Joanna Walsh Baty in her coffin, 1941

On death and dying

On this All Souls Day or Day of the Dead, I take an in-depth look at what led to the demise of my direct ancestors.

A smuggling tale

Two of Scotland’s most infamous gin smugglers were my 4G-grandfather John Kennedy and his brother Philip, whose notoriety resulted from a violent encounter with government excisemen in 1798.