Nwicker60
11-Jun-12, 10:01
Exiles from abroad expected home to join Wick's exciting jubilee celebrations
THE Wick Diamond Jubilee HarbourFest’s committee have been beavering away behind the scenes and are now set to swing into action.
Organisers David & Liz Richard-Jones today unveiled details of the festival’s two-day programme. The town centre will literally be painted red, white and blue this coming weekend with the main streets being hung with bunting. Most of the shops will be joining the theme with red white and blue window displays, as part of a window-dressing competition sponsored by North of Scotland Newspapers, the publishers of John O' Groat Journal and Caithness Courier.
David Richard-Jones acknowledged to role played by businesses and organisations in the preparations.
He said “Over the past moths, I have been amazed by the way local business and groups have responded to our requests for help in so many ways. They have donated materials, equipment, lent us the use of premises for rehearsals, and helped in so many diverse ways. It will all become apparent during the two-day programme when visitors will be treated to a spectacle to be remembered for many years.”
He revealed that the Diamond Jubilee Crown has been specially designed and made by the engineering students of the recently opened ETEC Centre at Thurso’s North Highland College. The highly polished crown is now being decorated by a local jewellery maker so that it will sparkle as Queen Abigail is crowned by the Lord-Lieutenant.
The wardrobe ladies of the Wick Players have sewn beautiful costumes and outfits for the Diamond Jubilee Queen and Royal Court whilst the stage hands have worked behind the scenes to manufacture the Coronation Stage and Diamond Jubilee Float for the procession through the town to the Harbour.
Nearly one mile of royal street bunting has been hand-made for the streets of Wick by the members of the Caithness Community Payback team, and professionally sewn by a local upholsterer to withstand the rigours of the Caithness wind and weather.
Mr Richard-Jones siad “ The dresses for the senior Royal Court have been supplied by our local bridal shop, the HarbourFest posters and banners have been manufacturer locally and all the trophies and mementoes have been engraved by a local craftsman – in fact we have operated a ‘Buy Local’ wherever possible” added Mr Richard-Jones.
He went on: “It has been really heartening to see how the whole community has contributed in so many ways to making this one of the most anticipated events for many years. The fame of the Harbourfest has already spread far and wide - we are aware that ex-Caithnessians are returning home for the HarbourFest from San Francisco, Dar-es-Salam and South Africa, and those not able to come home have ordered souvenirs of the event by purchasing HarbourFest Tee Shirts to be posted to them in Australia, Canada and the USA.”
One of the more memorable moments planned for HarbourFest Saturday will be the unveiling by Miss Anne Dunnett, Lord-Lieutenant of Caithness, of the newly refurbished Wick fog cannon.
Gordon Doull, Vice Chair of Wick Harbour Authority said “We are grateful to the local businesses of the harbour who helped recover the cannon from its former river site and transport it back to the harbour workshops. Volunteers have completely refurbished the mahogany gun carriage and fitted replica hardwood axles, and the cannon barrel itself has undergone a complete transformation”.
Mr Doull added “The Cannon will now be located on a prominent position overlooking the harbour, where locals and visitors can pose to have their photographs taken by it, as generations of Wickers have done over the years.”
Liz Richard Jones, the HarbourFest Coordinator, said that the HarbourFest market this year will be larger than the previous 2009 HarbourFest and the Children’s Funfair on the Braehead will be twice the size. She said “There will be some really new exciting things for the children. In addition to all the usual fun things such as face-painting, lucky dips and a candy floss stall, we will have three different sized bouncy castles, two fun rides and the hugely popular Water Walkerz which allow children to walk on water whilst caged in huge plastic balloons.
Mrs Richard-Jones added “The Wick RNLI Lifeboat stalls are always a huge draw for visitors – their fish stall is always popular and the lifeboat crew have found the secret of barbecuing wonderful burgers from the local butchers. The Lifeboat and the HarbourFest stalls will offer a wide range of goods, crafts and home-baking to buy and the harbour workshops will house demonstrations of traditional skills such as barrel-making, net-making and mending, rope-splicing and creel-making. The Caithness Chamber of Commerce will be supporting the HarbourFest by staging a food fayre of Caithness & Sutherland produce and the Old Pulteney Whisky stand is bound to be popular following their recent award as the best whisky in the world!”
With well over 100 boats of all shapes and sizes attending the HarbourFest from ports all over Scotland, the Wick Harbour Master Malcolm Bremner is going to be kept busy ensuring that they all have safe berths. As he prepared the pontoons for the visiting boast to start arriving next week, he said today “Without doubt, this is going to be one of the largest gatherings of vessels in Wick Harbour for many years. And it will also be the most colourful because one of the renewable energy companies, EDP Renewables, has kindly sponsored trophies to be awarded for the Best Dressed Local and Visiting Boats. So on Sunday, Wick Bay will be filled with gaily decorated boats as the Diamond Jubilee Flotilla sails from Wick Harbour at the end of the HarbourFest celebrations. It will be a sight well worth seeing!”
The organisers will be issuing guidance to visitors about the arrangements for the town centre crowing ceremony, street processions, parking and access to the event in next week’s Caithness Courier. Meantime, full details of the extensive HarbourFest programme can be found on the HarbourFest website www.wickharbour.co.uk/harbourfest (http://www.wickharbour.co.uk/harbourfest).
