OLD Firm rivalry will come to a head on Sunday and two fervent fans are set to be on the edge of their seats for a good reason.

A FORMER student is set to draw on his own experience of college life and learning as he takes up his new role as university disability support co-ordinator.

CONNECTING with tourism businesses on the ground is the key to raising the profile of Moray and Speyside as an internationally-renowned tourist destination, insists the man charged with spearheading the job.

'THE Northern Scot' snapper, Eric Cormack, has dazzled judges yet again at the Highlands and Islands Media Awards.

GRAND master hand-engraver Neil Oliver's work will be on display every time someone posts a letter.

AFTER being told her size made her a health and safety issue at work, determined dieter Donna McAllister vowed to change her ways.

OYEZ, oyez - who has got the loudest voice in town and could take on the mantle as Lossiemouth's next town crier?

HE has shared air space with Hollywood superstars, and his dulcet tones are heard worldwide by 120 million people each day, yet Philip Banks seldom needs to leave the privacy of a tiny studio in his Portgordon home.

A GRIM childhood, which included five years spent in an orphanage, led a Moray woman to devote much of her life to helping others.

TWO Moray sporting figures will swap golf and football in the New Year for a gruelling charity cycling challenge with a strong rugby theme.

A "ONE-in-a-million" Moray schoolboy has earned an early Christmas present for his heart-wrenching account of the decline in health of a grandmother he describes as "the best person I'll ever meet".

IT was a case of from Russia with love when a Moray groom swapped his wedding vows with his Siberian bride after following in his younger brother's footsteps down the aisle.

FAME could be about to come calling for a Moray schoolgirl who is staking her claim to the title of Miss Teen Princess UK.

BROUGHT up in an orphanage and with no living relatives, 91-year-old Maggie Gow has forged a life-changing friendship with a caring young mum who has opened up a window to the world for her, writes Fiona McPherson. For a few precious hours a week, she shares her memories and catches up on the news with Lorna Taylor - and together they venture out around Buckie to enjoy a cuppa and a homebake or a rake around the shops.

CRIPPLED by partial paralysis and overwhelmed by depression, a Moray mum had to summon up all her courage and determination to battle back to be crowned a champion fighting force.

DRUGS, alcohol and smoking are perennial issues of concern to a large number of people in Moray.

MORAY'S most famous footballing son has told the incredible story of his battle with the bookies, the booze and the beautiful game.

FROM teaching his martial arts skills to rising young sports stars to instructing police and security staff, the services of Lee Sansum have been in high demand around the world this year.

INSPIRED by her mother's recovery from a kidney transplant, a sick Moray teenager awaiting the same life- saving operation is hoping her dad will be given the go-ahead to become her donor.

DUTCH teacher Inge Birnie can already speak a host of languages, but when she moved to Scotland 12 years ago, she was "embarrassed" that she could not speak the native tongue.

A SCOTS crime writer with Moray roots has died. Reg McKay (56), who was born in Keith but moved to Glasgow with his family as a teenager, wrote a string of best-selling crime novels.

LEFT feeling helpless as her dad battled cancer, teacher Lorna MacInnes vowed to play her part in the fight against the disease.

STUDENT nurse Gillian McRobie has just enhanced her learning experience with a two-week study tour of the United States.

THERE may not be any skyscrapers in Inchberry, but a formidable fruit discovery could see the tiny Moray community nicknamed the 'Big Apple' before long.

A MORAY woman could have engineered her way to success after being nominated for a prestigious national award.

A STAY-at-home mum who had lost her direction in life is rekindling hopes of her family embarking on a new life Down Under.

ELGIN hairdresser Leanna Sutherland helped create a head-turning look at the glitzy London Fashion Week.

TRIBUTE was paid last week to the life and work of a Moray consultant whose pioneering investigations established a national training manual for anaesthetists.

A MORAY woman is flushed with success after winning an award in her chosen trade – plumbing.

WRITER Gary Sutherland spent a year travelling the length and breadth of the country to experience the unique community festivals which are ringed on the calendar, yet often overlooked by those living closest to them.

THE inspiration provided by a Moray youngster's brave battle against cancer has given charities a major cash boost.

THREE officers from RAF Lossiemouth have been rewarded for taking the lead in frontline operations in Iraq.

NOT everyone thinks they have it in them to change the life of a child for the better, but every day in Moray and throughout Scotland volunteers who sit on Children's Panels do just that.

