Thoughtland

PK column in The National: Let’s all channel our thoughts on what we want to see on the BBC's new Scottish platform

By Pat Kane. First published on FEBRUARY 25TH, 2017

‘ALL things are possible. But happen less and less”. It’s always been a sore line from Deacon Blue’s Fergus Sings The Blues – a shot straight to the heart of our national miserabilism.

But the new BBC Scotland channel is something of a triumph for those who steadily believe things can happen more and more in Scotland, even short of our necessary statehood.

PK column in The National: Are we ready for the space-time shift of having a female Doctor?

By Pat Kane. First published on FEBRUARY 18TH, 2017

SO the bookies say Tilda Swinton, our resident White Witch of Nairn, leads the betting on who will become the new Doctor Who.

For this viewer – best described as a brooding former fan – the prospects of this are instantly pleasing. First, there’s the scene where the reincarnated Doctor starts to gingerly lay hands on his (now, hopefully, her) new form.

For connoisseurs of those moments when TV captures a moment of social change, there are great possibilities here.

PK column in The National: Regeneration has pitfalls we have to bypass after independence

By Pat Kane. First published on FEBRUARY 11TH, 2017

FOR as long as I’ve been a Glaswegian – which is since student days – I have simply taken the M8 at Charing Cross for granted. But pinch yourself for a moment, and you realise what a monstrous chasm it is.

A road bridge allows you to trudge from the train station to the Mitchell Library. Stop halfway, press your chest to the rail, and all the vehicles in the world thunder madly and relentlessly below you. God knows what damage is done every time you inhale.

PK column in The National: Why serious stuff still demands a sense of humour

By Pat Kane. First published on FEBRUARY 4TH, 2017

SO if you’re going to prank Donald Trump by chucking swastika-covered golfballs at him, as he opens one of his tremendous courses, you should do it at Trump Turnberry.

According to the comedian Simon Brodkin, whose stage name is Lee Nelson and who perpetrated said stunt last June, he was slumped in custody when a Scottish sergeant noted: “You’re that guy”.