ALEX MARSHALL TO CARRY SCOTLAND FLAG DURING CLOSING CEREMONY

Lawn bowls hero, Alex Marshall, will be Scotland’s closing ceremony flag bearer, after Euan Burton carried the flag during the opening ceremony.

Tonight during the closing ceremony, before Kylie appears, Scotland’s attention will be centred on Team Scotland and their flag bearer Alex “Tattie” Marshall, part of the gold medal winning lawn bowls duo.

At 47 years old, Marshall has doubled his personal gold medal total, from two to four, after he won every game played at the Kelvingrove competitions. Now his record equals that of Allan Wells, a former Scottish athlete.

Alex started bowling at the tender age of eight, and had the support from both his father and grandfather.

He created a social media storm after saying “Get it up yae!” after beating England in the semi-finals of the lawn bowls, but Alex was quick to point out that nothing anti-English was meant by the celebration.

Marshall and his partner Paul Foster then went on to demolish Malaysia 20-3 in the finals to win their second gold medal of the Games. 

When asked how he felt about carrying the Scotland flag during the closing ceremony he said: “It’s a dream come true for myself. It’ll be one of the biggest things in my career and I’m just so looking forward to it.”

Alex Marshall will lead out 310 Scottish athletes, just like Euan Burton did during the opening ceremony at the start of the Games.

Team Scotland chef de mission stated: “Alex is one of the most popular and respected sportsmen of his generation and his record in Lawn Bowels, is second to none. The athletes and management of Team Scotland will be proud to follow Alex into the closing ceremony to celebrate what has been our nation’s most successful ever Commonwealth Games.”

This has been one of the most successful Games to be seen, and it is right that Alex Marshall should carry the Scotland flag, as he represents one of most successful Scottish athletes this Commonwealth Games has ever seen. Team Scotland couldn’t have picked a more perfect flag bearer.

COMMONWEALTH MURALS: ART OR GRAFFITI?

In 2009, Sam Bates, an Australian street artist, was contacted by Glasgow City Council to create artwork across Glasgow depicting all the sports included in the Commonwealth Games. He also painted some artwork that showed general landmarks and symbols associated with Scotland.

Having developed his craft for over fifteen years, Bates, aka Smug, has gained much expertise in the art of street displays. His creations can be seen all over Glasgow, and while not all of it is normally seen as beautiful, it intrigues people all the same.

The most seen murals by Smug portray the swimming, that is taking place in the Tollcross International Swimming Centre, and a girl looking through a magnifying glass, but all of his artwork is seen daily by Glaswegians and tourists alike.

Originally from a small town near Sydney, Australia, he believes that Glasgow suffers from having a creative space for fellow street artists and graffiti experts. Most of the graffiti in Glasgow is seen as a blemish on the city’s image, but Smug is trying to change the perception that the residents of the city have of local street art from negative to positive.

Nathan Rafferty, a young Glaswegian boy, spoke about how he believes all the murals, in Glasgow, are art not graffiti. He said: “I think it is art because there is more detail to them, unlike graffiti which normally consists of letters.”

Some of Bates artwork can be seen as strange and extreme, but still unforgettable, due to the vibrant colours and unusual design. An example of his extreme artwork can be seen under the stairway across from the Kelvinbridge Subway Station, which shows a squirrel perched on a skull. 

More wildlife inspired artwork can be seen at Merchant City, by everyone either living or visiting Glasgow. This artwork represents the Scottish wildlife and the animals that live there, from red squirrels to badgers, and was created in 2013.

All of Sam Bates creations in Glasgow represent Scotland in some way, but the artwork seen along the stretch of wall from Gibson Street to Kelvinbridge Subway Station shows the history of Glasgow’s transport, from the past to the present. It was created around the same time the Museum of Transport was being built.

The Commonwealth Games murals, commissioned in 2009, represent the many different personalities of Scotland, and Glasgow in particular. 

