Magic lantern presentation lights up Faclan
ONE of the highlights of this year's 'Faclan' (the Hebridean Book Festival) is a series of shows by Mark Butterworth using an original Victorian magic lantern projector.
He will present a number of historic hand-coloured slides of the Western Isles prepared in the 1880s by the George Washington Wilson company of Aberdeen.
Mark, who is editor of the book 'Destination St Kilda' published by the Islands Book Trust earlier this year, will be describing the cutting-edge magic lantern technology which was fashionable in late Victorian Scotland, as well as presenting a selection of wonderful slides of everyday island life, along with the original lecture notes at venues throughout the Western Isles.
You can view them at:
Wednesday 1st September, Castlebay Hall, Barra, 8pm
Thursday 2nd September, Lionacleit School, Benbecula, 8pm
Friday 3rd September, Harris Hotel, Tarbert, Harris, 8pm
Saturday 4th September, An Lanntair, Stornoway, Lewis, 6pm
The photographs were taken by George Washington Wilson and his colleague Norman Macleod when they travelled through the Hebrides to St Kilda in 1886.
As well as introducing some of the earliest photographs taken in the islands, which are of absorbing interest for their recording of contemporary life, the lecture notes are also of immense value because of the light they shed on how the Hebrides and their inhabitants were viewed amongst commentators from the outside world at this critical juncture in history.
For more on this feature see this week's Stornoway Gazette out on Thursday, August 26.
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Weather for Stornoway
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 11 C to 19 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 20 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: North east
