history.

Since William and Robert Chambers first established their dictionary in the capital in 1867, it's been a pillar of publishing, first for Victorians in search of a little self improvement, latterly as the best reference point for ambitious crossword and Scrabble enthusiasts.

Part of its appeal is the fact it's a no nonsense, Scottish institution which published everything you required in one volume.

Of course, reference publishing has been in trouble for decades, and not just because of the decline in sales or the increasing appeal of online editions.

But many campaigners believe that's a simplistic argument - and if it's the case, how can they justify moving the work elsewhere? Where's the longer term outlook?

It's ironic given Edinburgh's status as UNESCO's first city of literature, that one of its most historic publishing connections is being broken - although not without a fight as politicians and writers alike have taken up the cause. An online petition has attracted hundreds of signatures.

Ironic too that it's only a matter of months since MEP David Martin called on the dictionary to be given the same EC protection as Arbroath Smokies, champagne and Black Forest Ham.

We can all laugh, but in the faceless world of global publishing, that little bit of old fashioned Scottish reference is unique and important.
It's not just about words - or online versus hard copies. It's not about luddites versus a more high-tech form of reference.

It's about a historic reference point - dating back to the Scottish Enlightenment - which once lost - won't be easily restored.

Originally adapted for the stage by Adrian Noble almost a decade ago, it consistently tops friends and colleagues' lists of must see stage shows.

Noble has done a fine job of honing down both the Ian Fleming story and the Roald Dahl script into a much less flabby affair than the film - although at two hours and 20 minutes, it's still a bit of a marathon.

It seems as if everyone who's anyone has had a part to play in the production since it was first staged in 2002. From Michael Ball and Jason Donovan as Caractacus Potts to Wayne Sleep, Alvin Stardust and Richard O'Brien - who was surely made for the role of the Childcatcher (although no-one has quite topped the sinister movements of ballet dancer Robert Helpmann in the original film).

Our show is an unstarry event - and no bad thing for it. Just Barbara Rafferty hamming it for the home crowd and everyone else slick and polished after weeks on tour together. And the star, after all, is the car, and it doesn't disappoint.

There's a collective gasp when it first appears amid a burst of stage fireworks, and again when it takes to the skies.

Soap stars

One night later, and the other end of the theatrical spectrum for a piece of theatre so small, so intimate and so up to the minute, you can perform it standing up in a pub. Westenders, the new live theatre soap is, like most soaps, set in a pub but the difference is that this show is also performed IN the pub.

Creator Ann Marie Di Mambro was inspired by the venue's lunchtime theatre programme - A Play And A Pie And A Pint - to which she contributed. She decided if audiences could turn out every week for a play, they could do the same for a soap.

She's persuaded several of her fellow writers from River City to help, and pulled together a cast of actors - including Andy Gray, Jonathan Watson, Juliet Cadzow, Greg Hemphill and Julie Wilson Nimmo - who've all agreed to take part for next to nothing.

Set in the fictional pub The Pig and the Poke, it follows bar-owner Ruby, aspiring writer husband Rabbie, Ruby's sister Pearl, mum Beryl and others. The pub - like Oran Mor - has a kindly approach to writers and there's even a cameo for writer Alasdair Gray in episode one when he orders a whisky before launching his own book upstairs.

It was standing room only for last night's opener - and despite problems with the sound which meant many people at the back of the pub couldn't hear the show - it looks like it's hooked people in for a few more episodes.

And while there was no obvious cliffhanger at the end of last night's episode, Ms Di Mambro promises a mighty cliffhanger for episode eight (on 10 December). Enough she hopes to persuade someone somewhere to commission a second series.

There are only 86 days till the start of the 2010 Celtic Connections festival, and a fair amount of excitement at the launch this morning in Glasgow of the new programme.

Since his appointment three years ago, the artistic director Donald Shaw has pushed the world music element of the festival and he admits himself it is an important strand of this year's programme.

One of his biggest coups is reuniting Ry Cooder with The Chieftains - who'll perform a concert exploring Celtic and Mexican musical connections.

