Published: Thursday, 29th May, 2008 08:05
Blogger gives Sarasotans the lowdown on Dunfermline
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SARASOTANS have been following a running commentary of the visit to Dunfermline by Florida blogger, broadcaster and columnist Cliff Roles and wife Maria.
The local radio host, actor, columnist and MC/auctioneer flew out of the UK on Sunday after a four-day sojourn in Sarasota’s Scottish sister city where he and Maria were co-hosted by Councillor Gerry McMullan (right) and Culross photographer and graphic designer David Ewles – both leading lights of the Dunfermline-Sarasota Sister Cities Association.
During their fortnight’s vacation in the UK, Cliff and Maria were shown the heritage sites of Dunfermline and Culross when they diverted to Dunfermline at the suggestion of Hope Byrnes, past-president of Sarasota Sister Cities Association, who was coincidentally paying a three-day visit to renew her acquaintance with her contacts in the Auld Grey Toun.
Cliff recalls, “Gerry and David came on my radio show, Talk of the Sun Coast, in January. They were marvellous guests and when Gerry heard I was coming anywhere near Dunfermline, he also said, ‘You have got to come and stay here and let us show you our Dunfermline hospitality’ – and they’ve been doing that in huge amounts!”
Cliff and Maria joined Hope Byrnes for dinner at the Culross home of David Ewles and a tour of the tiny 17th century township.
Cliff explained, “I have my own website – www.cliffroles.com – and a weekly newsletter to tell everyone where I am and what I’m doing. And everyone has been following this trip. I’m blogging and photographing all of this for the website, www.SarasotaLocal.com.”
After a tour of Dunfermline, with Gerry as guide, Cliff said, “This is so wonderful. We were going to do all Edinburgh during our trip to Scotland and then we found Dunfermline and are so in love with it.”
When Gerry presented Cliff with a copy of Fife’s new DVD, the Croydon-born expatriate discovered another coincidence – for the sound track includes music by Dunfermline rock band, Nazareth, whom Cliff met during his 16 years in the music business in Germany.
In 1984 Cliff talked his way into a German music-publishing company and became a radio promoter, which served as a stepping-stone for the next 16 years of promoting over 130 of the world's most famous rock and pop stars of the 80s and 90s.
As head of promotion and international marketing manager of Mercury Records, Germany, he worked with such music icons as Elton John, Celine Dion, Bon Jovi, Metallica, Robert Plant, Lionel Richie, Donna Summer, Def Leppard and Dire Straits.
“I also looked after Texas, Wet Wet Wet , and Dunfermline brands, Big Country and Nazareth. Nazareth were very, very big in Germany. My then boss was instrumental in making Nazareth superstars in Germany, which meant they came over on tour a lot and did a lot of gigs over there. We used to have great fun with Nazareth – they are a lovely bunch of guys.”
Around the turn of the millennium Cliff bade the “biz” farewell and became a professional German/English translator.
“I had always loved visiting the States, and maintained an on-off love affair with Florida for the next two years before eventually arriving in Sarasota in 200l, while touring Florida on my Harley,” he recalls. “I knew the second I saw St. Armand's Circle that I wanted to settle on the Sun Coast. And when I met my wife Maria shortly afterwards, the decision to move out of my Hamburg apartment was an easy one.”
In 2003 Cliff discovered his love of acting, and he is not only an award-winning actor in community theatre – he was voted in the top three for the Best Local Actor 2008 by readers of Sarasota Magazine – but a board member of the Players of Sarasota.
“I’ve been on the stage of the Asolo (home of the transplanted Dunfermline Opera House)many times but never acted there and it’s my dream to do so,” he said.
After a recent 10-month stint at Sarasota's Community Radio WSLR, Cliff now broadcasts on 1220 AM WSRQ and writes a monthly column in Scene magazine.
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