THE NORSE CONNECTION
SHETLAND - and Orkney - were ruled by the Norse for 500 years until they became part of Scotland in 1468. Shetland's Up-Helly-Aa celebrates the Norse influence with a torchlight procession through Lerwick and the burning of a replica Viking longship.
The ship, containing a brushwood funeral pyre, is set ablaze and pushed out to sea by a horde of Shetland guizers wearing horned helmets and armour, and wielding axes and spears, while others chant traditional rhymes from above the harbour wall. Everyone then heads off for a night of revelry.
The most spectacular Shetland event is Up Helly-Aa. A huge fire festival which takes place on the last Tuesday in January, regardless of the weather! The torchlight procession is made up of around 900 males in Viking costumes, marching in procession behind a grand Viking longship. At the end of the procession the ship is set ablaze when flaming torches are thrown into it. Tickets are sold in early January, see the tourist information centre for details. For a taste of the festival's magic, there is also a dedicated Up Helly-Aa exhibition in the Galley Shed, off St Sunniva Street.