Sam Bates paintings have a special “anti-graffiti” coating that stops the murals getting damaged and can be easily cleaned. This will help the artwork stay on the streets of Glasgow for many more years to come, and will hopefully inspire more street artists and graffiti experts to show their art where everyone can see, and appreciate.

ALEX MCCALL PROMOTES NEW BOOK AT KELVINGROVE BANDSTAND

Twenty year old author, Alex McCall, launches his new book “Attack of the Giant Robot Chickens” at the Kelvingrove Bandstand for Festival 2014. This is the first book Alex has ever published and despite being only twenty, McCall has aspirations to write more books for both children and teenagers.

McCall’s preferred target audience is teenagers and the location of this other story ideas are usually set in far off places, but for the Kelpie Awards he had to stick to certain guidelines. The guidelines included the story being aimed at 8-12 year olds, being set in Scotland, and it had to be 40,000-70,000 words long.

Alex won the Kelpie Awards in August 2013, but the book was published in February 2014, and despite being a relatively new author, he was delighted to be asked to be part of Festival 2014.

The Kelpie Awards are part of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, and has a grand prize of a published book and £2000.

McCall is currently studying Film Making and Screenwriting at University of the West of Scotland, and hopes to gain experience for writing in the future.

THE TEE BAR MAKES ITS MARK ON THE CLOSING CEREMONY

Since opening in late February, the shop has had its share of customers, but when a local community group, who had made contact with team Barbados, came in to ask for some t-shirts in Barbados colours, Robertson kindly offered her expertise. The result was ‘Glasbados’.

This soon became popular with the team themselves, who have ordered 200 more for the closing ceremony, and once again Robertson agreed.

Rather than other teams asking for t-shirts, individuals asked for specific shirts that either represent their own country or show how they have embraced Scotland. On the back of the Glasbados shirts, there is a thistle representing Scotland.

Being close to Hampden has made access to her shop restricted,  but that hasn’t dimmed her mood towards the Games at all. On the contrary, she has enjoyed every single minute of it, especially the opening ceremony. She doesn’t know if she will go to the closing one in person yet, or if she’ll enjoy it at home.

The most popular shirts in the shops are the ‘Aye’ shirts, the ‘Naw’ shirts and the ‘Mibbie’ shirts dedicated to the independence referendum in September. 

“We have some families who are split right down the middle, and they have an ‘Aye’ and a ‘Naw’. And I think it’ll be interesting around their dinner table in the evenings,” Kim said.

“They’re very popular, as are some of the Glasgow banter ones.”

Most of Kim's customers are people requesting special birthday t-shirts or shirts for special occasions. Some even ask for a slogan on a shirt, or something more personal that makes little sense to others. Her customers go there for something different - and different is what she excels in.

The weirdest shirts that have been requested are usually ones for stag nights and hen nights - t-shirts, she says, which tend to "raise an eyebrow".

In recent months, the Tee Bar has become more popular due to the warmer climate in Scotland. 

Kim said: “So, as the weather has been getting better, and people have been getting out and enjoying the sunshine, they’ve been coming in more and more often. And then they come back - so they come in and know that we can turn things around quickly for them, and if they have an event or a birthday, or they’re just looking for something a wee bit different, they’ll come back.”

Her favourite top is the shop is ‘Too Dumb for New York, Too Ugly for L.A.’ and a shirt that ladies can relate with saying ‘More Issues than Vogue’. She likes what she calls “ironic, sort of funny, catchy kind of t-shirts”.

With hopes to grow her business exponentially based on things such as word of mouth and big organisations - like the Barbados team - purchasing from her, Kim hopes to branch out to other communities and groups.

Kim used to be a journalist for The Herald, and has interviewed people like Chris Hoy and Andy Murray. The decision to open her own t-shirt shop was inspired by her nephew. The first shirt she made was for him - a top with his name, Lawrence, on it.

The Tee Bar may not be the biggest store, but the shop has some of the most unique t-shirts on the market. If you’re looking for original and quirky then The Tee Bar is the shop for you.