"I didn't know there was a connection between Celtic music and Mexican music," he admits, "but if The Chieftains say there's a connection, there's a connection."

Negotiations to confirm the gig were only finalised in the wee small hours of this morning, with Ry Cooder, who toured Europe in his own right earlier this year, not keen to travel to Glasgow in the middle of January.

And although Donald Shaw admits the concert - which will also feature Cara Butler from the original Riverdance show and Mexican band Los Cenzontles - is something of a coup for the festival, he hands most of the credit to Chieftains founder and leader Paddy Moloney.

"Paddy has a real affection for the Scottish audience and he was keen to see this city host the concert. He thought if any city, if any festival, should stage a concert like this, it was this one," says Donald Shaw.

Celtic Connections has grown dramatically since it was first dreamed up 17 years ago as an answer to the black hole in Glasgow Royal Concert Hall's winter programme.

But the festival now has the clout that allows up to 1,500 performers to consider travelling to Glasgow in the middle of a winter for a festival appearance.

And despite his own experiences as a jobbing musician with Capercaillie, Donald Shaw admits he's still surprised by how long it can take to persuade a musician to appear and fix a date in the diary.

Two of his latest conquests - Bobby McFerrin and Natalie Merchant - took months of persuading.

Merchant, the former front-woman of American indie band 10,000 Maniacs, was a particular achievement.

"I'm a big fan and she hasn't performed for so long," he says.

"I knew she was working with Lunasa, the Irish band, so I knew she was interested in traditional music. So I started talking to her management about persuading her to come.

"And then a few months ago, she decided she couldn't do it, the album wouldn't be ready. I said come anyway, and just appear at the festival.

"So I was delighted to be the one to drag her out of hibernation."

And indie/americana/traditional isn't the only mix you'll hear.

For real crossover, check out Dick Gaughan who's gone all out reggae with a special dub show featuring Jason Wilson, Brinsley Forde, The Fab Five and Dave Swarbrick.

There are two tribute concerts too for songwriters Nick Drake and John Martyn.

Drake's record producer Joe Boyd will lead the Drake concert with contriubutions from Vashti Bunyan, Green Gartside and Danny Thompson.

And it's Thompson, who'll also lead the tribute to John Martyn, who died during last year's festival and was the subject of many informal tributes at the time.

As a close friend for two decades, he's been asked on several occasions since then to stage a tribute concert but believes this event - with contributions from Martin Simpson, Luka Bloom and Eddie Reader is the one.

And of course, there are connections too - celtic or otherwise - between John Martyn and Nick Drake, with Martyn writing the title song of his 1973 album Solid Air for Drake.

And for those who're after sociable connections rather than musical ones, there's good news about the festival club, which will be held nightly at Glasgow School of Art.

Will it ever return to its spiritual home in the Central Hotel? Only time and a multi-million pound hotel makeover stand in the way.

But a few hours ago, I spent my final evening on Botswana in the truly spectacular setting of the game reserve at Mokoldi.

And as the sun set and the moon rose, I joined the author Alexander McCall Smith and his friends and family in the little rest camp he himself established here a year ago.

It's a simple affair, just six thatched huts with oil lamps and basic shower and toilet facilities - but it gives a real sense of being part of the natural landscape, which offers the perfect ending to an extraordinary trip.

The reserve is only a few kilometres from the country's capital Gaborone. But its spectacular scale - 10,000 acres in all - means it feels remote.

Our guide Tshepo takes us into the park, which safeguards many animals, not least the white rhino, which is being hunted into extinction.

Head Ranger, Neil Wilson later tells us he fears for the safety of the nine rhino they now have, so great is the value of their horns.

Attempts to divert the hunters by dehorning the beasts elsewhere, haven't brought good results so Neil's hope is to be able to buy a microlite to be able to survey the reserve and keep an eye out for potential hunters.

The big draw of the reserve - at least for locals - is the cheetah enclosure. Duma and Lletoso were rescued as cubs when their mother was shot by a farmer.

They've been in captivity so long, they'll happily allow humans to stroke them, as if they're giant purring domestic toms.

