Nairn TV star Nicholas Ralph leads Address to a Haggis at ‘fantastic’ golf club’s Burns Night
A Nairn actor delighted audiences at a local golf club as they held a special celebration to mark Burns Night.
Returning to his home town Nicholas Ralph, who stars as James Herriot in the popular Channel 5 series ‘All Creatures Great and Small’, was compere on the night at Nairn Dunbar Golf Club as he performed the Address to the Haggis, the toast to the lassies and other poems from Scotland’s Bard.
It was a very successful night at the club - of which the actor has been a member of since he was five - and one that they will be looking at repeating in coming years, according to event organiser Steven Delaney-Clarke.
“It was a phenomenal spectacle,” he said.
“That it’s the first burns supper I have ever been to and organised! But the amount of people who had been to many Burns Night celebrations in the past and said this was a great night was brilliant.
“A lot of it was due to Nicholas Ralph, the food and the musicians, it was just a good spectacle all in!”
Mr Delaney-Clarke explained how the idea of throwing a Burns Supper at the club was born on the golf course.
“Nicholas has been a member since he was five years old and his parents regularly play golf there,” he said.
“I was out playing with him and the topic of Burns Night came up - and he said that if we ever wanted to do a Burns Supper, he would be quite willing to come up and do the Address to the Haggis and the rest. Probably the wrong thing to say to me - because I took him up on the offer!
“He is such a good lad, and very generous with his time. He is very good at doing stuff for the local community.”
Mr Ralph was joined by renowned Nairn pianist Kenna Ross and fellow actor Malcolm Cummings - who sang and played the guitar for the occasion.
“It’s something totally different from what we normally put on at the golf club,” said Mr Delaney-Clarke.
“We had around 90 people - but we could have had more! Because it was the fist time we limited the attendance to that - but everything went smoothly, and everything was excellent.
“It was really popular so that’s really something we will be doing again!
Talking about the event, Mr Ralph said: “It was an incredible night.
“Everyone who attended was on great form and organisers Stevie Clarke and Holly MacBean really outdid themselves. The Nairn Dunbar lounge looked amazing and the hospitality was second to none.
“On what was the 224th anniversary of the first Burns Supper, there was no better way to celebrate the Bard himself than to get everyone together for a night of songs, poems, toasts, good food, drinks and company - culminating with all guests joining hands in a roaring rendition of Auld Lang Syne.
“There was more than just a ‘cup o kindness’ on show, the place was overflowing with it.”