We are delighted to announce the launch of a family ceilidh dance on the Friday night (26th August) of the Cowal weekend.

The ceilidh dance will be held in the Queens Hall, Argyll Street, Dunoon at 7.30pm. The music will be

provided by the experienced and popular Ballochmyle Ceilidh band who will be playing a variety of

traditional ceilidh music and encouraging all present to get up and whirl around the floor in the various

popular ceilidh dances. They are also renowned for playing a selection of more contemporary cover

versions like Robbie Williams and Coldplay and can be expected to play a few of these during the night too.

We also hope to have a local pipe band playing during the ceilidh bands break…….. more details on this to follow.

Tickets are on sale via the gathering website www.cowalgathering.com and are priced at £11.20 for adults (including fees) and £6.20 for children (aged 5yrs-16yrs). Children between 5yrs and 16yrs need to be accompanied by and adult, those under 5 do not need a ticket.

It is sure to be a fantastic night out for all the family so do not miss out, book your tickets today before they are all gone.

USING WESTERN FERRIES TO TRAVEL TO DUNOON.

Due to the lack of available turning points on the A770 Cloch Road near to Western Ferries I have been asked by Strathclyde Police and Western Ferries to ask all coach drivers using Western Ferries to come to Dunoon use the following route.

When coming into Greenock on the A8 proceed until the Bullring roundabout. Instead of carrying straight on through Greenock and Gourock turn left at the bullring roundabout onto the A78 Inverkip Road. Follow the A78 until the Bankfoot roundabaout and turn right onto the A770 Cloch Road. Follow this road until you reach the Western Ferries terminal on the left.

The need for this new route is required because there will be no right turn into Western Ferries from the Cloch Road in order to prevent the road being blocked by queuing traffic. There is also a lack of suitable turning points on the Cloch Road for buses that have followed the traditional route.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Strathclyde Police, Western Ferries and Cowal Gathering.

We are extremely sorry for the competitors that are not in the programme and apologise for the disappointment that this will casue these competitors.

The full listings of competitors in these events are;

Event 8

Event 9

A series of adverts, which deservedly promote Scotland’s biggest highland games as a quality day out attraction, will be transmitted to the channel’s extensive west coast region including Glasgow, Ayr and as far north as Fort William. The adverts will appear at both peak and day times across a four day period.

The 20 second adverts combine animation with atmospheric footage that has been captured previously right in the heart of the event. To help promote the global appeal the event has, the advert opens up with an animated satellite image of the world and caber being tossed from the world into space.

The television advertising comes after EventScotland granted an award of £10,000 earlier this year to the 2010 Cowal Highland Gathering, Scotland’s biggest and most spectacular highland games held in Dunoon every August.

The grant money has also supported the hiring of a big LED screen and additional promotional leaflets for the event this year. This will be the first time Cowal Gathering has used an LED screen and this year it will show the World Highland Dancing Championship Finals along with other key competitions taking place on the Saturday.

Malcolm Barclay, Event Manager for Cowal Highland Gathering said: “We look forward to creating an even bigger buzz about our world renowned institution in surrounding, accessible areas. This is a fantastic opportunity for Cowal Highland Gathering and our thanks go to EventScotland for their support.”

Cowal Highland Gathering, which hosts a string of family entertainment, takes pace from 26th to 28th August and attracts up to 23,000 visitors every year. Heavy athletes and more than 500 highland dancers and 3000 pipers travel from all over the world to compete to win championship titles. Saturday welcomes back the very best of the region’s local food & drink producers (Food from Argyll) and live music in the Ceilidh Tent, whose headline act this year is the award winning Skerryvore. There is also a Children’s Tent on the Saturday along with fairground rides, a range of local market stalls and a spectacular finale with the March Past, the massing of 3000 pipers and drummers, the march down Argyll Street and a spectacular display of fireworks in the town. This year the event welcomes former Dr Who star Sylvester McCoy as its honorary Chieftain.

For tickets and more information visit www.cowalgathering.com or telephone 01369 703 206. Listen live on Dunoon Community Radio 97.4fm. Visit www.dunooncommunityradio.org.

