Kids take over the Fort

by Alieu Ceesay

photograph: Stuart Maxwell

Glasgow Fort Shopping Park hosted a Trade Fair last weekend, and all the stalls  were manned by kids from 15 primary and secondary schools in the North East of the City.

The Trade Fair was part of Enterprising Month, an initiative giving pupils the opportunity to learn skills that will be valuable throughout their working lives. Braving the weather, the resolute youngsters enjoyed the hustle and bustle of market life selling produce – 90% of which they’d made themselves.

The event was organised by Determined to Succeed Glasgow with support from Glasgow East Regeneration Agency. The stalls were as full as a Christmas stocking when the day kicked off at 10pm on Saturday 28 November.

On sale, to list a few items,  were Christmas hampers, clothes, jewellery, food stuff, Christmas cards, crackers and other festive novelties. By the close of play, the stalls were as clean as the mince pie plate on Christmas evening.

Scott White, aged 10, from Oakwood Primary School, managed to avoid the temptation to go wild in the thick sheet of snow that spread white across the Fort car park. Scott told the LOCAL NEWS: ‘We have sold a  few things so far. It’s been fun for us to try selling to the public. And all our items are hand made.’

Teacher Alexis Grant, from East Bank Academy, told LOCAL NEWS the ‘ the day is a great way for students to be exposed to the world of business and one that will help them understand how to get jobs and raise funds for future projects.’

Gary Condie, Determined to Succeed manager, was delighted with the response from the public. Said Gary: ‘Each year the Trade Fair gets bigger and better. It’s a great opportunity for children. Not only is it a learning initiative, it is also fun while raising money for their school or nursery.’

Glasgow Fort manager, Phil Goodman, thought the market was a great addition for all the shoppers determined to spend their money this Christmas. Said Phil:  ‘The young people have some fantastic ideas and products. Our shoppers really enjoy the opportunity to meet with these enterprising youngsters and buy some unusual and quirky Christmas gifts.’

TWO TICKETS TO BBC FOOD SHOW UP FOR GRABS

This weekend the BBC Good Food Show is coming to Glasgow!  The LOCAL NEWS has 2 tickets to give away from Plenty- the creator of the UK’s primo household towel.

The BBC Good Food Show, paradise for the palate, will run from this Friday 22 October at the SECC until Sunday 24 October. Celebrity Chefs will be on hand to display their culinary mastery, Scotland Food and Drink Regional Village will offer a sensuous journey through Scottish produce. The BBC Good Food Show is a must for anyone who takes cuisine seriously, or for anyone who wants to satisfy neglected taste buds.

The LOCAL NEWS are delighted to offer two tickets after teaming up with Plenty. To win the tickets simply answer this question- looking at the accompanying picture, who is the Plenty Mysterious TV Character? A) Juan Sheet
B) Juan Spill
C)Joe Blogs

Respond by emailing your answer to competitions@localnewsglasgow.co.uk and if your lucky enough to win the LOCAL NEWS will deliver your BBC Good Food Show tickets asap.

Also, Plenty, determined we should eat in style, are running their own competition- the gastronomic chance of lifetime, dinner for two at John Torode’s- him from MasterChef- restaurant SMITHS of SMITHFIELDS in London plus passes for MasterChef live this November. To enter visit www.plenty.co.uk/masterchef

Scottish Asian Wedding Show voted a great success.

More than 2000 people attended the hugely sociable, 3rd Occasions Scottish Asian Wedding Show on Sunday 4 April in the Radisson Blu hotel in Glasgow.
Chocolate bouquets, personalised cupcakes, UK award winning ice cream, halal wedding cakes and exquisite chocolate fountains were just some of the delectable delights among the festival of food and catering stalls. Other stands showed how a wedding venue could look, what the bride and groom – and all the family – could wear, video, photograph and film records of the day, examples of finely crafted wedding jewellery and the thousand and one other essentials to making The Wedding a truly memorable occasion.
Amid the live entertainment of the day was Bollywood singer, Nafis, who performed tracks from his debut album and Bollyfeat dance troupe and Nadmin Bollywood Dance.

