Burns Cottage welcomes first footers from school

Burns Cottage welcomed its first firstfooters for more than a century as 2017 dawned.

Carrie Cook, Sophie Steele, Efe Tural and Matthew McDowall, all aged 9 from Alloway Primary, were the first New Year visitors at the cottage.

Cottage owners the National Trust for Scotland reopened the doors to the famous house as it gets ready for its annual programme of events celebrating Burns’ birthday.

People all over the world welcomed in the New Year by singing one of the bard’s most famous works, Auld Lang Syne.

And the cottage welcomed it in its own way with the Alloway Primary pupils.

The 2017 celebrations start on Friday, January 20 with the Haggis Hooley, an informal and familyfriendly take on the Burns supper complete with ceilidh.

On January 25, a special Burns Supper is planned - the only one in the world which takes place in the bard’s birthplace.

Alloway and its sights will then be transformed with Burns Alicht on Saturday, January 28, a series of illuminations, music and performance which brings the story of Burns and his works to life.

Then on Sunday, January 29 it’s the Big Birthday Bash with live music, crafts and the now- traditional Haggis Hurling World Championships.

Last year’s Burns Supper was the first at the cottage in more than 200 years, on the site of the first event of its kind held by friends of the bard in the Alloway cottage in 1801, five years after his death.

For the full programme and more information, visit www. burnsmuseum. org. uk.