Joseph Noel Paton

There are many examples of artists who didn't achieve major success in their own lifetime, but were greatly appreciated in later years. Vincent Van Gogh is one who springs to mind. The reverse can also be true. Sir Joseph Noel Paton (1821-1901) was one of the foremost Scottish painters in Victorian times. He was also a well-known sculptor and antiquary. In 1865 he was appointed Queen's Limner for Scotland - a member of the Royal Household. A knighthood followed two years later. Born and bred in Dunfermline, Paton's name has faded from view over the decades. A major exhibition in his hometown - organised with the full cooperation of his descendants - should raise awareness of a great Scottish talent.

Away from the easel, Paton was a quiet family man and there are few colourful tales regarding his social life, although he was certainly well connected, counting major figures such as Lewis Carroll, Oscar Wilde, Andrew Carnegie and the polymath John Ruskin among his personal friends. Born in Wooers Alley into a creative family, young Noel (as he preferred to be called) drew obsessively as a child and later attended Dunfermline Art Academy. He also studied at the Royal Academy in London, where made important artistic contacts that would last a lifetime. Back in Scotland, his career took off, exhibiting at the Royal Scottish Academy and providing drawings for high-end publications such as Shakespeare's The Tempest. In 1847, Paton won prizes for his detailed and daring fairy paintings and by 1850 he had been elected as a full member of the RSA. He also submitted designs for major monuments to William Wallace and Robert the Bruce. We attended the exhibition at Carnegie Museum on a Saturday morning, having filled up beforehand with a Full Scottish at Wetherspoons, which was quite a plateful. For an extra £1.56, you can make unlimited trips to the coffee machine. 'Spoons supremo Tim Martin isn't universally liked, but his establishments provide food and drink at affordable prices and range of real ales are always available. The gallery was fairly quiet and we had ample time and space to absorb everything. The painting above (from 1867) is the work of John Ballantyne. It shows Paton relaxing in his studio at George Square, Edinburgh. Surrounded by books and newspapers, the artwork conveys the sense of a scholarly mind. A fairy painting is in progress on the easel. Maquettes of monument designs stand in the background. Paton married Margaret (Maggie) Ferrier in 1858. They moved to Edinburgh and had 11 children in total. Defying the stereotype of the aloof Victorian father, Paton took a keen interest in his offspring and family life featured heavily in his artistic output. Sustaining their lifestyle often meant painting to order, or making smaller copies of acclaimed work. Paton found neither activity pleasurable but it kept the show on the road. He often worked on several projects simultaneously and in later life he came fifth in a list of the greatest living Scotsmen, published by the Scotsman newspaper. "How funny" - he is said to have remarked. A greater source of pride was being awarded the freedom of his native Dunfermline in 1882.

Victorian society had a fascination for the supernatural. Fairies, goblins and changelings filled the imagination of poets, writers and painters. The idea of a world not bound my human rules and morals appealed greatly. It may also have been a reaction to the effect of expanding heavy industry blighting the countryside. Largely unique to the British Isles, fairy paintings could be used as an allegory to represent a political or religious view. Folklore was also present in the concept of national identities. The Quarrel of Oberon and Titania 1849, pictured above) depicts a scene from A Midsummer Night's Dream. The painting won an award when first shown at the Royal Scottish Academy and it was later taken overseas for the grand Paris Exhibition in 1855. Numerous tales are woven into the artwork, all taking place against a backdrop of quirky flora and fauna. The erotic nature of the painting probably had be to presented within a fantasy landscape in order to gain acceptance in a society that was notably straight-laced, at least on the surface. Paton was fascinated by the struggle between good and evil. He explored these themes in many pieces. He was also a keen student of Scottish history, his great grandfather having fought in the 1715 Jacobite Rising, and his great uncles at Culloden thirty years down the line. He illustrated a book about Mary, Queen of Scots and upon meeting the present monarch Victoria for the first time, his young son Diarmid is said to have turned away, exclaiming "you are the wicked person who killed our beautiful Queen Mary" - prompting Victoria to explain that, no, she wasn't actually Queen Elizabeth the First of England. Paton was president of the Dunfermline Celtic Society and two of his biggest disappointments were not being chosen to design the memorials for William Wallace in Stirling and the Wars of Independence at Charlotte Square, Edinburgh. His application to design a Prince Albert monument for the Scottish capital was successful, but lack of funding led to the scheme being scrapped.

