Speakeasy is full of exciting, energetic young people. No, really.

To prove it, here’s one of the editors at our Scottish office, Alex Insch:

Between the twin shocks of both Manchester clubs losing their respective New Year matches, you could be forgiven for missing the news of my retirement from football. The announcement that I was hanging up my boots was met with little fanfare, with my last match being a particularly violent pre-Christmas game of fives. I did, at least, go out with a bang – scoring a hattrick of volleys and coming away with a thigh-length bruise.

The reason for my departure from football is not completely due to my inherent lack of skill, but because I have decided to turn over a new leaf and dedicate my legs to cycling. (see picture, to enjoy legs)

The seed was planted in my mind a couple of years ago, when I stumbled upon the television coverage of the Tour de France. Captivated by the initially incomprehensible tactics and dizzying speeds, I eventually got round to buying myself a road bike, and swapped my football shorts for lycra.

With the motivational help of some friends in the sunny southwest, I am currently trying to wring whatever enjoyment I can out of Scotland’s two hours of weekly winter sunshine, and can be seen teeth-chattering and arms flapping by any number of Tayside level crossings – all in the name of ‘training’.

As my 2012 calendar rapidly fills (I have two sportives, a jaunt to the Western Isles, a trip to the Pyrenees and a John O’ Groats to Lands End attempt pencilled) I will become obsessed with weight reduction and aerodynamics; chances are, if you see me sat at the edit suite with a furrowed brow, I am merely weighing up the pros and cons of shaving my legs.

It is with great sadness that we report the death of our founder and Chairman Jim Adamson. Jim died suddenly on Thursday while on holiday in Spain.

Jim began Speakeasy in 1993 and was Managing Director until handing over the reins to his fellow directors in 2010, when he became Chairman. He was well known in Perthshire and in the wider business world, making a huge contribution to the community and charitable organisations throughout the UK. He was awarded ‘Great Scot of the Year’ in 1998.

Jim’s positive outlook, whatever the odds, was the foundation of Speakeasy’s success. He was a strong uncompromising character, inspiring and entertaining to those of us who knew him.

Jim maintained a daily input into the business, not least because our Scottish office was also his home. With his wife Stella, Jim fostered the family atmosphere that we all value. We will miss him.

Jonathan Young
Managing Director

On most shoots the crew are happy to start the day with a coffee and a bacon sandwich. So imagine how happy they were on our latest shoot, when we convened at the world famous Gleneagles Hotel, to shoot top chef Andrew Fairlie in action.

We were interviewing him for ‘The Land Of Food And Drink” a programme for the Scottish Government, promoting Scottish food and drink to the rest of the world. We know what you’re thinking, but absolutely nothing was deep fried for this programme: the watch word here is ‘quality’, and this was reflected in both the content and the way it was shot. The programme includes interviews with an Angus beef farmer, a langoustine fisherman, a salmon farmer, and a master whisky taster.

Over at Gleneagles, Andrew Fairlie has not one but two Michelin stars, but unlike his contemporary Gordon Ramsey, runs a calm kitchen. Not one pan (or expletive) was thrown –  at least, not while the cameras were rolling. We like to thank him and his team for making time (and roast pheasant) for us.

‘The Land Of Food And Drink” will be available on our Youtube channel in the new year.

www.youtube.com/user/speakeasyvideos

No not the dreadlocked, drunk, Jonny Depp style. More like the AK-47, grenade launcher and much less funny type, appearing in Speakeasy’s latest video for a large global defense company, as naval lasers save an oil tanker from these unsavory fellows. Early morning off the coast of Kent, zipping about on boats capturing it all is the Speakeasy crew. No rum involved, just anti-sea sickness tablets.