{"id":28520,"date":"2026-10-19T11:53:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-19T10:53:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/?p=28520"},"modified":"2026-10-19T11:53:14","modified_gmt":"2026-10-19T10:53:14","slug":"mod-says-ceud-mile-taing-to-glasgow-as-record-breaking-festival-closes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/mod-says-ceud-mile-taing-to-glasgow-as-record-breaking-festival-closes\/","title":{"rendered":"M\u00f2d says \u2018ceud m\u00ecle taing\u2019 to Glasgow as record-breaking festival closes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"promo<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Flag is passed to Western Isles who host premier Gaelic event in 2027<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Organisers of the Royal National M\u00f2d<\/strong> have said \u2018ceud m\u00ecle taing\u2019 \u2013 a hundred thousands thanks \u2013 to Glasgow as a record-breaking edition of the Gaelic festival draws to a close.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nine unforgettable days of cultural celebration has seen estimated attendances of 11,500 across the week, with a record number of competitors and visitors enjoying around 300 competitions and events across 16 Glasgow venues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The festival looks set to surpass last year\u2019s economic impact of \u00a33.9 million, as attendances increased by 20% on last year\u2019s event in Lochaber, showing a decidedly positive outlook for the indigenous language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The multi-arts extravaganza was closed in breathtaking style as hundreds of Gaelic singers gathered by the Donald Dewar statue at the top of Buchanan Street, accompanied by Kilbarchan Pipe Band<\/strong>, before singing together in unison for the much-loved Massed Choirs <\/strong>event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The symbolic M\u00f2d flag, which is passed from one host region to another each year, was handed to the Western Isles, who will welcome the event in 2027. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was stiff competition and standing ovations at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall as gauntlets were thrown down yesterday for the last of the competitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Glasgow Gaelic Musical Association<\/strong>, known fondly as the GGs, and Portree Gaelic Choir<\/strong> each came out on top in each of the beloved Area Choir Competitions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conducted by Iseabail Mactaggart<\/strong>, Glasgow Gaelic Musical Association,<\/strong> won the Lovat and Tullibardine Shield, <\/strong>while Portree Gaelic Choir<\/strong>, conducted by Thursday\u2019s Traditional Gold Medalist Iain Cormack<\/strong>, lifted the Margrat Duncan Memorial Trophy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iseabail Mactaggart, Conductor of Glasgow Gaelic Musical Association, said: \u201cI am so incredibly proud of the choir and <\/strong>also proud of all the choirs that took part in both competitions, there have been phenomenally high standards. I think in terms of new arrangements, new songs, different ways of doing things, I think this was one of the most competitive sets of competitions I’ve ever experienced. That makes me incredibly proud for Gaelic and incredibly excited for Gaelic and for the role of Gaelic singing so I\u2019m incredibly proud to have been a part of that. We knew that it was going to be incredibly tight and it was a very, very close competition. I think it’s just incredibly exciting that Gaelic choral singing is of this incredibly high standard. One of the adjudicators talked about \u2018world class\u2019 past, and I do think today’s competition was a world-class competition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe win is really exciting for us as a choir. It kind of galvanises us and encourages us to do even more and do more exciting things and to raise the profile of Gaelic choral singing. In general, it’s just really fantastic and exciting to see contemporary new arrangements of very old Gaelic songs being created, being composed so that younger contemporary Gaelic speakers and learners are part of an exciting movement that feels very modern, and that’s fantastic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iain Cormack, Conductor of Portree Gaelic Choir said: \u201c<\/strong>This is an unbelievable feeling. I’m just so proud of every person in the choir. What an amount of work they put in to get to this stage. They’re so deserving of having something to show for it, for all their efforts, I’m so proud of them all. I\u2019ve really enjoyed the experience of conducting \u2013 it\u2019s a new experience and there were a wee bit of nerves but I tried to just keep everyone as relaxed as possible beforehand \u2013 and it seems to have worked, I suppose!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The roof was almost off the Barrowlands with a rousing night of trad music for Gael Force 10 <\/strong>on Friday, fronted by legendary broadcasters Gary Innes <\/strong>and Joy Dunlop<\/strong>. A who\u2019s who of trad and c\u00e8ilidh music talent graced the iconic East End stage across the night as hundreds of audience members threw themselves into a massive Orcadian Strip the Willow, a huge Gay Gordon\u2019s and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elsewhere, budding artists from across Scotland came together for the Highland Art Prize <\/strong>at the Briggait, with Jenny Cunningham <\/strong>from An Talla Solais in Ullapool honoured for her stunning piece, Evening Light<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s judges, multi-disciplinary artist E\u00f2ghann Mac Colla <\/strong>and gallery owner Scott Bennett<\/strong>, selected the Highland artist\u2019s work from a 70-strong shortlist to exhibit at next year\u2019s M\u00f2d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peigi MacLennan, Chief Executive Officer of An Comunn G\u00e0idhealach,<\/strong> said: \u201c<\/strong>Ceud m\u00ecle taing Glaschu, a hundred thousand thanks, Glasgow. What a Royal National M\u00f2d the city has given us. Glasgow has a deep, enduring Gaelic story and this week we\u2019ve seen how strong Gaelic is in the city today. The language has a vital role to play in modern Scotland, in our cultural landscape and national identity, and this was on full display. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt takes a huge collective effort to make a National M\u00f2d happen so we must share our gratitude to the competitors, performers, adjudicators, volunteers, partners, funders and audiences for pulling off an event of this scale and success. We can safely say that Glasgow\u2019s role as the City of the Gaels remains. Now we look ahead to continuing ensuring a bright future for Gaelic language, music and culture as we return to a region which is a stronghold of and beacon for the language.