Historical Pageant at Drum Castle

Pageant type

Notes

The pageant was organised and presented by members of the Aberdeen Landward Area Youth Panel; this organisation was formed 'for the purpose of promoting the welfare of Youth Organisations in the Landward Area.' The Aberdeen Landward area covered the 10-mile radius around the city of Aberdeen. Aberdeenshire's Education Committee had created nine such youth services in the county from the mid-1940s onwards.

Jump to Summary

Performances

Place: Drum Castle, near Drumoak (Banchory) (Banchory, Aberdeenshire, Scotland)

Year: 1951

Indoors/outdoors: Outdoors

Number of performances: 2

Notes

25 August 1951, 2.30pm and 7pm

The pageant took place 'on the lawns on the North Side of the Castle of Drum, before the old archway'. The 24th Laird of Drum, H.Q. Forbes Irvine, then owned the 13th century castle, which is situated about 10 miles from the city of Aberdeen. Irvine bequeathed the Castle to the National Trust who presently own and manage it as a historic building.

The pageant had a predecessor in Aberdeenshire, organised by the Deeside Youth Panel. The Pageant of Royal Deeside had been presented in 1949 and was said to have 'stimulated the Youth panel for the Aberdeen Landward Area of the County to promote a similar Pageant'.5

The decision to hold a second performance in the evening was taken a few months before the pageant was held. The last few scenes at the evening performance of the pageant took place under floodlighting.6

Despite having eighteen episodes, the pageant was only an hour and a half in length.7

There were two full dress rehearsals in the days immediately before the pageant took place, with a final one held on the evening before it opened (Friday 24 August).8 There was such heavy rain at this that the performers had to wear mackintoshes.9 It is not known if an audience attended any of the rehearsals.

Name of pageant master and other named staff

  • Director of Pageant [Pageant Master]: Mitchell, H.L.
  • Master of Horse: The Hon. Margaret Forbes-Semphill

Notes

The director of the pageant, Hubert Mitchell, was drama advisor to Aberdeenshire's education department.10

Few details of other named staff have been recovered; it is assumed that each youth organisation who took part had their own organisers who operated under the general direction of Hubert Mitchell.

Episode IX, which dramatised a visit by Mary Queen of Scots, included a dance; the dance mistress for this episode was Frances Chatto.11

Names of executive committee or equivalent

  • Chairman: The Most Hon. The Marquis of Aberdeen, OBE, Braehead, Bridge of Don
  • Vice-Chairman: Mr H.Q. Forbes Irvine of Drum, Drumoak
  • Secretary: Mrs E.M. Craig, Drum Castle, Drumoak
  • Master of Horse: The Hon. Margaret Forbes-Semphill, JP, Little Fintrey, Dyce
  • Finance Convener: Mr I.S. Malcolm, MA, BSc, Fernbank, Inverurie Road, Bucksburn
  • Assistant County Youth Organiser: Mr George B. MacNeil
  • Planning Convener: Mr S.B. Russell
  • Secretary of the Youth Panel: Rev. James Swanson, The Manse, Kingswells
  • Chairman of the Youth Panel: Rev. W.M.B. Wallace, The Manse, Kinellar
  • Director of the Pageant: Mr H.L. Mitchell
  • Other members:
  • Mrs Mary E. Abercromby, 30 Louisville Avenue, Aberdeen
  • Mrs H.F.B. Foster, Park House, Drumoak
  • Mrs H.Q. Forbes Irvine of Drum, Drumoak
  • Mrs D.I.F. Irvine, Blairmor, Milltimber
  • Mrs H.L. Mitchell, The Old Schoolhouse, Countesswells
  • Lt. Col. T.C. Duguid, Belhelvie Lodge, Balmedie
  • Sir Thomas Innes of Learney, KVO, Torphins
  • Mr F.D. Lawson, Red Roofs, Gordon Terrace, Dyce
  • Mr George McKee, JP, MA, Schoolhouse, Newmachar
  • Mr I. MacL. Smith, MA, The Schoolhouse, Hatton of Fintray

Notes

The Laird of Drum who hosted the pageant was Vice-Chair of the pageant committee and his wife also sat on this. Schoolteachers appear to have been well represented with three members giving addresses at schoolhouses; there are also two ministers of the church. Of the twenty members, seven are women and include the master of horse (Hon. Margaret Forbes-Semphill).

