Scotland's Crail Festival -
 
Wednesday 22nd July – Saturday 1st August 2009

This year Crail Festival celebrates its 25th Anniversary and delivers an exciting array of events including Phil Cunningham and Aly Bain, probably Scotland's best known and loved musicians; an open air production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream; rousing pipe and drum music from The Trybe; the unique sounds of CelloHarp; a Tribute to Noel Coward by Red Wine Productions; and, to conclude the celebrations, an evening of songs from the Great American Songbook with Strictly Songtime.

The picturesque village of Crail on the east coast of Fife attracts visitors from all over the world. The festival is a celebration of local and national talent with a diverse range of events appealing to both adults and children.

Don’t miss the Grand Opening in the town's historic Marketgate featuring The Trybe who, with drums, bodhrans and virtuosic piping, will give the Festival an exciting start.  Together with a fancy dress competition for children, stalls and Tackety Boot buskers, it’s sure to be an exciting start to the celebrations.

Performing for the first time at Crail Festival are Phil Cunningham and Aly Bain, two of Scotland's foremost traditional musicians. Some other performers in this year's festival are the duo CelloHarp, a combination of harp, cello and voice, the hugely talented Illyria, who will be performing Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream in the beautiful grounds of Wormistoune House, XXXX, in a lunch-time Jazz Concert, Red Wine Productions, who will present stories and plays highlighting some famous short meetings concluding with Noel Coward's Brief Encounters, and on the final Saturday songs from the Great American Songbook with Strictly Songtime.

Book early for the writer’s workshop with Crail based author Isla Dewar, described by The Times as “observant and needle-sharp – very funny”.

Billy Anderson, a Crail Festival institution, heads up a Ceilidh and also hosts another ever popular Tea Dance.

Crail Festival Orchestra directed by Gill Craig, will perform works by Beethoven, Elgar and Mozart  - and for Chamber Music lovers, there will be a recital by The Lomond String Quartet.

The painstakingly restored fishing vessel Reaper FR 958 will visit Crail Harbour. Go on board the last surviving First Class Fifie sailing lugger and learn about its history.

Angled towards a family audience are A History of Scotland (in 60 minutes or less), a merry and entertaining gambol through the real history of Scotland; Barrie Appleby with Dennis the Menace (Barrie is the artist behind Dennis the Menace and many other famous cartoon characters); and Tackety Boot Buskers, featuring Roy McIntosh and other musicians from the East Neuk of Fife.  Other popular attractions include a Ghost Walk and a Treasure Hunt.

The Open Gardens are a perennial favourite, giving visitors a chance to wander through many beautiful gardens in the village.

On Sunday 26th July as part of the Crail Festival we are hosting a Lunchtime Jazz Session with the Mildenburg Jazz Band.

The event is particularly exciting as it represents further co-operation between the Festival and other organisations within the community following on from last year’s successful Shakespeare at Wormistoune House. The concert will be the first to be held in the new Crail Golfing Society clubhouse. Our special guest at this concert will be Crail resident Nancy Lamb who was present when the previous clubhouse was opened in 1935!

For budding photographers there is the Photography Competition and exhibition (entry forms can be downloaded from the festival website www.crailfestival.co.uk).

Children’s Festival
Always a sell-out, Crail Children’s festival is packed with exciting events including Art, Drama and Pottery Workshops; a Fossil Hunt; a Rock Pool Guddle; Golf Skills and Sandcastle Competitions; and Pirate Pandemonium in Crail Library, an hour of pirate stories, crafts and activities.

'The Crail Festival, set in the picturesque East Fife fishing village, is in its 25th year. Crail Festival is a  general arts Festival that tries to cater for all tastes, from classical to folk and jazz, from Shakespeare to Noel Coward, from the Beano comic to Fossil Hunting. During the summer Crail is alive with holidaymakers so we genuinely believe we have something for both the holidaymaker and resident alike. This year we are particularly excited as tickets are selling faster than ever with the Phil Cunningham & Aly Bain concert sold out by the end of May. We defy anyone not to find something to their liking.'
Tony Kingsbury

For more information, please see:

Festival Booking Line 0333 666 3366 or www.crailfestival.co.uk