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In the Broxden McDonalds outside Perth. First internet for three days. That’s 620 miles, and now heading (alone – others had a long lie) for Glen Garioch at Oldmeldrum. Big Red Bathtub behaving very well. I left the – truly excellent – Bladnoch Inn at 7.00am as I was booked to open the Scottish Classic…

It’s 100 miles exactly from Glasgow to Fort Bill. I’d done 105 by the time I’d found my b&b, tucked away behind the town. I set out from Glasgow under grey skies, but by the time I hit Tyndrum (my usual pilgrimage to the Green Welly Stop) the sun was out. Fort William is HOT,…

My new thriller Serpentine is officially published today…find out more and follow the links to buy a copy at the Serpentine Blog. And today I head off to meet up with the other guys involved in the Journey’s Blend charity whisky motorbike jaunt. Fort William tonight, Islay tomorrow, Bladnoch on Saturday, Glengarioch on Sunday, Crieff…

I can hardly believe this, but it appears the excellent Allison Crowe and her bandmates were jailed and deported for being…Canadian! What’s going on? Allison’s own story follows: Allison Crowe and her Canadian bandmates, (guitarist Billie Woods and percussionist Laurent Boucher, reunited with their British-passport-carrying bassist Dave Baird), have now performed two sensational concerts in…

.and all kudos to the GENUINE paramedics, for whom no praise is too great…a wee ditty from Blind Boy Flugga. Based on real events. Allegedly. THE AMATEUR AMBULANCEMAN There’s a blue light in my brainThere’s a siren in my mindYou may think that I’m strangeMaking these noises all the timeTry to understandI’m an ambulanceman I…

Some great weather hallmarked the visit to Shetland of my eldest son Sandy and his wife Elaine (and their husky-labrador cross Cuillin, who has an affection for hens) and later in the week Magnus and Laura. All this and James’s 18th birthday too. Friday saw a lot of messing about on the water, mostly to…

         To Unst, two islands up from Mainland (via Yell) here in the Zetlandic archipelago. A fine, slightly dull day, and all the ferry-louping went without a hitch. There was me, Martha, Sandy and Elaine, and first stop was at the house of Sandy Nelson, comedian, actor, playwright and bon viveur, now resident in…

It’s funny when you see someone else’s take on your book, and – while enthusiastic, thank goodness – it varies from your own perceptions. I’ve never seen Murricane as the hero of the book – for me it’s a two-hander with Flaws, who is in many ways Murricane’s deeply damaged and fumbling alter ego…anyway. See…

At last! The dinghy is in the water and appears to float! For no reason other than I love the book (and the word), she is called Cryptonomicon. An old Kestrel fibreglass sailing boat, complete with tattered sails and, my pride and joy, an original British Seagull 2-stroke engine (runs on an amazing 10-1 petrol-oil…

I’m grateful to Dr JWG Wills for passing on this excellent video. If you speak Norwegian, versions without subtitles are available.