Sign up for the nine-day Big Burns Supper 2015

From Big Burns Supper

Whatever the art form, whatever the style – if you’d like to entertain at Europe’s largest winter fringe festival, then Big Burns Supper is for you. The 2015 festival will be bigger than ever, lasting a whole nine days from 23rd to 31st January, attracting tens of thousands of people from Scotland and across Europe. It’s a great chance for musicians, bands, comedians, theatre makers, club acts and many others to be part of a huge celebration of all that’s best about contemporary and traditional Scottish culture.

Now in its fourth year, Big Burns Supper in Dumfries is an amazing mix of art forms and entertainments of every scale. The line-up ranges from absolute beginners and emerging talent to established performers and famous names – like Fred MacAulay and Big Country in 2014.

Cairn Quartet perform at BBS 2014

Graham Main, festival founder and director, said: “We are looking for acts of every size, shape and art form to come to Dumfries and be a part of Big Burns Supper 2015. Whether you aim to fill a hall or hold an intimate jamming session in a pub, there are great venues and audiences keen to enjoy entertainment of every kind. While the festival is wrapped round the Bard’s birthday, performances don’t need to have any connection with Robert Burns, they just have to be in the spirit of an event which is all about coming together with friends, family and visitors.”

Big Burns Supper is amazingly diverse with everything from children’s entertainment featuring the delightful Hamish the Haggis, through to pop and rock bands, dance, theatre and Le Haggis, Scotland’s sexiest cabaret.

For 2015 the organisers are hoping to see a really strong representation of traditional and classical music. Graham said: “The feedback we get shows there’s a tremendous appetite for traditional and classical music at the festival and this is something we really want to build on.” This year saw groups such as Caileag, the Gallovidians and the Cairn String Quartet get a tremendous reception.

Performers wishing to register for Big Burns Supper 2015 can do so online at here  It’s free to register.
Headline acts will be announced later this year but a centrepiece of Big Burns Supper 2015 will be a huge and fabulously lit street carnival on January 25th to mark the UNESCO Year of Light. There will also be a welcome return for the Spiegeltent – a fabulously atmospheric temporary venue lined with mirrors.

The festival is made possible by support from many organisations including Creative Scotland, Homecoming Scotland, Winter Festivals Burns Night, 8020 and Dumfries and Galloway Council.