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"It's an incredible collection of stories and I hope everyone gets a chance to pick up this book." Michelle McManus, presenter of 'Our lives' on BBC Radio Scotland. See BBC Scotland website to hear the full interview first broadcast Sat Aug 7 2021 at 1830.
Ever wanted to play the bagpipes? Thought not, and neither did Allan Jardine but his dad made him anyway. But if you were ever curious as to what it might be like, this is the true story of the trials and tribulations of a young boy struggling with The Pipes, literally, before mastering this most iconic of musical instruments.
The tale follows our hero through disastrous Burns Suppers, stressful competitions, eventful ceilidhs and not forgetting the embarrassing Hogmanay Incident, to leading the Scottish Schools Pipe Bands out of the drawbridge at Edinburgh Castle and playing and teaching across the world, from North and South America, to the Far East, but not without the usual drama.
This then, is a humorous and irreverent study of Scottish culture, as seen through the eyes of a boy Piper, examining why pipers must always drink whisky, the real reason tenor drummers in a band wave fluffy sticks around, and not forgetting The Secret, of what is really worn under the kilt.
About the author
Allan Jardine was born in the village of Elie in Fife, Scotland in 1962. He was educated at Elie Primary School, New Park School in St. Andrews, and Fettes College in Edinburgh where he was Pipe Major of the Pipe Band. After a career in Advertising in the 1980's he travelled for a year or so, taking his pipes with him to the USA and most notably, to Taiwan where he taught the instrument along with English at the Pei Yuan School in Changhua. For the last twenty years he has been a Studio Technician at Edinburgh College of Art, as well as working as a freelance illustrator and playing guitar in a rock band, but the pipes are always close to hand for the odd wedding and of course, Hogmanay. He is single and has no children that he is aware of.
