Why subscribe?
Hello. I’m Kenny Farquharson. I’m a journalist in Edinburgh.
The Jaggy Thistle is where you’ll find me writing about Scotland in all its wondrous complexity, and the wider world from a Scottish point of view.
This is a fascinating moment of cultural and political change. I aim to be your companion as we explore its light and shade.
There will be essays, reportage and documentary photography. I’ll be writing across politics, art, society and popular culture.
Join me. The Jaggy Thistle will be a community and a conversation. It would be really good to have you along.
The Jaggy Thistle was thrilled to be a featured publication on Substack Reads in July 2023.
About me
I’m a staff writer on The Times. In a newspaper career of almost 40 years I have been a cub reporter, an industry correspondent, a film critic, an investigative reporter, an interviewer, a feature writer, a political editor, an editor and latterly a political columnist.
I am a very busy man. I dawdle in cafes and bookshops. I make soup. I stare at the wall. I think about taking out the recycling. Very occasionally I play drums: my band Best Picture are currently on the longest hiatus in the history of contemporary music. I take photographs, trying to emulate the style of the great black-and-white documentary photographers of the Picture Post era.
I type for a living. My career highs as a writer include being embedded with Scottish troops in Afghanistan and reporting on Barack Obama's presidential election campaign.
Much of my working life has been spent telling Scotland’s story as a modern nation, in real time. I have been political editor of three newspapers: Scotland on Sunday, the Daily Record and the Scottish edition of The Sunday Times. At the birth of devolution I was the first convenor of the Scottish Parliamentary Journalists’ Association.
As an editor I helmed Scotland on Sunday and I was deputy editor of The Scotsman. I went back to the tools as a writer in 2015. Since then I have written a weekly column on politics for the Scottish edition of The Times.
I am an Orwell Fellow, having been shortlisted for the Orwell Prize for political writing. In the Scottish Press Awards I have won political journalist of the year, columnist of the year and interviewer of the year.
I microblog on Twitter, where I have 45,000 followers.
Is The Jaggy Thistle free?
You can subscribe to The Jaggy Thistle for free if you like. There will always be occasional free posts. But to access all posts, plus videos and more, you have to be a paid Premium Subscriber. I explain more here. Only Premium Subscribers can see all the posts, join in the conversation in the comments, and be a full member of The Jaggy Thistle community. The monthly fee is roughly equivalent to a takeaway coffee, which I think is pretty good value. I make no apology for asking for money: writers should value their work. Also, hacks gotta eat.
Why is it called The Jaggy Thistle?
I’m glad you asked. On Google Maps there is a bare patch of tarmac in Blackpool labeled "The Jaggy Thistle Car Park". This is the only trace that remains of one of the town's most celebrated pubs, long ago demolished.
The Jaggy Thistle was a favourite of Scottish holidaymakers, especially during the Glasgow Fair fortnight. It staged Hogmanay celebrations every night of the week. Any time you walked through the door there was a good chance the entire clientele would be standing on the seats singing Hi Ho Silver Lining.
I have fond memories of The Jaggy Thistle from my time as a political editor during the political conference season, in the dregs of summer. One particular night stands out: a Scotland v England karaoke contest during a party conference sometime in the 1990s.
The crowd that night was a kenspeckle mixture of locals, tourists, journalists and politicians. I did California Dreamin’. And when I sang “well I got down on my knees”, well, I got down on my knees.
It was a stormy night, and as we all left to wend our way back to our lodgings, the pub sign was blown off its moorings and hit one of my colleagues on the back of the head.
The poor man had to go to hospital. He had to queue for the train home with a large bandage around his head, looking like Rab C Nesbitt and getting alarmed looks from the London commentariat.
I hope this new Jaggy Thistle requires no visits to A&E. I also hope that like its namesake it will be entertaining, a little rough around the edges, and always worth a visit.
House style
The Jaggy Thistle will generally conform to the house style of The Times newspaper on issues such a honorifics, capitalisation and spelling. The most up-to-date edition of the style guide, edited by Ian Brunskill, is available here.
What happens when I subscribe?
Subscribe to get The Jaggy Thistle newsletter and support the work of Scottish journalist Kenny Farquharson.
Stay up-to-date
You won’t have to worry about missing anything. Every new edition of the newsletter goes directly to your email inbox.
If you prefer you can read it on the Substack smartphone app.
Join the gang
Be part of a community of people who share your interests.
What’s the catch?
There is no catch. No algorithms, no adverts, no fuss.
What is Substack, exactly?
To find out more about the company that provides the tech for this newsletter, visit Substack.com.
“A chield's amang you takin notes, And faith he'll prent it.”
Robert Burns
