LISTINGS DAYS OUT
I SCOTTIS
H OPEN CANAL JUMP Sun 19, 2—4pm. The Bridge Inn, Bridge of Ratho. £2
entry for jumpers. Spectators: entry by donation to charity. This has the makings ot a classic day out: water, a nearby pub serving excellent beer and load, a historic setting (George Bryce committed a horrible murder on the canal bank in 1864 and became the last man to be publicly hanged in Edinburgh) and loads of complete nutters just gagging to make total tools oi themselves in public. The jumpers, numbering a maximum of 100, have to run along a plattorm, grab hold oi an 18ft pole and jump over the canal. Make that ‘try’ to jump over the canal: not all of them land
on the other side. Excellent.
‘ _ >‘~7A\ 1‘}:.. ‘_ A". r
I SCOTLAND YARD SUMMER FESTIVAL Sun 26. noon—5pm. King George V Park. 70 Eyre Place. Canonmills. Edinburgh. Free. A fun day in the park for all. with live appearances by the Ceilidh Collective. Edinburgh Samba School and pipe. jazz and pop bands. Also international dancers. Zimbabwean chanting. storytelling. loads of kids activities. a cafe. plentiful stalls and lots. lots more besides. Sounds excellent.
I SCOTTISH OPEN CANAL JUMP Sun 19. from 3pm. The Bridge lnn. Bridge of Ratho. £2 entry forjumpers. Spectators: entry by donation. See photo caption.
I OLD TOWN GALA DAY Sat 18.
I lam—4pm. South Gray's Close and Hyndford Close. behind the Museum of Childhood. High Street. Edinburgh. Free. The Gala begins at 11am with a procession of people dressed as characters from Robert Louis Stevenson‘s novels from St Giles Cathedral before moving to the closes and wynds of South Gray's Close where there will be entertainments. stalls and other fun events all afternoon.
THE NORTH
I ABERDEEN HIGHLAND GAMES Sun 19. 10am—5.30pm. Hazlehead Park. Aberdeen. £2 (£1). See photo caption.
I THE COMEDY OF ERRORS Wed 29. 7.30pm. House of Dun. four miles west of Montrose on the A935. Tickets £6 (£3) from the House of Dun on 0674 810264. Following the success of As You Like It last year. the lllyria Theatre Company
have been asked back. to perform The Comedy nflirmrs. Take rugs and cushions as no seating will be provided. Picnics are welcome. don’t forget the midge repellant and be ready for any weather as the company promises ‘performances in all weathers'.
I DRUMTOCHTY HIGHLAND GAMES Sat 25. noon—6pm. Drumtochty Castle. Anchenblae. near Laurencekirk. See photo caption.
I GRANTOVIN-ON-SPEY HIGHLAND GAMES Sun 26. 11am—5pm. Black Park. Grantown-on-Spey. £3 (£1.50). See photo capdon.
I MIDSUMMER SKIING After an unprecedented six months of skiing. the weather has at last taken its toll on the two remaining ski areas to stay open. At Glencoe (08556 266). although there is some cover on the top runs there have been problems with the Chairlift.
However. warm weather permitting. they i are still planning on being open on
Tuesday 21 June. 9am—5pm for midsummer skiing. At the Caimgorrn ski area (0479 861261) there are no complete runs. although they are also planning on midsummer skiing on the evening of 21 Jun. Both ski operators emphasise that
; midsummer skiing is at the whim of the
' weather. so phone before making the trek
north.
‘ZV‘V' '1 v ‘ I OLD MELDRUM HIGIlAND GAMES Sat 18. l lam—-6pm. The Pleasure Park.
Oldmeldrum. £4 (£1). See photo caption.
STRATHCLYDE
I AUCHINSTARRY CANAL FESTIVAL Sun 19. noon—5pm. Auchinstarry Basin on the Forth-Clyde canal. Kilsyth. Free. A day out for all the family. with a heavy accent on those watery events. Have a go at canoeing with the local kayak club. get
.‘slapped on the slippery pole or embark on a trip down the canal to Nethercroy. Off the water there will be lots of stalls. kids activities. food and drink to keep you occupied.