A DEDICATED surgeon who has devoted his career to setting the highest standards of health care for his Moray patients has bowed out of the operating theatre.

ARMY Cadet Michael Farmer has just returned from the "most amazing summer" of his life.

HIS determination to speak up for what needed to be done in Lossiemouth even led him to a seat on Moray Council.

A DIABETIC schoolgirl could be getting pumped up for success after scoring a remarkable European football triumph.

A MORAY woman who witnessed the devastation wreaked by the Lockerbie bomber admits she had mixed emotions after seeing him released from a Scottish Prison and return home to Libya.

LIFE really does begin at 40 for birthday girl Karen Cormack, a year on from being dealt the devastating blow that she had cancer.

A NURSE student provided some Moray hospitality for two American counterparts during a medical exchange visit to Grampian.

IF love is all you need, then it's small wonder that even tiny mites born into the most tragic of circumstances begin to thrive in the tender care of Ronnie and Joyce Loveland.

THE family and friends of a young woman have donated money to a Forres youngster undergoing treatment for eye cancer.

AS most of us look forward to a work-free weekend, one Moray man has already begun his journey into the office.

A MORAY cycling duo are back home resting after completing their own "Tour De France".

HISTORY was made this month when Scotland's famous One o'Clock Gun was fired by the youngest person ever to do so.

A DEEPLY respected figure in the North-east fishing industry has died.

A MAN with Keith roots has been honoured for making an outstanding contribution to policing.

THE memory of the late Cullen harbourmaster Hendry Runcie will continue to live on through generations of locals and visitors following the unveiling of a new commemorative bench.

MOST people celebrating their 50th birthday might decide to host a party or get away from it all with a luxury holiday.

A MORAY whisky firm has been to London to see the Queen.

AN OCTAGENARIAN was taken on a journey back in time, from the comfort of his own armchair, when his school satchel, packed full of old books, was unearthed.

A MAN who was at the helm of an Elgin woollen mill for more than two decades has been honoured by the Robert Gordon University with an Honorary Doctorate.
The award has been made to James Sugden of Johnstons of Elgin – now managing director of the firm’s mill in Hawick – in recognition for his services to the textile industry.

RETIRED GP Liz Coutts wasn't about to put her feet up after retiring at the age of 60.

A MORAY teenager is still waiting for a vital bone marrow transplant which will transform his life.

THERE will be no more learning the latest disco dance crazes for a volunteer who has devoted two decades of her life to the young people of New Elgin.

A MUCH-LOVED and respected head teacher has bid a tearful farewell to the school where she started her teaching career 30 years ago.

LETTERS to American President Barack Obama helped a Moray school become the first in the area to win a prestigious racial equality award.

ALMOST a century of work in the classroom has been chalked off at Moray College following the retirement of three long-serving lecturers.

A MORAY schoolboy has shown he is a cut above the rest by getting his long locks shaved off in support of his sick grandmother.

A MORAY couple who emigrated to Canada 35 years ago after answering a job advert in the 'Northern Scot' have returned to explore their ancestry.

HOW many children would contemplate walking barefoot or ploughing through three feet snowdrifts just to get to school? Or using your passion-killer elasticated knickers to collect gooseberries in the school garden!

ACHING limbs and blistered feet will be the least of his worries when a Speyside man undertakes one of Britain's most challenging endurance events this weekend to raise cash for cancer youngster Logan Main.

AN outstanding gunner, mountain rescue member and community fund-raiser, Flight Sergeant Charlie Marshall was among a number of RAF service personnel honoured in the Queen's birthday honours.

TUCKING into a taste of Moray at Baxters of Speyside are Swiss journalists who spent a few days in the area, visiting attractions and seeing the sights so they could go home and write about them.

THE encouragement given by a dedicated dad-of-three to get youngsters involved in sport, will be his lasting legacy.

A FIRST birthday is always a special occasion but for the family of Fraser Smith, who is enduring gruelling treatment for cancer, it will be a day to cherish.

PRIVATE Cameron Gibson, from Fochabers, has scooped the prize for best recruit on completion of a 28-week training schedule with the Parachute Regiment.

FINNISH student Wencke Osterberg prepares to say goodbye to a group of P7 pupils at New Elgin Primary. Wencke has spent four months studying at Moray College on an Erasmus scholarship, joining local students on the Higher National Certificate in Social Care course.

TRAGIC cancer mum Gail Geddes has brought joy to a Moray support group.

