Event is off but lasers still thrill

A captivating laser light show was observed by thousands of mesmerized Perthshire residents over the weekend.

Beams and lights lit up the skies at Pitlochry as The Enchanted Forest Community Trust marked what would have been the start of its 2020 event on Saturday, October 2.

The much-loved Enchanted Forest event, which normally attracts 80,000 visitors a year to Highland Perthshire, was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic and the prohibition of events and mass gatherings.

Normally providing a significant boost of over £7.6 million to Highland Perthshire every year, the event will be “sorely missed” by the local economy.

The weekend’s event marked what would have been the start of its 19th show on October 2 - exactly 200 days since mass gatherings were halted in the UK.

The nightly laser show signified support for the local community and was viewed safely from the living room windows and back gardens of onlooking residents.

Although the popular event is not taking place this year, the annual charitable giving of the Enchanted Forest Community Trust is still taking place.

This year the trust has donated £68,000 to 29 local projects, the seventh year in a row the event has given back to the community.

This has included much needed COVID-19 rescue funds to The Birks Cinema in Aberfeldy and Pitlochry

Festival Theatre, both of which have been directly impacted by the pandemic.

Tayside Mountain Rescue will also receive a donation of £10,000 from the trust in return for its members practical assistance in the siting of the night sky laser show.

Keith Moncrieff, chairman of The Enchanted Forest, said: “Whilst we totally understand the reasons, we are extremely disappointed that The Enchanted Forest is not able to run this year.

“I know so many people will be feeling the loss of the event, in many ways.

“For this reason, we decided to mark what would have been the start of the event on October 2 with a fantastic laser show, which ran every night over what would have been our opening weekend.

“At the heart of Pitlochry our illuminated logo took pride of place outside the Visit Scotland Pitlochry iCentre.”

The bold beacon is intended to signal that although the 2020 event has been cancelled, there are big plans afoot for the 2021 show - the 20th anniversary of the illuminating event.

“Our team is already making plans for the 2021 show and we are determined that for our 20th anniversary show, the lights will shine,” Keith added.

“We are also delighted that, despite these challenging circumstances, we have still been able to support 29 local projects financially, which we hope has been a welcome boost given the unfortunate loss of income that Pitlochry and Highland Perthshire will experience due to the cancellation of the 2020 event.”

Tickets for The Enchanted Forest 2021 are available now.