Comic Elaine C Smith has grazed cattle on Glasgow Inexperienced – a proper that comes with being awarded the Freedom of Glasgow.
Town’s highest honour, which she is likely one of the few girls to obtain, additionally permits her to fish within the River Clyde.
The Rab C Nesbitt and Two Doorways Down star stated it was “fairly the honour” to be granted the award in recognition of her contribution to the humanities and her embodiment as an advocate for ladies’s rights and values.
The official civic reception will happen on Friday, on the eve of Worldwide Girls’s Day.
Smith exercised a few of her new rights by grazing cattle borrowed from Pollok Park on Glasgow Inexperienced on Thursday.
She stated: “As a newly minted freeman of Glasgow, I need to say, it is fairly the honour.
“However let’s be clear, whereas I could also be a ‘freeman’ by title, I’m, and at all times might be, a free lady at coronary heart.
“So, when you see me grazing Highland cattle on Glasgow Inexperienced or fishing within the Clyde, simply keep in mind, I am exercising my rights as a free lady.”
Pic: PA
Freemen historically have the appropriate to graze their cows on the frequent land (Glasgow Inexperienced) and now have the obligation to “patrol and guard the city” and to defend it by arms.
If freemen don’t carry out this obligation, they may very well be prosecuted for perjury of their oath and, if convicted, have a proper to a jail cell of their very own.
Pic: PA
Others granted the Freedom of the Metropolis of Glasgow embrace Sir Billy Connolly, Sir Kenny Dalglish, Sir Alex Ferguson and the late Nelson Mandela.
Solely a handful of ladies have been awarded the honour, which has included scientist Marie Curie, who was the primary lady to win a Nobel Prize.
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Smith’s profession has spanned greater than 40 years in radio, tv, movie, and theatre.
She is an everyday on the Glasgow pantomime scene, and on stage she has starred in reveals together with Calendar Women, Annie and the Susan Boyle musical I Dreamed A Dream, which she co-wrote.
Smith can be a charity campaigner and political activist, significantly on points reminiscent of poverty and ladies’s rights.
Glasgow’s lord provost, councillor Jacqueline McLaren, stated: “Elaine’s dedication to advocating for and supporting girls, and her profitable and impactful work within the arts, makes her a deserving recipient of the Freedom of the Metropolis.
“In her personal method, Elaine has highlighted that whereas she holds the title of ‘freeman’, she proudly identifies as a free lady, and I feel this playful, but profound sentiment completely captures the essence of the values we have fun on Worldwide Girls’s Day.”
