Poppy Watson

Dundee, Scotland

Features Writer at The Courier and Evening Telegraph (Dundee)

Features writer @thecourieruk covering Tayside and Fife. Stories to [email protected]

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Articles

8 of the best beer gardens in Tayside and Fife - including Scotland's 'biggest' one

2 weeks ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

We’ve searched high and low across Tayside and Fife to find the best beer gardens and al fresco dining – including what is said to be the biggest one in the country. Whether you’re looking for somewhere to relax with your friends or to take that perfect Instagram picture, these venues are equipped for just that. We’ll also tell you which ones are dog-friendly, child-friendly, host live music, serve cocktails, food and local craft beer.
Perthshire couple restore flooded cottage with £189k insurance pay out after burst pipe

2 weeks ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

Keith and Kerry Legg learned something was wrong when they got an email from their next-door neighbour back home in Guildtown, near Perth. The couple – who both teach in international schools in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – were told that running water could be heard inside the empty cottage. So Keith asked his mum and dad, who live nearby, to check on things. “My parents went out there and, yeah, it was a bit of a disaster,” he recalls.
Growing up inside a classic St Andrews shop: 'The children slept, ate and breathed Farmore Interiors'

2 weeks ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

They say you should start them young. And Juliet Rathbone did just that with her four children when she launched her St Andrews shop Farmore Interiors in the 1990s. Holidays were spent working behind the till, weekends involved picking out fabrics at trade shows in London, and after-school hobbies included sewing curtains. And their exposure to the world of entrepreneurship from a young age has paid off, with each of them carving out successful creative careers in business and fashion.
What are stylish locals wearing the queue for ice cream in Broughty Ferry?

2 weeks ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

The glorious sunshine in Dundee shows no signs of stopping. And locals are making the most of it, with queues outside Visocchi’s Ice Cream on Gray Street in Broughty Ferry on Tuesday. Here are six stylish looks from the Dundee suburb. Jamie-Lee Gilchrist, 32, visiting Broughty Ferry from Aberdeen What do you do for a living? I’m an operations manager. What are you wearing?
Has Dundee Italian Don Michele kept its charm at new city centre home?

2 weeks ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

Don Michele had been on my list for a while. The family-run business is considered an oldie but a goldie in Dundee, having served classic Italian cuisine from its Perth Road premises in the West End for 21 years. So, when it announced it was relocating to a larger unit on Exchange Street in the city centre in March to enhance its food offering, regulars were delighted. I visited with a friend shortly afterwards and loved it.
Guests show off their best florals at V&A Dundee Garden Futures opening night

3 weeks ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

Hundreds of guests – including artists, designers, business owners and social media influencers – stepped out in style on Thursday night for the opening of V&A Dundee’s new exhibition: Garden Futures: Designing with Nature. And in a nod to the display’s outdoors theme, they wore everything from floral dresses and Hawaiian shirts to watering can earrings and flower brooches.
Dundee-born director Michael Keillor on new BBC Lockerbie drama

3 weeks ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

Michael Keillor has vivid memories of the Lockerbie bombing. The Dundee-born film director, then a 15-year-old pupil at Monifieth High School, was on his way to Austria for a ski trip with his classmates on the night of the terrorist attack. “We had to drive down the east coast of Scotland rather than the west coast to get to Luton Airport,” he recalls. “And we drove past the scene [on the way home] just a few days after.”Michael adds: “Looking back, it was such a big event in my life.
'Why I fly abroad and come home to Monifieth in the same day'

3 weeks ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

I was scrolling on Facebook a few years ago when I discovered ‘Extreme Day Trips’. This is a travel experience which involves visiting a distant location and returning home on the same day, with the goal of seeing as much as possible in that time. I’ve always loved travelling – in fact, it’s a goal of mine to visit 50 countries before I turn 50 next year – so my curiosity was immediately piqued. I joined the Scotland-based community on Facebook and started investigating my options.
Couple accuse Fife Council of adopted hiding son's trauma history

1 month ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

A couple who adopted their son through Fife Council have accused its social work department of withholding “shocking” information – including the claim the then toddler was left in a house with a dead baby for days while in foster care. Sharon, 54, and James Menzies, 60, who welcomed the then three-year-old into their home in 2009, claim these experiences have contributed to severe mental health issues and violent behaviours in their adopted child.
Dundee doctor Anna transforms five-bedroom townhouse

1 month ago | thecourier.co.uk | Poppy Watson

“The house gets such amazing light. And I think light is the number one thing to look for in a property. It totally changes the feel of a house.”Anna Johnston is recalling the moment she viewed her five-bedroom townhouse in 2019. A student at Dundee University at the time, she had been tasked with finding a suitable renovation opportunity in the city on behalf of her Northern Ireland-based dad and his cousin, who have various property projects together.