Littlehouse Media

Fort William has all the Mòd cons

An evening of live trad music and Gaelic culture at the VisitScotland iCentre in Fort William will form part of a celebration marking the arrival of the Royal National Mòd to Lochaber.

 

People are invited along to the VisitScotland iCentre in Fort William from 4pm on Monday 16 October 2017, as it hosts an evening of free live musical performances, with support from the Outdoor Capital of the UK (OCUK), Lochaber Chamber of Commerce’s tourism brand.

 

The Royal National Mòd is organised by An Comunn Gàidhealach (The Highland Association). Famous for celebrating our Gaelic linguistic and cultural heritage, Scotland’s premier Gaelic festival provides opportunities for people of all ages to perform across a range of competitive disciplines, including Gaelic music and song, Highland dancing, instrumental, drama, sport and literature.

 

This year, it takes place between 13 and 21 October in Lochaber and staff in the Fort William VisitScotland iCentre will be helping answer any queries in relation to the events taking place during the week, as well as providing Gaelic-speaking advisors for the event in the centre itself on 16 October.

 

The entertainment kicks off in the iCentre at 4pm on 16 October, when 11-year-old accordion player Cameron MacIsaac, who is competing in the Mòd, will open proceedings. iCentre visitors can then whet their appetites with music from local performers, including Gaelic Mòd gold medal singers Ruaridh Cormack, Eilidh Cormack and Emma Macleod.

 

At 5pm, the talented Marianne Fraser and A’Hooligan, who describe themselves as “a mad-trad ceilidh band from the west coast, producing and performing our unique style throughout the highlands and islands,” will perform.

 

Hot on their heels from 6.30pm to 8pm are Gary Innes, Ewen Henderson and Craig Irving, of Mànran, one of the best-known and loved Scottish bands on the scene today. The 2011 launch of their debut single, Latha Math, heralded a meteoric rise to the top of the Scottish music world that quickly saw them playing many of the most prestigious festivals in Europe, despite having only been in existence for a few months.

 

From then, a multi-award-winning debut album followed as the band set about living up to the hype surrounding their early release while establishing their characteristic sound and distinctive approach to musical arrangement.

 

A member of VisitScotland’s Coo Van fleet – either Hamish, Morag or Archie – will also be parked outside the iCentre on Monday evening. These vans have toured the country throughout the summer, providing inspiration and information at events, visitor attractions and tourism hotspots – and have become a real talking point amongst visitors, who are encouraged to stop by, have a chat with our Coo-visors and learn about some of the traditional Scottish activities in which they can get involved.

 

For those who can’t attend, there is an opportunity to view a live streaming of events, along with exclusive interviews with the musicians, live on Facebook on the OCUK Facebook page (Facebook Live) at:

https://www.facebook.com/Outdoorcapitaluk

 

Chris Taylor, VisitScotland Regional Partnerships Director, said:“This event is the perfect opportunity for VisitScotland to help showcase some great traditional music and we are delighted to be supporting this as well as the continual development and promotion of Gaelic, particularly during Scotland’s Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology.

 

“At VisitScotland we recognise that the Gaelic language is an integral part of Scotland’s heritage, identity and culture, which makes it vital when we are marketing Scotland to our visitors.

 

“The VisitScotland team here in the Fort William iCentre is pivotal in providing information and inspiration to visitors from all over the world who want to learn about the Highlands and the Gaelic culture. Tourism is the heartbeat of the Scottish economy – supporting communities and creating jobs throughout the year in every corner of the country.”

 

Chris O’Brien, Destination Manager, Outdoor Capital of the UK said:“We are delighted to support this fantastic night of traditional entertainment with VisitScotland, and we’re just as excited to live stream the event on Facebook so that we can share our brand of Highland entertainment with the rest of the world!”

 

As well as the fantastic musicians, visitors will also be able to Lochaber’s delicious local produce, including shortbread and whisky.

