Scotland Biography

For years, A.J. Bennett was the first person onto a crime scene. Before the detectives and the forensics teams, it was her and the body, the only sound her flashbulb as it lit up scenes of unimaginable horror. It was her job to record, in exhaustive detail, the images that would allow someone's last moments to be understood. Now she takes us into the shadowy world of the crime scene photographer, from murders to suicides, accidents to assassinations.

Ashes and Stones is a moving and personal journey, along rugged coasts and through remote villages and modern cities, in search of the traces of those accused of witchcraft in seventeenth-century Scotland. We visit modern memorials, roadside shrines and standing stones, and roam among forests and hedge mazes, folk lore and political fantasies. From fairy hills to forgotten caves, we explore a spellbound landscape.

In My Scotland, number one best-selling author Val McDermid takes readers to the landscapes she has known all her life and the places where her stories and characters reside. This remarkable book uncovers Val's own Scotland in all its glory - from the iconic Isle of Skye to the majestic streets of Edinburgh, from the undiscovered hideaways of the Highlands to the wild and untamed Jura. Featuring excerpts from Val McDermid's best-selling novels and charting Karen Pirie's Fife to Lindsay Gordon's Glasgow, My Scotland is an unforgettable and uniquely personal journey.

In the five years since Doddie Weir's MND diagnosis, he has continued to live life to the max. He's raised millions for research and support for his fellow sufferers with the help of some incredible charity fundraisers, celebrated his 50th birthday and been awarded an OBE. And throughout it all, Doddie has tackled life head on, like the mad charging giraffe he has always been, both on and off the rugby pitch. Now, join Doddie as he lifts the lid on what his life with MND has really been like, both in public and in private.

As a young man in Glasgow’s underworld, Ian "Blink" MacDonald earned a reputation for fighting and stabbing his enemies. After refusing to work for Arthur "The Godfather" Thompson, he attempted to steal £6 million in a high-risk armed bank robbery. While serving 16 years, Blink met the torture-gang boss Eddie Richardson, the serial killer Archie Hall, notorious lifer Charles Bronson and members of the Krays.

This is the true story of a murder that took place in Scotland in 1968. It attracted huge media attention at the time: The crowds of people waiting for seats at the trial were so large that the police were forced to erect crush barriers. No wonder - this case had a beautiful woman accused of murder, bizarre sex, money, and a very odd love rectangle. Strangely, this case has since been largely forgotten.