Also in the news / Noir headliner, district heating, ferry lashing and more…
JACK Reacher author Lee Child is set to be one of the big names headlining the returning Shetland Noir festival in 2026.
Child is one of the world’s leading thriller writers, with the Jack Reacher series being turned into films starring Tom Cruise and now a popular Amazon TV series.
Shetland Arts said it is often said that a novel featuring Jack Reacher is sold somewhere in the world every nine seconds.
Born in Coventry, Child now lives in New York and his books consistently go to number one on bestseller lists, shifting more than 100 million copies.
Shetland Noir is set to return between 11-14 June 2026, celebrating the best of crime writing and featuring author talks, workshops and special events.
Child will be joined by another five headliners, who will be announced in the coming months.
Noir Cards go on sale tomorrow (Friday 13 June), with card holders given priority booking when individual tickets for events go on sale in March 2026.
PEOPLE got the chance to provide their input into proposals for a possible district heating system in Brae at an event in the village on Tuesday.
A feasibility study is being carried out by consultants COWI on behalf of Shetland Islands Council, with funding coming from government agency Innovate UK.
A network in Brae is likely to be powered by a local wind turbine, with a central air-source heat pump, electric boiler and large thermal storage.
It has been suggested that the east side of Brae would be the preferred location for a district heating network.
The next steps include looking at whether this could work for the community and whether people are interested.
EMERGENCY service vehicles are not exempt from a requirement to lash large vehicles down on the ferry between Yell and Unst put in place last year, a meeting has heard.
Local fire chief Matt Mason said the service has a system to allow fire engines to be lashed down.
However he told a meeting of Shetland’s community safety and resilience board on Wednesday that there are opportunities for the fire service to “mobilise from alternative locations”.
“It may be that we don’t take the natural course of coming from Yell, for example,” Mason said. “It might be that other crews come from the mainland and circumvent that kind of route.”
The fire chief said crews will practise this in the summer.
Shetland Central councillor Catherine Hughson expressed concern over the impact the lashing requirement could have on the emergency services as there is a “loss of capacity” on the ferry as a result.
THERE be plenty of yachting activity in Lerwick next week when the Bergen-Shetland race arrives in town.
The yachts are expected to be in Lerwick between 19 and 21 June.
This year’s race has 29 yachts entered with a mix of repeat visitors and newcomers competing.
The fleet will leave Bergen on Wednesday 18 June and are expected to reach Lerwick from the Thursday afternoon if winds are favourable.
There is local interest this year with James Anderson’s Swiftwing taking part.
Around 150 crewmembers will have a couple of days in Shetland with the main event being the prizegiving in Mareel on the Friday evening.
The yachts will leave Lerwick on the return leg of the race at 5pm on Saturday 21 June.
Immediately preceding the Bergen-Shetland Race, a fleet of Dutch yachts will be in port from the North Sea Triangle – an event which last visited Lerwick in 2019.
More than 30 cruising yachts from the Netherlands will arrive from Harlingen, expected from Monday 16 June onwards, sailing at their own pace. They are expected to depart on Thursday 19 June.
THE SCOTTISH Government has begun recruitment to appoint a new chair for the board of development agency Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE).
Applications are currently being invited through the government’s public appointments website with a closing date of 7 July.
The move follows news in March that HIE’s current chair, Alistair Dodds CBE, had decided to step down this summer.
THE SCOTTISH Government has also opened up applications for the latest round of its Marine Fund Scotland.
The fund will make £14 million available in 2025/26 to help deliver Scotland’s ‘blue economy vision’.
Eligible individuals, businesses, and organisations can apply for funding for new projects that will contribute to an innovative and sustainable marine economy, support coastal communities, and help Scotland reach net zero emissions.
Become a member of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its readers to consider paying for membership to get additional perks:
- Removal of third-party ads;
- Bookmark posts to read later;
- Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
- Hide membership messages;
- Comments open for discussion.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.
Already a member? Sign in to hide this message.