 

For more information on VisitScotland, visit:

www.visitscotland.com

For more information on The Outdoor Capital of the UK, visit:

www.outdoorcapital.co.uk

 

ENDS

 

For further information contact:

 

Kim Walton | Regional Corporate Press Officer | VisitScotland | T: (01224) 269187

M: 07805 802 508 | E: [email protected]

Or

Louise Purves | Corporate Press Officer | VisitScotland | T: (0131) 472 2052 | E: [email protected]

Or

Paddy Cuthbert | Littlehouse Media | E: [email protected] |

M: +44 (0)7913 951717

 

Notes to Editors

 

The Outdoor Capital of the UK is Lochaber Chamber of Commerce’s tourism element. Under the OCUK brand the Chamber of Commerce publicise, sponsor and promote Lochaber as a leading tourist destination within the UK. The Outdoor Capital of the UK website is the site to go to for local events, activity providers and visitor accommodation in Lochaber – http://www.outdoorcapital.co.uk/

 

Through a range of collaborative marketing initiatives and activities the organisation promotes Fort William and Lochaber as the best place in the UK for everyone to experience the outdoors; with a view to developing local jobs and wealth and encouraging sustainable economic growth – #myoutdoorcapital.

 

Visitors interested in the outdoors are very important to the economy and community of Lochaber. There are over 65 different activities to choose from in an amazing landscape that encompasses the small isles to Ben Nevis with White Water Rivers, sea, lochs, beaches, forest, glens, cliffs and mountains in between.


Useful websites & social media channels:

Lochaber Chamber of Commerce – http://www.lochaberchamber.co.uk/

The Outdoor Capital of the UK – http://www.outdoorcapital.co.uk/

 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Outdoor_Capital

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Outdoorcapitaluk

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/outdoorcapitaluk

YouTube:


VisitScotland

  • Follow us on twitter: @visitscotnews
  • VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
  • The organisation’s core objective is to contribute to the Tourism 2020 Strategy ambition of growing tourism revenues by £1 billion by 2020.
  • This will be supported by five overarching strategies: Marketing, Events, Quality and Sustainability, Inclusive Tourism, International Engagement.
  • The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
  • Spending by tourists in Scotland generates around £12 billion of economic activity in the wider Scottish supply chain and contributes around £6 billion to Scottish GDP (in basic prices). This represents about 5% of total Scottish GDP

 

2017 Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology

  • The Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology ends on 31 December 2017.  It will build on the momentum generated by previous themed years in Scotland including the 2015 Year of Food and Drink, Homecoming Scotland 2014, the Year of Creative and the Year of Natural. 2018 will be the Year of Young People.

 

You Might Also Like

Fort William Mountain Festival 2021 goes Covid-19 safe

That’s Fife Festival Programme Announced

Discover Your Adventure – Fort William Mountain Festival 2023 programme announced

Hostelling Scotland fully open for business after two years

Figurehead environmental campaigner, Dave Morris, wins top mountain award

6’ 2” skinhead Gary Little to kick off Gilded Balloon Comedy at Drygate

Planning on holidaying at home? Give hostelling a go!

Explore the best of Scotland on foot with the Girls on Hills Door to Door Challenge

Developing for the future at Nevis Range!

Nevis Range to turn back the clock to 1989 to celebrate 30 years of adventure

Hostelling Scotland to temporarily close Youth Hostel network

An Teallach wins €60,000 European Outdoor Conservation Association grant

SYHA opens new summer youth hostel in Edinburgh

Lochaber Tourism Summit 2019, a must-attend event for Highland tourism businesses

‘A West Highland Vision’ – A new era for business and community

Media Advisory – UK’s highest Shinty match to promote tourism in Lochaber

Hot water on tap for Loch Ossian Youth Hostel

Go Beyond – Fort William Mountain Festival 2025 programme launched

Frazer Coupland appointed Chair of The Highland Tourism Partnership

Amy Howerska, the one-woman voice machine, to headline Gilded Balloon’s new comedy night

Monster Meets Mountain – Nevis Range joins forces with the Cobbs Group

Nevis Range moving forward with interim CEO Rod Pashley

OATS in search of a Fairy Pool of staff

Hostelling Scotland’s network opens for 2023. Give hostelling a go!

Muckmedden Events secure vital funding for UK’s first Team Mountain Bike Enduro

Gold and Silver gongs for Torridon and Loch Ossian Youth Hostels in TGO Reader Awards

Young heroes wanted for aerial dance workshops in the Easter holidays

Blind Summit to bring puppet ballet to LA’s Hollywood Bowl

Nevis Range team up with Endura

Horse McDonald to tour Careful, her acclaimed biographical play

Outdoor Capital Activities and Attractions Expo open for tourism business

Gravelfoyle – Gravel Cycling at the heart of Aberfoyle’s new tourism brand

Entries open for SKI-AN-DURO, Scotland’s new ski and mountain bike Enduro

Chris O’Brien appointed Destination Manager for the Outdoor Capital of the UK

Business Community Programme launched for Lochaber Ideas Week 2018

Nevis Range looks forward to reopening in July

Summer Youth Hostel Returns to Glasgow

Kevin Howett, the legend of climbing development wins top mountain award

Immerse yourself in Lochaber Ideas Week 2019

Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland wins two rural industry awards

Lochaber’s ‘Connect to Your Adventure’ digital marketing campaign, a huge success

It’s Up to Us…to step up and save our mountain paths

Nevis Range and Trek renew commercial partnership for 2019/20

Noel Williams wins 2019 Scottish Award for Excellence in Mountain Culture

‘What would Mary do?’ at the Fort William Mountain Festival

People are at the heart of SYHA Hostelling Scotland!

