The start.....

There will be many Christmas Fairs and other such events in the constituency over the next few weeks, but this was the first I had been to this year. It was at Colintraive this morning, and there was a big variety of stalls.

I am constantly - and pleasantly - struck these days at how ( in Argyll and elsewhere) local food is at last coming to the fore. In the hall today there was fish and shell fish from Loch Fyne Oysters sausages, cheese and meat from Taste of Bute and venison presented in lots of ways from Winston Churchill who is our local game dealer. And of all of them can be bought online too - just use the links !

Plus there were hand made chocolates, fantastic Christmas cakes and lots of preserves.

The hall, by the way, is on the site of the old village blacksmith's forge , hence the huge bellows on the end wall.