Yet it was truly the three fashion shows that stole the show. Showcasing beautiful occasion and bridal wear from boutiques and wedding specialists around the UK, the gowns were stunning and the models (male and female!) equally gorgeous. The stunningly intricate designs and fabrics provided elegant, modern modes to inspire any future bride or groom.

ZaynaB to star in Scottish Asian Wedding event

World renowned make-up artist, ZaynaB, will attend the Occasions Scottish Asian Wedding Show on Sunday 4 April in the Radisson Blu Hotel in Glasgow. This international professional is known as the make-up Guru to Bollywood stars. She has provided the magic touch for people such as Keira Knightley, Rachel Weisz, Emilia Fox, two Miss Worlds and many Bollywood leading ladies.
Accompanied by her team of award-winning make-up artists, she will give tips to visitors and makeovers for brides-to-be at the glittering Wedding Show. Each visitor will receive a gift voucher for ZaynaB’s Provoke cosmetic range and one lucky person will win a VIP Bridal Make-Over with ZaynaB worth £2000 for their big day. This will include a bridal cosmetics hamper. Five runners-up will also win cosmetics hampers.
Said Tara of Provoke Cosmetics which are sought out by high profile celebrities: ‘Provoke cosmetics is pleased and excited to be taking part in the Occasions Scottish Asian Wedding Show. We are especially excited that our founder, ZaynaB, will be at the show. Visitors can enjoy personalised bridal consultations and tips and advice from her.’
Ladies attending the exciting and glamourous event, which is the third one to be organised by Oceanic, will discover how to get the perfect base for their make-up, how to achieve the current ‘must-have’ look and how to sign-up for make-up master classes with Zaynab.
The show opens at 12 noon and two fashion shows are scheduled. A full complement of wedding day services and companies specialising in organising such important events will be on hand to be consulted. For an outlay of only £5 per person, this glamorous day will be a boon and a blessing to anyone planning a wedding – Asian or Scottish.

Football’s hair-erasing game

It was a bitter-sweet afternoon for the Partick Thistle fans who made the 240 mile round trip to Dingwall on Saturday 24 October.

Supporters of the Glasgow club were in good spirits and enjoyed the day, but one or two may have risen on Sunday with slightly fuzzy heads and bare chests.

On the pitch, Ian McCall’s side twice came from behind to secure a draw against Ross County.

The 400-strong travelling support twice roared their team back from a goal behind against a physical and direct County side that  started the day on top of the SFL First Division.

The carry-on, the invention, the bonding and singing of songs is all part of the fun, but there is a line that certain folk crossed and some weren’t far from getting their fingers burnt – after they had scorched off their chest hair. Yes, that’s right, allegedly one guy wilfully set fire to the hair on his own chest.

Today, the Highland constabulary confirmed that while they were well aware of the Glasgow contingent in Inverness and Ross-shire,  no Jags fans were guilty of anything other than enjoying themselves.

And the more extrovert and excitable  Jags’  fans won praise from Thistle manager Ian McCall.

He told www.ptfc.co.uk; ‘The support we got was great but quite how those supporters managed to stand out in the elements with their tops off I don’t know.’

While the majority of such shenanigans are good natured and innocent enough, one or two of the lads caught up in the excitement developed bulletproof syndrome including the young man who quite accusingly asked me why was I ‘no getting involved?’

I suspect he was too far-gone on the Bass Shandy to hear me reply that I’d ‘been involved’ since before he was a twinkle in his Daddy’s eye.

Word is that later that evening, this particular individual – having lost his mates, his mobile, his money and his train tickets – had to spend the night under the kind shelter of the Northern Constabulary HQ in Inverness.

Following health and safety rules, the assisting PC took the lad’s lighter off him before he got into his single room for the night.