THE Wick Diamond Jubilee HarbourFest’s committee have been beavering away behind the scenes and are now set to swing into action.
Organisers David & Liz Richard-Jones today unveiled details of the festival’s two-day programme. The town centre will literally be painted red, white and blue this coming weekend with the main streets being hung with bunting. Most of the shops will be joining the theme with red white and blue window displays, as part of a window-dressing competition sponsored by North of Scotland Newspapers, the publishers of John O' Groat Journal and Caithness Courier.
David Richard-Jones acknowledged to role played by businesses and organisations in the preparations.
He said “Over the past moths, I have been amazed by the way local business and groups have responded to our requests for help in so many ways. They have donated materials, equipment, lent us the use of premises for rehearsals, and helped in so many diverse ways. It will all become apparent during the two-day programme when visitors will be treated to a spectacle to be remembered for many years.”
He revealed that the Diamond Jubilee Crown has been specially designed and made by the engineering students of the recently opened ETEC Centre at Thurso’s North Highland College. The highly polished crown is now being decorated by a local jewellery maker so that it will sparkle as Queen Abigail is crowned by the Lord-Lieutenant.
The wardrobe ladies of the Wick Players have sewn beautiful costumes and outfits for the Diamond Jubilee Queen and Royal Court whilst the stage hands have worked behind the scenes to manufacture the Coronation Stage and Diamond Jubilee Float for the procession through the town to the Harbour.
Nearly one mile of royal street bunting has been hand-made for the streets of Wick by the members of the Caithness Community Payback team, and professionally sewn by a local upholsterer to withstand the rigours of the Caithness wind and weather.
Mr Richard-Jones siad “ The dresses for the senior Royal Court have been supplied by our local bridal shop, the HarbourFest posters and banners have been manufacturer locally and all the trophies and mementoes have been engraved by a local craftsman – in fact we have operated a ‘Buy Local’ wherever possible” added Mr Richard-Jones.
He went on: “It has been really heartening to see how the whole community has contributed in so many ways to making this one of the most anticipated events for many years. The fame of the Harbourfest has already spread far and wide - we are aware that ex-Caithnessians are returning home for the HarbourFest from San Francisco, Dar-es-Salam and South Africa, and those not able to come home have ordered souvenirs of the event by purchasing HarbourFest Tee Shirts to be posted to them in Australia, Canada and the USA.”
One of the more memorable moments planned for HarbourFest Saturday will be the unveiling by Miss Anne Dunnett, Lord-Lieutenant of Caithness, of the newly refurbished Wick fog cannon.
Gordon Doull, Vice Chair of Wick Harbour Authority said “We are grateful to the local businesses of the harbour who helped recover the cannon from its former river site and transport it back to the harbour workshops. Volunteers have completely refurbished the mahogany gun carriage and fitted replica hardwood axles, and the cannon barrel itself has undergone a complete transformation”.
Mr Doull added “The Cannon will now be located on a prominent position overlooking the harbour, where locals and visitors can pose to have their photographs taken by it, as generations of Wickers have done over the years.”
Liz Richard Jones, the HarbourFest Coordinator, said that the HarbourFest market this year will be larger than the previous 2009 HarbourFest and the Children’s Funfair on the Braehead will be twice the size. She said “There will be some really new exciting things for the children. In addition to all the usual fun things such as face-painting, lucky dips and a candy floss stall, we will have three different sized bouncy castles, two fun rides and the hugely popular Water Walkerz which allow children to walk on water whilst caged in huge plastic balloons.
Mrs Richard-Jones added “The Wick RNLI Lifeboat stalls are always a huge draw for visitors – their fish stall is always popular and the lifeboat crew have found the secret of barbecuing wonderful burgers from the local butchers. The Lifeboat and the HarbourFest stalls will offer a wide range of goods, crafts and home-baking to buy and the harbour workshops will house demonstrations of traditional skills such as barrel-making, net-making and mending, rope-splicing and creel-making. The Caithness Chamber of Commerce will be supporting the HarbourFest by staging a food fayre of Caithness & Sutherland produce and the Old Pulteney Whisky stand is bound to be popular following their recent award as the best whisky in the world!”
With well over 100 boats of all shapes and sizes attending the HarbourFest from ports all over Scotland, the Wick Harbour Master Malcolm Bremner is going to be kept busy ensuring that they all have safe berths. As he prepared the pontoons for the visiting boast to start arriving next week, he said today “Without doubt, this is going to be one of the largest gatherings of vessels in Wick Harbour for many years. And it will also be the most colourful because one of the renewable energy companies, EDP Renewables, has kindly sponsored trophies to be awarded for the Best Dressed Local and Visiting Boats. So on Sunday, Wick Bay will be filled with gaily decorated boats as the Diamond Jubilee Flotilla sails from Wick Harbour at the end of the HarbourFest celebrations. It will be a sight well worth seeing!”
The organisers will be issuing guidance to visitors about the arrangements for the town centre crowing ceremony, street processions, parking and access to the event in next week’s Caithness Courier. Meantime, full details of the extensive HarbourFest programme can be found on the HarbourFest website www.wickharbour.co.uk/harbourfest (http://www.wickharbour.co.uk/harbourfest).