£100,000 awarded to innovative Scottish mountain project

An appetite for adventure in the North West Highlands

Celebrating 90 years of Scottish hostelling

SYHA collaborates with Glasgow Caledonian University

The UK’s first waymarked gravel cycling trails opened near Aberfoyle

Nevis Range, Scotland’s highest snowsports destination, open for business

Glen Nevis Youth Hostel re-opens after major redevelopment project

Edinburgh Mountain Film Festival 2018 – The Long Road To Adventure

Danny MacAskill launches video, ‘Danny Daycare’. Best ‘uncle’ ever?

The Fort William Mountain Festival 2018 – Celebrate the great outdoors

Fort William Mountain Festival back to a live, multi-venue event in 2022

New look Edinburgh Central Youth Hostel, new era of hostelling in the Capital

Hostelling Scotland, a new brand identity unveiled

Heroes take flight at the Edinburgh Fringe – aerial dance theatre and circus

SKI-AN-DURO, a new ski and mountain bike Enduro for Scotland

Two Scottish youth hostels celebrate landmark anniversaries

Media Advisory – 500 runners to tame Edinburgh with the inaugural Ultra Tour

Youth development key to Edinburgh Central’s 10th Anniversary

Run Scotland in two days with the new Ultra Tour of Arran

Mountain Bike pros flock to Perthshire for the UK’s first Team Mountain Bike Enduro

Lochaber Tourism Day with Cal Mac – Debate, Engage, Network

Start your Highland biking adventure at the new Nevis Range Bike School

Campaign to save Scotland’s mountain paths raises over £218,000 in first year

DJ Grant Stott’s hit Fringe show Tales From Behind The Mic to tour Scotland

SYHA’s Glasgow Metro youth hostel awarded 3 stars by VisitScotland

#myoutdoorcapital – OCUK to put visitors firmly in the frame

Scott Gibson brings a goldmine of comedy fodder to Drygate Brewery

120 young people from Edinburgh create multi-artform production during Covid

Run Scotland on The Ultra Tour of Arran

SYHA Hostelling Scotland assist in a Recovery Version

Rob Cochrane wins 2019 Scottish Youth Award for Excellence in Mountain Culture

Lochaber Ideas Week returns to Fort William after a two-year covid hiatus

Lochaber Chamber calls for urgent action to address the critical public transport infrastructure crisis

Call for nominations to join Hostelling Scotland’s Board of Trustees

Rob Deering, ‘The Finest Comedy Double Act’, to headline at Drygate Brewery

Unique Mountain Culture Award goes to novice search and rescue dog teams

Marcel Lucont, easily the greatest UK-based French Comedian, to charm Glasgow

Fort William Mountain Festival 2024 – Come and discover your adventure

OCUK unveil their new branded gondola at Nevis Range

The ultimate runners’ sightseeing tour of Edinburgh returns

Gilded Balloon offers top class comedy lineup for Drygate Brewery

Popular Youth Hostel on Loch Lomond side re-opens after major upgrade

Jura, the Border Collie, trains to become the first Ski Patrol rescue dog at Nevis Range

New European partnership to upskill adventure tourism in five countries

Keith Legge, CEO of SYHA Hostelling Scotland, steps down after 13 years

Run day and night at the new Tweed Valley Trail Run

Danny MacAskill celebrates Edinburgh anniversary with Fringe debut at Circus Hub

Inspirational volunteer, Steph McKenna, wins Youth Mountain Award

Finance and Economy Secretary, Kate Forbes, opens car park and off-grid toilets at Skye’s Iconic Fairy Pools

Haggis from Scotland’s first free-range Haggis farm goes on sale in Lochaber

Young people invited to collaborate in Muckin’ good summer festivals

Hamish MacInnes legacy will boost mountain grant scheme

SYHA appoints Lois Marshall as Youth & Volunteer Engagement Manager

Changing times at Nevis Range Mountain Experience!

