FOUR historical talks will get the new year off to a flying start for the Forres Heritage Trust.
And the Forres Heritage Trust is hoping to introduce more events at the Tolbooth and Nelson’s Tower over the course of 2019 in a bid to ensure the attractions remain popular.
The events calendar will kick off at the end of this month with its popular Winter Talks.
Previously the Winter Talks topics have seen people being turned away at the door as the subject matter proved so popular.
Winter Talks
Murray Drummond (pictured) who sits on the Trust committee and who co-ordinates the annual talks which will take place in the court room at the Tolbooth said he was looking forward to what the Trust has to offer this year.
“For a start we have four Winter Talks planned. We usually stick to three, but we have some very enthralling subjects to cover and wanted to ensure that we had a variety of topics. It’s an exciting time for the Forres Heritage Trust. We have lots of different events planned for throughout the year including an event to mark the re-opening of the Tower in April, a music night and we are already looking at what we might do for the festive season.”
Photo exhibitions
He added: “Our ever-popular photographic exhibitions will be back too and we will once again be taking part in Moray Doors Open Day. There is rarely going to be a month when there is not something happening at the Tolbooth or the Tower.”
The first Winter Talk will take place on January 30 with a presentation by Dr Alex Sutherland on The Brahan Seer Legend.
Dr Sutherland will look at how the prophecies of The Brahan Seer, a legendary figure famous for his gift of second sight have influenced changes to Scottish Highland culture and society.
The next event will take place in February when the Trust welcomes back David Baxter from the National Maritime Museum in Portsmouth who will take a look at the legacy of Trafalgar, with Lord Strathcona being the focus a week later. At the end of March, the History of the RAF in Moray will be explored.
“Forres and the surrounding area has a rich and vibrant past and we think these diverse talks reflect that. All of the talks link to the area in some way and we are sure that the programme that we have created will be appealing to a wide audience.”
Renovations
Over the last year, the Tolbooth has been undergoing renovations and is becoming a popular venue for events.
Last year it hosted a book launch, an art exhibition, was the home for a floral group who met weekly and over the festive period it housed a crafters’ pop up shop.
George Alexander, chairman of the Trust said: “The renovation team which is made up purely of volunteers is working tirelessly to bring the building back to life and the hard work is paying off. We are seeing more and more groups taking an interest in using the Tolbooth as a venue for their events and we hope this continues throughout 2019 too.”