The Chairman of the Committee, the Marquis of Aberdeen, was also Lord Lieutenant of the County and chaired the County Education Committee.13

Names of script-writer(s) and other credited author(s)

  • Bruce, George

Notes

George Bruce's poem 'Dedication to Youth' was first performed at the Pageant of Royal Deeside in 1949. It was used again for the Drum Castle Pageant. 14 The text is included in the pageant programme.15

A background piece written by W.M.B. Wallace is included in the pageant programme; this carries some details of the history being enacted but very few descriptions of the actual pageant performance.16

Names of composers

n/a

Numbers of performers

700

Young men and women took part in the pageant with a few of the major roles being taken by adult organisers. Episode I was enacted by younger boys who were members of the Boys' Brigade. 30–40 horses and riders took part in the performance. The programme states that all 'equestrian parts are played by members of The North East Riding Club and the [Aberdeenshire] Pony Club'.

Financial information

Deficit: £100

Object of any funds raised

The programme states that any surplus 'would be utilised by the Aberdeen Landward Area Youth Panel for the purpose of promoting the welfare of Youth organisations'.20 However, the pageant lost money: a deficit of £100 was reported.21 The pageant was financed by voluntary subscription, but many of the youth groups involved were unable to subscribe. To meet the deficit, the guarantee fund that was raised from clubs of £113 could not be returned.22

Linked occasion

Festival of Britain

Audience information

  • Grandstand: Yes
  • Grandstand capacity: Approx. 900
  • Total audience: 19000

Notes

A local contractor provided and erected terracing at no charge as a personal contribution to the pageant.23 This was reported as able to hold 900 people.24

The local press reported that 15000 people saw the afternoon performance. Princess Margaret was in attendance.25 Only 4000 turned out for the evening performance due to bad weather.26

Prices of admission and seats: highest–lowest

7s. 6d.–1s.

Admission to the ground: 1s.
Reserved seats: 3s.; 5s.; and 7s. 6d.
Car parking: Motor cars, 2s. 6d; motor cycles, 1s; cycles, 6d.27
The vast majority of tickets sold provided entrance to the ground only. These spectators would have stood to see the performance.

The local police were involved with controlling traffic to and from the pageant, which was expected to cause a queue at points on the surrounding roads, and to enable passage of the royal car bringing Princess Margaret to the event. Buses travelling to and from Dyce and Aberdeen ran every seven and a half minutes, in addition, 21 special buses were organised to bring spectators to the Castle.28

Associated events

n/a

Pageant outline

Opening Pageantry

For this introduction, the Lord Lieutenant of the county, the Marquis of Aberdeen, acting as 'Grand Master of the Pageant', rode out of the castle courtyard and asked formal permission from the Laird of Drum to hold the pageant.30

Part I

Episode I. Early Inhabitants—’Pygmy Flint People’

The description for this scene is of 'an imaginary picture of village life in the Stone Age'. It contained a 'humorous incident'.31 For this, 'a fierce-looking animal, twenty feet long and twelve feet tall' appeared on the scene and terrorised the Flint people who ran off to obtain help from their neighbouring village. The scene ended with the Flint people beating off the terrifying 'green lizard'. Young people who were members of the Stoneywood Works Youth Club made the monster.32 Stoneywood Boys' Brigade took overall responsibility for the episode only a few weeks before the pageant, when another group pulled out of the performance.33 The prehistoric monster enclosed '16 small boys' with four encased within each leg of the creature, which had eight toes on each of its feet. Overall, the episode had a cast of 46 boys.34

Episode II. Druids at Dyce

Youth groups from Newmacher, including the local Boys' Brigade, presented this episode.35 In this, the Druids who were dressed in long blonde wigs set on fire 'a long basket coffin', which purported to contain a human sacrifice.36 No further details of the scene have been recovered.

