Saint Andrew’s Day is not just a Scottish occasion. St Andrew is also the patron saint of (amongst others) Barbados, Bulgaria, Colombia, Cyprus, Greece, Romania, Russia, Tenerife and the Ukraine. His feast day is also celebrated in Germany, Austria and Poland.
A national holiday in Scotland, St Andrew’s Day falls on the 30th November, and marks the start of the three main winter Scottish celebrations, the others being Hogmanay and Burns Night.
So, if you want to get into the celebratory spirit for St Andrew, here’s five ways to celebrate.
1. Heat up a haggis
Haggis is now available year-round online, so why wait for Burns Night to tuck into this spicy delicacy? There’s even vegetarian versions! Of course, you don’t need to pipe it in at your St Andrew’s Day celebrations, but if you’re looking for a bagpiper or ten, call us…
2. Have a fling
No St Andrew’s Day celebration is complete without a traditional Scottish ceilidh that ensures everyone gets a turn on the dance floor regardless of age or dance ability! Book a Scottish ceilidh band that play traditional reels and Strathspeys, and an experienced caller, for the steps and sounds of Scotland anywhere in the UK.
3. Play a round of golf
The course at St Andrews Scotland is widely held as the ‘home of golf’. The Old Course dates back to medieval times, and is now one of seven courses at the world-famous club. It’ll set you back £88 to play a round on the Old Course at this time of year, but just £37 to play the New Course. If you own a golf club, why not host your own St Andrews Day event, with 19th hole entertainment in the clubhouse provided by Matters Musical.
4. Celebrate Caribbean Style
Banish the grey skies and celebrate in Barbados style. Saint Andrews Day is also Independence Day on the island, so it’s a perfect excuse to bring some Caribbean sunshine into a wet UK November. At Matters Musical, we have no less than 17 specialist Caribbean acts on our books, including steel bands, limbo dancers, plus calypso and reggae bands.
5. Go Greek
Celebrate Saint Andrews Day the way the Greeks do, with lots of good food, great company, and traditional music. One enterprising restaurateur in Edinburgh devised a special ‘fusion’ menu that brings both the Scottish and Greek traditions together, and featured a lamb kleftiko served with rumblethumps, a traditional Scottish Borders dish of potatoes, cabbage and onion, plus Cretan Boureki, a potato and pumpkin bake!
Still stuck for ideas?
While a prayer to Saint Andrew might help (he is the patron saint of singers), a quicker way might be to call us here at Matters Musical. We’ll help you create a celebration to help promote your business, restaurant, products, or business, or just to celebrate your own Scottish/Cypriot/Greek/Bajan/etc roots.