Did you party with the best of them at the Inverness Red Hot Highland Fling?

Inverness is about to regain its crown as the party capital of the Highlands with the return, after a three year absence, of the Red Hot Highland Fling for Hogmanay.

The relaxed, family friendly jamboree featuring great bands and great craic was much missed during the pandemic years.

This year’s offering is to be hosted by stand-up comedian Fred MacAulay, with music from Tweed, Mànran and Torridon and more than 10,000 expected to attend.

We’ve raided the P&J’s archives to look back at more than 20 years of street-partying in Inverness at Hogmanay.

Grab your woolly hat and join us.

Were you there?

Above is 1998, a scene from the first ever public Hogmanay party in Inverness.

The event held at the Bught Park was the largest of its kind in the Highlands and attracted special praise from police, who said there had been just one minor incident among the well-behaved crowd.

The eagle-eyed will spot the tin of Skol Lager being waved by one reveller!

These revellers are putting their heart and soul into a wee song and dance in town after the show.

Relaxed licensing laws for the night since 1998 have enabled the carousing to continue long into the night.

The large crowd at Inverness Hogmanay Street party, listen to the entertainment.

Here’s the 1999 crowd for the Millennium hoolie.

A spectacular fireworks display started as soon as the bells of nearby St Andrew’s Cathedral struck midnight.

Expatriates returned home from all corners of the world to join in the celebrations.

Let’s not forget the build up to the night.

Here Highland Games heavy athlete Malcolm Cleghorn does the honours launching the 2008 Hogmanay party at the castle, photographed by thrilled German and French tourists.

The games event was part of the New Year party, which also featured a fireworks display at 8pm.

The athletes competed for a trophy named after Highland preacher Norman McLeod, who led 1,000 Highlanders made homeless in the Clearances on a 40-year journey across the world.

Indie-rock band The Magic Numbers headlined the show.

And preparation is all of course.

Here Dougie Paterson of Limelight Event Services puts the final touches to the stage for the 2010 Inverness Hogmanay party in the Northern Meeting Park.

The Red Hot Highland Fling – Take 2, featured fire juggling and the chance to take part in a Chinese lantern launch, as well as enjoy music from Inverness group Blazin’ Fiddles and Skye-based Peatbog Faeries, followed by headline act the Red Hot Chilli Pipers.

It was called “Take 2” because 2009’s event was cancelled because of bad weather.

The Red Hot Highland Fling, in the city’s Northern Meeting Park Arena on New Year’s Eve, was again hosted by Scots comedian Craig Hill in 2012.

Among the musical highlights were Big Country who performed songs including Harvest Home, In A Big Country, Look Away and Fields of Fire.

Alarm singer Mike Peters was fronting the band at the time which was formed back in 1981 by ex-Skids guitarist and son of Crossgates, Stuart Adamson.

Other acts that performed on the night were Treacherous Orchestra and The Whisky River Band.

The party included an event in the afternoon for children called the Wee Hot Highland Fling.

Starting at noon it featured a number of musicians, cartoon characters, pipers, stilt-walkers and dancers performing at various locations in the city centre.