Twitter and Facebook were both used by the mystery staffer to launch the tirade of abuse suggesting that people had been sacked as the closure of the Gazette card shop was confirmed and claiming that local personalities and contributors were actually being bad-mouthed by the editor.

The Facebook tirades were deleted within the hour but sources say the Twitter password is still missing or has been changed by the staff member whose current employment status is a strict secret, apparently.

After reports appeared on the BBC and elsewhere saying that a serving employee was involved in posting the toxic online criticism of the editor and the paper itself, Jane Muirhead, the Group Head of PR at owner Johnston Press, haughtily batted off requests for further information.

She replied: “I’m not going to comment on the individual involved – nor what the circumstances surrounding it was but will say simply that we’re dealing with it internally.”

A reporter who had worked at the Gazette for the last few months said on Twitter that he did have an argument with the editor before he left but added: “I can confirm I did not leave those messages although I have an idea who did.”

Along with concerns over the quality of the newspaper and the outsourcing of island jobs, there have been constant claims recently that the Gazette is severely understaffed under Johnston Press. Although it had four dedicated reporters last year, staff who left have not been replaced and there have been recent times that the editor and the sportswriter/photographer have had to throw a paper together between them.

A source close to some of the personalities concerned, who spoke on condition of anonymity, tonight said: “There is disappointment that the editor does not see it as her role to protect jobs and put out a quality newspaper but maybe she is not sure of her own position.
“Working in conditions like that, there is no chance to follow up on tips about exclusive stories or launch campaigns and the result is just a series of rehashed press releases. It’s mostly stuff that everyone has read days before.
“Johnston Press constantly claims to be committed to the Gazette so it must still make a few bob on the over-priced advertising. However, Johnston is deliberately running down the editorial operation and betraying people.
“Readers are not daft. They can see the paper is padded out with cheap and dull agency fillers and oversize advertising for Johnston Press’s own irrelevant crap. It is not good value for £1.05p which is why so few buy it now.”

The source added: “The staff know only too well it has poor headlines, poor grammar and dull topics that everyone already knows about. They know that something has to give soon but no one’s listening.”

The meltdown at the Gazette has already featured in national newspapers including The Herald and The Mirror as well as industry publications.

Ten tons of errors. Where was Gazette columnist Reverend I D Campbell’s headline from last week written and edited?

Rival newspapers have also not been slow to say that the Gazette is nowadays hardly a local newspaper anyway under its feverishly cost-cutting owner. Paul Wood, the managing director of the West Highland Free Press, pointed out something positive saying: “With adverts created in India, copy subbed throughout the UK and call centre sales, the Stornoway Gazette twitter rammy is at least local.”

With insiders saying print sales are dreadful and falling, there has been recurring interest from island business figures in asking Johnston Press if it will let them take the ailing publication off its hands. I now understand recent events may spark just such an approach again.

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They say “cheap” mattresses sold by doorstep sellers might not comply with safety regulations and may be a possible fire hazard, or you could even be sold a second-hand mattress recovered and labelled with logos to look like new.

 A spokesperson said: “The mattress sold from the back of a van scam has been known to our Trading Standards colleagues throughout the country for several years,  however we believe this is the first time the islands have been targeted.”

 Trading Standards are looking for any information on doorstep sellers operating in the area. Trading Standards can be contacted on 01851 82294 or out of hours on Faire the community Careline on 01851 701702. Doorstep sellers may also be reported to the police on 101 or in an emergency dial 999.

 Trading Standards again advise residents to keep an eye out for elderly neighbours and relatives who the sellers may target for a sale.

 A Youtube video “The rip off van scam”  produced by The National Bed Federation, gives an insight into some of the problems which you could encounter when buying at the doorstep.

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https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/st-kilda-swim-song-single/id1033226698

Young Barvas singer-songwriter Rosie Sullivan recently scooped the top prize in her age range in a major UK music competition. Now she has recorded a song she composed for the recent epic efforts of the St Kilda swim team.

Rosie

It is already available on iTunes.

All profits from the song are going to the good causes that the record-breaking swim was for. They are Yorkhill Children’s Charity, the cystic fibrosis charity The Leanne Fund, The Fishermen’s Mission and the Aberlour Child Care Trust.

You need to have an iTunes account and it then costs a mere 79p to download it. Click the link above.

Rosie, who is 12, won the seven to 12-year-old category of the Song Academy Young Songwriter Competition.

The post Rosie Sullivan releases song for St Kilda swim appeared first on Iain Maciver Writes.

Loganair has apologised and admitted its services have fallen short over recent months. The company has also announced that it is to undergo a ‘top-to-bottom’ review of its entire operation to achieve better punctuality and reliability for all of its passengers.

Loganair trading as Flybe

Shadow transport minister David Stewart was caught up in a four-hour delay himself at Benbecula Airport last month after the plane was removed from the route and redirected to Glasgow. He complained to Loganair and transport minister Derek Mackay after constituents said services had slipped in recent months and delays were becoming commonplace.

Mr Stewart said: “I welcome the acknowledgement from Loganair that services have fallen short over recent times, and I welcome the operational improvement programme which they have launched to address this. Loganair have told me that they appreciate the punctuality and reliability of services have not been good enough. The improvement programme is a ‘top to bottom’ review of their entire operation to achieve better punctuality and reliability for all Loganair passengers.

