News / In brief for 11 August 2011
Wooly minded
SHETLAND Amenity Trust is inviting folk to submit their memories of Shetland wool in a very short story, the best of which will be published later this year.
Entries will also join the competition being run by the trust and Jamieson & Smith (Shetland Wool Brokers) Ltd to win an £11,000 bespoke handmade bed by Vi-Spring.
The aim is to gather and rekindle fond memories and experiences of wool, fleeces and textiles in Shetland.
Marketing officer Emma Miller said: “The majority of Shetlanders will have experiences and memories of wool, whether it be crofting, knitting or even a favourite old jumper belonging to granddad.
“Preserving these memories in a publication for current and future generations is an excellent way of ensuring these stories are not forgotten, and will bring a nostalgic smile to all who read them.”
Entries should be 100 to 300 words long to accompany a photograph or drawing of a wool/textile related subject and be submitted to Shetland Museum and Archives, Jamieson & Smith (Shetland Wool Brokers ) Ltd in Lerwick’s North Road or realshetlandstories@shetlandamenity.org by 15 September.
The winners will be announced during Wool Week from 10 to 16 October.
More details can be found at www.facebook.com/realshetlandstories
The North Star
THREE Shetland photographers are holding an exhibition remembering Lerwick’s old cinema and music venue The North Star before it is finally demolished for flats.
The Harbour Street building opened as The Picture Palace 98 years ago and closed in 2007.
Over the past year Chloe Garrick, Jane Matthews and Emily Sharp have had access to photograph the building in its dilapidated state and start showing their efforts The Pier Store, in the museum and archives from Saturday.
Others are invited to upload their own images or comments on the North Star Project Facebook site or leave them on a designated wall at the exhibition. More information is available at www.northstarproject.co.uk.
Family and friends
FERRY operator NorthLink is bringing back its family and friends discount scheme to run from 1 September to 18 December, allowing islanders to nominate up to six people to share the 30 per cent islander discount on fares.
More than 28,000 people have signed on for the offer since it was first introduced three years ago.
Registration is via www.northlinkferries.co.uk and is now open. The discount, which previously ran from February to June, only applies to passengers and their vehicles, not to cabins.
It will not apply to the Friday night southbound trip or the Sunday night northbound trip, and only registered islanders can register.
Leatherback turtles
PEOPLE are being asked to keep their eyes peeled for endangered leatherback turtles in August, the month during which they are most commonly seen in UK waters.
The huge creatures, which can weigh up to one tonne and measure up to three metres, are increasing in number in the Atlantic while they face extinction in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
The Marine Conservation Society is trying to record their movements and is asking people to report any sitings to www.mcsuk.org.
MCS biodiversity programme manager Peter Richardson said leatherbacks might be doing well in the Atlantic due to an abundance of their jellyfish prey or collapses in populations of predators like tuna and sharks.
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