Cultural Tides – Doric Workshops at Meethill School

March 11, 2026Leave a comment

As you can see from the second photo, it was a bright and sunny day up in Peterhead yesterday for my first visit to Meethill School as part of the Cultural Tides project organised by Aberdeenshire Museums Service !

I had great fun with the first two Doric workshops – an introduction to Doric in the morning where the P5 and 6 pupils had fun showing off how much Doric they knew, miming Doric words for eachother to guess (10/10 from what I saw!) and creating a Doric vocabulary for use in the other workshops.

In the afternoon they voted (very wisely!) for their favourite of 5 traditional songs connected with Peterheid and the surrounding area, decided what the song was “missing” and added a whole new verse (and a half! Watch this space)

I also got to see the school’s Storytelling Chair for the first time. (First photo) It was made by the folks at HMP Grampian in memory of Mr Black, who was the headteacher until 2024. there are amazing images from childrens’ books all over it and… some of my favourite Doric words!

Fireside Chat with the Grampian Association of Storytellers

February 19, 2026February 23, 2026Leave a comment

I’ve been involved with The Grampian Association of Storytellers – GAS since 2003, so I’m chuffed to be doing their Fireside Chat on Wednesday 18th March

I’ll be talking about the Annie Shirer project I did in 6 North East schools

Here’s a link to the Facebook event – https://www.facebook.com/events/1625439261988715/

Hope to see you there!

Doric ABCs in Portsoy

November 18, 2025Leave a comment

A grand visit yesterday tae Durnhythe Care Home in Portsoy – anither ABC visit fae @doricbooks !
Wid ye believe Fizzy demanded an ice cream aifter or she widnae come oot tae spik tae abdy!?

An ABC visit to Faithlie Care Home

November 12, 2025Leave a comment

A grand visit tae Faithlie Care Home in the Broch on Monday daen Doric ABCs for Doric Books

The theme this wik wis “Skweel” an we hid some grand songs an tales an blethers. We spoke aboot fit wi got intae trouble for fan wi were bairns. Aene quine got the tawse for forgettin her pencil!!

(An then it turned oot aene o the carers hid my mither as a teacher fan she wis a bairn!!)

The Scots Tawse used for corporal punishment (aka “the belt”) in schools. Photo from Wikipedia.

Doric ABCs at Kintore!

November 6, 2025Leave a comment

Fit a grand visit tae the residents o Overdon Care Home in Kintore wi Sheena on Tuesday! This was a session organised by Doric Books far we’ve been daen oor Doric ABCs

Active, Blethers an Community Singing!

The theme this wik wis “Hame” an we hid stories aboot a wifie fa winted a bigger hoose (an mair aifter that), Purley Wurley Puddock an a hale bunch o sangs includin Sheena’s Washin Machine sang!

(Photo fae a ghostie nicht wi did a couple o year ago – we were ower busy tae tak photos on Tuesday!)

Annie Shirer – Doric Rhymes

October 5, 2025Leave a comment

I’m gey chuffed to be able to share the news that the Annie Shirer Doric Rhymes web page (https://annieshirerrhymes.co.uk/) has been updated with rhymes and illustrations from pupils at Strichen and New Deer Primary schools!

P3/4 (Strichen) and P3 (New Deer) worked with me as a class to create some new Doric rhymes about Mormond Hill, the Culsh Monument and things they did and didn’t like as well as illustrating these rhymes and some of Annie’s original collected rhymes from over 100 years ago!

The P6/7s worked with Pauline as a class to create new seasonal rhymes about coming back to school after the summer holidays, the hairst (harvest) and rhymes about farm work and the New Deer Show. They then went off on their own into groups to create new Doric rhymes based on some of Annie’s original collected rhymes. All of this came with some excellent illustrations which you can see on the web page!

Thanks must go to Ewan McVicar who has converted me to one of Annie’s No1 fans and to The Doric Board who funded this project.

If you’d like a Doric rhyme creation workshop in your school, please get in touch with me (see “contact/links” above)

Here’s some of my favourite illustrations from Strichen and New Deer!

Strichen School and the Loons an Lassikies Project

August 31, 2025Leave a comment

Auld Deer, New Deer, Strichen and the Broch
Syne we’ll hae a straucht road,
An that will gar me hough

It’s my fifth visit to a North East school as part of the Loons an Lassikies project! The P6/7s and P3/4s at Strichen School will be creating new rhymes based on those collected over 100 years ago by the wonderful Annie Shirer (who can be seen in the photo below on the right wearing a wonderful corsage ).

You can find out the rhymes created so far by going to https://annieshirerrhymes.co.uk/

The project has been funded by The Doric Board and I’m really looking forward to seeing what the pupils come up with!

It’s all about the planning…

August 30, 2025Leave a comment

It might be the weekend, but I’m busy busy busy planning upcoming projects!

First of all, I’ve been preparing my plan of action for the next 6 weeks with my Promise Group. We’re creating a story, working with hand puppets, making shadow puppets and filming it all before showing the film to their grown ups and the rest of the school at the end of the term!

I’ve also been planning ABC visits to care homes across the North East with funding Doric Books have received from Hands Up For Trad! The sessions will be based around Work, School and Home and will aa be in Doric – the Activities, the Blethers and the Community Singing. Three of the visits will be with Sheena Blackhall, so I’m really looking forward to that!

I’m delighted I’ve still got two visits to local schools funded by The Doric Board – working with the rhymes of Annie Shirer, a project thought up by Ewan McVicar – you can find out more about that here – https://annieshirerrhymes.co.uk/

And I’m chuffed to be covering three weeks of Scots Song with SC&T Youth – the songs have been chosen and the fun warm ups are being sung around the house!

I’m also planning the rest of the term’s stories and activities for the GREC Language Cafe. These are free weekly sessions for New Scots, those seeking immigrant status and abdy else learning English as a new language. Each session has a theme and there are often visitors who talk about what they do and what services they provide. My job is to tell a story and come up with ice breaker questions and activities for the Cafeistas. The cafe meets weekly (during school term time) at the Arts Centre on Thursdays between 11 and 3pm. Find out more here – https://grec.co.uk/language-support/

Oh! And the Guiding organisation in the UK has created some new interest badges for Rainbows, Brownies, Guides and Rangers. Including… the Brownies’ FOLKLORE BADGE! So I’ve had fun planning some stories and activities for that.

Aye, I’ve been a busy quine!

Trad Time wi the TMSA – Annie Shirer!

July 9, 2025Leave a comment

Back hame from Glastonbury Festival and Tattie (i.e. KCR Trad Time host Natalie Chalmers!) had a chat wi mi about Annie Shirer and the “Loons an Lassikies” project – ye can hae a listen here!

Peterhead Tours and Stories over the Summer Holidays

July 8, 2025July 9, 2025Leave a comment

A fantastic turn out for today’s Peterhead Tour and for the storytelling session afterwards! Thanks so much to everyone who came along and of course to the kids and big kids that participated in the stories!!