Belfast’s Stiff Little Fingers, who headlined the very first Wickerman in 2002 will undoubtedly deliver a raucous performance in the hugely popular punk & ska tent on Friday 26^th July, while on Saturday 27^th Edinburgh based five piece, The Rezillos, will take to the stage to stir up the crowds. Joining them on the bill are Anti-Nowhere League, Vice Squad, Random Hand and Buster Shuffle.

Friday’s line up is completed by Random Hand, who have toured extensively sharing their ferocious ska-punk-metal style; Nick Welsh with his show ‘The Life & Times of a Ska Man’; The Kubricks, a seven-piece band from London; Scooter Tent favourites Bombskare; Davy and The Hosebeat, 2Tone ska originals Capone and the Bullets; Annan boys More From Jim and Molotov.

On Saturday, East London’s Buster Shuffle will get the Scooter Tent bouncing and they will be joined by the ever popular, ska pop act The Amphetameanies; 4ft Fingers; The Ramones all female tribute act The Ramonas; Slagerij; The Hostiles; The Negatives and Urang Matang.

This summer, founding partner Tennent’s Lager is joining fans in counting down to T in the Park’s 20 year milestone, packaging up the pride and passion it has for Scotland’s best music festival with the release of a striking new limited edition can.

Celebrating the enduring success and legendary spirit of the T in the Park experience, the 440ml can features a silver radial design stamped on both sides with the iconic festival logo – and a ‘Here’s to 20 Great Years!’ tribute.

The outer pack transports fans straight to an illuminated T in the Park main stage at night, bursting off the shelf with images of the artists, the audience and the spectacular fireworks that close the festival each year.

The can will be available as a limited edition for the Scottish off trade from late April in 8, 10 and 12 can packs, and a 500ml version of the can will be available exclusively on-site for fans at this year’s festival. Consumers will also have the chance to win T in the Park tickets through an on-pack promotion.

The competition, which has attracted over 3000 entries in past years, offers an incredible prize of £2500 for the winning image in addition to a trip for two to the Pulteney Distillery in Wick.

Last year’s winner, Brian Cook, scooped the prize with his stunning image entitled ‘Bay of Lairg’.

The Sunday Express and Old Pulteney are looking for creative snapshots that encapsulate Britain’s coastal landscape and the nation’s relationship with the sea – send your image to competition@burtgreener.co.uk to enter.

Heading once again to St Andrew Square, the Essential Edinburgh extravaganza will feature a new  ‘Fresh as a Daisy’ theme which will be accompanied by a fresh new format, with six of the city’s most prestigious beauty retailers – John Lewis, Jenners, Harvey Nichols, Boots, Debenhams and the Roxburghe Hotel – each taking over their own marquee.

The weekend will offer city centre shoppers the chance to ‘freshen up their look’ with a menu of free treatments, with brands for this year including Shu Uemura from Harvey Nichols, Liz Earle from John Lewis and Clarins which will be in the Jenners marquee.  Luxurious treatments courtesy of the spa team at the city’s Roxburghe Hotel will also be available, alongside Superdrug and Lush Spa.

The event is organised and funded by Essential Edinburgh, the city’s Central Business Improvement District and aims to promote the wealth of beauty and lifestyle retailers on offer in Edinburgh city centre and encourage shoppers into the area.

New wave rock band Vukovi will headline the tent on Friday, while Saturday’s lead act will be tech-electro trio Roman Nose.  They will be joined by Fat Goth, TeKlo, Woodenbox, Siobhan Wilson, Vigo Thieves and Fake Major, as well as other rising stars.

Glasgow four-piece Vukovi will be returning to the festival with the promise of a raucous performance and a sound influenced by the likes of Skunk Anansie and Rage Against the Machine.  The band’s reputation for delivering a storming live set was built on sold out shows throughout Glasgow and its alternative, experimental sound is guaranteed to be a hit with Wicker fans.  Vukovi will be joined by energetic electro act Teklo, dubbed ‘One to Watch’ by the BBC, and his yet-to-be released new material is sure to wow the crowds.

On Saturday, the Solus tent will pick up the pace with masked trio Roman Nose who write, produce and direct their own tech-electro stage shows.  Their bass-heavy existence and heart-crunching sound is set to have the tent jumping.  Also announced for Saturday are hotly tipped act Vigo Thieves, a Wishaw band who  use driven beats, explosive synthesisers and soaring emotionally charged vocals to produce epic songs which echo the likes of New Order and U2.

