BY JACKIE MACKENZIE Maree Todd The political landscape in the Highlands and Islands has seen a major shift after Thursday’s Holyrood elections with three long-standing SNP MSPs ousted by the Lib Dems and Labour. The SNP lost Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch –Kate Forbes’s former seat – to Andrew Baxter of the Lib Dems who beat Eilidh Munro by 950 votes. The Lib Dems also took Caithness, Sutherland and Ross from the SNP with Charles Kennedy’s former close advisor David Green gaining a majority of 5,092 over sitting MSP Maree Todd. Andrew Baxter And in a tight contest in the Western Isles, Labour’s Donald MacKinnon won the Na h-Eileanan an Iar seat from Alasdair Allan, the SNP incumbent of 19 years. Skye’s new MSP Andrew Baxter, a Lib Dem member for Fort William and Ardnamurchan on Highland Council, flipped retiring MSP Kate Forbes’s majority of 15,861, to win by 950 votes....

Trail West. Photograph: Willie Urquhart. BY DANIEL CULLEN The Free Press were among the festival-goers who descended on the Lump in Portree in their thousands last weekend as Skye Live returned for another hugely successful three-day celebration of traditional, electronic and alternative music. El Sartel. Photograph: Radio Skye. Running from Thursday 7th May until Saturday 9th May, this year’s festival once again transformed the Meall into one of Scotland’s most spectacular live music venues – with sunshine, packed crowds and an energetic line-up helping create a memorable atmosphere throughout the weekend. The top attraction of Thursday evening were Beluga Lagoon – returning to headline Thursday’s event after performing at last year’s festival – whose emotional indie-folk set had the crowd singing along from the outset. Legendary Scottish singer-songwriter Dougie MacLean also opened for Beluga Lagoon, delivering a stirring rendition of his hit song ‘Caledonia’ that proved to be one of...