Booking
Booking enquiries – Tel: 07887 843746
Please note that, because of the limited number of places available, priority will be given to those who are coming for the whole weekend. Please book early to avoid disappointment.
The weekend (24–26 July 2026) is a unique celebration, bringing together outstanding traditional singers from Scotland, England, and Ireland.
The event is especially for those who like to hear, enjoy, and join in unaccompanied traditional singing. Essentially informal, friendly, and non-competitive, it will be just the place to encourage the young and less experienced as well as the old hands.
The weekend includes informal concerts featuring the guest singers, singarounds for everyone who wants to join in, and includes workshops, craft demonstrations, and a talk.
The weekend is organised by: Tracey Walker (Tom & Anne’s daughter), Eric Walker (Treasurer), Scott Gardiner, Ian Russell (Director), Norma Russell (Secretary), Robin Dempsey, and Morag Dempsey.
The Singing Weekend is a joint project between Cullerlie Farm Park and the Elphinstone Institute.
Guests
Alison McMorland is a stalwart of Scotland’s singing tradition. Born in Renfrewshire of Ayrshire, Irish stock into a highly musical family, she was described by her mentor and friend Hamish Henderson “… as one of the principal modern interpreters of an ancestral ballad singing tradition.” She learnt from traditional singers, in particular the settled traveller Lucy Stewart and the shepherd Willie Scott. Alison produced his book and also edited Elizabeth Stewart’s award winning memoir.
Bennery Quinn was born and raised in Leixlip, Co. Kildare, and surrounded by Irish traditional music and song since she was a child. Her late grandfather Miceal Ned (Mick Quinn) is well known in the traditional singing world, as is her father Mícheál Quinn. Aside from singing, Bennery also plays the flute and tin whistle. She has been a guest performer at Whitby Folk Week, Frank Harte Singing Festival, Inishowen Singing Weekend, “Revival of Life Festival”, and Góilín Singing Club.
Doc Rowe has been documenting, recording, and filming the performances and testimony of singers, musicians, and storytellers for over sixty years. His wide-ranging collecting has resulted in unequalled documentation capturing living traditions, individual artistry and community memory, much of which would otherwise be lost. His illustrated talk “The Sang’s The Thing” will reflect on the long-standing associations and friendships that are central to his collecting, with selected highlights including, in many cases, the only existing filmed performances by significant Scottish tradition-bearers.
Jill Pidd, a native of Hull, was a founder member of the famous Rugby Hotel Folk club whose residents also included Ian Manuel, Mike Waterson and Jim Eldon. Now living between Whitby and Robin Hood’s Bay, she is proud to have toured as one of the Watersons in the first half of the ‘90s - particularly on their USA tours. She also performed with Mike and Ann Waterson as MichaelAnnJillo, and later in a duo with Mike. For many years she has been a regular at Whitby, The National, Holmfirth, Forkhill, and Inishowen festivals.
Moira Stewart from Turriff has lived in Aberdeenshire all her life. She is a regular prizewinner at festivals throughout north-east Scotland, singing traditional songs and bothy ballads from the area. She learned a lot of these from old tapes and CDs, and is starting to explore the wealth of songs archived by The School of Scottish Studies in “The Kist o Riches". Her favourite current singers are Sheena Wellington, Christine Kydd and Margaret Bennett.
Neil Sutcliffe is a folksinger and accordionist from Stirling. His style of singing is strongly influenced by the sangsters he has met and learned from - Geordie McIntyre, Alison McMorland, Adam McNaughtan and of course his parents Jo Miller and Steve Sutcliffe. He has a particular interest in political protest songs and humorous songs.
Niamh Parsons has come to be known as one of the most distinctive voices in Irish music. Her voice has drawn comparisons to such venerated singers as Dolores Keane, June Tabor, and Sandy Denny. As well as touring and performing all over the world, Niamh teaches and mentors the students at the Ballyfermot College of Further Education as a valued member of the Ceoltoir traditional music performance course. Niamh also leads a traditional song choir practice at Ceoltoiri Chluain Tarbh in Dublin and is a committee member of the Howth Singing Circle.
Scott Gardiner has attended every Cullerlie Singing Weekend. He is best known for singing the traditional songs and bothy ballads of eastern Scotland, and has aye been a huge fan of Tam Reid, Joe Aitken, Jim Reid and Ian Middleton. Brought up on a farm near Forfar, he helps run his local Kirriemuir Festival and has called out the raffles here at Cullerlie for the past 15 years. His colour-blindness isna getting any better, but the interested parties are getting more understanding.
