John Rae by Stephen Pearce (1819 – 1904)

In 2017 the first John Rae Festival was held in Orkney. Due to its outstanding success the 2018 Festival will be held from 4th to 6th May .

John Rae Society Festival 5th – 8th May

You can read about John Rae, who grew up at the Hall of Clestrain, Orkney, here: Dr John Rae: Arctic Explorer

The 2017 festival was attended by over 400 people, Orcadians and visitors to the islands, raising over £4,000 for the John Rae society and the restoration of the Hall of Clestrain.

Key note speaker at the John Rae Festival will be author Ken McGoogan. He is a widely-travelled writer with an award-winning career as a journalist spanning two decades. A long-time literary editor at The Calgary Herald, he has also published three novels and Canada’s Undeclared War, a controversial work of non-fiction. While researching Fatal Passage, McGoogan travelled to England, Scotland and the Arctic, where he placed a plaque commemorating John Rae’s achievements on the shores of Rae Strait. His latest book is Dead Reckoning: The Untold Story of the Northwest Passage.

2018 John Rae Festival Programme

Friday 4^th May

• Ken McGoogan public lecture at the Orkney Theatre, Kirkwall, at 7.30pm. Free but donations welcome.

Saturday 5^th May

• Hall of Clestrain Includes a rolling PowerPoint presentation about the history of the building and the Society’s plans, as well as a scale model of the Hall and various survey documents which will be available to view. Refreshments and a sales table.

Sunday 6^th May

• Hall of Clestrain all-day event.
• John Walker’s 2008 documentary film Passage about John Rae’s search for Franklin at 7.30pm in Stromness Town Hall. Free event but donations welcome

For more information please contact info@johnraesociety.com

or visit www.johnraesociety.com

Handing over the keys (B Bell)