Pity the fictional detective's dog...

I really can't understand why Gail is disappointed that the Edinburgh International Book Festival has moved online this year. 

In what way is it preferable to schlep off to Scotland's rainy capital to gather in crowded tents in Charlotte Square, when you could be sitting in the comfort of your own home, sharing the experience with your dog. The dog who is comfortably curled up on your lap, rather than having been abandoned to 'prison' for a few days?

And you know what? The event we 'attended' together on Monday night was actually quite interesting and illuminating. Favourite Scottish crime author Ian Rankin was talking to journalist Ruth Wishart about his latest book, 'A Song for Dark Times'. 

It turns out that Inspector Rebus, Rankin's fictional detective, has newly acquired a dog called Brillo. And Ms Wishart commented she'd been distracted, when reading the book, by worrying about Brillo being left alone for long periods while Rebus was pursuing his investigations. Ian Rankin admitted that ensuring the dog was well cared for became yet another complicating factor to consider when constructing the story, and said he'd relied on his wife to proof read his text to check that Rebus's new status as dog owner was incorporated in a realistic way.

I bet you'd never thought before about this most important issue when it comes to writing crime fiction! 

Are you enjoying any online events with your humans?

PS Click here to link to the Rankin/Wishart talk.

A change of scene for Inspector Rebus?

So Gail and I travelled down to Nottingham (again), on Sunday, this time by train.

As usual, we broke the journey in Edinburgh, where Gail decided we'd go for a nice lunch rather than our customary leg stretch around Arthur's Seat.

Earlier Googling for dog friendly pubs not too far from Waverley Station had indicated the Cambridge Bar on Young Street might be worth a try.

The sign on the door said 'Dugs Welcome' and so I led the way in.

Oh isn't it brilliant when a place not just lives up to but exceeds one's expectations!

No soon as I'd trotted through the door than the young barman and barmaid came rushing to greet me.

"Oh isn't he gorgeous!  What's his name? Bertie? Would Bertie like to sit here? Shall we bring him a bowl of water? Is he allowed treats? Aw, I love his fuzzy face. Just like a teddy bear. Where does he like to be scratched? Oh don't worry about him jumping up, we don't mind at all".

And so it went on. Yummy treats for me and a 'designer burger' for Gail, who said it was fortunate there weren't too many other customers, as they might have felt a bit neglected, not to mention concerned about food hygiene standards. Personally I didn't see that as a problem.

After a most pleasant lunch hour, Gail extracted me from the cuddles of a second barmaid and we headed out again. Just down the street we spotted the Oxford Bar, which fans of Ian Rankin's crime novels will recognise as the favourite haunt of Inspector Rebus.

In my opinion, Rebus has been missing a trick all these years, ignoring the wee gem of a pub just a few paces along the road.

P.S. from Gail: for those of you concerned about Human Granny, Bertie will be posting an update shortly. Meanwhile, rest assured she is doing OK.