Plans under way for Duncansby Head lighthouse centenary events
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Preparations are beginning for a series of public events to mark the centenary of Duncansby Head lighthouse next spring.
John O’Groats Development Trust, John O’Groats Book Festival, Lyth Arts Centre (LAC) and the Northern Lighthouse Board are collaborating to stage a celebratory weekend in March.
Events to coincide with the anniversary will include talks by lighthouse experts and writers, exhibitions, children’s activities and competitions, while Wick Voices, the Wick Society's online oral history project, will seek to record stories by former lighthouse keepers and their families.
It is hoped that light shows will be screened on suitable buildings – along similar lines to the outdoor projections around Wick harbour that proved successful during the 2021 Northern Lights Festival produced by LAC. Organisers reckon the white walls of the square-shaped lighthouse tower will make an ideal backdrop.
Duncansby Head lighthouse was built by David A Stevenson, a member of the famous Stevenson family of lighthouse engineers, who was a cousin of Robert Louis Stevenson. It is the most north-easterly lighthouse on the British mainland and was first lit on March 15, 1924.
Ian Leith, book festival coordinator and a board member of the development trust, said: "The Northern Lighthouse Board is supportive of the whole thing.
"We're looking for previous lightkeepers that have stories about the lighthouse so we can build a body of voice recordings. Obviously the farther back you go, the lighthouse keepers are no longer with us – but maybe there are family members still around that have a story to tell."
Anyone able to share stories of the lighthouse is asked contact Mr Leith on 07715 493696 or email ian@baselineresearch.co.uk
He added: "It's quite a distinctive lighthouse in terms of being square. There are not many other lighthouses that are square, and of course it lends itself perfectly to Lyth Arts Centre's light shows."
In World War II Duncansby Head lighthouse was machine-gunned by a German bomber. No-one was injured and no damage was caused.
The lighthouse was automated in 1997.
