Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Boogie on for Burns' Night

January 25th: Burns' Night!

Okay, so we're not in Scotland. But Oxford loves an excuse to party, and what better excuse than a day to celebrate everything Scottish and poetical?!

I love haggis, poetry, music and silly dances, so it's one of my favourite times of the year, even if I do usually forget about it until a couple of days before.

For those of you not in the know, Burns' Night celebrates the Scottish poet Robert Burns, the bloke who wrote Auld Lang Syne. It involves impressive feasts, complete with Scottish whisky and haggis (just don't think about what's in it!), a poem about haggis, speeches and often music and dancing. What could be better?!

In Oxford there are plenty of private parties and special formal halls at many of the Oxford colleges. Keep an eye out on restaurants with special Burns' Night recipes. My pick of the rest:

Oxford Caledonian Pipes and Drums Burns’ Night Ceilidh

This is actually on Friday 20th January, but hey, at least for most of us it means no work the next day! Tickets are a bargainous £8.50 and everything kicks off at 7:30pm at Cowley Conservative Club.

There is, of course, a feast of haggis, neeps and tatties (haggis, parsnips and potatoes), and there will be accordian music. Not quite the same as a ceilidh, but probably a bit better for digesting!

If you want tickets, give Ian Knight a ring: 01865 434887.

No comments: