Launch of Inverness Winter Festival 2009
The programme for the 2009 Inverness Winter Festival was officially launched at Inverness Town House today (Thursday) when Provost Jimmy Gray, Chairman of The Highland Council’s Inverness City Committee, revealed that this year’s celebrations will last from Halloween to Hogmanay.
The Giant Ghost of Blackbeard the Pirate was present to show his approval for the Festival’s spectacular opening event, “Blackbeard’s Haunted Ness Islands” which will take place on the evenings of Friday 30 October and Saturday 31 October. More than 100 ghosts are expected to appear on Ness Islands which will be transformed by the creativity of Arts in Motion, Eden Court Theatre and The Highland Council’s Lighting Department into a family friendly glimpse into what happens to Pirates after they have walked the plank.
The earlier start to the Winter Festival will see the 2009 Inverness Bonfire and Fireworks Display on Thursday 5 November, which regularly attracts crowds of 10,000 – 20,000, added to the programme. This year’s display will start at the later time of 7.30pm and the display staged by the award winning Fireworx Scotland Display team will have a classical theme.
The Countdown to Christmas will start with a spectacular Christmas Lights Switch on day featuring three events.
This year’s Christmas Lights Switch On has been moved to Sunday 22nd November and will feature a spectacular Mass Charity Lantern Launch at Inverness Castle at 5pm in aid of the Children’s Hospice Association of Scotland. Families will be invited to support the charity by making a donation of £5 per lantern and send a spectacular message of support into the skies above Inverness. Full details of the arrangements for the Charity Lantern Launch will appear on www.invernessfestivals.com next week.
The Christmas Lights Switch On Celebrations will then switch to the Town House in Inverness, which will have a new lighting system for 2009. The Christmas Lights will be switched on at 6.00pm. Following the Switch On Ceremony Santa Claus and the Provost will then lead a procession down Church Street to Old High Church for a Christmas Carol concert “ Ding Dong Merrily Old High”.
The 2009 Advent Calendar, which will once again be projected on to the walls of Inverness Museum and Art Gallery, will feature the names of 24 local charities and community groups who will each receive a donation of £100 from the Inverness Common Good Fund.
Any Inverness-based charity or community groups interested in taking part in the 2009 Advent Calendar Draw are asked to register by logging on to www.invernessfestivals.com and forwarding their details.
Following the success of last year’s Advent Calendar Ceilidh Trail, which saw 24 musical performances staged around Inverness, new locations around the City Centre for performances are currently being selected and full details will be released later.
The weekend of Saturday December 12th and Sunday December 13th will see the second new major event in the 2009 Inverness Winter Festival Programme as a Christmas Market featuring the best in Highland crafts is staged on the riverside underneath Inverness Castle.
It is hoped that a Riverside Market will become one of the annual highlights of future festivals and the members of the Inverness Winter Festival Working Group are working closely with Hi-Arts on this project.
Following the success of the first Ness Islands Christmas Lights Show last year, which attracted 10,000 spectators to Ness Islands, this year’s Christmas Show has been extended to include Rudolph’s Christmas Party, an extra show in Whin Park on the afternoons of Saturday December 19th and December 20th featuring Santa and his Reindeers.
The move to Whin Park for Santa and his Reindeer will make it easier for children to get their photographs taken with Santa and there will be free rides on the Whin Park Railway throughout the afternoon for all the family to enjoy.
The Ness Islands Christmas Lights Show will take place on the weekend of Friday 18, Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 December.
Following the disappointment of vandalism to the displays in 2008, which led to the closure of the show earlier than planned, additional security measures will be in place to protect the displays and Ness Islands will be closed to the public from 11pm to 6am for the duration of the Halloween and Christmas Lights Shows.
The 2009 Inverness Winter Festival will end with what looks likely to be Scotland’s biggest free Hogmanay Party – “The Red Hot Highland Fling” which will star The Red Hot Chilli Pipers and special guests Blazin Fiddles and Peatbog Fairies in Northern Meeting Park Arena.
The Show will be hosted by Moray Firth Radio’s Ken Kelman. Gates will open at 8pm and Blazin Fiddles will open the show at 8.30pm. The Red Hot Chilli Pipers will take to the stage at around 9.45pm to give the younger members of our community the change to see them perform and the Peatbog Fairies will have the honour of seeing in the New Year.
Provost Gray said “The Winter Festival Working Group have delivered a very exciting and imaginative programme and it is very pleasing to see the Festival growing both in size and popularity and also in terms of the economic benefits that it will bring to Inverness.
“I am delighted to see that this is being supported by our business community and it gives me great pleasure to announce today that Scottish Provincial Press are providing us with more than £70,000 of in-kind support for the marketing and promotion of our Festival. We are currently in discussions with other businesses and organisations and we hope to be able to announce additional sponsors in the weeks to come.”