House of the Binns

Having a National Trust membership allows us to jump in the car and sample some heritage, knowing the admission costs are taken care of. It does pay to check the smaller print though. We failed to spot that pre-booking is highly recommended for the mansion we were visiting today. As a result, we arrived to find sold-out signs at the front entrance. We would have to settle for exploring the grounds instead. A vintage coffee van (The Humble Bean) was parked on the lawn and we sipped our refreshments on a bench overlooking the Firth of Forth. The resident peacocks however were nowhere to be seen.

The greensward sloped down towards the tidal river and we could clearly identify Limekilns village on the far shore. Nicole did an impromptu sketch while I phoned my mum. We then followed a trail through a patch of woodland and hiked up to the tower on the small hill. I had been here once before, just prior to Christmas. The weather today was far more conducive to appreciating the panoramic views opening up across the estuary. There is an amusing tale behind the construction of Binns Tower in 1826. The fifth baronet took part in a gambling game involving his friends, each staking £100 to see who could dream up with the most frivolous way of spending the money. Sir James built a structure on the high point of his land, deliberately impeding the views of his neighbours on the Hopetoun Estate. Causing much hilarity, this was the winning idea and the cylindrical tower was promptly erected - apparently at a cost of just £29. It boasted a wind turbine in the 1930s but is topped by a flagpole today. The rich man's folly is now a prominent B-listed local landmark. Archive photos of the interior can be found online. Basically a bare stone chamber with a ladder attached to the wall. The main house is still occupied by descendants of the original owners, the only National Trust property with this distinction. The Dalyell family have lived here since 1612 and legend insists the dynasty will continue as long as the peafowl roam the grounds (and vice versa). They roost in a huge sycamore tree close to the big house. Thomas Dalyell bought the land to create his family dwelling. He was an Edinburgh merchant who initially specialised in the buying and selling of butter from Orkney. He significantly raised his social standing by marrying Janet Bruce, daughter of Edward Bruce, a trusted adviser to King James VI. Their eldest son (also Thomas) enjoyed an international military career, even serving for the Russian Tsar. Back on home soil, he founded the Royal Scots Greys, our only cavalry regiment. There are also colourful tales of him playing cards with the devil. In more recent times, Labour politician Tam Dalyell (1932-2017) held the baronetcy, although he never actively used the title. Opposed to devolution, he famously formulated the West Lothian Question - asking why Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish MPs have the right to vote in Westminster on laws that will only impact England, while the reverse does not apply. Dalyell retired in 2005 after 43 years of service. By this time he had become the Father of the House - a reference to the longest serving MP. The mansion was handed over to the National Trust in 1944 for upkeep, with the Dalyell family retaining residential rights. Tam Dalyell lived in the western wing and his widow Kathleen cooperated closely with the Trust until her recent death.

Next time, we will secure slots on the tour and explore the interior of the house. The highlights include the magnificent plaster ceilings from 1630, commissioned for the visit of King Charles I to Scotland. Also the Scottish Renaissance painted wood decoration, a rare survival from the earliest period of the house. The mansion is Category-B listed and its exterior architecture is certainly impressive. Remodelled several times over the years, the present castellated appearance dates from 1810. The walled garden actively supplied produce until the 1940s. The surrounding parkland is beautifully landscaped. A satisfying day out in Central Scotland. Go see for yourself.

German visit to Dunfermline

It's always nice to be out and about between Christmas and New Year. A chance to walk off some of the prandial excess. A few days of winter sunshine brought many people into Dunfermline town centre and the place was buzzing over the festive period. It's easy to neglect treasures on your own doorstep and one way of appreciating your local assets is to show visitors around your town. Which is exactly what we did. Friends of Nicole's father were holidaying in Edinburgh and they came over by train to Dunfermline for the day.

We met Thomas and Marin outside the historic Alhambra Theatre. Their son Joshua was also present, along with his partner Theresa. Four friendly faces and wonderful company. The distinctive red-brick Alhambra is now over a century old. It functioned successfully as a cinema for decades, while also hosting popular entertainers on the enormous stage (the fourth-largest in Scotland), such as Jimmy Shand, Andy Stewart and the Alexander Brothers. Bingo arrived in the mid-60s, saving the building from dereliction. Thankfully this change of use did not require major interior alterations and the auditorium retains much of the original charm. Stage shows returned in 2008 and the Alhambra is now back inn its original guise. A huge asset to the town. We proceeded along Canmore Street to the Carnegie Library. Dating from 1883, it was the world's first public facility of this type to funded by the Dunfermline-born philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. The adjoining town/city museum and galleries opened in 2017 and draw many visitors. We explored the collections and enjoyed stunning views of the Abbey from the large upstairs windows. The historic church was closed today but we wandered around the graveyard and inspected the remains of the Royal Palace in the far corner. The Forth Bridges were clearly visible in the distance. Our visitors had been impressed by these structures on the journey to Fife. The original rail crossing is an engineering masterpiece and is now classed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The purpose of this post is just to give a flavour of what Dunfermline offers. I have written more extensively about the rich history in other articles. City status was officially conferred in 2022 as part of the Platinum Jubilee. Spending a whole day here is a rewarding experience. We passed into the sprawling Pittencrieff Park - a former private estate purchased by Carnegie in 1902 and gifted to the people the following year. A variety of terrain can be explored. The park is home to historical monuments and an abundance of wildlife (including the famous peacocks). All easily accessible from the city centre. No surprise that "The Glen" (as the park is known locally) regularly wins national awards. We ended our tour by having lunch at the Amorist Bistro Bar, who were able to accommodate a party of six. It was my first visit to the premises and I was perfectly happy with the service and the menu. A relaxing end to a very pleasant day's exploring.

