Latest news with #AuldLangSyne
The National
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The National
Fringe 2025: Mairi Campbell goes deep into indigenous Celtic heritage
The Edinburgh-born singer, best-known internationally for her version of Auld Lang Syne used in Sex And The City: The Movie, is playing an alternating trilogy of shows at this year's Fringe Festival. Each spotlights a period of her life; her younger years in Pulse: middle in Auld Lang Syne, her older in Living Stone – and her interpretation of the wider journey she went on during these decades. 'I think audiences enjoy the variety. And it keeps me interested, rather than just standing and singing for an hour, which I've done a lot of and still like, but this gives me more to play with.' READ MORE: What reparations should Palestine receive? The Fringe show where you decide I went to her third show on Thursday evening, Living Stone, and when entering the theatre I saw two fiddles on stage, alongside the talisman stone she spoke of so fondly in our interview a few weeks earlier. The stone was found on her great-grandmother's croft by her brother-in-law when they were unearthing the foundations. He put it up against the wall and by chance, Campbell had been looking for a stone to create a pendulum to play. 'There it was. It's amazing. There're all these ripples, and layers. Yeah, it's beautiful.' On our Zoom call, she carried the stone over. It was large and heavy, and Campbell had drawn it more than 100 times as part of a challenge in 2023. 'Each day I just had a little idea and off I went, trying something new.' The show features dozens of her drawings, as projections acting as visual elements to the tales Campbell is telling. 'Lismore has a really ancient early Celtic history, and so part of the show was really introducing the audience to the background around Lismore and its history and also the history of what might have happened to the stone itself,' Campbell explains. She wouldn't spoil the story in our interview, so I was intrigued to hear it. Campbell tells the story through the character of Peggy, a woman living on the croft in Lismore who had to protect the stone, a mill stone, from being destroyed in the 1700s when they were banned by the landowners. Scots had been forced to use the landowner's mill, further reducing their way of life. READ MORE: 'Rare and tangible' links to Jacobite rebellion to go up for auction I've never heard someone truly shout in Gaelic. It is known, to me at least, as a language of love, heartache, and song, but Campbell in performance roared. The strength of the language gave Peggy and every other woman from that era a voice, and her actions, burying the stone to be found centuries later, were just one of the ways these women protected their heritage and connection to the land. And that is what Campbell wanted to explore in the finale of the trilogy. 'This show has many themes of place, and our depth of desire to be connected to land more than we are. 'I think it speaks to climate change, to our relationship to the world around us, and what it means to be more connected. 'Underneath the surface, we're so deeply, intrinsically connected. We are like hairs on the body of Mother Earth, every human being. 'But it's been trained or educated out of us in many ways culturally, and so the show takes you back to your indigenous self. The audience is faced with questions, prompting us to ask things like: Where is this indigeneity that we had? Is it in another culture or is it within me? How can we allow that out? When you allow it out, 'you start to feel weird", she says. 'Then you start looking at God and realising the layers of teachings of the church or whatever it is that have pushed down the deeper necessity for us to have ceremony and ritual and connection to land things and that's where music lives in. 'It's one of its most basic functions and sound is as a technology for us to kind of land deeper in ourselves.' At several points in the show, the audience is invited to harmonise with Campbell, digging into that ancient sound within and connecting with each other. The audience is given freedom to allow the sounds to flow and go where they are called to. 'Draw the note out,' Campbell guided us, or 'add in some consonants'. Halfway through, Campbell turns the stone round, a physical moment to symbolise the arc in the show. Without realising, and as the songs and energy changed, I noticed I had been feeling uneasy for the first half of the show. READ MORE: I'm performing at the Fringe but fear I won't be allowed to re-enter the US The show gives you that sense of discomfort you have when considering questions about culture, heritage and indigenous self. It drew us all down into some sort of deep, dark, depth of earth and soil where the stone had been buried and it was unclear when we would return. When we came up for air, Campbell gave us some tunes inspired by the Jimmy Shand band that she plays with her own community band in Lismore and did a wee jig with the hazel sticks laid out like a Highland dancer's swords. Campbell is to turn 60 during her Fringe run, and reflected: 'We all have so many stories in us and so many encounters and relationships and places within us that we might not be aware of and in my work, it feels like bringing those threads of relationships, encounters and learnings together is a real honour for me, because it's, I suppose, quite cathartic, actually.'
