Scotland’s Churches Trust has revealed that the rate of church closures has rapidly accelerated since the pandemic, leaving well established congregations at a loss.
Currently, there are around 3,000 buildings belonging to all faiths and creeds across Scotland. Every settlement in Scotland that justifies being called a village has a place of worship, with most being very notable within the surrounding architecture, often built generations before anything else around it.
However, with the number of people reporting “No religion” in the UK increasing from 37.2 per cent (22.2 million) in 2021 from 25.2 per cent (14.1 million) in 2011, it comes as no surprise that The Church of Scotland has declared that 700 churches are predicted to close across Scotland by the end of the decade.
No matter what faith or creed (or lack thereof) that you identify with, there is a real sadness to this. A feeling of tradition and legacy being lost.
Xhurches, or ex-churches, is the term used to describe the trend of repurposing religious venues that no longer bring in a congregation large enough to sustain the building’s original purpose, and the trend is increasing.
There have been some incredibly impressive feats of architecture over the last 50 years in Scotland, with the VA in Dundee or Glasgow’s Transport Museum coming to mind. However, there is something different about the grandeur and timelessness of a place of worship. All faiths have a distinctive architectural style that brands their space to a faith or denomination that lies within.
It’s not just a trend in Scotland either, with an international increase in the repurposing of these buildings. But, whilst initially some controversy existed over the reuse of places of worship, particularly for the sale of alcohol, this has now been largely overcome.
In urban areas, these buildings are often on main thoroughfares or prominent intersections. And, with their central locations, comes the obvious commercial appeal. Think of the great locations of Glasgow’s Òran Mór and Cottiers, or Edinburgh’s Bedlam theatre and The Queen’s Gallery. With time, these spaces have transcended their original purpose, and become part of the locals understanding of their sense of home.
Necessity is the mother of invention, and in the age of disruption, businesses live and die by their ability to adapt – to evolve, and these religious spaces don’t exist outside market mechanisms.
The twang of sadness for the past soon makes way for admiration. The entrepreneurial spirit to undertake these projects is impressive. It is an entrepreneurship that extends sometimes beyond the profit margin, often reusing these spaces for community engagement and social cohesion.
In Madrid they turned a former place of worship into the ‘Sistine chapel of skateparks’. The Irish turned an old mariner’s church into their National Maritime Museum. In Redbridge, London, an old hospital chapel is now a 24m swimming pool and in Norwich an old crypt now hosts all categorisations of nightlife.
It retains some connection, however slight, to our past. It reserves the visual, historic character to our built environment, and the nature of how people perceive these buildings often means they are kept in an impressive condition despite their age.
A few months back I quoted Leigh Sparks, Scotland’s Towns Partnership Chair, saying; “Towns, villages and local places across Scotland – and the businesses that operate at their heart – are the economic and social glue of the country and our communities.” Churches often were at the centre of these places.
What attracts me most to the Xhurches trend is the opportunity to recreate places for people to gather within their community and to exchange ideas with others. This is so often the organic beginnings to trade, jobs, and the business fuelled future of an area.
In the timely words of Dolly Parton, “we cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails”, so I hope to see the continued adaptation of our businesses and buildings, whatever is to come in the world.
Scotland’s TV trade left reeling from 2023 collapse
2023 has been a disastrous year for film and TV production in the UK. The writers’ strike in America brought feature film production to a grinding halt.
The domestic TV production industry is also in the doldrums with staff having to turn their hands to other trades to earn a crust.
Scotland has its own busy telly trade, worth over £617 million at the last count in 2021 – however it would seem we are not immune here either. TV production staff from Glasgow say they have had to tap into savings to keep the wolves from the door.
Holly Ritchie, a freelancer, says “a lot of amazing people” will leave the sector. She adds that it can also be frustrating when the government talks up the sector for PR spin, while doing nothing to help those struggling to put food on the table.
The UK’s Film and TV sector spend in 2022 was a staggering £6.3 billion according to the UK government. The majority of that was made up of inward investment which is testament to the high-quality staff and facilities we have here.
But the UK’s broadcasters are commissioning less top-notch stuff because of a fall in advertising revenue in the commercial sector, while the BBC has to balance the books with a frozen license fee.
Here’s hoping things start to pick up soon before more of the workforce flit to other industries from this highly skilled and profitable sector before there’s nothing but (more) repeats on TV.
It Made Me Laugh
A Scottish horse has found online stardom after amassing over 100 million views on TikTok and gaining a slew of celebrity fans thanks to its funny movements and facial expressions.
The comedic stallion has even been featured in YouTube videos by the Sidemen and Jason Derulo.
Twinkle is stabled in North Berwick and owned by Eirinn Reid who began posting clips of the horse’s cheeky antics on social media and now regularly films Twinkle taking part in viral video trends to the delight of his online following.
Eirinn started the account for some light-hearted fun, but never expected him to go viral. She added: “It was just a bit of fun really, it made me laugh and made other people laugh.”
Sounds to me like some online foaling around is exactly what is needed – no long faces here.
It Made Me Weep
All aboard – but not at one of Scotland’s most remote railway stations.
Altnabreac in Caithness is one of the most far-flung stops on the rail network, serving fewer than 300 passengers last year.
It’s now serving zero because of a dispute over an access road that Scotrail uses to maintain the station.
The problems have come down to the provision of new kiosks at the station, which passengers can use to notify drivers of incoming trains that they want to board.
These are vital services and the publicly owned ScotRail need to get their act together to resolve the issue to help folk travelling home for Christmas.