I FAMILY HEALTH FAIR Sun 19. noon—4.30pm. Central Library. East Kilbride. Free. East Kilbride Libraries‘ farniiy health week starts with an afternoon of demonstrations and talks at the Central Library. Among the active demonstrations will be Tai Chi. kick boxing and jive-dance while there will be talks about yoga. reflexology and aromatherapy. There will also be information stalls from local self-help and support groups. a book stall and fitness- testing.
Sat
I FLEMING OUEEN FESTIVAL, BIGGAR 18. 10.30am—3.30pm. Various venues around Biggar Main Street. Mary Fleming was the lady-in-waiting to her cousin Mary Queen of Scots who was chosen to be ‘Queen for the day’ in 1563. This annual re-enactment of the event starts with the Fleming Queen‘s coronation at the Municipal Hall at 10.30am followed by a gala procession with floats and fancy dress.
I GLASGOW HIGHLAND GAMES Sat 18. 12.30—5.30pm. Glasgow Green. See photo ca tion.
I GLASGOW INTERNATIONAL FOLK FESTIVAL Mon 20—Sun 26. Tron Theatre. City Halls. and various venues in Glasgow. Very international. very folky. See main preview in Music section for further details.
I HISTORIC VEHICLE FESTIVAL Sun 26. 10am—5pm. Summerlee Heritage Trust. West Canal Street. Coatbridge. Free. Vintage and classic cars. buses. lorries and motorcycles on show within the museum grounds. This major industrial museum is always good for a day out. with its tea- roorn. extensive exhibits and art gallery. I LETS MARKET Sat 18. noon—4pm. Landsdown Church. Kelvinbridge. Glasgow. Free. A chance to find out more about the Kelvinside Local Exchange Trading System. Find out what their particular bartering currency is. get involved yourself or you could even pay cash.
I MINIATURA DOLLS’ HOUSE SHOW Sun 19. 10.30am—4.30pm. Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, 2 Sauchiehall Street. Glasgow. £2.50 (accompanied children £1). See photo ca tion.
I SAILING CHAMPIONSHIP Sat 25/Sun 26. from 10.30am. Strathclyde Loch. Strathclyde Country Park. Motherwell. 0698 266 155. Free. The Scottish Open Challenger Disabled Sailing Championship ‘94. with races taking place on both days in this annual championships. if it‘s a nice day it will be worth taking a picnic down to the shores of the Loch as the park offers plenty to do. including nature trails. sandy beaches and the Hamilton Mausoleum.
I SOLSTICE SAUNTER Tue 21. lO.30pm—l2.3()am. Glen Lodge. Gleniffer Braes Country Park. Glenfields Road. Paisley. 041 884 3794. Free. Watch the sun set over the Braes on the shortest night of the year. A mid-summer visit to the park’s several standing stones should add an air of mystery to the event.
l HIGHLAND GAMES Various venues
round Scotia
nd during the summer. How
inextricably linked with the tartan tourist industry, Highland Games date back to ancient times when, aiter a successful Tainchel - or mass deer hunt in which more than one Highland clan would combine - a toast and celebration would be held. Part of the celebrations involved the rival clansmen testing each other‘s prowess at various sports: running, limping, wrestling, teats oi strength, piping and dancing. These were not simply tests of strength but required agility, skill and practice. Caber tossing, the one event which symbolises the Highland Games the world over, did not evolve untill the forestry industry took held In Speyside towards the end oi the 16th century. These working in iorestry had to be able to pitch logs accurately into the rivers to tloat down to the sea. So tossing the caber is not a test of how far you can throw the 18tt-Iong pole (weighing in at around 150 lbs), but to make it turn over in the air and land pointing directly away‘lrorn the competitor. let an easy task.
especially In a high wind.
Despite Victorian attempts to regularise Highland lite, irom the language to the dress, they did not have any success with the Highland Games and the formal rules as applied by the Scottish Gaines Association (88A) remain suitably vague. All the Highland Games in the body oi the listings are held under the auspices of the 8611. Your average Highland Games includes caber tossing, hammer throwing, weight
throwing
(over a bar and over a distance), heavy ball or stone putting, running, cycling, Highland dancing, piping and whisky imbibing.
The List 17—30 June 1994 61