This Saturday, the beginning of the very first Angus & Dundee Roots Festival will be marked by a spectacular gala dinner in the historic surroundings of Guthrie Castle.
There will be over 60 guests at the gala dinner, including the forty delegate
s attending the festival. The delegates, who are travelling to the festival from all over the world, will be welcomed to the gala dinner by the Provost of Angus and a traditional pipe band and will also enjoy after-dinner chat from the incredibly-popular Dr Nick Barratt from BBC TV's 'Who Do You Think You Are?'.
The Angus & Dundee Roots Festival aims to help delegates trace their ancestors and find out more about the lives of their family's previous generations with a variety of specially-planned trips, talks and visits.
On Sunday, the delegates will attend a workshop about Angus and Dundee names, focusing on common surnames in the area.
This will be followed by a trip to Pictavia, where delegates will discover lots of information about their possible ancestors from 2,000 years ago - The Picts!
The day will be rounded off with the Roots Festival BBQ at Monikie Country Park - tasty food, great music and the chance to talk to others who are investigating their family's roots or trying to fill in the spaces on their family tree.
The busy festival programme includes a workshop on Tracing Your Ancestors, an illustrated talk on the whaling industry, a seminar on the jute industry, graveyard visits, tours of Angus Folk Museum, Glamis Castle and Arbroath Abbey and, weather-permitting, a boat trip to the Bell Rock Lighthouse.
"Ancestral history is booming and this Festival will put Angus and Dundee on the map when it comes to helping people find out about their families," said Councillor David May, convener of Angus Council's infrastructure services.
To make sure they get the very most from their visit to Angus and Dundee, the delegates will also be able to sample the very best of Scottish hospitality at a variety of evening events. As well as the gala dinner and the BBQ, there will be an evening of traditional music in Kirriemuir - complete with soup and stovies - and a film show at The Steps Theatre in Dundee, which will show fascinating footage of days gone by in Angus and Dundee.
"On Wednesday evening, the festival delegates have been invited to a Civic Reception by the Lord Provost of Dundee," said Councillor May, who explained that the Festival officially comes to an end on Friday, September 11 with a ceilidh on board HM Frigate Unicorn. "However, there will still be lots of fringe events going on which many of the delegates may want to take advantage of.
"As a result of attending the Angus & Dundee Roots Festival, we want the delegates to obtain as much information about their ancestors as possible - and we also want the delegates to return home with fabulous memories of the area where their families once lived."
For the latest information about the Angus & Dundee Roots Festival, visit www.tayroots.com. Tickets for the gala dinner, Roots BBQ and farewell ceilidh are available from Webster Theatre, Arbroath (tel. 01241 435800) and Dundee City Box Office (tel. 01382 434940). To reserve your free seat at the film night, log on to www.tayroots.com to register.
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