Getting Bonnie Prince Charlie's Story Stitched Up?

National Press Takes an Interest in the new Tapestry

As chance would have it, one of the volunteer embroiderer's for our Prestonpans Tapestry, Gaynor Allen, is also a journalist, so we were delighted that she got pieces in Sunday Times Ecosse and The Scotsman.

The Sunday Times office clearly also had a word with Highlander Rob Gibson MSP once Gaynor's piece was in, to see if they could conjure up some criticism and his comments are paraphrased below. We thought it wise at the Trust to get in touch with Rob [a] better to understand his comment and [b] to let him know we'd be all in favour of others taking the tapestry further along - although our goal was to tell of the hopes and ambitions fuelled by victory for the Prince at Prestonpans. We all know the campaign ended in failure of course, but it remains the Trust's view that the likelihood that all too many dream projects fail can never be seen as a reason not to do one's very best to achieve what one believes to be right.

Here at the Trust we have hopes and ambitions to conserve and interpret on a fine scale what happened at Prestonpans in September 1745. We might not convince the nation at large to back us with capex of £15 million, but we have every intention of making the case and giving it all our energy in the coming 18 months.

Rob Gibson responded by return from Holyrood as follows:
"The Sunday Times did not ask my opinion. I did tell Marc Horne that you had every right to tell the story your way and up to your chosen point. Others can make other tapestries. So, I am no critic. I'm for local expression. Best wishes, Rob"

click on Sunday Times [23rd August] and Scotsman [24th] press cuttings to enlarge