St Magnus Cathedral Kirkyard

St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall, Orkney is always an incredible place to visit.

I would highly recommend the tour of the upstairs galleries for those who are mobile : St Magnus Cathedral:Reaching the Heights

But pause for a moment before you enter and take a daunder around the outside and through the kirkyard.

Even on a really busy day when the centre of the toon is hotching with cruise ship visitors and Orcadians out shopping it remains a place of peace and tranquility.

It is not a mournful place for there is an abundance of plants, trees and graves marking the lives of Orkney’s people. It is social history writ on stone.

And of course from outside the cathedral you can observe how the building changed over time.

Perhaps something folk need to remember with the current proposals to make the building accessible to all – St Magnus Cathedral has always adapted and evolved: Enabling Everyone To Enter St Magnus Cathedral By The West Door

Take a good look at the walls. Not just the beautiful colour and texture of the stone but how it was all ‘slotted’ together.

Across the road is what was one of the finest renaissance buildings in Scotland – the Earl’s Palace still impressive in its ruined grandeur.

And the adjoining ancient Bishop’s Palace.

Those amazing buildings are cared for by Historic Environment Scotland. They are not open all the year round and there is an entrance fee.

St Magnus Cathedral, owned by the people of Orkney, is free -to enter or to stroll through its grounds. Why not take a daunder today?

Reporter: Fiona Grahame