Festive late licences granted

BARS and nightclubs in Shetland have been given the green light to extend their opening times into the small hours over the festive period.

The Shetland Islands Area Licensing Board on Tuesday unanimously approved a general extension enabling pubs to remain open until 2am, while nightclubs are permitted to stay open until 3am.

The extension will apply from Saturday 17 December until Sunday 1 January inclusive.

While the board refused to sanction late openings between 2010 and 2013, this year’s extension is in line with what was agreed for the past three festive seasons.

Meanwhile, arts venue Mareel has also been granted a one-off 3am licence on Hogmanay for a night of music, food and revelry curated by the isles’ famous musical sons Fiddlers’ Bid.

There was a short debate which saw Bryan Peterson of Shetland Arts fielding questions about its new event, which takes the form of a concert and then a late night dance in the venue’s main auditorium. There will also be music in a 1920s-themed café bar.

Board member Alastair Cooper jokingly asked one of the curators, Chris Stout, if he was taking on the mantle of Jools Holland, who hosts an annual Hootenanny live on the BBC.

Stout said the aim was to provide a “spectacular time” for attendees at an event that should have a “broad range of appeal”.

Peterson said that by opening until 3am it would allow for a “natural tapering off” to the evening at Mareel.

He “very much hopes” that it will become an annual Hogmanay event. Proceedings could also be streamed live online and there is even potential for it to become an event of “national significance”.

Board member Amanda Westlake said it was exciting to hear about a night that would “inject a bit of culture” into a night when there was often little on offer for punters in Lerwick.