Opening up a year of Stories

Scotland’s Year of Stories 2022 will spotlight, celebrate and promote the wealth of stories inspired by, written, or created in Scotland with a year-long programme of events and activities. It’s an opportunity to explore destinations such as the Crinan Canal, learning about Scotland’s iconic people and places while creating new stories along the way. Photo: VisitScotland/Kenny Lam

OPeninG uP A yeAR fuLL Of STORieS

The stories of Scotland are embedded in its culture, and nowhere more so than in the West Highlands, where the landscape breathes magic, and you only have to be alone on a misty morning to embrace the possibility of mythical creatures wandering the glen beside you.

Storytelling is to have a dedicated celebration in 2022, through Scotland’s Year of Stories, a twelve-month event which will showcase those inspired by, created, or writt en in Scotland. From local tales and oral traditions, to treasured books and the internationally-known epics of stage and screen, visitors will have the opportunity to read, listen and discover.

Every community here has its tales to tell. Many local place-names are connected to folklore, from the Dog Stone, at Dunollie, in Oban, said to be where the giant Finn McCool tied his dog when he went hunting, to Skye’s famous turquoise Faerie Pools, supposedly named when the local Clan MacLeod chief married a fairy princess.

Monuments in out-of-the-way places recall the work of local bards -- in Dalmally, the Duncan ban MacIntyre Monument boasts spectacular views and recalls the work of a gaelic soldier poet who never learned to read. At nearby Cladich, a roadside cairn remembers Neil Munro, author of the Para Handy stories.

Th ere are sett ings with darker, truelife tales to tell too; ruins that were the homes of victims of the Highland clearances, cliff tops that overlook the scenes of shipwrecks, and the eerie site near Ballachullish Bridge, where in 1752 James Stewart was wrongfully hanged for murder.

More oft en, our stories are celebrations, and never more so than when shared at a ceilidh, in a home, or perhaps a village hall or pub. Th e tales may be slapstick, melancholy, or incorporated into song, but whether served with a whisky or a cuppa, they are as much a part of West Highland heritage as the music and dance that accompany them. Th ere are regular organised celebrations of stories and their authors here too - though many have been impacted by the pandemic this year. Th e village of Benderloch hosts the Bookends Festival (postponed in 2021, but it is worth keeping an eye on local press and social media for connected pop-up events) and the Isle of Mull’s West Over Sea Book Festival, and the Tarbert Book Festival are also set to return next year. Th eatre groups, like Glendaruel’s Walking Th eatre Company, regularly tour the region bringing local and original tales to life. If you’re looking to enjoy some local lore in writt en form, well-stocked bookshops can be found in all of the region’s small towns - and sometimes out of the way places too. Staff here have a wealth of local knowledge and reading recommendations. Th e shortlist for the Highland Book Prize (highlandbookprize. org.uk), an annual award for books with a Highland connection, is another good starting point for locally themed reading recommendations.

If your favourite genre of stories spring from the past, head to Kilmartin Glen, which is home to hundreds of ancient and prehistoric monuments. Kilmartin’s Museum is closed for refurbishment, but its staff still operate walking tours. Dunoon’s Castle House museum is another historic building bursting with artefacts that each have a story to tell.

If your appetite is for tales of bravery, batt le and heraldry, or a taste of how the other half live, there are castles to explore at every turn. Th e inhabited stately homes of Inveraray Castle, and Mount Stuart on the Isle of Bute, off er guided tours with anecdotes of privileged life past and present, while Dunstaff nage and Dunollie Castles, near Oban, and Duart Castle, on the Isle of Mull, are strategic strongholds whose coastal positions gave them a role in some of the most important stories of their age.