As Queen's Limner, Paton was invited by Victoria to paint a royal portrait of the sovereign and here nine children, grouped around a marble bust of the late consort. Paton enjoyed a warm relationship with the Queen but he was unable to finish the painting due to a sudden bout of influenza. He did however complete three other commissions by the Palace. Another notable project was the design of three stained glass windows for Dunfermline Abbey. The art form had fallen out of favour following the Reformation but came back into vogue during Victorian times and there was renewed interest in medieval religious art all across Europe. The individual pieces of glass were arranged on a drawn template called a cartoon, then assembled using lead strips and solder. Three preliminary sketches for the abbey's Great West Window (loaned by the Paton family) were on display at the exhibition. Commissioned by Andrew Carnegie, the finished work - also known as the Patriot's Window - can be found in an older part of the church. Costing £2000 in total - a significant sum in those days - Carnegie wanted the design to highlight the connection between Dunfermline and certain major figures in Scottish history. Both William Wallace and Robert the Bruce are featured, along with St Margaret and Malcolm Canmore. Also on display were cartoons for another window in the abbey. This one depicted the Last Supper and three of the sketches are pictured above. The piece was installed in 1904, three years after Paton's death. His beloved Maggie had passed away 12 months before. Brother Waller Hugh Paton was also an accomplished painter and I have long admired his impression of Preston Island, near Culross. The exhibition certainly benefitted from having direct input from the Paton family and there was a video interview with Noel's great great granddaughter. One of Dunfermline's most famous sons is rightfully being re-examined.

Christmas lights switch-on

I love strolling through town centres towards the end of the year when the Christmas illuminations twinkle. They bring joy to the ever-shortening days as the festive season approaches. I had never actually been to a switching-on ceremony but the programme of events in Dunfermline caught my eye. Particularly the appearance of the Red Hot Chili Pipers on stage as the headline act. Although the chosen date was rather early (November 17), the plan was to fill the town with Christmas cheer, starting with an artisan street market at 11am. A funfair was booked for Pittencrieff Park (the Glen) and live music scheduled to run throughout the afternoon at the Glen Gates.

I fancied attending the actual switch-on and watching the two main musical acts - N Trance and the Pipers. After a few hours of birdwatching in Leven, Nicole dropped me off in Dunfermline and I made my way through the park via a side door. I passed the funfair rides and various stalls before arriving at the grand entrance gates. A large stage had been erected on the cobbled ground at the bottom of the High Street and a professional sound and lighting system was in full swing. An American DJ in full Santa garb was pumping out the tunes and whipping up the substantial crowd. Unfortunately I didn't get his name but he did a great job of priming the audience for the impending celebration. I found space on the shallow terrace to the side of the stage and my view was partially obscured by a large Christmas tree, which I assumed would shortly be lit up. It was a decent spot with some height and I didn't fancy plunging into the throng which stretched quite a distance up the narrow bottom end of the High Street. We were informed a ceremonial parade would soon be arriving and the crowd standing upon the road was requested to part in order to let the marchers through. This seemed rather optimistic as the mass of people were pretty tightly packed. Fortunately everyone cooperated, although it did take a while for the procession to squeeze around the tight bend in front of the gates and it was impossible to see what was actually happening, even with my in-built advantage of being over six feet tall. Eventually a count-down was started and the lights came on, much to everyone's joy on this clear and still night. Couldn't have hoped for better weather conditions. N Trance hit the stage and we were suddenly transported back to the 90s, much to the delight of the parents of young family groups. Dance music was never really my scene but there's no denying the catchy nature of the tunes. N Trance scored a number-2 hit in 1995 with Set You Free, in the days when you had to sell hundreds of thousands of physical copies to reach the upper echelons of the charts. Original vocalist Kelly Llorena still fronts the group and they gig regularly around the UK, most likely on the nostalgia circuit, but there's a good living to be earned by reminding people of their youth. Tonight's high energy set was well received, with Llorena's soaring vocals complemented by MC B's rhythmic rapping.

