6 April: Tartan Day

Why is today Tartan Day? Because April 6^th is the anniversary of the Declaration of Arbroath, a letter written to the Pope in 1320, declaring Scottish independence. While it might be easy to assume Tartan Day started in Scotland, the home of the fabric, it actually started in Canada in the 1980s. It's a big thing in New York City where there is an annual Tartan Day parade.

1. The origin of the word tartan isn't entirely clear but it most likely comes from the French word tiretaine, which comes from the verb tirer, to pull, and/or the Gaelic word tarsainn, meaning across.
2. The word came into use around the 1500s but the patterns were around long before that. The oldest design dates back to the year 245 and was found in a jar of coins near Falkirk, and hence is known as the Falkirk Tartan. There were even people in central Europe making tartan like patterns between the 8^th and 6^th centuries BC.
3. While tartans are associated with Scottish clans, that association only dates from the 19^th century. Before that, people simply wore tartans they liked. Some countries, including Zimbabwe, have national tartans and all the US states and Canadian provinces (except for Nunavut) have state tartans. In Japan, Hello Kitty has her own tartan, too. Elvis Presley has three – not only did he have Scottish roots but a tartan was designed for The King in 2004 by Mike King and an even more modern version a few years later. The official Presley of Lonmay tartan is based on the colours of the US flag with a gold stripe to represent Elvis's gold records.
4. Tartan and kilts may seem inoffensive now, but back in the 18^th century they were banned as subversive – a sign that a person supported the Jacobite cause. Suspected Jacobites had to sign a declaration that they would never wear tartan. The declaration was basically that they were putting a curse on themselves if they broke the ban and as a result would be separated from their families, die in battle as a coward and be buried far away from Scotland. The law banning tartan was repealed on July 1 1746, which is why in some places, like Australia, they celebrate Tartan Day on July 1^st.
5. Tartan has been to the Moon. Astronaut Alan Bean is of Scottish descent and belongs to the clan MacBean. When he went to the Moon in 1969, he took a little bit of tartan cloth with him. He brought it back with him, and donated it to the chapel of St Bean in Perthshire, Scotland.
6. Tartan was the subject of the first colour photograph ever taken. James Clerk Maxwell took a picture of a piece of tartan ribbon in 1861.
7. There is a wildlife centre in Perthshire which paints its resident flock of sheep in tartan patterns for tartan day.
8. The most popular tartans are the Black Watch, named after a battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, and the Royal Stewart, which was the tartan of the royal house of the same name, and is also the Queen's personal tartan.
9. The Black and White check patterns often seen on police uniforms are technically a tartan, too. It even has a name – the Sillitoe tartan, after Chief Constable Percy Sillitoe from Glasgow. Scottish police were the first to use the pattern in 1932.
10. The most expensive tartan is produced by Holland and Sherry in Peebles and is made from Mongolian cashmere. Their highest quality kilts made from this material cost £5,000.

My Books 

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The Ultraheroes series

Several new groups of superheroes, mostly British, living and working (mostly) in British cities like London and Birmingham. People discovering they have, and learning to live with, superpowers. Each book is complete in itself although there is some overlap of characters.

The Raiders series

A tale of two dimensions, and worm hole travel between the two. People displaced in both time and space, learning to get along and work together to find a way home while getting used to the superpowers wormhole travel gave them. A trilogy.

Golden Thread

A superhero tale with a difference. Five heroes from another dimension keep returning - whenever they return, they have a job to do and are a well-meshed team in order to do it. Until one time, something goes wrong...

Tabitha Drake series

A different kind of power - the ability to talk to dead people. Tabitha has it, and murder victims seek her out to make sure justice is done. Tabitha has this and a disastrous love life to cope with.

Short story collections

Some feature characters from the above novels, others don't. They're not all about superheroes. Some are creepy, romantic, funny.