Muted celebrations as landmark Inverness Victorian Market reaches 150th anniversary

Celebration plans to mark the 150th anniversary of Inverness's Victorian Market had to be abandoned due to coronavirus.

When the Victorian Market originally opened, the town’s councillors and civic leaders gathered at noon to mark the momentous occasion.

At exactly the same moment 150 years later, market manager Jo Murray found herself standing in a quiet building with its doors closed.

“The shutters are down and no-one is around except for one or two shop owners behind the scenes," she reflected.

“They are trying their best to put preparations in place for an anticipated reopening following a hasty lockdown.

“They miss their customers and we know that our customers miss them.

“The national Covid-19 pandemic has put all plans on hold. This is not what we expected when we started to look at how we would celebrate this momentous day.”

Looking ahead as restrictions are eased, she said the next reopening of the market would be marked with socially distant virtual hugs and decorations of hazard tape.

“Despite this, customers will be as welcome as ever and we will look forward to celebrating with you when the time comes,” she said.

Inverness Provost Helen Carmichael shared the sense of sadness.

“This should have been a time for great celebrations in the city centre,” she said.

“However, it may be many weeks before we will see the opening of the indoor retail sector again.”

She said the Victorian Market was not just a destination for shops and restaurants but a community hub too.

“When people reminisce and share their memories, they not only remember what they bought or ate, they remember the people, the shop owners, the customers, the funny stories,” Provost Carmichael explained.

“The business owners who have traded here, in some cases for decades, are well-known members of the market community in their own right.

“Everyone in Inverness has a memory or connection with this market and that is a testament to the businesses that operate within.

“They have been through many changes over the last 150 years, not least almost losing the market forever when it was almost completely destroyed by fire in the late 19th century, but have stayed the test of time and the local population applaud them for that.

“They have weathered fair through war, recession, the rise of the national retailer and in the more recent past the birth of online shopping.

“What we face now is yet another kink in the road of our journey and I have no doubt that, as before, they will adapt and thrive for the next

150 years.”

The anniversary comes as the market is set to undergo a £1.5 million revamp including creating a larger open area in the market where live entertainment and other events could be staged.

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