Not to be confused with a Californian act bearing a remarkably similar name, The Red Hot Chili Pipers - as the pun suggests - fuse classic rock music with bagpipe blasts. They have been touring internationally since 2007, building their success on the back of winning a BBC talent show entitled When Will I Be Famous, hosted by Graham Norton. Their second album Bagrock to the Masses (2008) was awarded gold status in the UK, for 100,000 units sold. An impressive figure for a niche form of music. The Celtic core of the band comprises three sets of pipes and a drummer playing the marching snare. The other musicians play conventional rock instruments: electric guitar, bass, keyboards and a drum kit. The material ranged from AC/DC to traditional Scottish tunes and vocalist Colette Neil handled the songs with ease. There were also instrumental sections with Highland dancers performing. A super slick set with top-notch musicianship on display. The crowd had thinned somewhat prior to the Chilis coming on, due to previous delays and the fact it was almost past teatime for families, many of whom had no doubt come primarily to see the Christmas lights. I was therefore able to get closer to the stage and take a few decent photos with my iPhone. The folks who remained were treated to a masterful hour of entertainment by a band honed by constant touring around Europe and America. Great to see so many people turning out to support the event. It created a definite feel-good factor.

Jennie Lee

I grew up in the former coal-mining town of Lochgelly, Fife. One of its most famous citizens is the politician Jennie Lee (1904-1988), who was instrumental in founding the Open University in the 1960s, thus making higher education available to a wider spread of people. Ground-breaking schemes ran in the household as she was married to Welsh Labour MP Nye Bevin, the father of the National Health Service. A play about her life has been written and we caught Tomorrow is a New Day at the Carnegie Hall in Dunfermline. The show had premiered the previous week at Lochgelly Centre and my mum sent positive feedback.

The historic Dunfermline theatre (opened in 1937) was more than half full for the first performance of a two-night stand. Three actors played all the required roles. Kit Laveri and Trish Mullin were around three decades apart age-wise, in order to convince as the young firebrand Jennie and her more mature counterpart, who share imaginary encounters during the course of Matthew Knights script. George Docherty took on a multitude of male roles which encompassed a wide array of accents across the class barriers. A miner's daughter, Lee was born in Lochgelly and educated at Beath High School (my alma mater), where she was Dux, an award bestowed upon my mother in 1962. Lee spent part of her childhood living at the Arcade Hotel in Cowdenbeath, an establishment run by her mother Euphemia Greig. It provided lodgings and simple meals for travellers and local workers, as well as hosting touring theatre companies and concert parties who performed at the nearby Arcade Theatre. The derelict remains of the latter inspired the stage set for tonight's production. Lee inherited her father's socialist principles as a teenager. James Lee chaired the West Fife branch of the Independent Labour Party. Gaining a place at Edinburgh University, where she studied law and education (half her fees being met by the Carnegie Trust Fund), Lee worked as a teacher in Fife before standing as a Labour Party candidate for the North Lanarkshire by-election in 1929. She was duly elected at the age of 24 - the youngest ever female MP. Only women aged 30 and above could actually vote at the time! Lee lost her seat in the 1931 General Election and married Nye Bevan two years later - a former miner who was a tremendously popular Welsh Labour MP, who held the Ebbw Vale constituency from 1929 until his death from cancer in 1960, aged 62. The play covered all the significant events of Lee's personal and political life, against the backdrop of national and world events. George Docherty was called upon to portray many figures - including Winston Churchill. I awarded the overall production a solid 8/10. Certainly worth seeing, especially if you have a strong interest in political and/or Fife history. The ticket price of £14 was very reasonable.

The story also touched upon the theme of people leaving their socialist ideals behind once major career success has been achieved. While it's true that Jennie Lee rose from humble beginnings to enjoy an affluent lifestyle, she spent many years campaigning for a fairer society. After the war, she stormed back into parliament, holding the Cannock seat in Staffordshire from 1945 to 1970. Lee was appointed as Minister for the Arts in 1964, the first incumbent of the post. This role led directly to her crowning glory, the formation of the Open University. It was intended as a correspondence institution, reaching out to those who had been denied the opportunity to study. Broadcasting media would also be used to deliver courses. Granted its Royal Charter in 1969, the first batch of students signed up the following year. More than two million people have achieved their learning goals with the OU since its inception and there are currently around 200,00 enrolled, including 8000 from overseas. The university is also the biggest provider of education to people with disabilities. The open admissions policy allows many people to achieve ambitions they may not have had the opportunity to fulfil elsewhere. Following the election defeat in 1970, Lee was made Baroness of Asheridge. Two Open University buildings bear her name, as does the public library in her native Lochgelly. I remember learning about Jennie Lee at primary school but was too young to grasp the true significance of her achievements. Tonight's play helped solidify my knowledge.