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Cluny kids turn Viking for Up Helly Aa festival





It was a case of “Vikings ahoy” at a local primary school when youngsters studied a popular annual fire festival.

However, there were no long boats heaving to at Cluny Primary School in Buckie, rather it was a chance for a class of kids to share some insights their hard work had brought.

Children in Primary 6/7M at the school were very excited to share their learning with their fellow pupils after studying the Vikings and the Up Helly Aa fire festival which takes place in Shetland.

The children performed on Monday, January 27 and were able to promote the live stream of Lerwick Up Helly Aa the following day.

To bring some authenticity to their performance, P6/7M made helmets, shields and flaming torches as well as a dragon longship. Each child gave information about their learning and sang a rousing rendition of ‘The Up Helly Aa Song’.

Their current teacher, Kim Karam, who is from Shetland, said “I am so proud of the class’ performance and how interested they were to hear about the biggest fire festival in Europe.

“Hopefully some will watch the spectacle on the internet and understand why it is so important to the islanders.”

Up Helly Aa dates back to the 1880s and has taken place on an annual basis with a few exceptions. The day-long festival packs in a wide variety of experiences, ending with the sight of the Guizer Jarl and the Jarl Squad marching through the town followed by their galley, which at the end of the march is set ablaze.


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