Only the Brave....

...would attempt to re-open, as a Community owned and operated venue, a shut down cinema in a small Scottish seaside town.

But that is exactly what the Phoenix Cinema Trust have done in Oban and last night's first gala showing of "Brave" was a wonderful event , full of optimism and confidence and full of achievement.

Paddy Crerar, of The Crerar Hotels Trust , presented not only a large cheque for the fund raising appeal, but also pledged a further £5000 to allow the th eopening of a small second screen. The World Novice Champion Oban High School Pipe Band played, a young singer gave her all to a Gaelic song and a new arts venture displayed a community painitng".

And then we all watched a great movie which celebrates all things Scottish and especially our scenery and our determintion !

Strangely enough on exactly the same day last year the inspirational local Councillor for this part of Oban, Donald Macdonald, who chaired the Cinema Trust (and who was the epitome of such determination) died very suddenly. My blip from exactly a year ago is about our collective sense of loss when we heard the news.