Biggest names head to Scone
Noel Gallagher’s band on Palace festival bill
Perth and Kinross will enjoy a welcome spell in the spotlight when the region plays its part in a largescale musical extravaganza championed by the BBC.
The Scottish leg of the corporation’s Biggest Weekend will take place at Scone Palace over May 25 and 26.
So far Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds and Nigel Kennedy, accompanied by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, have been confirmed as being on the bill by organisers – with more to follow.
The showpiece event at the historic venue forms part of what BBC Music has billed as its biggestever celebration of music across TV, radio and online.
Alongside Scone Palace, the Biggest Weekend will also be hosted at Swansea’s Singleton Park with headline acts Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift, and at Coventry’s War Memorial Park and Belfast’s Titanic Slipways.
Perth Festival of the Arts regular Kennedy said: “I’m inspired by all kinds of music from across the Musician Nigel Kennedy
world.
“I’m also inspired by people and by passion. Music should not be pigeon-holed and I have always believed that.
“So it’s great to be involved in an event which celebrates diversity across live musical genres with artists new and old.
“In Perth, I’ll be performing Bach and Gershwin with the BBC Scottish Orchestra.”
The Scone Palace music will be broadcast on BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 3.
Bob Shennan, director of BBC radio and music, said: “The Biggest Weekend is going to be a once-ina-lifetime festival for everyone that loves music, whether they are at the venues in person or enjoying the whole spectacle of performances being streamed through iPlayer along with all our TV, radio and digital networks. Wherever you are in the country, you will be part of the biggest music event, with the widest selection of musical genres, the BBC has ever put on.”
Chris Evans, BBC Radio 2’s breakfast presenter, said: “The Biggest Weekend is shaping up very nicely indeed. Can’t wait to find out who else is going to be performing.”
Petroc Trelawny, BBC Radio 3’s breakfast presenter, said he is looking forward to seeing Nigel Kennedy on the Scone stage, adding: “There’s magic in all kinds of music, from pop to rock, jazz to folk and of course, classical.
“I’m really looking forward to the Biggest Weekend and the unique and brilliant content of four BBC radio stations coming together - it’s thrilling to see collaboration like this on such a grand scale.
“With Nigel Kennedy and Eliza McCarthy [confirmed for the Coventry gig] at the helm of the Radio 3 offering, I’m convinced the festival will be a treat for existing and new audiences alike.
“I can’t wait to hear who else will be joining us on stage in Perth and Coventry in May.”
Tickets for The Biggest Weekend at Scone Palace go on sale on Monday, February 12, from www. bbc.co.uk/biggestweekend
More than 175,000 tickets will be up for grabs over the four locations, priced £18 plus a £4.50 booking fee.
The news of Scone Palace’s inclusion in the Biggest Weekend came on the same day as music icon Lionel Richie announced plans for a gig at McDiarmid Park on June 3 – tickets for which are available from today via the websites ticketmaster. com, AXS.com, gigantic.com and alttickets.com.
Both high-profile events add to fixtures in the calendar such as July’s Rewind Scotland festival, which is also staged at Scone Palace.
Noel Gallgher’s High Flying Birds, pictured at 2015’s T in the Park in Perthshire