Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Piping fans can now bag tickets for Moray festival

20,000 people turned out for the championships
20,000 people turned out for the championships

Organisers of a Moray pipe band gathering were drumming up interest in the celebrations this week as tickets officially went on sale.

Piping at Forres is expected to welcome 20,000 spectators from all over the world, with an estimated 100 bands taking part in the European Pipe Band Championship event.

To mark the launch of tickets, organisers Forres Events gathered at Brodie Countryfare with local piper June McIntosh, and youngsters from the town’s junior pipe band.

Staff from Speyside Brewery added to the celebratory atmosphere by providing free samples of their craft beer.

Last summer’s showcase was the biggest single-day ticketed event held in Moray for the last 25 years, as more than 18,000 people descended on Forres.

The bumper crowd helped the local economy rake in an estimated £1million.

Chairman of Forres Events Ian Widdowson hopes the festival can break its own record this year.

He said: “This is a great event and we hope that this year is going to be better than ever.

“We plan to have more bands, more food stalls and more entertainment to make it a top family day out.

“Each year we learn from the event before, and I urge people to get their tickets early.”

Piping at Forres was first held in 2013, under a three-year deal to hold it until this summer.

The success of the first two stages convinced the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association to stage the festival in the Moray town until at least 2018.

VisitScotland regional partnerships director Scott Armstrong said: “Piping At Forres is one of the highlights of the cultural calendar in Moray and the biggest piping event in the Highlands.

“The day attracts enthusiasts from all across the globe, and provides a welcome boost to the local economy.”

As well as the championship piping competition, there will be a retail and craft village on the site and an extensive range of food, drink and entertainment.

Piping at Forres will take place on Saturday, June 27, at Grant Park.

Tickets are available at www.pipingatforres.com or from Beaver Travel’s agencies in Forres and Elgin, R&R Urquhart’s office in Forres and Nairn and Brodie Countryfare.