AMBULANCE technician Ronald Foley has answered his final shout after 37 years of drama and adrenaline with the Scottish Ambulance Service.

THEY say you should never judge a book by its cover, but what about judging a book by its colour?

THE last surviving member of the 6th Battalion The Seaforth Highlanders has died in Australia at the age of 92.

AN American who held the title of Baron of Balvenie and established links with groups at Dufftown has died aged 88.

MORAY'S oldest licensee, Dorothy Brandie of the Fiddichside Inn at Craigellachie, has died at the age of 89.

A LONE Lancaster bomber flypast over a Dutch village marked a poignant final tribute to a World War Two Moray airman.

BUCKIE and District Heritage Centre has launched a new book to add to its growing fleet of titles.

A MORAY man's rare collection of material connected with 'The Great Escape' of World War II could be copied and put on show at a European exhibition paying tribute to the heroism and daring exploits of Allied prisoners of war.

MENTION leisure pursuits for older people and images might be conjured up of Scrabble, bingo or knitting, but Moray's senior citizens are set to embrace one of the latest crazes sweeping the nation.

SHE'S the big-hearted pensioner who brings a magical glow to the faces of the young and the young-at-heart at a special time of year.

A BUSINESSMAN who ran a string of successful clothes shops in Moray over a 40-year period has died.

FORMER chef Lisa Murray has been living with chronic pain for more years than she cares to remember.

SWAPPING the fast paced life of Westminster politics for a rural idyll in Moray has enabled a former Government spin doctor to fulfil her ambition in life.

A MORAY couple who arranged to meet for their first date at Woolies Corner in Elgin have seen their marriage outlive the famous retailing institution.

BEFORE starting as a charity volunteer, Elgin teenager Caitlind Walker's life lay in ruins.

A TALENTED musician who once shared a stage with two of the biggest names in rock music has lost a brave battle against cancer.

MARK Forsyth's family has felt the devastating effect of cancer more than most.

AN RAF ground force team has reclaimed a garden memorial to honour the heroism and sacrifice made by prisoners of war whose actions were immortalised in the classic movie, The Great Escape.

THE familiar sight of the RAF's big yellow Sea King helicopters are a welcome sight to those in danger in the waters surrounding the United Kingdom. So there was some relief for Mark Mair when the aircraft flew into view above the trawler Accord sailing around 110 miles of the North-east coast last Wednesday morning.

A MORAY couple whose roots belong in the heart of Speyside have celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary.

THE uphill battle facing a Moray tot diagnosed with cancerous tumours in his eyes gave his grandparents the courage to steel themselves to take the plunge in a sponsored abseil.

A DANISH student is setting solid career foundations and embarking on a three-month placement with an Elgin builder.

WHAT kind of challenge should you not sign up to if you don't do a lot of walking and, apart from golf, are "not really the outdoor type?"

A PENSIONER who did her bit for the war effort by feeding farmyard chickens and collecting the eggs will be among those honoured at Moray's second Armed Forces' Day in June.

LOCAL heritage enthusiasts hope to show the softer side of a notorious hate figure who was responsible for some of the most violent evictions of the Highland Clearances.

SMALL steps taken by tiny toddlers are helping make big strides in the fight against meningitis.

A BIENNIAL fund-raising drive by a group of friends from a Moray village will be tinged with sadness.

A YOUNG airforce serviceman got a real kick out of meeting his football heroes and telling them about life on the frontline in the Middle East.

SOME head to Paris, others go to Venice, but an American couple found a more obvious choice for their honeymoon destination – the Friendly Town of Keith.

SUPER fit Lossiemouth beauty therapist Kathryn Evans has been crowned winner of this year's Gladiators TV series.

IT WAS the fairytale wedding day bride Julie Thomson had dreamed of but thought would never happen.

A MORAY musician (right) has made the grade and gained a top honour from his college in America.

A MORAY town's top civic award has gone to a woman who is truly at the heart of her community.

WITH every step along her 13 mile walk, Julie Stuart will help someone fighting the disease that took the life of her cousin.

MORAY athlete Kathryn Evans has powered her way into the grand final of the Gladiators TV series.

A MISSIONARY to war-torn and impoverished Third World countries admits her autobiography is as much a support guide for aid workers and volunteers in modern day trouble spots as a story of her own life.

COOKING up a storm with one of Britain's best known chefs isn't an opportunity that comes along very often.

THE trials and tribulations faced by a travelling family who give up the road for a settled life is the topic of a new novel set in Elgin.