Episode III. Romans at Normandykes

Presented by the Boys' Brigade of Culter in Aberdeenshire (also sometimes called Peterculter), this episode dramatised the Roman crossing of the River Dee about one mile from Culter, where they set up camp at a ford called Normandykes. The site of this marching camp had been excavated in 1935; the date of the site is not certain but it is thought to be either Antonine or Severan.37 One centurion was described as dressed in a 'scarlet cloak, silver armour and bright plume'.38 Unfortunately, no details of the narrative have been found.

Episode IV. St. Medan Converts the People of Fintray to Christianity

The arrival of Christianity was enacted by the Youth Club of the village of Hatton of Fintray (usually simply called Fintray). No details have been recovered but it is assumed that this scene enacted the arrival of St Medan who was said to have established a church at Fintray in the sixth century.

Episode V. The Church Gives its Blessing to the Remplar Chapel at Maryculter

The history of Christian institutions in the area was continued in this episode; and enacted by Scouts and Guides from the commuter village of Cults situated near to the city of Aberdeen. It featured the Knights Templar who founded a preceptory at a site nearby to Cults in the mid-twelfth century. Details of the drama have not been found.

Episode VI. Robert the Bruce at Drum

In this episode, a hunting scene was depicted involving Robert the Bruce and his supporter, William de Irvine of Bonshaw. The Bruce had granted the estate to the Irvine family in 1325. This was one of several episodes referred to in the local press as 'equestrian scenes'.39 Before leaving for the hunt, the Bruce was seen to 'drink a second stirrup cup at Drum under the Laird's fluttering standard of green holly leaves tied with red bands'.40 It was presented by youths from nearby Drumoak village, with equestrian parts played by 'members of the North East Riding Club and the Pony Club'.

Episode VII. Irvine before Harlaw

This scene was presented by young people from the parish of Kinellar. It showed a scene featuring Sir Alexander Irvine of Drum on his way to join the Earl of Mar at the Battle of Harlaw (1411) accompanied by his brother. They were depicted within a legend that tells of Alexander stopping at a place now called 'the Drum Stone': this is on a hilly spot where both Drum Castle and Harlaw can be seen. Alexander was said to have sat on the stone and given instructions about the disposal of his property should he be killed in battle. Although Aberdeen was successfully defended from the forces of invading Highlanders, Irvine was killed and his brother succeeded to his title.

Episode VIII. James IV at Fintray

Youth groups from Hatton of Fintray presented the episode. King James IV was shown at St Medan's Church in Fintray, having stopped there while on a journey to Tain. Tain was a place of pilgrimage in the medieval period. In this story, James brings an organ with him and entertains the people by playing music. Details of the music performed have not been found; however, it was reported in the press that a local musician was recorded playing the organ at St Machar's Cathedral in Aberdeen and this pre-recorded track was then used in the pageant.41

Episode IX. Mary Queen of Scots

Girls from Bucksburn Girls Guildry enacted this episode. It involved music and a dance performed by the Queen and her attendants. It is described in the programme as 'a scene of peaceful enjoyment, and the grace of feminine charm'.

Interval

Part II

Episode X. Siege of Drum

This episode covered the Covenanting era during which Aberdeenshire remained loyal to King Charles I. It was presented by the youth of Stoneywood, including members of Stoneywood Works Youth Club and Stoneywood Girl Guides. Few details of the performance have been recovered but the Falkirk Herald described it as 'a somewhat spiritless affair with two casualties'.42 This referred to the two men from the Royalist forces who were killed before the castle was surrendered to their commander, Major General Monro, in 1644.

