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Published Journalism |
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“Easy Riders,” was the heading on the first ever story I had printed in a national newspaper. The Scottish Sun ran the piece the morning after I had covered the Glasgow Tigers v Long Eaton Invaders speedway match at Shawfield.
It was 1994 and I remember nervously cobbling together 10 paragraphs and then phoning the copy in from a call box in the Gorbals. How times have changed. I was up bright and breezy to get my copy of the paper and excitedly flicked through the pages searching for my work. And there it was…nestling at the foot of the page. Almost an after-thought, but it was my after-thought.
It didn’t matter that it was just one paragraph, 23 words long. It was a phenomenal feeling knowing that the lad from Maryhill – with no O Levels – had made the “big time!” Now, 21 years (and counting) and a forestation of trees later, I can exclusively reveal that I still get almost the same buzz today as I did back then.
There is still something magical about the “by line.” Something which creates a wee stirring inside. It also makes it so much better when your work makes it into the paper verbatim. It was a wee while before the Sun started using my copy the way it had been filed, but it was another proud moment.
In this section of the website you can “read all about it” as I’ve included a selection of the stories I’ve had published, from sports to travel reviews and much, much more.
Travel Reviews
I've been writing travel reviews for the Daily Record for a couple of years now and Knock Castle has to be the most sumptious
ever! It was luxury personified...
We decided that a luxury log cabin in the middle of Sherwood Forest would be fun. I thought it was great - but Mrs Holmes didn't!
Liverpool was fantastic. The Liner Hotel was incredible and the Beatles tour, Ferry Cross the Mersey etc...
This wasn't an official press trip, but the hotel staff were so helpful that I decided to write a review when I got home to get them
a wee bit of publicity!
Speedway articles for the Sun
Scottish speedway rider David McAllan was a real tough of the track
Berwick speedway promoter Peter Waite was a journalist's dream...and The Sun loved it
Edinburgh Monarchs signed Rocket Ronnie Correy - and got a man who had broken just about every bone in his body
This story was all about the 15,000 heats of action!
I will never forget the night David Walsh crashed at Shawfield...
Anti-Knife Campaign
First story I did with Kelly McGee, who lost her brother so tragically to knife crime
The full story of Kelly's brother's tragic death
We launch our ant-knife crime campaign in earnest
River City star Derek Munn - an ex-copper - backed our campaign
St Mirren manager Danny Lennon backed our calls to bin the blades
Persuading a Paisley funeral parlour to back our campaign was a real coup
Paisley's top cop was right behind us
The then Scottish Justice Secretary was forced to issue a grovelling apology to the McGee family
St Mirren legend Tony Fitzpatrick urged youngsters to steer clear of knives
Taggart star Colin McCredie was only to happy to lend a hand
Renfrewshire politician Stuart Clark spoke from the heart
Chart-topping star Olly Murs spoke highly of our anti-knife drive
Paisley's very own ice hockey stars showed off our anti-blade stickers
Gordon McCorkell - a star of BBC soap River City - helped us get the message out there
TV chef Nick Nairn insisted knives should be kept in the kitchen
A Renfrewshire youth football team got our anti-knife logo on their strips!
Parents of a murdered teen opened their hearts to the paper over their personal agony - and backed our campaign
Football Reports
Covering Alex Neil and Hamilton Accies before his move to the English Premiership
Stevie May was a big hit at Alloa before trying his luck down south
Working for The Sun meant I could be sent just about anywhere in Scotland
Getting a different line was seen as a "result" - and Zander Sutherland was a joy to speak to
Miscellaneous
I wrote this tragic story for the Daily Record
This story first appeared in the Paisley Daily Express
The Daily Record loved this story about one of Paisley's best-known magicians
Fernando Ricksen
Chatting to Fernando about his forthcoming benefit match for the Daily Record was a real pleasure
The Daily Record gave Fernando's match great coverage
Former Ranger Michael Mols was happy to speak to the Daily Record before Fernando's match
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