A Couth Bothy Night In Wick - Free For Doors Open Day

31st August 2006

SEAFARING tales and traditional tunes are to be served up at a Bothy Night taking place at Wick's "Seven Gates" salt cellars next weekend.

The event on Saturday, 9th September, is being organised by Lower Pulteneytown Promotions as one of the Doors Open Day activities linked to Scottish Archaeology Month.

The Bothy Night will run from 7.30pm to around 9pm, with traditional music by Pete Nichol and his son Chris and storytelling from Ian Stephen and Janis Mackay. Ian, from Lewis, is no stranger to this type of event in Caithness, having previously appeared at sessions staged by Scotia Review and Dunbeath Heritage Centre. With funding from Live Literature and the Highland Council he will be holding a storytelling workshop for second-year pupils at Wick High School on Friday and going along with some of the young people to tell tales at the Seven Gates.

Janis, from Edinburgh, is a poet, writer and voice teacher as well as a noted storyteller. She has been working in Caithness this year as one of three artists in the FaceNorth residency programme run jointly by North Lands Creative Glass and Lyth arts Centre.
The Seven Gates will be open for the evening and there will be tattie soup and oatcakes for sale.

Carol Smith, of the Wick Project office, who has been helping to organise the Bothy Night, said: "This promises to be a great family night out with people hearing stories of times gone by. If we have bad weather the event will still take place but will move to the old herring mart round the other side of the harbour."

The full Doors Open Day programme can be found at -
http://www.doorsopendays.org.uk/highd.htm