Fi Phillips

It's here again, the night when Scots (and many more people) celebrate the birthday of the great Scottish poet Robert Burns . When non Scots think of Scotland, Burns is someone that easily comes to mind. He's certainly earned his place as a personification of his country. My father, a Scot himself, always thought so. To me, Burns is only one face of Scotland though. Here's my list of other, great Scots. Deborah Kerr (1921 - 2007), Glasgow born actress who starred in The King and I, Casino Royale and From Here to Eternity, to name but a few. The epitome of grace, sophistication and intelligent wit. Billy Connolly (born 1942 in Glasgow), another great wit. One of the few comedians who could reduce both my mother and father to tears of laughter. J M Barrie (1860 - 1937), author and dramatist, the man who brought us the well-loved, eternal child, Peter Pan. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859 - 1930), physician and writer. A prolific creator w...

One Christmas, my parents gave me an old hardback copy of Peter Pan . There was no name written on the inside cover so I don't know whether it had belonged to either of them. I remember looking for the date of publication and finding a year that seemed very long ago and old to me. The story of the boy who wouldn't grow up was fantastical and enchanting. I preferred Tinkerbell to Wendy who seemed too motherly and proper to me. I devoured the book in a few nights' reading and then placed it on my treasured bookcase with my other darling books. Peter Pan is a story that has lived on and been revisited so many times that I doubt there are many people who haven't heard of it . It has been drawn by Disney, peopled by Robin Williams and Maggie Smith, and has forever made famous the name Captain Hook.   What appealed to me most, at that age, was the idea that a child could choose not to grow up. A life of childhood on an island with other children and ad...