Scottish Sun's St Andrew's Night Street Party 2008

Last Saturday night, the Scottish Sun newspaper hosted a street party in Kirkwall's Broad Street to finish off their campaign to get Scotland celebrating St Andrew's Day...

Read about it here.

There was a fireworks display, and local bands playing from 7pm - Midnight... all watched by about 3,000 folk who braved the freezing temperatures.

And local band, Shoot The Piper, playing on Broad Street...

KCPB - Men In Skirts...

Last night I spent 2 and a bit very pleasant hours at "Ivan On The Apron" - an open-air concert with Kirkwall City Pipe Band and special guest, Orkney-born musician, Ivan Drever (former member of Wolfstone).

The "Apron" in question is a paved area with 3 steps around the edge, leading up to the front door of St Magnus Cathedral.

It had been a lovely day yesterday, so I decided I would go along... and it was a fantastic couple of hours! I got quite close to the railings at the side of the steps, but there was no pushing or jostling anyway... Just a couple of hundred people, aged from mere babes in arms up to grannies and granddads in wheelchairs, enjoying the music... some standing, some sitting on the Kirk Green as the sun went down (and the midges eventually buggered off)...

The first photo was taken just after the performance started at 8pm, so it was still reasonably light then:

This was a bit later, and you can see Ivan Drever at the mic, accompanied by one or two of the Pipe Band members:


This was a lot later, nearer 10pm, and it was dark by that time... although that didn't detract from the performance at all:


If you happen to have been there, and have stumbled upon this... Wasn't it a brilliant night?