BOWFest – in the grounds of the historic Inveraray Castle on 8 -10 September – is amongst 14 forthcoming events taking place across the country which are benefitting from a share of £145,500 in the latest awards round of EventScotland’s National Funding Programme.
The event has been awarded £6,000 which has enabled it to extend to three days.
BOWFest (Best Of The West Festival) is one of Scotland’s finest boutique festivals, celebrating the very best in Scottish music, food and drink. This year’s event features a fantastic line-up of 21 different musical acts including headliners Skipinnish, Skerryvore and Eddi Reader.
Showcased at the festival too are the quality and diversity of the fantastic food and drink (particularly whisky) produced in Argyll & The Isles. Celebrity chefs demonstrating their skills in using these on the festival kitchen stage include Gary Maclean – winner of Masterchef The Professionals 2016, Graeme Cheevers of Martin Wishart Loch Lomond, Paul Leonard of Isle of Eriska Hotel, Andrew Maclugash of Samphire Restaurant and Thai chef Sujitra Scott.
BOWFest is a family-friendly event which includes children’s face painting and outdoor activities. It is just a 90-minute drive from Glasgow and there are festival buses from there as well as from Oban and Dunoon.
Festival organiser John Patrick said: “We are delighted to have received funding from EventScotland; this has enabled us to extend the festival to a three-day event and will help us ensure this year’s BOWFest is our best ever and really does justice to its full title. We hope as many people as possible will be able to come along to enjoy all of the great entertainments we have planned at our beautiful venue.”
VisitScotland Regional Partnerships Director David Adams McGilp said: “This year’s BOWFest promises to be a real highlight of our regional calendar, with some fantastic music, food and drink, so I’m delighted it was selected as a funding award recipient.
“These awards provide invaluable support for regional events create an even more attractive proposition to attract spectators – which in turn boosts the area’s reputation. The National Funding Programme plays a vital role in maintaining Scotland’s reputation as a great destination for events that celebrate our culture and heritage whilst delivering real economic benefits to their local communities.”
The National Funding Programme supports the strategic delivery of events taking place outside Edinburgh and Glasgow with the aim of driving domestic tourism, delivering economic impact for local communities, and generating media profile for Scotland.
Enabling existing events to expand what they offer visitors, extend their marketing reach and enhance the on-site experience of attendees are just some of the ways that National Funding Programme support is used to help regional events continue to flourish and grow further. This in turn strengthens Scotland’s overall events portfolio – a major contributor to our national economy.
The National Funding Programme plays a vital role in maintaining Scotland’s reputation as the ‘perfect stage’ for events. The programme is key to ensuring that the country has an exciting, vibrant portfolio of annual events promoting Scotland’s cultural heritage and delivering positive for local communities.
The full list of events which received support in the latest (Round 35) awards from EventScotland’s National Funding Programme is as below:
- British Transplant Games, North Lanarkshire: 27 – 30 July (£25,000)
- MugStock Festival, East Dunbartonshire: 28 – 31 July (£6,000)
- Aberdeen Mela – One World Day, Aberdeenshire: 30 July (£9,700)
- European Dodgeball Championships 2017, Wishaw: 8 – 20 August (£9,500)
- Scotland’s Salmon Festival, Highlands: 29 August – 2 September (£5,856)
- St Andrews Photography Festival, Fife: 1 – 30 September (£5,500)
- Electric Fields, Dumfries & Galloway: 1 – 2 September (£11,500)
- Skyline Scotland, Highlands: 1 – 3 September (£12,000)
- Bo’ness Revival, Falkirk: 2 – 3 September (£8,500)
- BOWFest, Argyll: 8 – 10 September (£6,000)
- The Highland Military Tattoo, Highlands: 8 – 10 September (£19,000)
- Loch Ness Knit Fest 2017 , Highlands: 13 – 15 October (£10,500)
- The Spree, Renfrewshire: 13 – 22 October (£10,500)
- Colours of Cluny, Moray Speyside: 8 – 19 November (£6,000)
For more information on BOWFest and to book tickets visit: http://bowfest.co.uk/