For more additions to the Solus tent visit www.thewickermanfestival.co.uk.

Award-winning artist Amy Macdonald will take to the stage on Saturday 27^th July to entertain festival goers with her first Wickerman performance. Her heartfelt sound and raw performance style promises a rousing set that will include tracks from her three critically acclaimed albums.

She will be joined on the bill by The Enemy who promise top quality, unapologetic rock’n’roll, and hits from their three UK top ten albums. Performing on Friday 26^th is multi-platinum selling artist KT Tunstall. KT, who will be returning to the spotlight this summer after an 18 month break, will be performing a mix of new material from her much anticipated fourth studio album and classic hits from her back catalogue.

The full list of artists released is available on the Wickerman website – www.thewickermanfestival.com.

On 14^th February, Wickerman played cupid by launching a nationwide competition offering twelve music-loving romantics the opportunity to propose to their partner in a new Wicker Love Lounge – a unique festival setting created especially for this year’s festival.

To win one of the twelve ‘Wicker Love Lounge’ slots, entrants must submit 100 words on how they met their partner and why they want to propose at the Wickerman Festival. Entries will be accepted from 14^th February to 14^th April 2013 via wickerlovelounge@burtgreener.co.uk. Successful entrants will be notified by 30^th April and arrangements made to ensure that their unique Wicker proposal stands the best chance of receiving a ‘yes’! http://www.thewickermanfestival.co.uk/2013/02/13/wickerman-helps-fans-with-pitch-perfect-proposal/ 

The whisky, which has been matured in American bourbon and Spanish sherry oak casks at its Knockdhu distillery, has been bottled in its most natural form – neither chill-filtered nor coloured.

Priced at a recommended retail price of £85, only 950 cases will be made available throughout 2013 in the UK, USA, Sweden, Russia, Denmark, Japan and Taiwan.

On Friday 26^th July, Bobby Gillespie and the band will take their iconic style to the stage in what will be Primal Scream’s only Scottish festival appearance this year. Debuting material from their eagerly awaited new album, their first in five years, alongside classic hits from their back catalogue, the influential group will be ‘moving on up’ to the top of the bill with what is set to be an electrifying performance.

Public Service Broadcasting will join them on the Summerisle Stage line up, showcasing their signature mix of archive samples, electronic beats and live audio visual transmissions.

The 60-second film shows the journey of a young Scottish man through his years of changing loves, looks and lifestyles, before he finally finds contentment.

Tennent Caledonian Marketing Director Paul Condron commented:

“As we set out to create our first TV ad for Caledonia Best, we wanted to capture the role of the local pub in the social lives of so many Scots. We know our drinkers will easily relate to the highs and lows that are experienced before life feels more settled, and can identify Caledonia Best at the heart of so many special moments.”  

Known as the ‘Walkie Talkie’, the 38 storey, 690,000 square foot office building is being jointly developed by Canary Wharf Group plc and Land Securities plc and is set to open in early 2014.  The Direct FuelCell® (DFC®), which will be installed in 2013, will provide electricity, high temperature heat to an absorption chiller to provide cooling, and low temperature heat for space and domestic water heating in a combined cooling, heat and power (CCHP) configuration.

The Seed Fund has seen £58,000 generated to support innovative projects which may not have otherwise been able to happen – raised through a 5p donation in every pint sold in the first six months of the year.

The application process opened in June, and Caledonia Best has worked closely with partners from National Farmers Union Scotland (NFUS) and Heriot-Watt University’s International Centre for Brewing and Distilling (ICBD) to decide which of the applicants should be awarded funding.

Pictured are Paul Millar from St Andrews’ Eden Brewery which has received funding to buy machinery to enable the business to flourish, and Anna Thomson who will use her funding to produce a range of Scottish flour.

The ‘Scotland to a T’ campaign began this summer when Tennent’s handed its glass over to the public and asked them what makes them smile the most about Scotland – with the aim of creating a unique snapshot of the nation in words and pictures.

The resulting glass design contains a funny and moving mix of the things that people love about their home country. It shows that Scots are proud of their national treasures – from ‘The Big Yin’, the ‘squadrons of midges’ and the ‘Tartan Army’ to the famous ‘Hampden Roar’ and of course, ‘T in the Paaarrk!’.

To further celebrate, Tennent’s created an animated film inspired by and bringing to life some of the phrases on the glass, available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzrHp8iAYoI.

