The so-called Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918/19 infected around a third of the world’s population in four lethal waves. Many people thought there was little that could – or should – be done to prevent it. Manchester’s Medical Officer thought differently.
”On a clear day there are stunning views of the cliffs to the north. This is a beautiful stretch of coast with lots of interesting features and wildlife to be seen.”
Waves of smallpox devastated Shetland in the 18th century, killing up to one person in six. But the Shetland weaver John Williamson developed his own method of inoculation, using tiny amounts of living smallpox material whose virulence had been lessened ...
… and hear today about developments in North Ronaldsay with its dark skies, for which we’ll be joined by Scotland’s new Astronomer Royal, Prof. Catherine Heymans of Edinburgh University ...
Have you ever wondered how bees carry pollen back to a hive? Or how their wings work together to enable them to fly? We need to take a closer look to explore these and other aspects of the fascinating lives of these amazing insects! See them live, and close ...
“We follow the coastline past Yesnaby Castle, towards North Gaulton. On a clear day, it is possible to get good views of the Old Man of Hoy. This is a beautiful stretch of coast with lots of interesting features.”
Why do some people become desperately ill from the COVID-19 virus, while others are little affected? Edinburgh University researchers have studied the DNA of patients in intensive care across the UK, compared this with samples from healthy volunteers ...
What’s small, cube-shaped and hangs 60 miles above your house? CubeSats are tiny wee satellites that do amazing things. Bring the whole family along to help pals Muza and Mikey as they try to get some off the ground! Join them in session one......
Technology has enabled the mass media to homogenise our world, with older languages pushed to the margins. But there is growing recognition of the richness of culture and tradition and worldview that a language contains, and next year will see the start of the UN’s Decade of Indigenous Languages. And in some places technology is ...
Filmmaker Mark Jenkins brings together images of Rackwick with voices past and present, using a slow cinema approach to focus on the aural experience. The film was created in response to ‘The Hidden Valley of Light’, one of the ‘Tales o Hoy’ podcast episodes developed for the Hoy Heritage ...
Wild plants – including many we think of as ‘weeds’ – are not only wonderful for wildlife but have been used by humans for thousands of years in a multitude of ways. In this workshop you can explore with Anna Canning some common weeds and their medicinal properties – and learn to make ...
Remnants of a square tower and ramparts are all that survive of Cubbie Roo’s Castle on Wyre, with the name linked to a legendary giant and to a figure in 12th-century Norse Orkney, Kolbein Hruga. The search for his origins reveals a picture of the wealth and power of Norse Orkney, and insights into Sweyn Asleifsson, and clues to the ancestry of the Flett family of today.
Moray’s astronomy club SIGMA host a visit from Prof. Charles Cockell of the University of Edinburgh and welcome you to join them and hear how microbes can help us in space. “On Earth, we use them to make yogurt, drugs and to mine metals,” he says. “As we head out into the stars, microbes will come with us as our allies.” ...
How does science, and chemistry in particular, affect the world around us? Including issues such as energy, food, medicine and climate change? The quiz is aimed at families with children aged 10 and over, ...
Norse stories and landscape around the northern sea-routes form the inspiration for this concert by Nordic Viola. Irish composer Linda Buckley’s Aud draws on the settlement of Iceland, while Lillie Harris’ sextet Elsewhen seeks to capture the atmosphere of Orkney’s ancient sites. In Carry His Relics for flute and viola, Orkney composer Gemma McGregor describes the journey of the remains of St Magnus from Birsay to Kirkwall, along the present-day ...
Join us for an informal evening gathering online. You can chat with some of the speakers about the talks of the day or indeed open up discussion on any topic. You can find out more about the Festival and Orkney itself, open up new discussion, or listen to some interesting stories.
A science festival has a radical role in developing a creative climate for a region. Here is the story of how it began, and how Orkney was involved from an early stage in the concept.