Episode XI. Provost Jaffray of Kingswells

Presented by youths from Kingswells village (now a suburb in the west of Aberdeen), this episode continued the story of the Covenanters relating the story of Provost Jaffray who hailed from Kingswells and became Provost of Aberdeen.43 He played a role in the restoration of Charles II but his religious views varied across his lifetime. He became a Quaker in later life. The drama of this episode is not clear, but it appears to have been a short scene. Newspaper coverage suggests that it merely provided a 'walk-on part' for Jaffray.44

Episode XII. Montrose under Escort on his Way to Execution

Presented by Scouts from the Bucksburn area of Aberdeen, this scene depicted the Marquis of Montrose following his betrayal and capture and on his way to be hanged at the Tolbooth in Edinburgh.45 In the drama, he was depicted on his way to the gallows in a dishevelled state and 'preceded by a soldier mockingly heralding the great marquis'. A press report stated that it was 'well cast and carried out'.46 Montrose was a particularly unpopular figure in Aberdeen where the people had 'suffered greatly at his hand'.

Episode XIII. The Duke of Cumberland and Sir John Cope at Cope's Butts

This episode was another of the equestrian scenes and was presented by local riding organisations. It featured two of the anti-Jacobite generals in 1745: the notorious Duke of Cumberland and Sir John Cope (famous for his defeat by the Jacobites at Prestonpans in 1745). It is assumed that the episode also involved archery as well as some form of equestrian display, but few details have been found.

Episode XIV. Resurrectionists

It was anticipated that the full glory of this episode would be seen during the second performance of the pageant, which took place at dusk under floodlighting.47 The location of this grave-robbing scene is not included in information provided in the programme, but the drama involved 'villagers' disturbing a party of resurrectionists at work; a 'gruesome but amusing incident' followed. However, a description of this has not been found. Personnel of the ATC and ACF of the RAF station at Dyce enacted the episode.

Episode XV. The Port Elphinstone Gig

Unspecified youth groups from Bankhead and Craibstone (two areas on the edge of Aberdeen) organised and acted in this episode. It recalled the Aberdeenshire Canal which ran from Aberdeen to Inverurie and depicted an express barge on its way to Port Elphinstone sometime in the early nineteenth century. No further details have been recovered.

Episode XVI. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

For this episode, presented by local riding organisations, King George VI loaned a carriage, which was once owned by Queen Victoria, for use in the pageant. The scene depicted the royal couple on a hill-walking trip accompanied by the servant, John Brown. The President of Aberdeenshire Pony Club took the role of Queen Victoria and other members of the club played Prince Albert and John Brown.48

Episode XVII. The Age of Industry

The Community Club at a local textile factory—Grandholm Mills—organised this episode. No details of the drama have been identified. The pageant programme stressed that the area was still predominately rural stating that as 'Pageantry at Drum Castle unfolds its story of the past, the sound of the reaper will come gently over the breeze'. Yet the programme also mentioned the many paper mills in the district as well as the meat-processing, textile and quarrying industries that operated there. It is assumed some sort of enactment of these activities took place.

Episode XVIII. Epilogue and Dedication

For the finale, the entire cast reassembled. A poem, 'Dedication to Youth', was recited.

God Save the King

The national anthem was sung.

Key historical figures mentioned

  • Robert I [Robert Bruce] (1274–1329) king of Scots
  • James IV (1473–1513) king of Scots
  • Monro, Robert (d. 1675?) army officer
  • Jaffray, Alexander (1614–1673) politician and Quaker leader
  • Graham, James, first marquess of Montrose (1612–1650) royalist army officer
  • William Augustus, Prince, duke of Cumberland (1721–1765) army officer
  • Cope, Sir John [Jonathan] (1690–1760) army officer
  • Victoria (1819–1901) queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and empress of India

  • Brown, John (1826–1883) servant to Queen Victoria

Musical production

Stoneywoods Works Band and Culter Boys' Brigade Band played live at the performances.
The fifteenth-century music (Episode VIII) was played on an organ and recorded specially for the pageant at St Machar Cathedral, Aberdeen. The organist was James B. Cowie. During the pageant, the actor playing the character of James IV sat down to play at an organ and the recorded music was timed to coincide with this part of the performance.
A pre-recorded 'pavan' played on 'lutes and viols' was used to accompany dancing in the Mary Queen of Scots episode (Episode IX).

Newspaper coverage of pageant

Aberdeen Evening Express
Dundee Courier
Falkirk Herald

Book of words

n/a

A book of words was not produced.