SYHA Hostelling Scotland – building Scottish hostelling for the future

Discover Scotland’s ‘Braw Buildings’ with Hostelling Scotland

Dr Liz Cameron, Scotland’s voice of business, to headline women’s networking lunch

The new Pentland Trail Centre – The future for Edinburgh biking

Loch Ossian and Torridon Youth Hostels shortlisted in TGO Reader Awards

Lochaber community is pulling together to give Nevis Range a lift after lockdown!

Sporting legend Gavin Hastings to inspire Lochaber at Ideas Week 2017

HESS, award winning one-man play about Rudolf Hess, goes on the road

Get your adventure challenge on with Project: Explore

Mark Nelson brings no-nonsense stand-up to Drygate Brewery

Chris O’Brien, MD of Nevis Range, shortlisted for Business Leader of The Year

‘A Meeting of Minds 2’ celebrates innovation in Scotland’s aquaculture sector

New Lochaber website aiming high

Scott Gibson presents his Sunday Sessions at Gilded Balloon’s Basement

Loch Ossian and Glencoe Youth Hostels, big winners in TGO Reader Awards 2024

Top award for World renowned Scottish landscape photographer, Colin Prior

A muckin’ great Audax, perfect for Cream o’ the Croft road cyclists

Scottish Climbing Instructor, Tim Miller, wins Youth Mountain Culture Award

Hostelling Scotland begins phased opening of Youth Hostel network

Visit Moray Speyside launches their biggest ever UK marketing campaign

New Clan Chief brings funding for Clans @ The Croft mountain bike team enduro

Nevis Range is making it snow all season long!

Lochaber’s Nevis Range becomes an accredited Living Wage employer

New hydro scheme powers Scottish mountain resort

The Cream of Enduro will rise to the top at Comrie Croft

Millburn Academy ensures a warm welcome to Inverness Youth Hostel

Big Biking October – two International bike events for the Outdoor Capital

Inverness Youth Hostel gets a fresh new look

‘Connect To Your Adventure!’ – big success in just 7 weeks

Heroes tour Scotland – aerial acrobatics, dance theatre and contemporary circus

Nevis Range announces Commencal as new global gravity sports partner

Route announcement confirmed for HSBC City Ride in Edinburgh

‘Death Zone’ mountaineer, Nirmal Purja, to headline Fort William Mountain Festival 2020

Sustainable active travel and food tourism at the heart of new adventure film

Nevis Range and Trek announce a partnership for 2018/19

Mind The Gap tackles learning disability and parenthood at the Fringe

Are you hard enough to take on The Double Stalker?

SYHA partners with Ayrshire College for valuable volunteer experience

Coast to Coast – run, bike ride and kayak 105 miles across Scotland

Margo Paterson appointed as CEO of SYHA Hostelling Scotland

Aberfoyle to host new endurance gravel cycling event and festival

New Beinn a’ Ghlo trailhead car park gives back to the mountains

Fort William – the perfect cruise destination

300 Dutch adventurers to run, bike and kayak across Scotland

Josh Howie, former trainee Rabbi, brings cult-edge comedy to Glasgow

Epic Halloween tale of ‘Ned vs Monster’ in the Outdoor Capital

VisitScotland’s Lord Thurso to deliver The Charles Kennedy Memorial Lecture

The Ultra Tour of Arran, a big draw for international adventure tourists

Expert of mountain rescue, ‘Heavy’ Whalley, wins top mountain festival award

Gilded Balloon is expanding into the New Town!

Lochaber Ideas Week programme revealed

Plans unveiled for Scotland’s ‘next world-class adventure destination’

Award winning Blind Summit return to Edinburgh with Extreme Puppetry

Safety and accessibility first for newly opened Charter Chest Path, Braemar

International partnership benefits Nevis Range snowsports enthusiasts

Media Statement – Development of Stac Pollaidh Car Park, Coigach, Sutherland

Go Swim Loch Lomond – a new open water event for Scotland

All or Nothing bring the joy of giant swings to post-Covid Scotland

Hostelling Scotland opens four summer youth hostels in 2018

Three female adventurers to take on epic 1936 cycling trip

Media Advisory – Images – The Ultra Tour of Edinburgh

Paul Merton Visits SYHA’s Loch Ossian Hostel – Paul Merton’s Secret Stations

Enduro riders, prepare yourselves for a Highland Clan battle!