Festival expansion bid welcomed
The popular Lochgilphead Celtic and Pictish Festival is poised to become a three-day event after securing a threeyear funding deal worth £10,000.
To help make it happen, volunteers were invited to attend a public meeting last Friday (April 19) to find out more and form a committee to support the small organising team already in place.
The festival was established in 2016 and thrived in subsequent years, going from around 40 visitors to more than 800 in 2023, with some coming from as far afield as the United States.
Despite two Covid-enforced cancellations in 2020 and 2021, the community came out in great numbers for the 2022 return.
Last year saw Viking battle re-enactments and axe throwing taking place on Lochgilphead Front Green.
Having firmly established the event as an important part of the local calendar, organisers have now developed an ambitious growth plan.
This will see the event extend from one afternoon to three days over the next few years, with support and fringe events and increased partnership working with other groups.
In support of the growth plan, the festival has secured a £10,000 grant from the a’Cruach Wind Farm Fund, administered by Foundation Scotland.
The meeting at the MS Centre in Campbell Street, Lochgilphead, was due to hear more about the planned expansion.
Brian MacLennan, the main organiser of the festival, said: “An important part of the funding agreement and requirement for the successful implementation of the growth plan is to recruit some members of the Lochgilphead and wider Mid Argyll area to form a committee to bring in the knowledge and experience needed to make it work.”
This year’s Lochgilphead
Celtic and Pictish Festival takes place on Saturday August 3, on Lochgilphead Front Green.