Other primary published materials

  • Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6. Aberdeen, 1951.

The programme gives very little description of individual episodes; it consists of a list of the episodes and of the names of the pageant committee, a foreword written by the Marquis of Aberdeen, and a piece on the general historical background of Drum Castle and some of the events depicted in the pageant. This historical essay was written by W.M.B. Wallace.

References in secondary literature

n/a

Archival holdings connected to pageant

  • Aberdeen Central Library, Local Studies section: Two copies of the souvenir programme. 394.5 H62

Sources used in preparation of pageant

n/a

Summary

Drum Castle was described as being 'the Glydebourne of the North' when a pageant was staged there in August 1951.52 With only two performances—a matinee and a repeat showing in the evening—the pageant aimed nonetheless to put one of northern Scotland's Festival of Britain events on the national map. Visitors could travel to the impressive location, have a meal in one of the marquees erected to provide full catering facilities, and afterwards take a seat in the specially erected stand to enjoy no fewer than eighteen episodes from a colourful history, most of which was accompanied by either live or recorded music.53

Princess Margaret, along with some of her friends, motored there from Balmoral Castle to attend the afternoon performance, lending even more prestige to the event.54 She would not be there for what aimed to be the pinnacle of the day when floodlighting was used to illuminate the second half of the evening performance. Nevertheless, the fact that she attended at all, interrupting the traditional royal holiday during this month, was a very significant advantage to the pageant. Margaret had, only a couple of weeks previously, visited another Festival of Britain pageant in Carlisle. This had been a large-scale event, but Drum Castle did not intend to be outclassed in the pageant stakes, despite its northerly and remote location. The hereditary owner of the Castle, the 24th Laird of Drum, H.Q. Forbes Irvine, had even allowed bulldozers into the substantial grounds in order to carve out an auditorium, which would have the castle's famous tower as its backdrop. Despite being an initiative of local youth groups, it aimed to have cachet and to attract very large audiences from both the locality and further afield. It did have some local competition, in that, only the week previously, another Nor'-east pageant —the Arbroath Abbey Pageant—had been held, and for Festival year Arbroath had also included a floodlit performance. Significantly though, a royal visitor had never graced Arbroath's annual pageants. So Drum seems to have stolen a march indeed, in a year that was probably overcrowded with pageants. The royal connections that Deeside had traditionally celebrated from the time of Queen Victoria doubtless helped this event to market itself as a premier attraction.

Although the pageant consciously proclaimed itself as a Festival of Britain event, it was also intended to be one of a series. Two years previously, another of the Aberdeenshire Youth Panels had held a pageant at Aboyne Castle.55 The Drum pageant was meant to be second in what it was hoped would be a long-running succession of such historical re-enactments by the youth of the county. This would turn out to be a vain hope for a variety of reasons. However, in 1951, there seemed to be nothing to hold back this ambition. It was certainly ambitious to have eighteen episodes: although many of these must have been quite short as the pageant only ran for ninety minutes.56 The episodes were arranged in two parts with an interval between each part. Each of the episodes was organised by a different youth group, although some of the larger groups, such as Stoneywood Youth, took charge of more than one scene. Altogether, at least twenty separate organisations were involved: ranging from workplace youth clubs to local riding organisations, and including personnel from the cadet corps based at RAF Dyce.

The drama of this pageant was very much centred on local history; however, a few nationally known figures did make an appearance. It must have included amplification because recorded music—some of which was specially produced for the pageant—was a part of the performance. However, it seems unlikely that the episodes included a large amount of dialogue. The pageant took place in a large open space which would have prevented spoken words from being clearly audible to all the audience; therefore in some ways it was a very old-fashioned affair which depended on the splendour of the location, the spectacle produced by the performers, and, in the case of some episodes, equestrian displays. It was traditional also in that it presented a chronological history beginning with ancient times. While Druids, Romans and Christian saints all put in a predictable appearance within Part I of the pageant, in this performance the show opened with an episode set in even more ancient times! After an opening preamble, the first scene included the appearance of a prehistoric creature and some 'Flint People' meant to represent very early inhabitants of Aberdeenshire. Of all the episodes, this one most caught the imagination of journalists and it was mentioned in a plethora of articles. Undoubtedly, it was meant to be viewed in a humorous light and was positively received in reviews. The effort put in by the members of the Boys' Brigade to make this scene entertaining was especially commended by the pageant's director. He commented that even in the adverse weather conditions of the evening performance, 'the little cavemen', who had been told to change out of their costumes after their scene, still turned up 'at the finale with only their loin cloths and fresh makeup'. This kind of spirit, he further remarked, was what had 'made the pageant'.57

