Shark bites man in Scotland

Intriguing news on Monday that a man has been attacked by a shark in Scotland.  More intriguing still – the attack actually happened in Edinburgh.  Maybe the shark was feeling unusually aggressive after a night out on the town.

But it does indeed seem that a 23-year-old man has been treated by paramedics after he was bitten by a shark at an Edinburgh aquarium.

An ambulance was sent to Deep Sea World, based in North Queensferry in Fife, near Edinburgh.

A spokesman for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: “We got a call advising us that a 23-year-old male had been bitten on the arm by an angel shark. The sharks are about one-and-a-half metres long.  So we are not exactly talking rampant great white sharks here – more like a slightly pissed-off dogfish.

“He had 15 to 20 puncture wounds on his arm. A crew attended and treated his arm. The patient did not travel to a hospital.”

The spokesman said it was not known if he was an employee or a visitor.

A statement released by Deep Sea World said: “A member of staff received an injury while diving in the aquarium’s main ocean display.  That would seem to show that they did indeed know if the victim was a visitor or an employee.  Perhaps they still don’t know if the employee is going to come back to a job where he might end up on the menu.

“Initial reports would indicate the male member of staff received cuts to his hand after apparently being bitten by an angel shark – a native shark species which is also known as a monkfish.

“The member of staff was treated at the aquarium but did not require hospitalisation. A full investigation is currently being carried out into the incident.”  Maybe they will have to stock vegetarian sharks in future.

Harris Tweed Attempts to be less Scottish

I rather liked the unlikely story of Harris Tweed attempting to gloss over its Scottish roots.   The boss of a Harris Tweed manufacturer denied the firm was “de-Scottishifying” amid fears of a US backlash over the release of Lockerbie bomber. That makes two reasons why the yanks might be uncomfortable wearing their Scottish roots.

 There was outrage in the US when the Scottish Government allowed Abdelbaset al-Megrahi to return to Libya. Harris Tweed Hebrides’ creative director Mark Hogarth was quoted in newspapers saying the company was no longer promoting itself as Scottish.

But chairman Brian Wilson said Mr Hogarth had been “misrepresented”. The former Labour government minister said the Outer Hebrides-based company was not dropping Scotland from its marketing but was emphasising, as it always had done, its islands’ roots.

Mr Wilson said the firm had worries about the US market’s response to the release of Megrahi However, he said Harris Tweed Hebrides had not expressed its concerns as strongly as other businesses in Scotland.

Mr Hogarth had been quoted as saying that everyone the company had spoken to in the US felt that a serious mistake was made in releasing Megrahi, who is terminally ill. He reportedly said: “We have been getting a lot of feedback and we have had to de-Scottishify the image of the brand. If he had not been released we would not have altered anything.”

Speaking to BBC Scotland, Mr Wilson said: “It is completely wrong to say that Harris Tweed is dropping Scotland. Obviously some words were said back at the Harris Tweed farm. He added: “To talk about de-Scottishifying or dropping Scotland is complete and utter nonsense and is really quite dangerous nonsense.”

Harris Tweed is specially handwoven wool by communities in Scotland’s Western Isles.

It puts you in mind of McGrannies beavering away in front of a peat fire – but the truth is I suspect very different Unless of course they now outsource all that to remote communities in China.

I have to say I didn’t even realize that Harris Tweed was still being bought by anybody other than Prince Charles.