St Laurence O’Toole, the newly crowned 2010 World Pipe Band Champions, will make their way to Cowal Games on Saturday 28^th August.  The Grade One band from Dublin will compete in the globally acclaimed Cowal Pipe Band Championships and will again be up against Northern Ireland’s Field Marshall Montgomery Pipe Band, this year’s runner up at the Worlds and last year’s Cowal Champions.  Both bands will also compete against the Toronto Police Pipe Band from Canada, one of the top pipe bands in the world.  The band made the decision this year to compete at Cowal Games and not the Worlds in Glasgow.  An interview with the band in this month’s Piping Today Magazine revealed that the band is “heading to Cowal to win” and that it is “something different, a new experience and the right place for them to go this year.”

2009 World Heavy Athletic Champion Aaron Neighbour from Melbourne, Australia, makes his first trip to Cowal Highland Gathering to compete in the Cowal Heavy Athletic Championships this year. Aaron Neighbour, who is 6’6” and weighs 280lbs, was crowned World Champion at The Gathering event at Holyrood Park, Edinburgh last year.  Strong competition is expected between World Champion Aaron Neighbour, the 2007 World Champion Gregor Edmunds and five times Cowal Championship winner Jason Young.

The Adult World Highland Dancing Championships take place again at Cowal Highland Gathering.  2009 World Champion, David Wilton, has held his title for three years running and returns to Dunoon next week to compete and reclaim his title.  Over 500 highland dancers will compete at Cowal Highland Gathering this year, with some as young as seven years old.  In addition to the Adult World Highland Dancing Championships, Cowal Highland Gathering also hosts the World Juvenile and Junior, Argyll and Scottish Highland Dancing Championships. 

Cowal Highland Gathering, which hosts a string of family entertainment, attracts up to 23,000 visitors every year.  Heavy athletes and more than 500 highland dancers and 3000 pipers travel from all over the world to compete to win championship titles.  Saturday celebrates with the very best of the region’s local food and drink, a ceilidh tent, children’s entertainment tent, fairground rides, market stalls, the March Past, a parade through the town and a spectacular fireworks display at night.  This year the event welcomes former Dr Who star Sylvester McCoy as its honorary Chieftain.               

Cowal Highland Gathering is Scotland’s biggest highland games.  It takes place at Dunoon Stadium, Argyll from Thursday 26^th to Saturday 28^th August, 9am to 6pm each day.  For tickets and more information visit www.cowalgathering.com or telephone 01369 703 206.  Listen live online on Dunoon Community Radio 97.4fm! For more information visit www.dunooncommunityradio.org.

Dunoon Community Radio will report live from Dunoon Stadium, the event venue, across the three days. The annual event will take place Thursday 26th to Saturday 28th August. The station’s presenters and production team are planning to broadcast a string of features and interviews with several competitors who are travelling from all over Scotland and the world to compete. Online listeners will be able to follow the action as it unfolds.

The station is run completely by volunteers and has a rich mixture of programmes to suit all tastes. It is managed, operated and maintained by people from the community. Its programmes are dedicated to promoting matters of local interest and concern, local activities & events and the Gaelic language and culture.

Those all around the world are invited to listen online by visiting the station’s sponsor website www.dunoon-observer.co.uk, also the area’s local newspaper website.

Malcolm Barclay, Event Manager for Cowal Highland Gathering said: “No matter where you are this year, everyone can be a part of Cowal Highland Gathering. This is particularly a fantastic opportunity for those overseas, who have had to miss out this year or have friends and family competing, to tune in and listen to the action live from the event. Our thanks go to Dunoon Community Radio for bringing this opportunity to Cowal Highland Gathering and our friends across the world.”

Victor Thomas, Programme Controller at Dunoon Community Radio said: “”Dunoon Community Radio is delighted and proud to be involved with this year’s Cowal Highland Gathering and with the assistance of the Dunoon Observer and Celtic Music Radio will be broadcasting live over the three days. Together we hope to take this opportunity to give listeners not only locally but across the world an instant insight to what is happening at Scotland’s biggest highland games.”

Cowal Highland Gathering, which hosts a string of family entertainment, attracts up to 23,000 visitors every year. Heavy athletes and more than 500 highland dancers and 3000 pipers travel from all over the world to compete to win championship titles. Saturday welcomes back the very best of the region’s local food & drink producers (Food from Argyll) and live music in the Ceilidh Tent, whose headline act this year is the award winning Skerryvore. There is also a Children’s Tent on the Saturday along with fairground rides, a range of local market stalls and a spectacular finale with the March Past, the massing of 3000 pipers and drummers, the march down Argyll Street and a display of fireworks in the town. This year the event welcomes former Dr Who star Sylvester McCoy as its honorary Chieftain.

