Burns Supper is enjoyed on January 25

As you toast the Haggis and it is piped in on the evening of January 25, here are a few unusual facts to consider.

Unusual places to celebrate Burns

According to the world of the internet, the southernmost Burns Supper was held in 2013 at Port Lockroy, in Antarctica which also boasts the southernmost post office as well as being the birthplace of the British Antarctic Survey.

Conversely, the northernmost Burns Supper on record took place in January 2019, north of  the Arctic Circle, at the University of Svalbard, Norway, where students celebrated the bard.

Other unusual sites for Burns Suppers include on top of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania in 2011, in Vancouver where it combined with Lunar New Year and across much of the USA.

Although there hasn’t been a Burns Supper on the Space Station, it is reported that astronaut Nicholas Patrick carried a miniature book of the poet’s work into orbit with him in 2010, during a two-week space mission.

Two quite different fans were Abraham Lincoln and Michael Jackson and it is claimed that there is an unreleased album of Burns’ poems recorded by the King of Pop and David Gest.

There is no doubt that this Scottish Poet, whose original works are almost incomprehensible to most people outside of Scotland, made a huge impact worldwide and his special evening is well deserved and enjoyed by many.

In a hurry, have a Haggis Toastie

If you haven’t got time for the ‘Full Monty’ then you can always go for a ‘Haggis Toastie’!

Many Scots are proud of their heritage, none more so than the late Sean Connery who proudly stated “I am not an Englishman, I was never an Englishman, and I don’t ever want to be one. I am a Scotsman! I was a Scotsman and I will always be one.”