The director likely was not overstating the enthusiasm that went into the pageant; this was an event where huge efforts had been made in every department. Even the lighting engineer, who came from Glasgow, interrupted his annual holiday to supervise the evening performance.58 It was also reported that immense ingenuity had gone into the costumes, all of which were made by the performers. The efforts of the young women in the Mary Queen of Scots' episode were most noted in this respect and even attracted the interest of Princess Margaret who asked a group of them, 'did you really make those lovely costumes yourselves?'59 They deserved this praise, since with clothing rationing still in force the elaborate Tudor costumes had all been refashioned out of discarded garments. The girls had used everything from old evening dresses to a tattered dressing gown. Old berets had been dressed-up to make suitable bonnets, and tissue paper had been utilised to make 16th-century-like padding.60 It is to be hoped that the gowns survived the rain in the evening!

Mary Queen of Scots was one of the historical figures featured who had an appeal in many Scottish and English pageants, and a slightly frivolous depiction of Mary closed Part I of the pageant; the other of this type was Queen Victoria who was the interest of Episode XVI, and, naturally, not presented as frivolous! In this scene, the controversial highland servant John Brown was also a part of the drama, so a particular Balmoral twist on the monarch’s reign was achieved. Similarly, the predictable appearance of Robert the Bruce had a local angle since he was imagined visiting the Drum estate itself in Episode VI. Although the pageant hoped to have a wide appeal and bring in visitors from outside the locality, few concessions were made to incorporate a wider past and concentration on local history was particularly strong. While Provost Jaffray, the subject of Episode XI, may have had a nationally important historical role, it is unlikely he was remembered much outside of the north east of Scotland. Even the Earl of Montrose, who was the centre of Episode XII and is a well-remembered Scottish national character, was cast in the light that he was recalled locally. Since he was reviled in the Aberdeen area, it was his execution in Edinburgh that was enacted, minus any heroic attributes later attributed to the condemned man. The anti-Covenanting position of Aberdeen in the past was very prominent in the pageant and was the subject of no fewer than three of the episodes, indicating the lingering importance of this local stance on matters of religion. Where Scottish pageants are concerned, this was a contrary position since most were sympathetic to the Covenanting struggle.

Perhaps to counter some of the grimmer aspects of Part II of the pageant's narrative, Episode XIV was another comic presentation showing some eighteenth century resurrectionists at work, but giving this potentially grisly scene a humorous interpretation. By all accounts it was well received; however, frustratingly few details of this particular drama or indeed of the narrative of most of the pageant's episodes have come to light. The penultimate episode brought the history of the countryside surrounding Aberdeen up to date with a drama celebrating ‘the industrial age’. Nonetheless, the pageant programme reminded readers that this part of Scotland, although it had been touched by industrial change, was still predominately rural.61 Indeed the whole initiative of the county youth panels and the organisation of communal events such as their historical pageants had an agenda connected to the nature of the local economy and society, since rural depopulation was a matter of concern in the north east. Initiatives for youth were seen as one way of counteracting this.62

