Film star at festival and museum is a hit

PERTH MUSEUM PROVES A HIT

The new Perth Museum has already welcomed 40,000 people through its doors.

More than 3,000 people visited the

£27 million museum in the refurbished Perth City Hall on its first day.

Perth Museum chiefs say the visitor numbers are “astonishing” and hope local people and businesses are also beginning to enjoy the benefits.

The museum, the new permanent home of the Stone of Destiny, has an annual visitor target of 140-160,000 by 2027.

Early reports on Tripadvisor are also positives.

MILLION TONNES OF SAND TO BE DUMPED ON MONTROSE BEACH

A mountain of sand totalling more than a million tonnes could be added to Montrose beach in the next decade to protect the town from the North Sea.

The staggering figure has emerged as part of a long-term strategy to halt erosion which has claimed seven metres of dunes in the last year alone.

Experts warn flood corridors could engulf Montrose within the next 30 or 40 years, if nothing is done.

And the start gun has now been fired on the next stage of the battle ahead of this winter’s storms.

It includes the longerterm plan to replenish the dunes.

The sand is still being sourced and would be brought to Montrose Bay by barge or dredger.

It would then be pumped on to the beach roundthe-clock. No definite beach access has been identified at this stage.

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE STAR HEADING TO KIRKCALDY

Mission: Impossible star Dougray Scott is headlining this year’s Adam Smith Festival in Kirkcaldy.

The Glenrothes-born actor will be in conversation with Arabella Weir at St Bryce Kirk on June 7.

He led this year’s Tartan Day Parade through the streets of New York on April 6.

His appearance in Kirkcaldy sees him join the ranks of previous festival headliners David Tennant, Joanna Lumley and former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. The 58-year-old has appeared in several films, including Ripley’s Game, Hitman and

My Week With Marilyn.

Dougray Scott is also the recipient of an international Emmy for his performance in the Scottish drama series Crime.

The actor‘s 7.30pm chat with actress and comedian Weir is one of several events organised by the Adam Smith Festival that weekend.

OLYMPIA DUNDEE REOPENING PLANS CONFIRMED

Plans have been revealed for the reopening of the leisure and toddler pools at Dundee’s Olympia centre after the latest three-month closure.

The leisure and toddler pools, including the flumes, have been shut since early February.

The facilities closed – less than two months after they had reopened following a £6 million repair job – when a metal rod fell and nearly hit swimmers.

It has now been confirmed the Olympia’s leisure pool, toddler pool and flumes will reopen on May 6.

Visitors will need to book one-hour slots for the first few weeks.

The announcement came the day after councillors backed calls for an independent probe into the latest problems at the Olympia.

The approval means the local authority will now seek an independent expert to engage with the body that runs the facility to understand the problems that led to its most recent closure.

UK’S FIRST EVER MEMORIAL TO LGBT ARMED FORCES PERSONNEL

The first ever memorial for LGBT people who have served in the armed forces will be created.

It follows a review into mistreatment of service personnel historically. Fighting with Pride, a LGBT veterans charity, has been awarded a £350,000 grant to create the memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.

The charity has spearheaded efforts to get justice for veterans affected by the pre-2000 ban on homosexuality in the armed forces. It said the memorial will be “representative” and a “place for peace and reflection”, but urged the government to move quickly on other steps to make amends.

The ban saw thousands of members of the armed forces removed from service, some faced violence and abuse as a result of their sexuality..