Happy Christmas and a Guid New Year

Wishing all my Constituents a Very Happy Christmas

I very much hope that the Christmas Day will be a happy time for all my constituents with a chance to spend time with friends and family. 

Those of us enjoying our Christmas Day festivities are of course reliant on folk continuing to work in essential services, including the NHS, the Ambulance Service, the Police and the Fire Service. I thank all those staff for the work they do day in day out but especially on public holidays like today.

Wishing all my constituents a very happy Christmas.

Christmas Lights Going Up in Brook Street

On Monday afternoon work began erecting the Christmas lights in The Ferry.

My picture catches the team perched on a platform over the middle of Brook Street putting up the illuminated 'Merry Christmas' suspended above the road between the YMCA and the Burgh Halls.

Only three days to go before the switching on of the lights on Thursday evening 21 November 2013.

Happy Christmas 2012

Wishing you and yours
a very
Happy Christmas
2012

Christmas Poster 2012 - Winning Designs from each of our three Broughty Ferry Primary Schools

Click on image to enlarge

Congratulations to our three winning young designers:

• Theo Romanowski Class P1A Barhill Primary School
• Rachel Lindsay Class P7B Eastern Primary School and
• Hannah Benns Class P6 Forthill Primary School

Christmas Card

Happy Christmas

Wishing all my constituents in

The Ferry, a very
Happy Christmas

Santa Claus Visits Broughty Ferry Library on Saturday Morning

Santa Claus is taking time out from his busy schedule for a flying visit to Broughty Ferry Library between 10am and 12noon on Saturday 11 December.

Children of all ages are welcome.
Entry is free.

There will also be festive crafts.


Broughty Ferry Library
Queen Street
Broughty Ferry
DD5 2HN
tel 01382 436919

Promoted by Leisure and Communities

Happy Christmas and Guid New Year

Baldragon Academy Christmas Concert

Earlier this evening I enjoyed attending the annual Christmas Concert at Baldragon Academy in Dundee. The programme included many fine performances from pupils and staff. I was particularly impressed with the proportion of boys singing and playing instuments in a variety of combinations. I especially enjoyed the percussion ensemble whose 'Hey ya!' was played on varying lengths of plastic tubes. The music department is to be congratulated for the wealth of musical talents it has fostered and coached to an entertaining standard. Very well done Baldragon!

Dundee Choral Union - Caird Hall Sunday 13 December 2009

I attended Dundee Choral Union's Christmas Concert, earlier this evening in the Caird Hall. The programme comprised:

• Serenade For Strings by Elgar
• Gloria by Rutter
• Choral Fantasy by Beethoven and
  
• Mass Of The Children by Rutter.

The performers included:

• Dundee Choral Union - comprising 34 sopranos, 38 contraltos, 11 tenors and 23 basses
• National Youth Choir of Scotland
• Chloe Marger, Pianist
• Soprano and Baritone Guest Soloists and the
• Orchestra of Scottish Opera.

Tonight's performance did not disappoint. In fact it was a wonderful musical preparation for Christmas.

The Choral Union, established in 1858, 'to practise and execute chiefly sacred music' is, I think, one of our most enduring and outstanding cultural organisations in the city.

Chistmas Story at the Winter Light NIght

The recent controversy about Christmas being cancelled in Dundee was brought about by the SNP administration bringing forward plans in August for the re-branding of the Switching on of the Christmas lights as Winter Light Night. I was one of the few Councillors that night who actually spoke out against this at the City Development Committee meeting, decrying the secularisation of the event. When I heard that commercial interests in the city were in favour, I asked whether the churches had been consulted and the reply was negative. In his press release dated Friday 21 August 2009, Councillor Dawson said, "I am very much looking forward to being one of the 25,000 people we expect to take advantage of a wide and varied programme including street entertainment and retail opportunities." Understandably, this has provoked negative reactions, especially from members of church communities in Dundee. I hope that in the changes that are now being made at the last minute to include a CHRISTmas strand in the proceedings, there is room to properly engage with Advent and the anticipation of Christmas by telling the Christmas story. It would be a pity if there was no room at our Inn to accommodate and celebrate Christmas.
Importantly, the christian season of Advent begins on Sunday 29 November not Friday 27 November.