While inside the Carnegie Galleries, I took the opportunity to peruse the current special exhibition. Entitled Utopia, the photography display examines the quest for a perfect life in the towns and cities where we live and work. Our dreams and aspirations are linked to these places, but they are often in a perilous state, struggling to adapt to a rapidly changing world. That's what the blurb said anyway. Unfortunately the material didn't strike a chord with me today. A little too abstract. I prefer more lifelike subject matter. But that's just my personal opinion. I make a point of checking out every travelling exhibition and am happy to have such a thriving scene.

Fife Heritage Railway

Much fanfare surrounded the return of passenger services to Leven last year. The Fife coastal town lost its railway station in 1969, although the seafront power station received freight deliveries until the turn of the century. The double-track line then rusted away for years before being slated for reopening. But train whistles could occasionally be heard in Kirkton Yard, an old marshalling facility next to the inactive route. Fife Heritage Railway - then known as the Kingdom of Fife Railway Preservation Society - acquired the premises in 2001 and began transforming the place into a working railway, initially with diesel stock.

The organisation was formed from the ashes of the Lochty Private Railway - a preservation project that ran between 1967 and 1992, further north in the county on a portion of a former freight link. Lochty even housed the legendary streamlined Union of South Africa locomotive for the first six years of operation! Owner John Cameron (born 1939) was a local farmer and steam enthusiast, who later became chairman of both ScotRail and the National Farmers Union. Fife Heritage Railway has continued to grow since the public were first admitted to the Leven site in 2008. The complex now boasts half a mile of usable track, along with a maintenance depot and canvas covered storage sheds. I went along to a one-off Doors Open Day event and immediately noted the progress made since I'd last visited with my dad, around ten years previously. A tarmac access road and car-park now serve the site, part of a deal worked out with Network Rail, who used the heritage infrastructure to store equipment during the reopening works. Within the compound, new platforms have been built and steam services have been in operation since 2016. Regular running days take place between April and October on the last Sunday in the month, with additional Santa Specials towards the end of the year. Around 4000 people visit each year. Guided tours behind the scenes were on offer today. No services were scheduled but I was able to enter carriages and generally explore the entire site, with volunteers on hand to answer questions and show you around. Not all the rolling stock is rail-worthy and staff have the never-ending job of attempting to bring coaches and locos up to standard. A main reason for including the railway in the Doors Open programme was to raise awareness of the campaign to open a museum. The proposal is costed at £480,000 and three quarters of that sum is available as a government regeneration grant. The challenge for the society is to bridge the funding gap and enable the conversion of the temporary Network Rail office block by the car-park into a permanent exhibition space and café. Shared community facilities also form part of the plans. The new complex would also function as the main halt for the heritage trains, with a triangular pattern of three on-site stations envisaged. The Levenmouth area has a rich industrial history and cargo was exported all over the world from Methil Docks. A museum illustrating this tale would be an exciting development and help breathe life into a community that has long been classed as an area of economic deprivation.

The new railway link to Kirkcaldy and Edinburgh is already doing a good job of putting the town back on the map, both literally and figuratively. Until 1967, you could travel right round the East Neuk of Fife by rail but this was reduced to two end stubs serving Leven and St Andrews, an arrangement swept away just two years later. One can only imagine the popularity of a scenic coastal ride around the Kingdom today. The picturesque fishing villages dotted around the Fife coast attract hordes of visitors all year round. Following the withdrawal of passenger services, the retention of coal traffic to Methil Power Station (and the subsequent mothballing of the line) made the reopening process relatively straightforward, as the basic infrastructure remained in place. A campaign to restore the St Andrews link at the other end of the old loop is bravely battling on. The new Leven Station sits on the branch alignment to the power station. The principal tracks through the town (and beyond) were removed decades ago. Nevertheless, the current terminus offers an ideal location as the bus station, High Street, leisure centre and promenade are all just a short walk away. There was talk of integrating the heritage project with the new transport corridor, but that would have entailed considerable expense and signalling arrangements. Kirkton Yard is now a physically separate entity. A very worthy project and I wish them the best of luck. Raising a six-figure sum is a big ask for such a small organisation. On my way home, I had time to stop at the Merchant House in Kirkcaldy, a seafront property I had visited on Doors Open Day back in the pre-pandemic year of 2019. One of the finest surviving 16th-century townhouses in Scotland (now A-listed), the extensive sloping garden to the rear is partially used by the excellent café on the ground floor. The fine interior decoration includes wall paintings and ceiling artwork between exposed wooden beams. After many uses over the centuries, the building fell into disrepair and was rescued by the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust in the 1980s - a project that lasted 20 years. The upper levels are now partially filled by offices and today I was unable to view a spectacular ship painting (on plaster) I'd previously admired as that particular room is now occupied. Not a disappointment at all. It pleased me to learn the usage had increased.

The passageway through to the garden is named Law's Close, after the first owners of the Merchant House. The entire complex was opened to the public in 2005 and the ceremony conducted by Gordon Brown, who was Chancellor of the Exchequer at the time, and later served as Prime Minister. I enjoyed a refreshment in the café and bagged a window seat overlooking the harbour. Like many former industrial towns, Kirkcaldy has had to cope with changing economic times, as well as shifting social and shopping habits. People do still seek out gathering spaces and and the bottom end of the High Street is in the process of reinventing itself as the Merchant's Quarter. Ships still deliver supplies to the enormous flour mill, one of only two examples remaining in the country. The industrial link remains in force.