Will Noble is a builder, stonemason and champion dry stone waller, who also worked on the land in his younger days and in the field test department for David Brown tractors. He sings traditional songs from the Pennine area of Yorkshire, learnt from wonderful old singers like Arthur Howard and Frank Hinchliffe. He was first asked to sing at a festival in 1981 and since then has performed at folk clubs and festivals all over the UK, and at Pinewoods Camp in the USA.
Event information
- About Tom and Anne
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Cullerlie Farm Park and Heritage Centre was set up by Tom ('Tam') and Anne Reid in 1993 and is now run by Anne's daughter Tracey Walker and her husband Eric, as well as other members of the family. Tom moved to the Cullerlie Estate with his parents in 1935, and worked with his father in the traditional way of farming. He kept the traditions alive by turning the old original steading into a farm museum with one of the largest privately owned collections of farming and domestic memorabilia in Scotland. Anne, who was from nearby Peterculter, joined Tom when they married in 1975.
Tom (born 1929) was a legendary singer, having been crowned, in 1977, the Bothy Ballad King before a crowd of 10,000 at the Haughs in Turriff, a title that remained his until his death in January 2003. Anne (1939-2006) was also a fine singer and promoted the traditions of the North-East through singing and speaking workshops with schoolchildren and adults at local schools and at the museum, as well as hosting regular Saturday-night ceilidhs. It is the family's express wish that the festival should continue to run in memory of Tom and Anne.
- Programme
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Friday
7:30-11:30
- ‘The Tearoom Come-All-Ye’ – weekenders & guests
Saturday
10:00-11:30
- Workshop A – Irish Songs with Niamh Parsons and Bennery Quinn
- Workshop C – Farmhouse Cooking (TBC)
- Workshop D – Drystone Dyking/Walling with Will Noble (champion waller)
11:45-12:30
- The Cullerlie Talk (Marquee) - Doc Rowe “The Sang’s The Thing” - Doc reflects on nearly sixty years spent recording and filming some of the great Scottish tradition bearers.
12:30-2:30 Lunchtime
2:30-5:00
- Singaround A – Jill Pidd & Moira Stewart
- Singaround B – Bennery Quinn
- Singaround C – Neil Sutcliffe
5:00-7:30 Long tea break
7:30-11:00
- Grand Concert – in the Marquee. All guests – hosted by Ian Russell and Scott Gardiner
Sunday
10:00-11:15
- Workshop A – Scots Songs with Alison McMorland
- Workshop C – Old Time Crafts with Doug Garrick
- Workshop D – Horseshoe Making with Donald Nicol (farrier from Portlethen)
11:45-1:30 Lunchtime Singarounds
- Singaround A – Niamh Parsons & Scott Gardiner
- Singaround B – Will Noble
- Informal Music – in the tearoom
2:00-5:00
- Farewell Concert - in the Marquee. All guests – hosted by Ian Russell and Scott Gardiner
A = Marquee B = Bothy/Wash Hoose C = Tea Room D = Outside
- Location
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Event location
Cullerlie Farm Park
Echt
Skene
Aberdeenshire
AB32 6XLBooking enquiries – Tel: 07887 843746
Directions
Cullerlie Farm Park nestles at the foot of the Hill of Fare where the battles of Corrichie and Cullerlie Moor were fought. It is 6 miles north-east of Banchory and 12 miles west of Aberdeen (follow the A944 towards Westhill). From north or south take the A90 (Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route) and exit at A944 west. At the Westhill traffic lights, turn left on to the B9119 to Garlogie, then fork left again on the B9125 for 3 miles. The Park is on the right behind Birchmoss Depot.
- Food and accommodation
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Food and drink
- Food will be available over the weekend in the tea-room.
- You can buy an all-weekend meal ticket at a discount.
- There will be no bar – BYOB.
Accommodation options
- Camping and caravanning can be booked. There is a charge of £15.00 per pitch.
- There are several B&Bs in the area.
Bursaries are available for singers under 25 years in full-time education.
- Sponsors
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A big thank you to our sponsors (correct at time of publishing):
- Breedon Aggregates
- Coupers (Fish Processors) of Aberdeen
- The Friends of the Elphinstone Institute
- And other much appreciated donors
The Singing Weekend is a joint project between Cullerlie Farm Park and the Elphinstone Institute.
Elphinstone Institute
University of Aberdeen
MacRobert Building
King’s College
Aberdeen
AB24 5UA
Tel: 01224 272996
Email: elphinstone@abdn.ac.uk