Getty ImagesDolly Parton’s affection for Scotland has been remembered in the wake of her death, aged 80.
The singer and philanthropist, who had a career spanning seven decades, passed away following a “brief battle with cancer” on Tuesday, her publicist announced.
Parton had Scottish-Irish ancestry on her father’s side of the family, and often spoke warmly about the country and its people.
Affection for Scotland
In an interview with STV in 2020, the superstar recalled her first visit to the country in 1977 when she played her signature hits for Queen Elizabeth at the Royal Variety Performance which took place in Glasgow.
She performed alongside Scottish singer Sydney Devine and The Jackson 5.
She called the experience “one of the biggest thrills of my life”.
Getty ImagesThe country musician said: “I remember everything about that, I remember the fans and I remember that wonderful city. We all loved getting out and sightseeing.
“You take it all for granted, but it was amazing for us to get out and see all that because that’s kind of my background too. Part of my family is from Ireland, some from Scotland, some from Wales, some from England.
“I’m kind of just a little mix of all of that. But my music seems to resonate more I think with the Irish and in Scotland. I came to Scotland and I felt like I’d come home in a way.”
STV NewsTV presenter Ross King, who met Dolly dozens of times over the years, remembers her as an “amazing lady” with a “phenomenal legacy” which “transcended generations”.
Speaking to STV News, he said: “She loved Scotland. You know, obviously, with my accent, you could tell right away where I was from. And she talked about her ancestry.
“She also talked about Andrew Carnegie, another philanthropist that she greatly admired.
“She loved her time when she was over. And I think Scotland always had a very special place in her heart.”
Ross KingHaving met her “dozens” of times, he added: “She was an amazing lady. You would sit with her and of course you’re sitting there going, ‘oh my goodness it’s Dolly Parton’ – but you also felt you were chatting to a friend, and that was because she was so special, and she made you feel like that.”
He added: “I have so many memories of Dolly. I feel so lucky that I managed to meet her something like a dozen times, and every time it was just so special.”
Imagination Library
Outside of music, one of Dolly’s ventures which greatly impacted Scotland is her Imagination Library.
First launched in 1995, the venture is a free book gifting programme to help foster a love of reading among pre-school children and their families.
It came to the UK in 2008, and through a grant from the Scottish Government in partnership with the Scottish Book Trust, the Imagination Library provides a free book a month to all care-experienced children and all adopted children in Scotland from birth to the age of five.
Every child enrolled in the programme is able to build up their own personal library of up to 60 books, improving their literacy, speech and creative thinking skills, and encouraging their parents and carers to read with them.
The Scottish Book Trust’s partnership with the Imagination Library is the first scheme to run on a national basis in all 32 Scottish local authorities, purely for care-experienced children and adopted children.
The 9 to 5 singer chose Wigtown – Scotland’s national book town – as the backdrop for the Imagination Library’s Scottish launch almost 20 years ago.
Getty ImagesPaying tribute to Parton, First Minister John Swinney said: “In Scotland, her Imagination Library inspired a love of reading and provided thousands of free books for children.
“Her warmth, generosity and her music were truly one of a kind. My thoughts are with her family and friends.”
Meanwhile, author JK Rowling wrote: “Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library was the best contribution to child literacy ever made by a celebrity.
“Our paths crossed once, in the 90s, backstage at a talk show, and I was completely tongue-tied and starstruck.
“RIP Dolly. You were a complete, irreplaceable one-off.”
Andrew Carnegie
In 2022, Parton’s admiration of Andrew Carnegie was highlighted when she congratulated Dunfermline on becoming a Scottish city.
VisitDunfermline reached out to Parton after she was awarded the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy in New York in October 2022.
The Jolene singer then wrote to the organisation.
In a letter she said: “I want to congratulate Dunfermline on becoming Scotland’s newest city! Scotland holds a special place in my heart and I wish I could be there in person to celebrate this wonderful recognition and our connection through Andrew Carnegie!
“I was honoured and humbled to receive the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy this past October. This was truly special to me, as I feel that in some ways Andrew Carnegie and I are kindred spirits.”
She added that she was inspired by the philanthropist who had given the “gift of reading to almost 3,000 communities” by helping to build libraries across the world.
Dolly the sheep
Perhaps one of Scotland’s best known connections to the legendary songwriter can be found in the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.
Dolly the sheep was the first cloned mammal ever to be created from an adult cell at the Roslin Institute, and affectionately named after the star, as part of research into producing genetically modified farm animals or livestock.
Dolly the sheep started her life as a single cell in a test tube.
The nucleus was taken from a cell from the mammary gland of a Finn Dorset sheep and put into an empty egg cell from a Scottish Blackface sheep.
Once normal development was confirmed in a lab at six days, the embryo was transferred into a surrogate mother. Dolly was born on July 5, 1996.
National Museum of ScotlandHer birth was kept under wraps until the Roslin Institute published its research paper and was announced on February 22, 1997.
She spent her whole life living in a flock of sheep at the Roslin Institute. She had six lambs with a Welsh Mountain sheep named David.
Following her death, Dolly the sheep was donated to National Museums Scotland and has been on display since 2003.
Much like her namesake, Dolly captured the public imagination as her inception changed what scientists thought was possible and opened up new possibilities in medicine and biology.
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