Working from home has its challenges but I’ve been impressed by how imaginative some organisations have been. I recently saw a call for people to send photos of the views from their window and any accompanying history they may have. This has been put together on a website organised by The Scottish Civic Trust called ‘What’s oot mae windae?’

I live at Back of the Hill, Annan and I love the changing light and tides here. In a normal year, one would be able to see haaf net fishermen wading out into the shifting sands of the Solway Firth. The Devil’s Porridge Museum recently had an exhibition on Annan Haaf nets and I was very pleased to meet with some of them recently and hear about this ancient practice.

The remains of the Scottish side of the Solway Viaduct stand about a mile from my house. It connected Scotland and England. All that now remains is the embankment that runs into the Solway and ends abruptly (the railway line was operational from 1869 until 1921). You can walk down it and there is an information board with its history at the end including the time it was damaged by ice floes in the Solway (this is difficult to imagine now!).

I was pleased to see my piece published online and to see lots of people comment with their memories of the viaduct (such as travelling across from Scotland to England on a Sunday for a few pints or even walking across it to go to school on ‘the other side’). The viaduct has connections with The Devil’s Porridge Museum as it was used in World War One to transport workers and equipment to build and operate HM Factory Gretna and we know of at least one factory worker who drowned after a failed attempt to walk across it.

The Devil’s Porridge Museum had planned an exhibition looking at the theme of Water and HM Factory Gretna. That has been postponed indefinitely but I’m glad I got to share some of the images and information that would have appeared in it.

n The Devil’s Porridge Museum is currently closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, but some of the Kids’ Clubs are being run online offering a variety of activities and workshops for children. See www.devilsporridge.org.uk for more details.