SCOTLAND'S cultural scene is most definitely in rude health.

It is not hard to deduce why this is so - the clue lies in the talent of its people. A case in point is Paisley-born writer Steven Moffat, who has won an Emmy for his work on the BBC1 series Sherlock, picking up the gong for Outstanding Writing for a Mini-series or Movie.

It is an award that is richly deserved; his inspired re-imagining of the work of his countryman Sir Arthur Conan Doyle won over the critics and attracted more than eight million viewers in the UK.

His success can be seen as part of a wider renaissance of the arts in Scotland - as we reported yesterday, audiences have flocked to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in record numbers, with ticket sales up 12 per cent on last year. And drama and the performing arts are not having things all their own way - this year has seen the largest modern art exhibition ever staged in Scotland, and three Glasgow-trained artist are on the shortlist for the Turner Prize, with Glasgow selected to host that award next year.

Talented artists, enthusiastic audiences, hard-working administrators - as Sherlock might say, all this is elementary.