Edinburgh solicitor charged with money laundering offences – Doors Open Day – Trinity House – Lothian Buses Family Ticket – Whisky sale
It has been reported that Edinburgh solicitor and former Hearts chairman, Leslie Deans, has been charged with offences under the money laundering rules.
Mr Deans has been a prominent property solicitor in Edinburgh for decades and the firm, which the Law Society website shows as having two partners, has four offices in South Queensferry, St Patrick Street, Corstorphine and Bonnyrigg.
All solicitors are subject to the strict Money Laundering Regulations and The Law Society of Scotland is the supervisory authority for all Scottish solicitors to ensure that they comply with those rules. The Law Society examines all firms’ cash records on a regular basis in terms of its own Accounts Rules.
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Doors Open Day 2013 is on in Edinburgh today and tomorrow. There are other events across Scotland but in the capital the Cockburn Association (Edinburgh’s Civic Trust) organises Edinburgh Doors Open Day. There are full details on the website and this is what the organisers say:-
“Now in its 22nd year, the event has become one of the capital’s most popular free days out. This is your chance to explore some of Edinburgh’s most architecturally, culturally and socially significant buildings. Many venues feature behind the scenes tours, activities, exhibitions and/or talks which bring the history of the building, garden, cemetery or monument and its everyday use to life. Some sites organise additional free activities for children and families.”
Today’s photo is of Queen Street Gardens East which is also open to the public only on Sunday between 12 noon & 4:00pm.
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A private donation of hundreds of old drawings of ships which visited Scotland in the inter-war years has been made to Historic Scotland.
Executed in ink, pencil and watercolour, they are the work of artist Hector French, who for decades kept a detailed pictorial record of the ships which came and went in the Port of Leith, once one of the most important ports in Europe.
An old suitcase containing around 15 sketchbooks filled with these pictures was handed in to Trinity House in Leith, where they can be viewed by the public this weekend as part of Doors Open Days.
Although Hector French is known to have lived near the Port of Leith and worked as a lithographer, little is known about his life and Historic Scotland is keen to hear from members of the public who might have further information about this accomplished and prolific local artist.
Mr French recorded the names of the merchant ships visiting the Port of Leith on his drawings as well as the countries they came from. Some of those ships were later sunk in WW2 convoys, a fact that he has returned to his drawings to record – in one case writing ‘torpedoed’ just two months after completing the sketch. Some drawings show individual ships while others depict scenes of the busy port.
Hugh Morrison, Collections Registrar at Historic Scotland said: “This is an incredibly exciting find. Not only are these drawings technically accomplished, but they provide a fascinating and unique record of the Port of Leith during an interesting period in its history.
“They offer us a detailed pictorial record of the ships which came and went between the wars and during WWII, when a photographic record would have been restricted. It is poignant that some of those ships were torpedoed not long after they were sketched in Leith by Hector French. He was clearly a very skilled artist, but since we have no other record of his work it appears that he simply sketched at the docks for his own interest.
“How fitting then, that his work has gone on display in Trinity House – just minutes from the docks – for the public to enjoy as part of Doors Open Days. We are keen to find out more about the artist and his work so hope that in displaying these sketches, not only will they get the recognition they deserve, but we may be able to find out more about the man behind them.”
Pauline McCloy of the Scottish Civic Trust, national coordinators of Doors Open Days said: “Hector French’s newly uncovered artwork of Leith Docks is an intriguing and exciting addition to the Doors Open Days programme.
“Whilst we nationally welcome lots of buildings and events to join our festival programme each year, little moments of happenstance like this bring the real meaning of Doors Open Days to life – the discovery of something new that may have been right under our noses all along.
“The discovery of a new part of history, of a new or unusual artefact, of a man sketching the changing world around him and saving them in a suitcase. It’s like revealing a long-lost treasure that can tell us all a little bit more about the history of Scotland and the talent and skill of its people.”
Hector French’s sketchbooks can be viewed at Trinity House in Edinburgh as part of Doors Open Days on Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th September from 10am-4pm.
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Lothian Buses is making it easier for families to get around by offering a Family DAYticket from today.
The ticket which is £7.50 for a family of up to two adults and three children will help passengers save up to 42% on their journeys.
Sarah Boyd, Head of Operations at Lothian Buses, said:- “We trialled the Family DAYticket over the summer and it proved to be really popular. In response to customer feedback we have now made it available every day. As the cost of family outings are on the rise, this ticket represents great value for money for families wishing to get out and about and see the city.”
The family DAY ticket is available to purchase and use on all day bus services excluding AIRLINK 100 and service 98. The ticket is also available to purchase on service 113 in fare zones A and B only and is not available to purchase or use on NightBus services.
For full details please visit: www.lothianbuses.com
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A bottle of 27 year old Springbank whisky, bottled to mark the Everest Challenge in 1993 and with a label designed by the famous 1960s’ icon Mary Quant, is to be sold at Bonhams Whisky sale in Edinburgh next week. It is estimated at £1,200-1,400.
The Everest challenge was a charity bike ride in the foothills of the Himalayas sponsored by the glazing company, Everest, which took place between April 12 and May 29 1993. The whisky itself was distilled in 1965, the year in which Everest was founded, and Mary Quant was commissioned to design the label which shows a snow capped mountain peak enclosed in the words ‘I’m going for Everest.’
Mary Quant is one of Britain’s best know designers. She came to fame during the Swinging Sixties and her clothes became synonymous with youthful rebellion and self expression. In later decades, Quant concentrated on household and other design.
Other notable lots in the sale include a bottle of Benromach Classic 55 year old distilled in1949 and numbered 17 of 83. It is estimated at £3,500-4,000. A bottle of Ardbeg 1965 bottled in 2005 carries an estimate of 3,000-3,500.
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