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic M\u00e0iri McAllan said: <\/strong>\u201cI was honoured to open The Royal National M\u00f2d, which demonstrates the best of Gaelic, and it has been a delight to see the range of contests and events that have been hosted in Glasgow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAn Comunn G\u00e0idhealach, the M\u00f2d volunteers, and all the contestants have once more ensured Scotland gets to enjoy the national platform which the festival provides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI would particularly like to congratulate the schoolchildren who took part, making their schools and communities proud by showing the bright future which lies ahead for Gaelic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rob Dickson, VisitScotland Director of Industry and Events, said:<\/strong> \u201cThe Royal National M\u00f2d continues to shine a spotlight on the talent, creativity, and passion at the heart of Gaelic culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis year\u2019s event has showcased an exceptional breadth of performance and achievement, bringing people together to celebrate Gaelic language, music, and literature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs well as providing a platform for Gaelic language and culture to be shared and celebrated, the M\u00f2d helps showcase the distinctive experiences that can only be found in Scotland, inspiring visitors to discover our communities, history, and cultural traditions. Congratulations to all this year\u2019s winners and participants, and to everyone involved in making this year\u2019s event such a success.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ealasaid MacDonald, Ceannard (CEO), B\u00f2rd na G\u00e0idhlig, said: <\/strong>\u201cWhat a week we have had here in Glasgow. Congratulations to An Comunn G\u00e0idhealach, the local committee, and the competitors on organising such a successful and enjoyable M\u00f2d, and a brilliant showcase and celebration of Gaelic culture. I would also like to thank the people of Glasgow for extending such a warm welcome to all those who attended. I\u2019m now looking forward to us gathering again in Stornoway next year, and I wish the planning team every success.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Glasgow Life Chair and City Convener for Culture, Sport and International Relations, Bailie Annette Christie, said: <\/strong>\u201cThe 2026 Royal National M\u00f2d has been a resounding success, and Glasgow has taken great pride in once again being able to host the world\u2019s premier celebration of Gaelic language, music and arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe prestigious cultural competitions brought together an incredible range of both experienced and emerging talent, attracting audiences from near and far to enjoy outstanding performances. The extensive fringe programme, staged at venues throughout the city, also provided a fantastic variety of events offering opportunities for everyone \u2013 whether they speak the language or not \u2013 to gather and experience a wealth of wonderful, traditional and contemporary, Gaelic creative expression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis year\u2019s festival really shone a spotlight on how important Gaelic is to our nation and to our city. As the M\u00f2d Ghlaschu 2026 highlighted, Gaelic is not only woven into our history and heritage, it plays a vital, vibrant role in our cultural identity and we are delighted to continue encouraging, supporting and developing that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DI Brown and Ann Kindness, Chair & Vice Chair of the Local Organising Committee said: <\/strong>\u201cWe are delighted with how the week has gone. Our ambition was to deliver the M\u00f2d in Glasgow that was ambitious, had scale and showed off Glasgow to the country and to the world. With some of the finest talent based in the city and with some of the best venues in the country, we wanted to ensure that we show-cased these and we believe we have achieved that ambition and more.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe 40th<\/sup> anniversary of the birth of GME in the city has been our theme from the start and we bookended the M\u00f2d with a five-star reviewed Ar C\u00e0nan \u2019<\/ins>s <\/ins>ar Ce\u00f2l and finished it with DL\u00d9 on the stage in Barrowland last night \u2013 a band that was birthed from Glasgow Gaelic School and a group that we could not be prouder off.  We pay tribute to the tenacious and hard-working Local Organising Committee who have worked tirelessly for the last 18 months to deliver an amazing M\u00f2d for the city and all those that attended.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cllr Kenny Macleod Convener of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar said:<\/strong> \u201cI would like to commend all involved in making M\u00f2d Ghlaschu such a fantastic showcase of Gaelic culture and our outstanding musical talent. I would also like to congratulate all those who won and competed in competitions over the week. Following the conclusion of the 2026 M\u00f2d the focus now turns to the Western Isles and the 2027 M\u00f2d. It is pleasing to see the Royal National M\u00f2d return to the Western Isles, I look forward to welcoming competitors and spectators to our islands for what promises to be an excellent celebration of our language and culture.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s Royal National M\u00f2d <\/strong>in Glasgow was supported by Glasgow Life<\/strong>, B\u00f2rd na G\u00e0idhlig, The Scottish Government<\/strong>, VisitScotland<\/strong>, Caledonian MacBrayne<\/strong>, BBC ALBA<\/strong>, Creative Scotland<\/strong> and Qualifications Scotland<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Royal National M\u00f2d <\/strong>will travel to the Western Isles <\/strong>next year, from 8 \u2013 16 October 2027. <\/strong>For information on M\u00f2d results from across the week visit www.ancomunn.co.uk<\/a>. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Flag is passed to Western Isles who host premier Gaelic event in 2027 Organisers of the Royal National M\u00f2d have said \u2018ceud m\u00ecle taing\u2019 \u2013 a hundred thousands thanks \u2013 to Glasgow as a record-breaking edition of the Gaelic festival draws to a close. Nine unforgettable days of cultural celebration has seen estimated attendances of 11,500 across […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":28521,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[9,37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28520","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","category-newsletter","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2026\/10\/Mod-Ghlaschu-2026-Ceilidh-le-na-Cormacks-04437.jpg","featured_image_src":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2026\/10\/Mod-Ghlaschu-2026-Ceilidh-le-na-Cormacks-04437-600x400.jpg","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2026\/10\/Mod-Ghlaschu-2026-Ceilidh-le-na-Cormacks-04437-600x600.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"simon","author_link":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/author\/simon\/"},"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcv15g-7q0","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28520","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28520"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28520\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28522,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28520\/revisions\/28522"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28521"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28520"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28520"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28520"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}