It's useful to be wary though. They have been known to take an irritated swipe - they're 14 years old now so the cheetah equivalent of grumpy old men - and one of Bill Clinton's bodyguards came a cropper a few years back.

Sandy McCall Smith admits he too sustained a cheetah injury himself. "t was just a scratch but I was able to send my agent a telegram saying 'ustained cheetah injury, but still in one piece'," he said.

Not that anyone can afford to be complacent. Last year, two Sri Lankan keepers were killed when a bull elephant turned against them.

The park has since struggled with bad publicity although the male elephant was destroyed and Sri Lankan guides continue to apply for work there.

McCall Smith set up the rest camp a year ago but this is the first time he's stayed here himself, along with his wife Elizabeth and the close friends who've helped him establish the opera house.

It's a philanthropic project, with all profits ploughed back into the conservation work of the park. Almost an hour's drive from the park gates, it's as close as you'll get to communing with nature, in the kind of atmosphere Sandy's character Mma Ramotswe might have experienced growing up in rural Botswana.

Working with park authorities, he's also keen to establish a star gazing facility, since the roof of the little restaurant offers unparalleled views of that section of the African skies.

After an evening braai - the southern African equivalent of a barbecue - it's the most obvious thing to do. And that's followed by a spell of storytelling around the campfire.

A suitably African end to the whole adventure.

For those who are interested, you can hear the whole documentary - The Number One Ladies Opera House - on Radio Four next Tuesday at 1330 BST.

And in the case of the Big Man, it happens literally minutes after I arrive at a huge warehouse on an industrial estate in Leith.

The team behind the 25ft puppet - local companies Puppet Animation and the Puppet Lab - are testing its abilities in the strong wind and the sight of the blue giant striding across the forecourt is too much for one van driver, who promptly drives into a ditch.

"It happens all the time," says artistic director Simon McIntyre.

"If they're not driving off the road, they're driving past for another look, hooting their horns and hanging out the windows to take photographs."

A photocall on nearby Portobello Beach is just as much of a draw, the 12 puppeteers and handful of photographers soon overwhelmed by more than 100 children.

At least it's proof the team have managed to create a friendly giant - and that, says designer Kim Bersagal, is why he's blue.

"He's clearly not a human," she says,"so flesh tones were out and so many other colours came with associations.

"Red would have been too angry, green and orange too many other associations, blue just seemed right and appropriate too since he looks like he's just fallen out of the sky."

The one and a half tonne creation is the centrepiece of a £600,000 Arts Council funded project which will see the Big Man Walking into communities around the country, from the Isle of Bute this weekend, to Kirkcaldy, Invergordon, Buckie and Inverclyde.

"The idea is that the giant has been asleep for thousands of years," says Simon, "and now that he's awoken he's being invited into these communities where they will welcome him and show him the best things about their town.

"That's quite important in many towns, where they're not often asked about the good things and we've had some great responses.

"The thing about the Big Man is that he simply walks and looks and watches and then leaves again. He doesn't make any comment on what he sees."

If you look closely at the Big Man's eyes, you'll also see he is taking in more than your average puppet, with a remote-controlled camera recording what happens in each community.

The results will be streamed on the web.

But the question remains, what will happen to the Big Man after his latest expedition is over?

"Who knows," says Simon, "we're just a small puppet company who've got to make this amazing project.

"Maybe we'll be back to what we did. Or maybe he'll find more places to travel - with friends.

"I've always wanted to create a giant baby, that wandered around the country.

"Maybe that's what we'll do next."

Artists on the Tall Ship (otherwise known as the Glenlee on the Clydeside) features singers and musicians from Scottish Opera, dancers from Scottish Ballet and several local artists and photographers.

All were inspired by the story of Colonel Mark Wright, an Edinburgh-born soldier who was killed in Afghanistan three years ago this month.

His parents, Bob and Jem Wright want to honour his memory by establishing a drop-in centre for other bereaved families and also for the soldiers who do return home, but are traumatised by their experiences.

It's thought the centre, which is due to open in Edinburgh in November, would be the first of its kind in Scotland.