Shoppers were also dazzled by Princes Square’s stunning Christmas tree which is suspended from the ceiling in the heart of the centre and spans all three floors of the glamorous boutiques, restaurants and bars.  The decadent Christmas decorations have been exclusively designed by James Glancy, whose opulent creations adorn the likes of London’s Carnaby Street and are admired throughout the festive season.

In celebration of the oldest Pulteney bottling to date and to reflect the quality and rarity of the whisky, every aspect of the Limited Edition 40 Year Old expression is exquisite and designed to embody the intrigue, craft and history of the ‘Maritime Malt’.

Each closure for the 40 Year Old bottle is unique, hewn by local Caithness stonemasons from a single Caithness flagstone, carefully whittled down into a series of unique pieces which were then individually polished and milled into the perfect stopper shape. A Scottish hallmarked solid silver roundel depicting the age of the whisky completes the bottle’s premium finish.

The luxurious design continues with a highest quality dark blue gloss lacquered wooden gift box, silver etched with the Old Pulteney logo and a classic herring drifter image. A hand-signed book written by whisky expert Charles MacLean, telling the fascinating tale of Old Pulteney’s history, completes the 40 Year Old’s presentation.

Five Eyes AB will represent sales and marketing of the brands portfolio for the coming 2013-2014 annual tenders and the appointment will be under contract for a term of three years, effective 1st May 2013. Brands include the International Beverage single malt Scotch whiskies Old Pulteney, anCnoc, Balblair and Speyburn; established blended Scotch whiskies Hankey Bannister and MacArthur’s, and new premium spirits such as Caorunn small batch Scottish gin.

James Bateman, Global Travel Retail Manager for International Beverage, commented: ‘It makes sense now for International Beverage to pull its resources together and focus its Nordic DF offer by having one partnership with Five Eyes AB. Since we entered the Nordic Duty Free channel in 2010, Fredrik Borin and his partners have done excellent work in launching and building notable momentum for brands such Old Pulteney single malt Scotch whisky. We are now at the stage where we can build on this initial momentum to bring a unified, trusted and compelling Travel Retail offer to the operators and retailers.’

From hundreds of Facebook entries, Tennent’s picked two winners: 22-year-old music teacher Robbie Huxtable’s imaginative ‘‘Lanzarothesay’, which paired the Spanish island of Lanzarote with Scotland’s own holiday destination Rothesay; and 26-year-old David Morgan’s ‘Monte Carluke’, an inspired twinning of the glamorous hotspot Monte Carlo with Scotland’s own Carluke.

The competition follows the launch of Tennent’s Original Export Lager earlier this year, which introduced billboards that humorously combined Scottish locations with historic Tennent’s export markets. The winning ‘Lanzarothesay’ and ‘Monte Carluke’ creations will be displayed at billboard sites across Scotland.

The partnership has seen New York-based Arkle develop an exclusive range of limited edition designs for anCnoc; each based on a unique aspect of Knockdhu Distillery, home of the single malt. anCnoc’s eagerly anticipated new edition is inspired by Arkle’s visit to the distillery’s warehouse, where the whisky is aged over decades. Arkle found this tranquil, dark space to have an enchanting atmosphere – almost magical – with “an incredible sense of time passing”. This is conveyed in his evocative black and white illustration on the bottle, showing rows of casks disappearing into the darkness.

On the day of the parade, Tennent’s donated 5p to charity for every pint of Tennent’s Lager, Caledonia Best and Tennent’s Original Export sold across the whole of Scotland. The Tennent’s team has revealed it is donating all cash raised to Capability Scotland.

Tennent’s also celebrated our athletes’ achievements by producing 1000 commemorative bottles of its award winning Tennent’s Original Export, which featured a gold version of the iconic Tennent’s ‘T’ bottle and pack.

Throughout the afternoon global final, the bartenders were asked to reproduce their winning cocktail from the national heats, the cocktail being inspired by Caorunn’s Scottish heritage and five Celtic botanicals – rowan berry, coul blush apple, bog myrtle, heather and dandelion.

The judging panel were dazzled by Iain’s exceptional cocktail – ‘The Damson Chamber’. Iain took home a cash prize of £1,500, as well as being honoured with the esteemed title of Caorunn Global Storyteller 2012, with his winning drink being promoted worldwide as a signature Caorunn cocktail.

The First Minister was invited to officially open the new facility by Stephen Glancey, Group Chief Executive Officer of C&C Group and Steven Annand, Commercial Managing Director of Tennent Caledonian, who welcomed Mr Salmond to an extended tour of Wellpark where the business has been producing beer for Scotland and the world for over 450 years.

