WHEN farmers go on holiday it can be a bit of an experience for them – what with wellie marks, grubby hands and that certain whiff that follows them abroad.

So it was with little surprise that we came across a Facebook picture of one Graeme Fraser, from Idvies, Forfar, who was recently on holiday in Greece with his wife, Morag. To say that this famous Angus breeder had changed breed and turned in to a Red Angus, would be an understatement. Graeme looked more lobsteresque than anything else – a case of surf and turf, perhaps.

However, it looked like he’d be sore for days, followed by the inevitable acre of skin being shed!

A saddle for Trump

I SEE that HM The Queen’s banquet for President Trump, of the US, had lamb as the headline act.

Well done HM for promoting and highlighting delicious home-bred produce ... but did the menu need to be in French? I would’ve thought that the ‘Selle d’Agneau de Windsor Farcie Marigny’ (stuffed saddle of Windsor lamb) could have been part of a real celebration of British food. She could even have had rib of Highland beef from her own Balmoral Estate, in Scotland?

Let’s hope that, in a very diplomatic fashion, of course, that this was part of a big hint that we’d like to sell more lamb into the US – for if there’s a ‘no deal’ on Brexit there’s sure to be a lot of it floating around looking for a home!

Takeover? What takeover?

THE Raider came across a strange sight at the aftermath of last week’s Institute of Auctioneers and Appraisers of Scotland annual conf.

The normal two-day event is now a one-day conflab, and afterwards a free drinks reception was held, but two notables were missing. John Kyle, of Cally Marts, and Donald Young, of UA, were duly spotted in a downstairs bar in a huddle, prompting rumours that the two were concluding a take-over/merger of their rival businesses.

Just who was taking who over was open to speculation, but the presence of Cally Mart director, Brian Gilvear, added to the rumour mill.

Turns out the pair preferred to pay for their G and Ts and vodka and coke, rather than have a free wine or beer, and that Brian was in the Grassmarket area for an evening out unaware that a posse of auctioneers was in town. Still, it was a good rumour while it lasted!