Tartan Tales of Clan Young

We love this photo Mike sent us! In his words, he was at the "University of Virginia NYC “Hooliday” party. I was awarded the “most dapper” dressed at the event, at the Yale club."

He certainly looks most dapper to us in his Young Modern plaid kilt, which we had the pleasure of making for him.

We spoke to Laurie Scott, Founder of Discover Britain and Ireland, about his bespoke Clan Young tours in Scotland. Called the "Clan Young Heritage Journey", Laurie's suggested itinerary for clan members is a 4-day exploration in the Scottish Borders and Angus, concluding in Edinburgh with a visit to ScotlandShop for a personal appointment. This tour can be part of a more encompassing tour exploring Scotland or a deeper more in-depth focus on the Young Clan's history.

The 4-day journey begins in the heart of Border Reiver territory, the Middle Marches, by exploring the Borders towns of Jedburgh, Kelso, and Hawick, where the Young Clan would have been present.

Laurie dives deeper into Clan Young's history in the Scottish Borders by visiting the Rue Castle site near Jedburgh, which was torched by the English in 1513 and 1545. The tour explores ancient battlefields like Halidon Hill, where the Youngs fought, and the battlefield of Reidswire 1575 in Philiphaugh, along with the respective commemorative monuments.

Crossing the border into England, the tour visits Berwick upon Tweed, where the first recorded Border Reiver of Clan Young, Roger Yung, was released from the Tower of Berwick in 1335 before travelling northeast to Angus, where the Youngs held important positions and were granted lands. A visit to the site of Carmyllie Castle and surrounding area, discovering the history of the Youngs in this region follows after which the tour continues to Brechin to the site of Auldbar Castle and Chapel, where the original gates and some Chapel remains are still in place.

The journey heads south to Edinburgh to explore the Capital city with wanders along the Royal Mile, where medieval and Georgian architecture meets vibrant street life. There is the iconic Edinburgh Castle, perched on an extinct volcanic hill, and the tour delves into Scotland's past with a visit to the National Museum of Scotland.

And finally there is time for a personal appointment at ScotlandShop to browse our collection of Young Clan's weathered and modern tartan, bespoke clothing and unique items to take home.

It certainly sounds like a wonderful tour for Clan Young to go on!

I am Rab Young, a born and bred (and proud) Glaswegian now based in Winchester to the southwest of London. I’m ashamed to say, sorry ScotlandShop, that although I own several tartan items none of them are Clan Young. That’s something I need to put right!

Recently, I've been looking in to my family tree and Youngs in general and was surprised to read they were prominent in the Borders, which is pretty much the only part of Scotland I’ve not explored. Again, something I need to put right. Maybe I’ll wear my newly bought Young tartan items for the tour!

I studied Civil Engineering in Glasgow in the early 90’s and then started a career on the railway, which took me all over Scotland, which I loved. I couldn’t believe I was being paid to visit all these stunning places that people from all over the world were coming to see. I even worked at one of the remotest stations in Scotland called Corrour, made famous by the film Trainspotting if anybody remembers the scene.

In 2007 I moved South and have continued working on the railway, only this time in London. I was involved in the tunnelling of the Queen Elizabeth line although back then during construction it was Crossrail, the biggest construction project in Europe at the time. There were lots of Scottish and Irish workers as well as folk from all corners of the world and the team spirit was amazing.

In 2018 I was looking for a change of scene, and during a holiday to Islay I decided I was going to set up a pop-up whisky bar. There were lots of gin and prosecco bars, but not whisky, so I decided to give it a go. I built the bar myself and it’s called The Spirit of Scotland.

I started out with just doing scotch, but now stock whisky from almost every country that produces whisky. I’ve had the bar at weddings, parties and private events and met some incredible people. Everyone that drinks whisky seems to have an interesting story to tell. I’ve also done numerous whisky tastings including a few with The Ceilidh Club who run regular ceilidhs in London.

While doing a podcast ‘Scots in London’, Ed from The Ceilidh Club, who runs the podcast, mentioned Airbnb experiences, and particularly whisky experiences. I’d never heard of them; I only knew Airbnb for accommodation. After some investigation I decided to host a whisky experience which I’ve now been running for a couple of years with great reviews.

I love meeting like-minded folk from home or around the world sharing a dram and listening to their story. I run the tours under the banner ‘London Scottish Tours’ with a view to developing some future tours in London with a Scottish theme.