Animals

  • Common Ridings / Riding of the Marches

    Several towns of the Scottish Borders (and other areas in the south of Scotland) have festivals related to the historical tradition of ridng a town or Burgh's boundaries. Todays festivals attract many visitors, but most of the lesser ones only started in the 1930s and later and are not actually 'Common Ridings'. The Common, often gifted to the burgh by the King of Scots, had to be ridden on a regular basis to ensure that no neighbouring barons had breached the boundaries. These were not, like today, stone w... Read More

  • Glasgow's Travelling Showpeople Community

    " Travelling Showpeople opened Glasgow's first cinemas, operated the rides and stalls at the annual Kelvin Hall Winter Fair and Glasgow Green. As the winter base for over 80% of Scottish show families, Glasgow has the largest concentration of Showpeople in Europe. Yet the unique traditions and histories of this tight-knit community are still unknown to most of the Scottish public." The quote above was taken from a publication that was produced as part of the Fair Glasgow project. This project was initia... Read More

  • Hawick Common Riding

    Hawick is the first of the Border Common-Ridings or festivals commemorating the custom of riding the boundaries of each parish or ‘march’. It also commemorates the townsmen’s capture of an English Flag in the early 16th century. The main Riding part of the festivities takes place over a Friday and Saturday in June. The lead figure is an elected ‘Cornet’, a young local man who carries out several ‘ride-outs’ in the area over the weeks preceding the main ‘common riding’ event with his suppor... Read More

  • Lanimer Day

    One of the conditions of Lanark being granted a Royal charter by King David I - thus becoming a Royal Burgh - was that the Burgesses of the town were required to examine their ‘March’ or boundaries every year and report back to the Crown. Lanark has carried this out every year since 1140, developing the ‘Land Marches’ into an annual celebration, "The Lanimers". The Monday evening marches (formerly done on horseback) now draw crowds of people. A Lord Cornet (the Standard Bearer) is chosen every ye... Read More

  • Musselburgh Festival

    In 1935 a group of local people decided to start an 'Honest Toun' (Musselburgh) Association and annual festival which would reflect but not detract from Musselburgh's traditional Riding of the Marches. Each year an Honest Lad and Lass are elected from several nominees representing local wards and these carry out the traditional duties of the Honest Lad and Lass, leading or being the key figures in the events which make up the festival. Musselburgh's annual festival comprises several events including: ... Read More

  • Neilston Cattle Show

    The Neilston Cattle Show takes place annually on the 1st Saturday in May and brings together the entire community of this East Renfrewshire village. The first show took place in 1825 and its origins are in the cattle fairs which took place in the village several times a year. However, there are also two recorded explanations for it. The first is that two local farmers were having a dispute over who had the best prize bull. This turned into a contest to be judged by other local farmers and this in turn be... Read More

  • Scotland's Year of Stories Project: Objects Speak Louder Than Words

    Greater Govanhill community magazine celebrated the diversity of the local community with FONDS: Objects Speak Louder Than Words. Residents in the area brought objects that were special to them to be photographed by Morwenna Kearsley and these objects were the focus of interviews with participants, inspiring memories and musings of family, identity and home. Objects from Kuwait, Brazil, Afghanistan and Romania are all featured. You can access the wide range of objects and interviews here: https://www.gr... Read More

  • Scotland's Year of Stories Project: Arctic Ventures: Forgotten Stories of Scottish Whaling

    In September 2022, The Scottish Fisheries Museum unvield new version of their Scottish Whaling Gallery, enriched with a bespoke installation of textile art, inviting visitors to make a deeper and more imaginative connection with the subject matter. The main narrative of the exhibition aligned Anstruther and the museum’s building itself with the background of the wider story of Scottish Whaling, drawing out untold stories of the Northern Whale Fisheries from smaller Scottish ports including Anstruther’s ... Read More

  • Scotland's Year of Stories Project: Cliabh an t-Seanachais (Creel of Stories)

    The importance of the fishing industry to the communities of the Ross of Mull and Iona was recorded in a new film Cliabh an t-Seanachais (Creel of Stories). The film was created in collaboration with Alasdair Satchel of Struthach Films, and celebrated the islands fishing stories and the place of the fishing industry in the fabric of the local area. Alasdair also created the What We Do in the Winter podcasts series. Children at Bunessan and Iona Primary Schools were invited to take part in the film - contrib... Read More

  • Scotland's Year of Stories Project: Family Encounters - New Stories Strand

    Two new stories were performed at the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh for the International Children's Festival. "Where are you?" by Theatre Sans Accents was inspired by classic children’s tales such as Redwall and The Animals of the Farthing Wood, in which animals take on human characteristics and fight their animal instincts to face adversity together and survive. Performers explained how the performance aims to ‘put the audience in the place of migrants, moving from place to place’, adding t... Read More

  • Scotland's Year of Stories Project: The Dance and the Story, Mary Queen of Scots and Robert Burns

    THE DANCE AND THE STORY consisted of two activities for adults and children. ROBERT BURNS LEARNS TO DANCE : Storytelling and Historical Dance project for the adult community of Sanquhar, Scotland. Dance was also one of Robert Burns great passion's and influenced many of his songs and poems it is said that he loved to step onto the dance floor. In 1779 he took his first lesson aged 17 yrs in Tarbolton,Aryshire, against the wishes of his father. The project worked with researcher Sue Knight and her published ... Read More

  • Scotland’s Year of Stories 2022 Project: Crossing the Ken

    Families of Glenkens turned out on a glorious sunny day to celebrate Scotland’s Year of Stories and the bicentenary of the iconic Ken Bridge. 150 people joined a parade which carried puppet dragons, birds and airplanes to under the Ken Bridge. Local story teller Anne Errington told tales of ancient Scottish folklore mixed with stories from New Galloway. Under the beautiful arches of the Ken Bridge, families picnicked next to Mark Zygadlo’s Water Organ. A fantastical contraption based on an 18 ft ... Read More

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