Mr Stewart continued “I know how frustrating delays and cancellations are for passengers, particularly when onward journeys and overnight stays have to be altered as a result. Island communities need to know they have reliable air and sea services. I welcome the apology from Loganair and I look forward to seeing improvement in the future.”

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The round-the-world gyrocopter man Norman Surplus is on the way and took off from the Faroes after 8am today. He should be in Stornoway before lunch, depending on weather conditions.

Photo: Belfast Telegraph

The live Satellite Tracker will show his actual progress at any time.

Planned timetable today (subject to change at short notice)

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Here is the link to the webcam showing the current conditions at Vága Floghavn, the airport where he is waiting to go.

Vága Floghavn webcam

The post Gyrocopter seems to be fogbound in Faroes appeared first on Iain Maciver Writes.

The Northern Ireland lifeboat cox Norman Surplus is on his way from Iceland to the Faroe Islands this afternoon (Friday) before the last leg of his round-the-world record-breaking trip in his gyrocopter.

Norman coming in to land.  Photo: Belfast Telegraph

If conditions remain as they are, it looks like the weather may hold to allow Norman to reach the UK tomorrow – and that will mean a landing at Stornoway, sometime in the afternoon hopefully.

The final leg to Stornoway from the Faroes is 255 miles and the time he takes will depend on the wind and weather.

You can track his progress up to the minute here:

Live Gyrocopter Tracker

This is the video made five years ago before setting off:

And here is preparing to fly across the USA:

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The survey, which can be anonymous, will take about 15 minutes and should be sent back to Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS) by August 23rd.

https://response.questback.com/scottishgovernment/HMICScall_handling_questionnaire/

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We knew everything about the late Cilla Black. She was the queen of Saturday evening telly but there were a couple of people around who she mentioned but who we never knew. Her husband Bobby was one. They were in the papers sometimes but I rarely if ever saw them on the telly together.

There there was Graham. She introduced him on Blind Date in treacle-think Scouse as “arr Graham”, the one who summarised the over-rehearsed spiel of the quivering hopefuls perched on the shoogly stools. But who was he? It is often the case that someone who is not seen has a face better suited to radio. Yet he was so calm and confident, ending his summary with a firm: “The decision is yours.”

Someone else with a decision to make today is Norman Surplus. An amazing guy, he may this week become the first person to fly an autogyro round the world. Well, not quite, but that is not his fault. The blame for that lies with that rude cove called Vladimir Putin. In case you don’t know what an autogyro is, it looks like a tiny, open helicopter.

A view from Norman’s gyrocopter

In fact, it isn’t a helicopter at all because the big rotor is not powered though it spins like a chopper’s. Those blades act more like a glider and the power comes from the smaller prop behind it. With no protection from the elements, flying it can be chilly. A pilot needs to don a few semmits.

After surviving bowel cancer, Norman, a lifeboat cox from Larne in Northern Ireland, decided to fly round the world in the tiny open aircraft. Yay, why not? He then learned how to fly and in 2010, he took off in a yellow one, registration G-YROX, from Belfast. In the months that followed he whirred around Europe, then headed way out east.

Over Saudi Arabia, huge storms were ahead. He scanned the desert and spotted – no, I don’t believe it – a lone filling station. He can land that buggy in 10 metres and he screeched to a halt on the forecourt. Once the attendants got over the shock, they were helpful. They refuelled him (unleaded, of course) and gave him a bed for the night before he put-puttered off for Riyadh.

In Japan that Norman came unstuck. He got permission from the Russian authorities to cross at the narrow straits with Alaska but was delayed in getting there. He reapplied and a bolshy official said: “Nyet nebol’shiye gyrocopters ne dopuskayutsya.” That means: “No small gyrocopters allowed.” He even wrote to the official’s boss who said: “Nyet, nyet, nyet.”

Norman appealed directly to Vladimir Putin. When the president doesn’t reply, that also means: “Nyet.” Apparently. There was nyeting else for it, Stormin’ Norman had to postpone the flight. G-YROX was laid up in a Japanese hangar for three years until Norman got up one day earlier this year and decided to hitch across the Pacific. So, after a few weather-related delays, he is about to come back home.

Another circumnavigator, Russian Sergey Ananov, has also been trying to get round the world in a small Robinson R-22 chopper. Just a day behind Norman, the news through Sergey was missing. He had crash landed on an ice floe in the Davis Strait. His wee chopper skited along the ice and plopped into the sea. Sergey had seconds to get out before it sank.

Sergey wasn’t hurt but discovered other inhabitants were on the ice. Three polar bears. Playing hide and seek with them was no fun. Then when he spotted a coastguard ship, it was with his last flare that Sergey attracted attention. A helicopter got to him on Monday morning last week just as Momma Bear, Poppa Bear and Baby Bear were putting on their bibs for breakfast.

When I last checked, Norman was in Egilsstaðir in Iceland. If all has gone according to plan, he will be in the Faroe Islands today and ready to hop the 255 miles to the UK tomorrow. To Stornoway, to be precise. No autogyro has ever flown the Atlantic before. That alone will put him in the record books. If all goes well, he will glide into Stornoway Airport and a Hughson’s Vehicle Services recovery truck will give him and his yellow craft a piggyback down to Stornoway lifeboat station to see some of our local heroes.

Maybe Norman takes a pint. If he goes for a swift half, he should check out some of our Stornoway hotspots which can be as friendly and welcoming as any ice floe between Russia and Alaska. Just watch out for our local bears though.

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