Paul Philipou an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Dundee and writer of ‘Spanish Thermoplæ: Cypriot Volunteers in the Spanish Civil War’ tells us about a confrontation between the people of Perth and the British Union of Fascists. Pictured is the BUF and their leader Sir Oswald Mosely receiving the Nazi salute from his supporters in London.

Paul Philipou and Ajay Close tell us about William Soutar (pictured), a poet who was part of the Scottish renaissance. During this interview we are shown around the house Soutar used to live in. Soutar had a disease that left him bed ridden for over a decade, during this excerpt we are standing in his former bedroom. We discuss his poem ‘The Children’, which was written in response to the bombing of civilians in Guernica. Ajay performs this extract.

Local songwriter Ian McLaren wrote this song for the International Brigader James Moir, which was performed to raise funds for Perth’s International Brigade Memorial. James Moir was previously employed as a ship’s electrician and he was a member of the Communist Party of Great Britain before he travelled to Spain. This photograph features members of the International Brigades at the Battle of Brunete. James was aged 20 when he was killed there in 1937.  

(John) William Deiter Gilmour was a commercial traveller and salesman who arrived in Spain where he was enlisted in the British Battalion as machine-gun crew. He was demoted from Sergeant after refusing to carry out an order, and arrived back in Newhaven on 24th October 1937.

Daniel Gray discusses radical politics in Perthshire. Pictured is the Duchess of Atholl, Scotland’s first female MP, she was a member of the Conservative Party and unpopularly opposed the governments policy of non-intervention.