Dingwall 800 (2026)

2026 marks the 800th anniversary of Dingwall becoming a Royal Burgh and Fèis Rois is collaborating with The Highland Council, Dingwall Community Council, Dingwall Community Development Company and others to deliver a year of celebrations in 2026 to mark this landmark anniversary.

‘Telling Dingwall’s Story, 800 years and beyond – Past, Present & Future’

Dingwall 800 captures stories from the whole community through fun, creative collaboration. A full year of events celebrating our rich history, present achievements and future hopes.

We will have lots of exciting events and activities taking place to mark the occasion and will be updating this page and our social media accounts with more news soon – watch this space! Find us on Facebook and Instagram.

If you would like to sign up for our monthly newsletter to make sure you don’t miss out on any exciting updates, please email siobhan.macintyre@feisrois.org to subscribe.

Dingwall 800 logo
Bright Burgh Trail
Spring 2026
Summer 2026
Autumn 2026
Winter 2026
Press highlights
Newsletter
Get involved!

Winning designers of Dingwall 800 logo – Sula Blake, Sean MacPhee and Grace MacSween

A call-out to young creatives, aged 8–24, in the summer attracted almost 40 entries.

The judges found it difficult to choose just one design, so the final logo is an amalgamation of three: submissions from two Dingwall Primary School pupils and a UHI student. Sharing the top spot were Sula Blake (age 10) and Sean MacPhee, while Grace MacSween (age 11) was awarded second place.

Photo credit Ewen Weatherspoon

The winners were presented with their prizes, which included Fèis Rois vouchers and goodie bags, at Robertson House by representatives from Fèis Rois, Dingwall Community Council & Dingwall Community Development Company.

Bright Burgh Trail

You can still visit Bright Burgh Trail – the first of many events for Dingwall 800.

We’ve invited everyone in the community – family homes, groups, schools, and businesses (particularly our wonderful buzzing high street!) to decorate their windows in the themes of history, folklore, storytelling, music, royal connections, art, community or legends of Dingwall. Most of these window artworks will continue on display for the coming weeks.

The map available below is designed to guide you through the trail.

Download the Trail Map here!

Opening Celebrations

The opening celebrations for Dingwall 800 took place on Saturday 17 January.

There was a beautiful projection on the Town Hall created by WildBird, accompanied by a soundscape featuring music from Valtos, The Elephant Sessions, Lauren MacColl, Ross Carbarns and Mairearad Green. The 15-minute piece played on a loop between 5pm and 9.30pm.

Alongside all the window displays from homes, groups and businesses, Dingwall Primary School have been making lanterns to light up the trail, led by storyteller and artist, Lizzie MacDougall. Members of the public were also invited to make or bring existing lanterns too.

Dingwall 800 is being delivered as a collaborative project between Dingwall Community Council, Dingwall Community Development Company, Fèis Rois, The Highland Council, and a range of partner organisations incluindg Culbokie Cake Fairies for their sweet treats and hot drinks. We are particularly grateful to Dingwall Museum for supporting the opening event with archive footage and images.

Thank you to everyone who came along and took part!

In spring 2026, you can expect a number of sporting, cultural and environmental events, which will be announced in the New Year, including a pollinator parade and big seed giveaway. More details coming soon!

Come summer, we will have a series of festival weekends filled with music, dance, literature, history, heritage and more. More details coming soon!

What better way to celebrate autumn than with a community harvest feast? More details coming soon!