LOONY DOOK MAKES A SPLASH FOR 2023

THE annual Loony Dook saw hundreds of revellers make a splash in the Firth of Forth at South Queensferry to welcome in the New Year. 
Thousands watched on as daredevils as young as eleven years old and well into their sixties ran into the water to celebrate the start of 2023. 
The event has taken place on the record since 1986 when three locals felt it was an appropriate hangover cure, but some claim it began even before then.
Although not ‘officially’ part of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay programme this year, that didn’t stop people from having a dunk, taking it right back to its roots and making it as busy as ever. 
With chill-inducing temperatures at four degrees (which felt like two), the local RNLI were on guard to ensure there were no casualties on the day. 
One of the volunteers from the twenty strong lifeboat crew said: “The waters are really cold so there is the possibility of cold water shock, so our advice to people is to walk in nice and slowly. Some people last five minutes but experienced swimmers can last for twenty minutes sometimes.”
“There’s always pretty spectacular costumes from a bathtub one year to someone dressed as a Forth Bridge.”
People dressed in pink tutus, rugby outfits, Santa hats, in kilts, as a penguin and even a bottle of gin as they took to the water, some even armed with a bottle of Buckfast. 
Siobhan Lees, who dooked in a bikini eleven years ago, said: “My eleven year old daughter Ava Seagroat is doing it with her friend Ella who is also eleven and goes to the local primary school. She is just crazy and loves it and I’ve got cups of herbal tea for her. She goes wild swimming all the time. It’s a great start to the year and fab for the community.”
All participants enjoyed free cake from local bakers.

HELEN SKELTON TEAMS UP WITH HIGHLAND SPRING FOR DOCUMENTARY

COUNTRYFILE presenter Helen Skelton has teamed up with Highland Spring to explore the fascinating but largely unknown world of natural source water from raindrops on a hillside protected by expertly trained ‘guardians’ to recyclable bottles on shop shelves.

 

In the documentary style video, released this month, Helen transports viewers to the stunning Ochil Hills, Scotland - 2,500 acres of protected, natural, untouched land that is home to Highland Spring’s natural water source. This protected land is where the magic happens.

Theshowbizlion.com agrees with Helen when she says it’s a breath of fresh air in the Scottish Highlands - and we’d love to take a dip by the waterfalls. 

 

Helen Skelton said: “As a nation, we drink hundreds of millions of litres of natural source water every year, but there is so much more to this drink than many realise. What’s in the bottle; where does it come from; is it sustainable? These are questions we wanted to answer by travelling into the heart of the Ochil Hills in Scotland, home to Highland Spring’s natural water source.”

 

Up in the Ochil Hills, rain falls and hits nothing but the unspoiled grass, bush and heather of Highland Spring’s organic land, trickling into the natural filter of basalt rock below. Thanks to an impermeable layer of sandstone, only water that falls on high land gets as far as the layers of ancient basalt rock below. 

 

Nature then works its wonders with an all-natural filtration process. The water spends an incredible 15-30 years passing through layer upon layer of rock before being brought gently to the surface where it is bottled at source.

 

“Here we see how the incredible journey starts with acres of untouched land filled with vibrant purple heather and lashings of wind and rain,” continues Helen. “Each raindrop filters through layers of basalt rock for 15-30 years, untouched by human hands right up until you take that first sip. It’s all pretty magical, right? But even then, this journey isn’t over yet. It’s just over to you. We want everyone to know that every Highland Spring bottle can and should be recycled to give it another life.”

 

The land itself is certified as organic by the Soil Association and protected by a specially trained team of hillside experts at Highland Spring known as ‘Guardians’ of the Source. It is this team of experts that ensure the land is kept free from any kind of pollution, pesticides, herbicides, fertilisers or habitation to ensure the water that is drawn is as pure as can be.

 

Alex Haken, Highland Spring’s Guardian of the Source, added: “We are on the hills 365 days a year fiercely protecting our land to ensure our water is as pure as it can be. The rain that falls on the Ochil Hills is exactly what ends up in our bottle and to ensure this is sustainable, we only bottle about 3% of the annual rainfall. It’s a journey of care that starts with the land, but it doesn’t end there. 

 

“Whenever it comes to supporting the environment, we want to help. All our bottles are recyclable and thankfully 89% of us recycle today. Recycling is what helps us create environmentally sustainable products like our eco bottle, which is made from 100% recycled plastic* that’s 100% recyclable too, so remember to recycle your bottle after use.”