The entire spectacle at Drum had grand ambitions and the organisers must have been delighted when the day of the pageant dawned—for it began well. ‘The sun shone on the green lawns of the ancient castle’, there was a visit by a then very popular royal, and a huge turnout arrived for the afternoon performance.63 But, by the evening, dreams of triumph were shattered: the weather had changed to heavy rain, audience numbers plummeted as a result, and the floodlit spectacle was ruined. As a result, the pageant lost money and it became necessary to call in guarantees to underwrite the loss. There were longer-term consequences as well. The proposed series of youth pageants was supposed to be continued in 1952, but this aim must have been abandoned. Questions were raised by local councillors when the youth panel responsible decided to ask the county education department to help out with their deficit since many of the youth groups who had put up money could ill afford to make up the loss. The Chairman of the panels’ umbrella committee—the Aberdeenshire Youth Council—remarked that this request was unlikely to go down well since many councillors thought that ‘youth organisations should do more for themselves than they were doing’.64 A further pageant did take place, but not until 1953. It took place as part of the celebrations for the Queen’s coronation; it was held in Aberdeen itself; and it was more of a combined project between several of the youth panels. Crucially, Aberdeen City Council contributed financially to this as part of its citywide coronation festivities. It seems clear that the adventure at Drum had put paid to the notion of a long-running series so far as the Aberdeenshire youth groups were concerned.