As well as the £4 million they need to establish the centre, they estimate they need £60,000 a year for running costs.

So far, they've managed to raise half of that figure.

The evening will be hosted by Colonel Stuart Tootal, author of the book Danger Close, which deals with his own experiences with the first unit into Helmand back in 2006.

Marion Hebblethwaite, whose book One Step Further highlights those who've won the George Cross over the years, will also speak.

One of the most recent recipients was Mark Wright.

Details of the event can be found at www.operafor.com

The new building, seamlessly latched onto Tramway - at least inside the building, it's virtually impossible to tell where one starts and the other ends - is astonishingly, the first purpose-built headquarters in the company's 40 year history.

And a far cry from their old premises at 261 West Princes Street in Glasgow's west end.

There the dancing was restricted not just by the size of some of the studios but by the buckets and mats that had to be scattered around the catch the drips from the leaking roofs.

The wardrobe department fought a constant battle to protect the costumes from damp - famously losing all of their Conran designed "swans" from Swan Lake when the basement flooded.

The van drivers meanwhile had to master the tightest three point turns in history in order to back into a scenedock, never intended to be part of a Victorian tenement block.

And while some aspects were quaint and quirky - not least the mail bag on a rope which stopped admin staff on the top floor having to come up and down the stairs 40 times a day - the overall message seemed to be that this was a national company not worthy of proper investment.

It's only a decade since dancers had to take a campaign to Downing Street to try to persuade the government to prevent the company from closing altogether and while artistically, Scottish Ballet is back on its feet again - largely thanks to the arrival of Ashley Page - as the smallest and leanest of the national companies, it had some political ground to gain.

This should do it. A state of the art facility in an existing arts centre in a thriving community which has already taken the company to its heart.

The final million of the £11m bill for the building was raised through public appeal and they'll get the chance to see what their money paid for when the company throws its doors open on Saturday and Sunday as part of the Doors Open campaign.

First, snake-hipped dance god Patrick Swayze, then the man who invented the whole TV chef trend, Keith Floyd, and now the screen writer Troy Kennedy Martin.

The Glasgow-born writer created some of the most classic work on British television over the last few decades - everything from Z Cars to Edge of Darkness.

He was also known for his writing in cinema - in particular, his screenplay for the Italian Job.

And more recently Red Heat, which he co-wrote for Arnold Schwarzengger.

Z-Cars, which he wrote before he was even 30, revolutionised television in the 1960s with a gritty realism which hadn't been attempted before.

He claimed to have the idea of a police series set in patrol cars in the north of England while ill with mumps and listening to real police patrols on VHF radio.

Although he was one of a team of writers on the show, it was he who was credited with its creation, he held the copyright and he got paid a fee for every episode.

He also brought the series to an end in 1978, writing the final episode in which some of the best known characters returned.

In 1985, he wrote Edge of Darkness, a chilling thriller about a nuclear conspiracy in which Bob Peck played a policeman investigating his daughter's murder.

Again, he broke new ground by demanding to be able to write up to the wire, allowing him to include contemporary references and avoid any interference from his paymasters.

It's a way of writing current screenwriters can only dream of and for Kennedy Martin, it was also a short-lived period of freedom.

I spoke to him a few times on the phone, usually about an obituary for one of his many screenwriting friends and colleagues.

Among them John McGrath, who worked with him in the BBC script editors department in the 1960s.

He was always charming and helpful, with an encylopaedic knowledge of British television.

And a writer of his calibre - and a Scot to boot - would have been equally dismayed at the demise of another great Scottish literary institution.

Chambers, who've been publishing their dictionaries in Edinburgh since 1819, will now close their offices in the capital with the loss of 27 jobs.

The dictionary - famous among Scrabble players for including a wider spread of eclectic words than some other dictionaries, will still be published but only in London.

The use of online spell checks has been blamed for the downturn in business.

While the telephone directories and piles of back issues of newspapers may no longer clutter your average newsroom, I'm one of a handful of Luddites who still likes to keep a dictionary, a thesaurus and a few good grammar books to hand.

Too bad there are fewer and fewer of us around.