FIVE THINGS WE LEARNED: ATHLETICS

Here’s what I learned about one of the busiest sports of the Commonwealth Games:

1. There is no prejudice between nations

Fans everywhere in Hampden clapped for every competitor, no matter what nation they represented or where they came in the standings.

Despite there being only one Scottish winner, everyone in the stadium was astounded by the races and events happening all round Hampden Park. Everyone stood up for the national anthems of the winning nations, and no one booed or jeered any athlete who won or didn't quite make the final cut. The silence for the anthems showed that, no matter the athlete, respect is given to all if they deserve it.

2. The atmosphere around Hampden was electric

At every event I have been to during these Commonwealth Games I have to say that the crowd at Hampden is probably the best I have ever seen. Even the crowd at Ibrox for the Rugby Sevens was not quite as electric or as loud as the one at Hampden Park. To get the crowd started throughout the Games, the presenters choose a person, usually a child, from the crowds and let them push a big red button, which starts off the “opening sequence”. This time they chose a young boy from Jamaica to push it. Not only did he get into it, but the crowd did as well, giving the boy the feeling that he was one of the athletes competing - a nice touch and undoubtedly a brilliant experience for the boy.

3. Everyone got pulled into the exciting atmosphere of the races, even if they didn’t particularly like the event happening

Not everyone who goes to sporting events is a sports fan. People go for the atmosphere, or to say “I was there”. However, once the crowd starts to get behind an athlete it is hard not to get dragged into the roars and cheers from the surrounding fans. I've seen people who have never been to a sporting event in their lives cheer and scream for athletes they know nothing about.

4. Para-sports are integrated in with all the other events

Regardless of each athlete's varying abilities, they are all treated equally and fairly by officials and spectators alike. There is no added pressure, no special attention, and no discrimination against them. If they win, they win, and if they lose, they lose - but they lose as Commonwealth athletes, watched by everyone, and loved by most. 

5. Athletics is one of the busiest sports, due to the three or four events going on simultaneously 

During the athletics, I was confused as to where on the track and field I should look, as there were three to four different events going on at once, and even the cameras couldn’t quite keep up with the commentators. The athletics is undoubtedly one of the busiest and most complex sporting events to be staged her for the Commonwealth games. I've never seen so many athletes together in one place since the opening ceremony, and I doubt I will again until the closing celebrations, on August 3rd. 

NORTHERN IRELAND GRAB THEIR SECOND MEDAL IN THE GAMES

Paul Daly, Neil Mulholland, and Neil Booth lost 19-10 to South Africa, which results in a disappointing end to Booth's international bowls career. 

Skipper Booth was hoping to obtain his second Commonwealth gold, after winning in Kuala Lumpur in 1998, but sadly missed out when South Africa held on to the gold, while Wales beat Australia to win bronze.

Despite Booth being disappointed with the loss, he knows that the Northern Ireland team is in good hands with Daly and Mulholland. "These guys are super players and they will go on to win many more medals."

GLASGOW ADDS A DIVERSE RANGE OF MUSIC TO FESTIVAL 2014

The Old Fruit Market hosts A Festival of Music, and includes a wide variety of cultures who wish to share their music with others between July 28 and August 2, 2014.

The music ranges from contemporary folk music, to the invention of music, to a mix of many different types of music, and the countries ranging from Scotland and Ireland, to New Zealand, to Africa and South Africa.

The festival starts with contemporary folk band Peatog Faeries, and ends with Louis Baker, of New Zealand, who is said to sing with shades of Motown-era soul. And when the acts are over Festival 2014 DJs will keep the party atmosphere going until the people give up, or the neighbours start complaining – whatever comes first.

Each night starts at 9pm and ends late into the evening. It is rumoured that Team Scotland, as well as many other athletes, will be there at the venue. It is over 18s only and tickets cost £10 (unreserved standing and seating). 

So if you’re looking for a bit of fun, without the kids, then A Festival of Music could for you. And if you miss one night, there are still plenty of nights to go and plenty of acts to see. Even if the acts aren’t you’re cup of tea, you’ll have a night away from the kids and a night of fun and dancing. I say go for it, even if it’s only for one night.