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Georgetown going Scottish this Saturday for Highland Games

Athletics, music, and plenty of good cheer will be on display at the Georgetown Fairgrounds
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Dozens of bagpipers and drummers wowed the crowd in the massed band event at last year's Georgetown Highland Games.

The community will be looking a bit more Celtic this week, as thousands flock to the fairgrounds for the 48th Georgetown Highland Games.

The games, as the third largest in Canada, are expected to draw more than 5,000 participants and spectators on June 10 to enjoy a day of Scottish and Irish music, food, and activity, giving local Scots a chance to reconnect with their roots. 

“Our major events are the pipe bands, drumming, highland dancing, and the heavyweight athletics,” said Susan McCarrol, vice president of the Georgetown Highland Games. “We also have Scottish sheep herding, kids events like bouncy castles, Scottish vendors, and a cheer garden.”

Cheer garden is the game’s family-friendly name for the beer garden. 

Although the word games is in the name, the athletics often take second fiddle to music, with dozens of bands participating. 

“Bands from Halifax have made the trip before. We’ve even seen a band from Florida come up,” said Michael Grey, president of the Piper and Pipe Band Society of Ontario. “Bands will travel the breadth of North America to play Georgetown.”

The bands that play local festivals are integral to the preservation of the music, which has lost interest from the general public over the years, Grey said. The Georgetown Highland Games is one of the most popular events of the year for members of the Piper and Pipe Band Society of Ontario to attend.  

During the pandemic, the games were shut down, and were able to re-open last year. Even after two years off, 35 bands made the trip to Georgetown to make sure they were heard. 

“This is the lifeblood of our music, and it’s all thanks to local organizers like those who run the Georgetown games,” Grey said. “Of course, it’s in a populated area like the Greater Toronto-Hamilton Area, but so much of the success is because it’s in such a beautiful park and it’s a well organized event. It ticks all the boxes.”

Music isn’t the only thing that spectators can enjoy - the event is called games after all. Athletics including the Scottish hammer, stone putt, farmers' walk, and of course, caber toss are all featured. 

The games will close at 5 p.m. with a rendition of Amazing Grace that McCarrol says can't be missed.

People grow up with these bands in their lives, often becoming lifelong friends and building connections over continents. It’s for reasons like these that people continue to celebrate Highland Games and make the journey into Georgetown every year. 

“It’s like ancestral memory, where the music speaks to you in an indescribable way,” Grey said. 

Adults tickets cost $20, seniors and students can get in for $10, and kids 12 or younger with a parent get in free.

Festivities will get underway at 8:30 a.m. June 10 and run throughout the day. For a full schedule, check out the games’ website.


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Chris Arnold

About the Author: Chris Arnold

Chris Arnold has worked as a journalist for half a decade, covering national news, entertainment, arts, education, and local features
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