With the announcement of 'Lockdown' in March 2020, all notions of 'normal life' were shattered, affecting everyone nationwide. Among rural folk in Highland Perthshire, where fireside visits were a way of life, suddenly it all changed: no visiting, not even a wee ceilidh by the fire.

This book records a 'pandemic project' that was devised so that folk in the glens and villages of Strathearn could still enjoy sharing stories, information, news and laughter without breaking 'lockdown' rules. Through these ordinary conversations we meet some extraordinary people; discover part of Scotland's history; learn about traditions that sustained a way of life, and listen to stories that might otherwise be forgotten.

'In the heart of Scotland, in the grip of a pandemic, Margaret Benne created a virtual hearthside to counter isolation and depression. This wonderful book is the result. It is a unique record of rural life, a distillation of shared humanity, and a vivid demonstration of how stories and memories can leap across the generations to connect past and present. If you put Margaret Bennett in solitary confinement, somehow she would still start up a ceilidh!' A note by Donald Smith, Director, Scottish International Storytelling Festival