Honestly, it is hard to describe the actual Up Helly Aa celebration. You will need to come and experience it for yourselves!
We had some free time after the morning parade, and Geoff and I had a wander through the downtown, where I bought some Shetland wool and a Fair Isle hat. Then back to the hotel for a bit to rest up before the evening. Headed back to the town centre around 5 PM, and from then everything went wild.
We hadn’t quite understood this bit of it before actually being there, but about 1,000 marchers began to come down the hill and form up along the sides of the road. Each one was part of a squad, and they are called guizers (pronounced GUY-zer). The big stars of Up Helly Aa are the Jarl’s Squad, ie the Vikings we saw in the morning, but all 47 squads of guizers had a theme of some kind. Ones I can remember included: Where’s Waldo, Elvis Presley, Sidewalk Chewing Gum, Singing In The Rain, but the list goes on and on. They dress in theme, and later perform in theme. As they formed up along the road, the excitement in the crowd was running high and then suddenly a big firework went off with a bang above us, and at that signal the first few torches were lit in front of the Community Centre. (As an aside, if you check out the photo below, you will see on the left of the Community Centre the Town Offices, which were used as the police station in the TV show Shetland.)
From this point, the torches of the 1,000 or so guizers were lit, and they began a circuitous walking route around the area, with the Viking galley boat being pulled along behind them. It took about half an hour to do the parade through and pull the galley to its final destination in the centre of an open park, and what a spectacle — the line of flaming torches snaked for about a mile, the heat from the torches was like being beside a big bonfire, the guizers were roaring, and the crowds were cheering — and then one more big firework went off above us, and the guizers threw their 1,000 torches into the galley, which went up in an unbelievable roar of flames, fanned by the usual Shetland winds, with huge drifts of sparks making a red Milky Way across the sky.
Then back to the hotel for an hour or so to recover and change out of our many layers of windproof and weatherproof clothing, and off to an all-night party, although I have to confess we left at 1 AM. The party was also terrific, all the squads were taking turns coming through the 30 or so official parties and doing their performance at each. They ranged from unbelievably talented to slightly hokey, but always a wonderful and energetic mixture of singing and dancing, truly a “live performance”.
It was certainly an experience, and if you are looking for a slightly different Scottish holiday, this might be the one! And ps, Geoff DID make it to the BBC News, one of my cousins saw him on the telly last night! What a star… 🌟
What a day! Sounds like a really fun experience!
Wow that was a great story! I think i have to share it with our friends that we have been to Scotland with. Do you mind?
Feel free, Laurie!
Well, you certainly make it sound like a ‘blast’. A parade, fireworks, live performances, a torch lighting spectacular and lots of parties. Having you make until 1AM tells me it was a great event. Worth the wait the COVID forced on you for sure.
You know me well from the bridge weekends, Jacqui — early to bed, early to rise — except in Shetland, it seems! 😂
Wow! What an event! Sounds amazing! And congrats to Geoff getting on BBC!! Did he make it to the French TV too?
Keep having fun! Merrill
We don’t know! Google did not help us… 🤷♀️
Ok – this sounds like a really unique experience!!! Love the photos to capture the story Elizabeth!
Sounds like a once in a lifetime experience. Reminds me of the various “ jump up events” in the Caribbean during Carnival!
You guys are still youngsters even if you did leave at 1!