West Australian
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- West Australian
Albany CWA of WA State Conference ends, Great Southern committee recognised after successful event
As the annual Country Women's Association of WA State Conference reached its conclusion at the Albany Entertainment Centre on Wednesday, the Great Southern women behind the three-day event took centre stage. The conference committee was made up of entirely Great Southern branch members including those from Albany, Denmark, Mt Barker, Badgebup-Rockwell, Tambellup, Rocky Gully, Broomehill Frankland River, Nyabing and Woodanilling. The Great Southern branches have contributed a combined 869 years of service to the region as of this year, with the Albany branch also celebrating its 90th birthday at the conference. Representatives from the committee accepted certificates of appreciation from the CWA State president Felicity Edwards, gathering before the crowded conference theatre proudly displaying their hostess ribbons. Mt Barker's Anne Radys also accepted a certificate of volunteer appreciation from Volunteering Australia and a badge of honour for her decades of volunteer work. As the conference officially ended for the year, members came together to sing the traditional Auld Lang Syne.
North Wales Chronicle
13-06-2025
- General
- North Wales Chronicle
King presents new Colours to Coldstream Guards at Windsor Castle
Troops from the 1st and 2nd Battalions paraded on Friday morning before the King's official birthday celebrations in London this weekend. The soldiers marched from Victoria Barracks through Windsor town centre, accompanied by the Band of the Coldstream Guards, before entering the castle. The old Colours were formally marched off to the sound of Auld Lang Syne. Around 1,000 guests watched the event in the roasting sun inside the Quadrangle, with around another 100 members of the public gathered outside the castle gates trying to catch a glimpse. A traditional drumhead service followed, with regimental drums stacked to form a makeshift altar. The new Colours were laid on top and consecrated by the Chaplain-General. The King, who is Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment, touched each Colour before formally presenting them to the Guards. 'It gives me enormous pride, as your Colonel-in-Chief, to be able to present these new Colours to you today in the presence of the wider Regimental family,' he said. 'Each and every one of you on parade today is now part of that great legacy.' The new Colours display 44 of the regiment's 113 battle honours, ranging from Tangier in 1680 to the Gulf in 1991. They also bear the eight-pointed Star of the Order of the Garter and the King's Crown, featured for the first time in 70 years. 'These Colours, encompassing your richly deserved battle honours, are a gallant testament to the outstanding courage, fortitude and spirit that the Regiment has always displayed throughout our nation's history,' the King said. He also paid tribute to the families of serving soldiers, adding: 'I would like to offer my heartfelt thanks for your tremendous, unwavering support and encouragement.' The Coldstream Guards are the oldest continuously serving regiment in the British Army, founded in 1650 during the English Civil War. They serve both in frontline military operations and in ceremonial duties, including guarding royal residences. They have recently deployed to Iraq, supported training efforts in Ukraine, and delivered military instruction in West Africa, the Caribbean and the Middle East. 'You have done so much to support both Ukraine, and the United Kingdom's own security,' the King said. After the presentation, the Colours were returned to the regiment's ensigns, who took up position in front of the parade. The Guards then gave three cheers and a Royal Salute before marching off. The King remained in the Quadrangle later in the day to meet serving guardsmen, families, veterans and the bereaved. The youngest soldier on parade was 18, while the oldest was a 67-year-old veteran. Later Ensign Lieutenant Max Martin, 24, who was mentioned by the King during his address, told the PA news agency: 'It was an absolutely incredible day. 'It caught me completely off guard – first thing I thought about was my mum and dad in the stands and how excited they would have been to hear my name. 'I tried my best not to let out a grin but as His Majesty pushed up the King's Colour and said good luck for tomorrow I couldn't help but have a little smirk to myself. 'The eagle eyes of the Garrison Sergeant Major were watching me so I tried to cover it up but I couldn't help myself.'
