A WILD night of revelry with bonfires and drums has marked Edinburgh’s most spectacular local festival at Calton Hill.
Re-ignited in 1988, the Beltane Fire Festival has become a cultural institution in the city and the 30th event attracted thousands of onlookers.
Founded by members of industrial music group Test Dept, who work with a small group of enthusiasts including poet Hamish Henderson and folklorist Margaret Bennett, the festival draws upon Celtic traditions.
Beltane is one of the four quarter-day festivals that mark the changing seasons.
To celebrate the festival entering its 30th year, its 300 volunteer performers, drummers, dancers and production team were encouraged to think big.
The fire arch the procession passed through was far larger and more elaborate than ever before and for the first time audience members had a chance to process through it themselves.
This was a nod to Celtic traditions that believe fire to have cleansing properties.
Erin Macdonald, chair of Beltane Fire Society, said: “Over the past 30 years the festival has evolved from a handful of performers and a pretty small crowd into a cultural institution attracting thousands of attendees from all over the world.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here