The new £4 million line gives Tennent Caledonian the largest and most technologically advanced beer bottling operation in Scotland, with the capacity to run 50,000 bottles per hour – for Tennent’s brands and for contract business that will now be attracted to Scotland from across the UK.

As well as offering Scots a first taste of newly-launched Tennent’s Original Export – the premium export lager which is brewed in Glasgow using the finest ingredients, true to Tennent’s earliest brews – the quirky bar is a celebration of the illustrious and little-known export history of Scotland’s pre-eminent brewer.

The crate provides a fascinating peek into the Tennent’s archive, showcasing some recently-unearthed old photographs, postcards and maps. There are some early brewing medals and awards from around the globe, including the 1890 ‘First Degree of Merit’ from Trinidad & Tobago’ and the 1891 ‘Gold Medal’ from Jamaica. Bar table tops feature century-old newspaper clippings – including a copy of the Bavarian Brewing Journal from 1892 which describes a tasting of Tennent’s on a trip up the Nile!

Set to be one of the hottest parties of the summer, Scissor Sisters’ unique breed of glam pop will top the bill on Friday 20^th July, as the band debut material from their eagerly anticipated new album. Folk rock heroes Levellers, Britpop icons Cast, Scottish indie rockers Bis, five-piece indie pop band Dog is Dead and American songstress Jenny O will also take to the stage on the first full day of the festival.

On Saturday 21^st July, Sharleen and the boys will be performing their beloved back catalogue of hits in their only Scottish festival appearance this year. They are joined on the Summerisle line up bill by very special guests, crowd-rousing Dundee rockers The View, ‘Dream Catch Me’ singer / songwriter Newton Faulkner, and Scots indie-folk outfit Kassidy.

Now in its eleventh year, the festival will once again come to a spectacular climax with the legendary Saturday night lighting of the Wickerman: followed this year by a DJ set from Mike Skinner, and a promise to keep the Wickerman party stoked into the wee small hours.

anCnoc Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky has today unveiled a new global campaign that is set to bring a modern twist to the traditional world of whisky – through a collaboration with internationally acclaimed Scottish illustrator Peter Arkle.
Arkle, who is now based in New York City, has developed an exclusive range of limited edition designs for anCnoc , which will be launched throughout 2012 and will be available in the UK, USA, Sweden and selected European markets.
Demonstrating Arkle’s fascination for the science and mystical nature of anCnoc’s production process, the first anCnoc Peter Arkle Limited Edition release is based on a depiction of each of the Single Malt’s ingredients: malted barley, spring water, heat, yeast, time and ‘magic’ – which the illustrator brands ‘the secret thing which makes anCnoc anCnoc’.
The striking packaging design repeats this image, transforming it into an eye-catching and bold black ink pattern on the brand’s trademark stark white background.
The whisky inside is equally special, containing a new expression, hand selected by anCnoc Distillery Manager Gordon Bruce. Matured wholly in Spanish oak sherry barrels – a first for the brand – the resulting dram is complex and satisfying, rich in colour with amber highlights.

Last year’s winner, Derek Bates’ stunning image entitled ‘North Gare’ was selected out of thousands of entrants from across the UK ranging from beautiful maritime sunsets to seaside snaps of seagulls.

Amateur photographers can enter here http://www.express.co.uk/web/wishyouwerehere2012

Designed to commemorate the Queen’s sixty year reign, Jubilee & Tea incorporates ingredients and flavours from around the Commonwealth – Caorunn Scottish gin, English tonic water (with Indian botanicals), Kenyan tea and kumquats from Hong Kong. A series of Jubilee & Tea serving demonstrations and sampling will run throughout the two day show to help get visitors in the mood for a regal party.

To kick off the partnership, Caorunn sponsored Spencer Hart’s exclusive pre-Oscars party which took place on Wednesday 22^nd February at The Standard hotel’s hip Hollywood hangout @Smoke&Mirrors. During the event the leaders of British film mingled with the LA acting fraternity and enjoyed Caorunn’s signature serve – a Caorunn G&T – which is distinctively served with a slice of red apple.

Caorunn also provided some of the film world’s leading men with a taste of the Scottish Highlands during the run-up to Sunday’s inaugural awards at the iconic Chateau Marmont. Nick Hart, Spencer Hart’s founder, and his team fitted British and Hollywood A-listers with bespoke suits at the legendary hotel, offering them a Caorunn tipple during the process.