For the first 21 years of my life I lived in a few places – in California, Connecticut and the UK. There was a lot of back and forth, but in 2011 I spent six interesting years following university in California, during the last two of which my cousin Tobias joined me, and we shared a house together. I worked as a choir director at an Orthodox Church, while my cousin pursued a further qualification in Theology, which I audited. Toward the end of this time, my cousin and I felt the draw to return to the UK and put down roots. We were searching for an historic property which was in need of some restoration, and, being newly-fledged clergyman, had the potential for a chapel. After a long search, and a whirlwind trip in which I saw 14 properties in 10 days, we finally found Buittle Castle, which fulfilled all the requirements we had. Call us crazy, but the fact that the place was in a bit of a mess, needing modernisation and restoration, was actually a positive for us, because I could pursue my passion for restoration without having to rip out previous work.

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In mid 2018, about a year after we arrived, we opened our doors to our first visitors and B&B guests. It's been a great success, and we have gone on from there, expanding our offerings at the Castle.

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In late 2020 I was able to secure the Barony of Buittle, thereby again uniting the title of Baron of Buittle to the place with which it has been historically associated. It was a long-time goal to restore the 'function' of the Barony of Buittle in whatever way possible. The Barony was once a great force of organisation, community development, and philanthropy in the local area, and both Tobias and I wanted to see it, and the Castle, fulfilling this rôle again. This has provided the framework and guiding principle behind a lot of what we do at Buittle, in terms of our community outreach, historical tours, philanthropic activities, and ceremonial functions.

Equally important has been my church work, which is mainly connected to the Orthodox Cathedral in Dumfries, at which we have a growing parish life, and a food bank. I also help to oversee other parishes and missions here in the UK. 

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During all this, everyone involved in the Barony has been working hard to expand the Barony’s community engagement and philanthropic activities, and I’m pleased to say that that has been met with widespread good will. We have been active in the local area, as well as building bridges with international partners. I was honoured, in 2023, to be appointed a delegate for the Verein zur Förderung des Friedens (known colloquially as the Flame of Peace), an international charity based in Vienna. In the local area, the Barony has become deeply involved with local history, as well as local interest groups, and we often welcome them to the Castle so that the Castle's story and unique place in Scottish History can be shared. I am thrilled that the Board of the Whithorn Trust, in late 2023, elected me as a trustee, and look forward to furthering the aims of the Trust to share Whithorn's significance and attraction with the local community and the wider world.

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I hope that my ramblings on this page have proved to be of some interest, and I would close in thanking you for taking the time to get to know the work of the Barony, and, on this page, me a little better.

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I have always been a visual learner, and so, below, I will include some photos which highlight some of the things I've written about.

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Until we meet again, or for the first time, in person,

James