For more information on Dunoon Community Radio 97.4fm visit www.dunooncommunityradio.org.

The well known Dunoon born actor, who now resides in London, was delighted to accept the invitation to what is Scotland’s biggest highland games on Saturday 28th August. The event, which hosts a string of family entertainment, attracts up to 23,000 spectators and over 3500 competitors from all corners of the globe. More than 500 highland dancers and 3000 pipers from across the world compete to win championship titles, including the World Highland Dancing Championship Final and the Cowal Pipe Band Championships.

The role of the Chieftain is very much a ceremonial one where his main duties include presenting prizes to the winners of the Cowal Pipe Band Championships & the World Highland Dancing Championship. An emotional three days for both competitors and visitors comes to a spine tingling climax on the Saturday evening, normally around 6pm, when the Chieftain takes salute during the pipe band ‘march past’. The massed bands, which make up 3000 pipers & drummers, form and play the “salute to the Chieftain”.

Since his legendary role as the seventh carnation of Doctor in Dr Who between 1987 and 1989, Sylvester McCoy, 67, later revived the role in a 1993 charity special ‘Dimensions in Time’ and again in 1996, appearing in the Doctor Who television movie with Paul McGann as the eighth Doctor.

Since playing The Doctor Sylvester has appeared in many TV and Theatre roles as well as TV presenting and recording Audio Books. Presenting credits include the classic shows. Tiswas, Vision On and Jigsaw.

Sylvester McCoy said: “”I am absolutely delighted to be attending Cowal Highland Gathering at the end of August especially considering that as a child I grew up for 18 years watching the pipers marching up Argyll Street. I so look forward to revisiting the location and the happy memories. I am thrilled and honoured to have been asked.”

Malcolm Barclay, Event Manager for Cowal Highland Gathering said: “I would like to thank Mr McCoy for accepting our invitation to be our honorary Chieftain at this year’s event. It is a privilege and honour to welcome Mr McCoy into this role and both myself and the team at Cowal Highland Gathering look forward to bringing him home to Dunoon this year.”

The following judges have been selected:

Kathleen O’Donnell               Scotland

Cecilia Orr                                Scotland

Leigh-Ann Plenderleith      Scotland

Susan Robertson                   Scotland

Victor Wesley                       Scotland

Jeannette Shearer              Scotland

Marion Clow                         Scotland

Mary Munro                        Canada

Michele Young                   Canada

Sharon Farrar                     USA

Cheryl Kirby                        USA

Fiona Borcherds                Australia

The Board of Directors at Cowal would like to thank the UKA, BATD, SDTA, ScotDance Canada, FUSTA, ABHD, OBHD(SA), and SDNZ for their input to the selection process.

We would further like to confirm that the draw has now taken place for the championships to be help at Cowal this year. We would like to thank The Chairman of the SOBHD, Miss Christine Lacey, who was in attendance when the draw was made.

Cowal Gathering openly welcomes feedback on all aspects of the Highland Dancing Competition. A recent example, raised by judges and competitors a few years ago, was to investigate what could be done to split the large Junior and Senior heats into smaller sizes.

In 2007 we split the heats into 2 sections, A and B. The dancers that made up each heat were randomly selected. Unfortunately, this randomness can result in one heat being of a slightly higher standard than the other one, meaning that it may be more difficult to qualify for some dancers depending on their heat selection.

Following feedback and in an effort to ensure fairness we have changed the heat selection process as follows:
All dancers in Junior and Senior qualifying events have been sorted according their competitive championship record in the last 12 months. Heats A and B have been created based on this scoring ensuring that both heats contain an equal quality and quantity of dancers. The dancer order within the heats was then randomised.

To ensure the process is fair and not subjective this exercise has been completed based purely on the result data held at the SOBHD without individual preference.

We would like to thank the SOBHD for their input into the process.

Competitor numbers for the highland dancers will be sent out in late July along with their passes.

Draw lists and competitor passes will also be sent to all solo piping competitors at the end of July.

Thank you for entering and good luck in your chosen events.

Entries close tonight and absolutely no late entries will be accepted for any reason.

Visit www.cowalgathering.com to enter now!

Regards