Does anyone remember attending a Burns Supper in Maryport in 1977?

The black and white photo on this page has so many people in it that it would be lovely to know where the supper was and who readers can recognise in the photo.

It is Burns Night on January 25 and I wonder what Scotland’s favourite poet, Robbie Burns - the Immortal Memory-would make of the fact that his birthday is still being celebrated, not just in Scotland, but around the world.

And it is true. Wherever the Scots have landed, all over the world,they take the tradition with them. We are not sure, however, how many Scots are living in Moscow or Tokyo but those are just two of the places where Burns Night is celebrated.

Less surprising is how popular it is in the southern half of New Zealand’s South island.

Dunedin, the largest city in the area, is called the Edinburgh o the South and boasts street names named after Edinburgh streets. The river Nith flows through part of the city and there is even a statue of our Robbie in the centre of town!

Mind you, it is probably less surprising in the province of Otago, which includes Dunedin, when we realise that Burns’ nephew, Thomas Burns, emigrated to Otago and was largely responsible for setting up the Protestant church there.

There are probably more descendants of Robbie Burns in New Zealand than there are in Scotland- and this relationship is worn with the same pride as that of the Americans who can trace their ancestry back to the Mayflower

Forget those far-flung places, however. It seems our area is just as good at celebrating the poet from over the border.

I love the auction staff in their Tam-o-Shanters and red hair and I suspect he would have been pleased that the Labour party continued to remember him. After all,. while Burns mixed with the great and good, he was always a socialist at heart - and if you are not convinced read A Man’s A Man For A That.

There is a photo taken outside Her Citi in Maryport. Owner Debbie Wright holds a Burns Supper every year and also decorates her shop window appropriately.

Bring out the haggis and the whisky and let’s raise a toast to Robert Burns.

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