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Community / Watch: Fire festival’s torchlit procession lights up Scalloway

Shetland News @shetnews

10 January 2025 20:06

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Person in Viking costume holding an axe and shield, standing in front of a large fire at night.

Guizer jarl John William Laurenson with his burning galley on Friday night. Photo: Malcolm Younger/Millgaet Media

THE SCALLOWAY Fire Festival hotted up – quite literally – on Friday evening as the torchlit procession paraded through the village.

A Viking-style ship engulfed in flames during a nighttime event, with onlookers silhouetted against the fire.

Photo: Shetland News

As usual, the procession culminated in the burning of the galley at Port Arthur ahead of a night of revelry in local halls.

Unlike recent years where the crowds were soaked by rain, it was a fine winter’s night with a clear sky and little wind.

The galley which went up in flames was named Austrsker by guizer jarl John William Laurenson, who hails from Burra.

Read more about what Laurenson had to say ahead of his big day here or check out some photos from Malcolm Younger earlier in the day, including at visits to the Scalloway school and the local care home.

More photos from Malcolm Younger below:

A group of people in Viking costumes holding torches and wearing helmets stand on a street at night, surrounded by smoke and firelight.

People walk at night holding torches, surrounding a small boat structure. The scene is illuminated with red and orange light. A smoky atmosphere adds to the dramatic effect.

Group of people in colorful floral clothing and wigs, holding large wooden mallets, pose together in front of a building at night.

A person in Viking attire holds a shield and axe, standing next to a Viking ship replica with a dragon figurehead. Torches burn in the background.

Two children in Viking costumes with helmets and fur-trimmed capes hold hands.

Participants in Viking costumes carry torches during a nighttime parade on a street lined with spectators.

Row of houses with lit torches outside, creating a line of light against the night sky.

A group of people wearing floral patterns and holding torches walk in a nighttime parade. Two women in focus have sunflowers pinned to their jackets.

A group of people in colorful costumes march at night holding flaming torches, with one person giving a thumbs-up in the foreground.

A Viking longship model is set ablaze during a nighttime outdoor event, surrounded by people in Viking costumes holding torches.

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