What makes Scotland so Bonnie anyway?

Everyone's used to referring to Scotland - that land north of the border - as Bonnie Scotland, but why?

Like so much of Scottish culture, the person most frequently credited/blamed for inventing the whole notion of Bonnie Scotland is Sir Walter Scott, author of Rob Roy. Scott was the first English-language author to have a truly international career in his lifetime, with many contemporary readers in Europe, Australia, and North America.

Bonnie Scotland is also the name of a 1935 American film starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, produced by Hal Roach and directed by James W. Horne. Although the film begins in Scotland, a large part of the action is actually set in British India.

The song Bonnie Scotland was written for and dedicated to all Scots wherever in the world they may be found. It is performed by ‘Tapsalteerie’ a wee group of friends of Saskia and India from Gourock. They are Rosie, Jennifer, Fiona, Emma, Jack and Fergus. You can find out more about them here.

You can find out more about Sir Walter Scott and his legacy to the Scots people in Scottish Miscellany: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Scotland the Brave.

Happy Independence Day! (Part 2)

Talking of American Independence Day...

Did you know that nine governors of the original thirteen American states were Scots? Senate Resolution 155, passed on 20 March 1998, referred to the predominance of Scots among the Founding Fathers and claimed that the American Declaration of Independence was modelled on the Declaration of Arbroath, an eloquent appeal for the recognition of Scottish independence and sovereignty, signed on 6 April 1320.

You'll discover more fabulous facts like these in Scottish Misecellany: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Scotland the Brave, available from Skyhorse Publishing today!

Happy Independence Day!

It's 4 July so that means that in America it's

INDEPENDENCE DAY!

As American fans of my books are hopefully already aware a number of my titles are available in American editions. There's Christmas Miscellany and Scottish Miscellany (both available from Skyhorse Publishing) but then there are also my Pax Britannia books and of course Black Library's Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 novels sell widely in the US.

So why not celebrate Independence Day today by picking up your favourite Jonathan Green US edition - and then let me know what you think of it!