Royal Highland Show due to bring 200th anniversary project to north

THE Royal Highland Show (RHS) is marking its 200th anniversary with an immersive storytelling installation in the north-east.

This will see the RHS's rich history animated and projected onto Haddo House.

Taking place on Thursday, March 31 from 7pm-9pm, The Royal Highland Show Illuminated will be travelling across Scotland over four weeks. Produced in association with Turcan Connell, it will project expressive imagery, woven together with never-before-seen treasures and untold stories from the show archives, onto historic buildings and other venues across Scotland.

RHS organisers, the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland (RHASS), hope the sensory events will raise awareness of the Show and highlight its positive impact on Scotland throughout the years.

The installations, which are free to attend, will feature a five-minute long visual history of the show, told through animations, images, films and archive footage. They will take place in eight locations around Scotland, from Dumfries and Galloway to Inverness, referencing how the Show would tour each of the RHASS regions annually before it settled permanently at Ingliston in 1960. The RHS is a key moment in both Scotland's events and agricultural calendar – these installations will showcase its wide-ranging impact and influence over the last two centuries while looking to the future of both the show and the society.

RHASS Chairman Bill Gray commented: “To celebrate the bicentenary of the Show, we wanted to do something special.

"The Royal Highland Show Illuminated is the perfect way to give back to regional communities and the RHASS membership across Scotland and herald the return of the show.

“After two long years without a full show, we are going all out to make the 200th anniversary Royal Highland Show the best one yet. The events will see a powerful and poignant portrayal of the show’s value and importance to Scotland’s communities.”

The project has been produced in association with Turcan Connell.

Alexander Garden, Chairman of Turcan Connell, said: “Turcan Connell are proud to be involved in this creative project celebrating the bicentenary of the Royal Highland Show.

"We have been supporters of the show for many years, and as 2022 also sees a big anniversary for our firm, being our 25th year, the opportunity to become involved in Illuminated as part of the show’s 200th anniversary seemed rather appropriate.

"We are very much looking forward to being part of this specially curated project and seeing the animations on historic buildings throughout Scotland.”

The show will also be appearing at Inverness's Eastgate Shopping Centre on Friday, April 1 from 7pm-9pm.

More information can be found at https://www.royalhighlandshow.org/rhs-illuminated/