Scotland: Today and Yesterday

By John MacKay

‘This book is the story of a changing Scotland as it was heard and seen by the people of Scotland. We all may have our ideas about where we are headed as nation and a society, but none of us knows. That makes what lies ahead so fascinating. Just like what’s gone before.’ JOHN MacKAY

John MacKay is one of Scotland’s best known broadcasters. His career as a reporter, anchor and presenter has spanned from the Thatcher Years to the Independence Referendum and beyond. MacKay has been witness to the major stories in the country’s recent past.

There have been the tragedies of Lockerbie, Dunblane and Clutha; sporting triumphs and tears; the opening of the new Scottish Parliament; the drama of parliamentary elections and referendums; interviews with Prime Ministers and First Ministers; and the death of Donald Dewar.

From being in a room with a grizzly bear to trying to calm an irate – and topless – Alex Salmond, MacKay’s career has been nothing if not varied. Using archive scripts, interview transcripts, recollections and personal diaries, he tells the story of one of the most tumultuous periods in Scotland’s peacetime history.

Reviews of Scotland: Today and Yesterday

'It's pleasing to be able to get behind the armour of professional neutrality, with MacKay revealing himself as a man of good judgement, decency, and considerable political foresight.' THE SCOTTISH REVIEW OF BOOKS