Rhyl Journal
13-06-2025
- General
- Rhyl Journal
King presents new Colours to Coldstream Guards at Windsor Castle
Troops from the 1st and 2nd Battalions paraded on Friday morning before the King's official birthday celebrations in London this weekend. The soldiers marched from Victoria Barracks through Windsor town centre, accompanied by the Band of the Coldstream Guards, before entering the castle. The old Colours were formally marched off to the sound of Auld Lang Syne. Around 1,000 guests watched the event in the roasting sun inside the Quadrangle, with around another 100 members of the public gathered outside the castle gates trying to catch a glimpse. A traditional drumhead service followed, with regimental drums stacked to form a makeshift altar. The new Colours were laid on top and consecrated by the Chaplain-General. The King, who is Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment, touched each Colour before formally presenting them to the Guards. 'It gives me enormous pride, as your Colonel-in-Chief, to be able to present these new Colours to you today in the presence of the wider Regimental family,' he said. 'Each and every one of you on parade today is now part of that great legacy.' The new Colours display 44 of the regiment's 113 battle honours, ranging from Tangier in 1680 to the Gulf in 1991. They also bear the eight-pointed Star of the Order of the Garter and the King's Crown, featured for the first time in 70 years. 'These Colours, encompassing your richly deserved battle honours, are a gallant testament to the outstanding courage, fortitude and spirit that the Regiment has always displayed throughout our nation's history,' the King said. He also paid tribute to the families of serving soldiers, adding: 'I would like to offer my heartfelt thanks for your tremendous, unwavering support and encouragement.' The Coldstream Guards are the oldest continuously serving regiment in the British Army, founded in 1650 during the English Civil War. They serve both in frontline military operations and in ceremonial duties, including guarding royal residences. They have recently deployed to Iraq, supported training efforts in Ukraine, and delivered military instruction in West Africa, the Caribbean and the Middle East. 'You have done so much to support both Ukraine, and the United Kingdom's own security,' the King said. After the presentation, the Colours were returned to the regiment's ensigns, who took up position in front of the parade. The Guards then gave three cheers and a Royal Salute before marching off. The King remained in the Quadrangle later in the day to meet serving guardsmen, families, veterans and the bereaved. The youngest soldier on parade was 18, while the oldest was a 67-year-old veteran. Later Ensign Lieutenant Max Martin, 24, who was mentioned by the King during his address, told the PA news agency: 'It was an absolutely incredible day. 'It caught me completely off guard – first thing I thought about was my mum and dad in the stands and how excited they would have been to hear my name. 'I tried my best not to let out a grin but as His Majesty pushed up the King's Colour and said good luck for tomorrow I couldn't help but have a little smirk to myself. 'The eagle eyes of the Garrison Sergeant Major were watching me so I tried to cover it up but I couldn't help myself.'
Powys County Times
13-06-2025
- General
- Powys County Times
King presents new Colours to Coldstream Guards at Windsor Castle
The King has presented new Colours to the Coldstream Guards during a ceremony at Windsor Castle, marking the regiment's 375th anniversary. Troops from the 1st and 2nd Battalions paraded on Friday morning before the King's official birthday celebrations in London this weekend. The soldiers marched from Victoria Barracks through Windsor town centre, accompanied by the Band of the Coldstream Guards, before entering the castle. The old Colours were formally marched off to the sound of Auld Lang Syne. Around 1,000 guests watched the event in the roasting sun inside the Quadrangle, with around another 100 members of the public gathered outside the castle gates trying to catch a glimpse. A traditional drumhead service followed, with regimental drums stacked to form a makeshift altar. The new Colours were laid on top and consecrated by the Chaplain-General. The King, who is Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment, touched each Colour before formally presenting them to the Guards. 'It gives me enormous pride, as your Colonel-in-Chief, to be able to present these new Colours to you today in the presence of the wider Regimental family,' he said. 'Each and every one of you on parade today is now part of that great legacy.' The new Colours display 44 of the regiment's 113 battle honours, ranging from Tangier in 1680 to the Gulf in 1991. They also bear the eight-pointed Star of the Order of the Garter and the King's Crown, featured for the first time in 70 years. 'These Colours, encompassing your richly deserved battle honours, are a gallant testament to the outstanding courage, fortitude and spirit that the Regiment has always displayed throughout our nation's history,' the King said. He also paid tribute to the families of serving soldiers, adding: 'I would like to offer my heartfelt thanks for your tremendous, unwavering support and encouragement.' The Coldstream Guards are the oldest continuously serving regiment in the British Army, founded in 1650 during the English Civil War. They serve both in frontline military operations and in ceremonial duties, including guarding royal residences. They have recently deployed to Iraq, supported training efforts in Ukraine, and delivered military instruction in West Africa, the Caribbean and the Middle East. 'You have done so much to support both Ukraine, and the United Kingdom's own security,' the King said. After the presentation, the Colours were returned to the regiment's ensigns, who took up position in front of the parade. The Guards then gave three cheers and a Royal Salute before marching off. The King remained in the Quadrangle later in the day to meet serving guardsmen, families, veterans and the bereaved. The youngest soldier on parade was 18, while the oldest was a 67-year-old veteran. Later Ensign Lieutenant Max Martin, 24, who was mentioned by the King during his address, told the PA news agency: 'It was an absolutely incredible day. 'It caught me completely off guard – first thing I thought about was my mum and dad in the stands and how excited they would have been to hear my name. 'I tried my best not to let out a grin but as His Majesty pushed up the King's Colour and said good luck for tomorrow I couldn't help but have a little smirk to myself. 'The eagle eyes of the Garrison Sergeant Major were watching me so I tried to cover it up but I couldn't help myself.'