Footnotes

  1. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 2.
  2. ^ The Pageant of Royal Deeside, Saturday 6th August 1949 at 3 pm, Souvenir Programme (Aberdeen, 1949), 8.
  3. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 9; the programme contains a section entitled 'Background to the Pageant', written by W.M.B. Wallace, 9–22. Wallace was chair of the Aberdeen Area Youth Panel.
  4. ^ 'Drum Castle Bequeathed to the Nation', Glasgow Herald, 14 May 1964, 16.
  5. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 3.
  6. ^ 'Floodlighting at Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 20 June 1951, 14.
  7. ^ 'Princess sees Nor'-East Pageant', Dundee Courier, 27 August 1951, 3.
  8. ^ 'Monster has Arrived for Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 22 August 1951, 5.
  9. ^ 'History Cavalcade at Drum Castle', Aberdeen Evening Express, 25 August 1951, 1.
  10. ^ 'Principals in Drum's Day of Pageantry', Aberdeen Evening Express, 4 June 1951, 6.
  11. ^ 'Bon Accord Gossip', Aberdeen Evening Express, 19 July 1951, 3.
  12. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 4.
  13. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 3.
  14. ^ 'Drum Pageant will be Spectacular', Aberdeen Evening Express, 5 May 1951, 5.
  15. ^ See Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 23.
  16. ^ See 'Background to the Pageant at Drum Castle', in Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 9–22.
  17. ^ 'Principals in Drum's Day of Pageantry', Aberdeen Evening Express, 4 June 1951, 6.
  18. ^ 'Thrills Due in Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 3 July 1951, 5.
  19. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 6.
  20. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 2.
  21. ^ 'Drum Pageant Run at Loss' Aberdeen Evening Express, 23 February 1952, 8.
  22. ^ 'No Youth Pageant in 1952', Aberdeen Evening Express, 6 December 1951, 7.
  23. ^ 'Drum Pageant Will Be Spectacular', Aberdeen Evening Express, 5 May 1951, 5.
  24. ^ 'Principals in Drum's Day of Pageantry', Aberdeen Evening Express, 4 June 1951, 6.
  25. ^ 'History Cavalcade at Drum Castle', Aberdeen Evening Express, 25 August 1951, 1.
  26. ^ 'Princess Thrills Five Bucksburn Girls', Aberdeen Evening Express, 27 August 1951, 4.
  27. ^ Advertisement, Aberdeen Evening Express, 14 July 1951, 6 and on other dates.
  28. ^ 'Traffic Plans for Pageant at Drum', Aberdeen Evening Express, 23 August 1951, 5.
  29. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 6–7.
  30. ^ 'History Cavalcade at Drum Castle', Aberdeen Evening Express, 25 August 1951, 1.
  31. ^ Unless otherwise indicated, all quotations in synopses taken from Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 12.
  32. ^ 'Bon Accord Gossip: The Monster', Aberdeen Evening Express, 13 July 1951, 3. It is assumed that the Works referred to was the Stoneywood Paper Mill, which was a large manufacturer of paper in the area for many centuries.
  33. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 12 and 22.
  34. ^ 'Monster Has Arrived for Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 22 August 1951, 5.
  35. ^ The group that pulled out were from Benhelvie; see 'Monster Has Arrived for Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 22 August 1951, 5.
  36. ^ 'History Cavalcade at Drum Castle', Aberdeen Evening Express, 25 August 1951, 1.
  37. ^ See Canmore, online Scottish archaeology site, accessed 19 October 2015, http://canmore.org.uk/site/37075/normandykes.
  38. ^ 'History Cavalcade at Drum Castle', Aberdeen Evening Express, 25 August 1951, 1.
  39. ^ 'Thrills Due in Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 3 July 1951, 5.
  40. ^ 'History Cavalcade at Drum Castle', Aberdeen Evening Express, 25 August 1951, 1.
  41. ^ 'Floodlighting for Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 15 August 1951, 7
  42. ^ 'Pageant at Drum Castle', Falkirk Herald, 29 August 1951, 5.
  43. ^ Kingswell Youth Club noted in Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 7 and 22.
  44. ^ 'Pageant at Drum Castle', Falkirk Herald, 29 August 1951, 5.
  45. ^ Bucksburn Boy Scouts noted in Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 7 and 22.
  46. ^ 'Pageant at Drum Castle', Falkirk Herald, 29 August 1951, 5.
  47. ^ 'Floodlighting for Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 15 August 1951, 7.
  48. ^ 'Principals in Drum's Day of Pageantry', Aberdeen Evening Express, 4 June 1951, 6.
  49. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 7.
  50. ^ 'Floodlighting for Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 15 August 1951, 7.
  51. ^ 'Bon Accord Gossip', Aberdeen Evening Express, 19 July 1951, 3.
  52. ^ 'Floodlighting for Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 15 August 1951, 7.
  53. ^ 'Floodlighting for Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 15 August 1951, 7; for catering, see also 'Monster Has Arrived for Drum Pageant', Aberdeen Evening Express, 22 August 1951, 5.
  54. ^ 'Princess Margaret at Scottish Pageant', The Times, 27 August 1951, 6. Among the royal party was Group Captain Peter Townsend who was an official within the royal household. See ‘Princess Sees the Nor’-East Pageant’, Dundee Courier, 27 August 1951, 3. Notoriously, the Princess later became romantically involved with Townsend and their relationship was a hot topic in the press.
  55. ^ This was the Pageant of Royal Deeside held in 1949. The County had nine youth panels, each of which was an umbrella organisation for established youth groups. The committees for each of the nine areas came together as Aberdeenshire Youth Council, which was overseen by the Education Committee of the County Council.
  56. ^ There was an interval midway through and it is presumed that this running time excluded this.
  57. ^ 'Princess Thrills Five Bucksburn Girls', Aberdeen Evening Express, 27 August 1951, 4.
  58. ^ The engineer in question was called Donald MacTavish. He had been responsible for the lighting at the Arbroath Abbey Pageant the week previously and again interrupted his vacation to come to Drum. See ‘Bon Accord Gossip', Aberdeen Evening Express, 24 August 1951, 3.
  59. ^ 'Princess Thrills Five Bucksburn Girls', Aberdeen Evening Express, 27 August 1951, 4.
  60. ^ 'Bon Accord Gossip', Aberdeen Evening Express, 24 August 1951, 3.
  61. ^ Historical Pageant at Drum Castle Saturday 25th August, 1951 [Souvenir Programme] Price 1/6 (Aberdeen, 1951), 22.
  62. ^ See ‘Help Youth Plea’, Aberdeen Evening Express, 23 February 1952, 8.
  63. ^ 'History Cavalcade at Drum Castle', Aberdeen Evening Express, 25 August 1951, 1.
  64. ^ 'Drum Pageant Run at Loss', Aberdeen Evening Express, 23 February 1952, 8.

How to cite this entry

Angela Bartie, Linda Fleming, Mark Freeman, Tom Hulme, Alex Hutton, Paul Readman, ‘Historical Pageant at Drum Castle’, The Redress of the Past, http://www.historicalpageants.ac.uk/pageants/1052/