Carrick’s Smuggling History
Friday 28th February – Saturday 31st May
McKechnie Institute
Girvan’s recently refurbished cultural hub – The McKechnie Institute – houses an exhibition produced by smuggling historian Frances Wilkins entitled Contraband Cargoes from the Isle of Man. The exhibition includes a rare chance to see Glasgow artist Alexander Goudie (1933–2004)’s iconic and striking portrait of Tam o’ Shanter and a series of atmospheric paintings of the Carrick coast by Girvan artist William Muir (1828–1910).
A trip to the McKechnie also offers the chance to see the permanent display of artefacts that highlight Girvan’s heritage including Bronze Age Cinerary Urns from the surrounding area, model ships and an exhibition on the history of Ailsa Craig and its granite.
£FREE
further info
McKechnie Opening Hours for Festival weekend
| Friday: | 1:00pm – 4:00pm |
| Saturday: | 10:30am – 4:00pm |
| Sunday: | CLOSED |
Festival Fair
Saturday 3rd May from 11:00am
Wee School Art Space – Old Invergarven School
Local arts and crafts, festival merchandise, traditional music books, instrument makers’ stalls and mini-concerts throughout Saturday afternoon in the Wee School Arts Space.
Down memory lane with Margaret Bennett
Saturday 3rd May, 13:00
The McKechnie Institute
Join Scotland’s foremost folklorist Margaret Bennett in the newly refurbished McKechnie Institute for a nostalgic trip down memory lane.
This Girvan Festival retrospective will be told through the medium of stories, songs, and field recordings made by Margaret on her many visits to the Festival over the years.
£FREE
The Ballad Bus
Sunday 4th May, 11:00
Departing from The Westcliffe Hotel
Join Margaret Bennett and Neil McDermott on our first-ever ballad safari!
Discover the places, stories and characters behind the famous ballad The Gypsy Laddie [ Roud 1 ; Child 200 ] and Robert Burns’s Now Westlin Winds [ Roud 6936 ] and visit the site of the skirmish that inspired the local favourite The Battle of Howshean Moor.
The event will include songs, stories, fiddle tunes and a coffee stop at Peggy’s Tearoom in Kirkoswald where Burns first met his “charming Fillette”, Peggy Thompson in August 1775 during his teenage sojourn on “a smuggling coast a good distance from home”.
The bus will return to the Westcliffe Hotel by 1:00pm at the latest. Join Macdara Yeates for more ballads at the Westcliffe after the trip!
| JOURNEY TIME: | 1hr |
| EVENT TIME: | 1hr 45mins – returning to the Westcliffe by 1:00pm at the latest |
£8
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The Ballad Bus is delivered in conjunction with South Ayrshire Community Transport.