Firstly, a Happy New Year to one and all. Yesterday was a bit of an education, and not just because I kept referring to it as New Year's Eve and being exasperatedly corrected to "Hogmanay!" As a person born outwith Scotland, it has always been a bit of a puzzle why Hogmanay is a bigger thing here than Christmas. However, I now know that this is due in large part to the Reformation in 1560 and Presbyterianism. From the mid 16th Century until well into the 20th Century, Christmas celebrations were banned. In fact, in Scotland, Christmas Day did not become a public holiday until 1958, and Boxing Day wasn't an official holiday until 1974. Scots being the canny folk they are, they transferred their celebrations to New Year's Eve (sorry, Hogmanay) and New Year's Day, which were secular occasions and not governed by the Church. Right then, what did I get up to on New Y... 🙄 ... Hogmanay? The weather forecast looked much better than for New Year's Day, so a gentl...