Edinburgh's Hogmanay Announce Anniversary Plans
Organisers of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay today announced dates for this year’s festival, including the return of the spectacular Torchlight Procession, which is being brought back to Edinburgh in partnership with the acclaimed homelessness charity Social Bite, to launch 30th Anniversary celebrations.
Edinburgh’s Hogmanay is one of Edinburgh’s eleven major festivals, created in 1993, the festival quickly grew into a globally recognised event, attracting visitors from around the world to celebrate New Year in Edinburgh, the ‘Home of Hogmanay’
An expanded four-day programme of world-class events will run from Friday 29 December 2023 – Monday 1 January 2024, kicking-off celebrations on 29th December with the much-loved Torchlight Procession, blazing a trail through the capital’s Old Town for the first time since 2019.
Organisers of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay have partnered up with Social Bite to bring the Torchlight Procession back to the city, with an anticipated sell-out, 20,000 participants will carry a Torch to shine a light on homelessness and raise over £50,000 over the festival to fund Social Bite projects tackling the issue.
A donation of £2 from each Torch sold (£20.00 inc. fees) and £1.50 from additional Procession Tickets (£7.50 inc. fees) will be donated to Social Bite and the event will see torch carrying revellers draw attention to the issue of homelessness and the important work being done to tackle it in Edinburgh and throughout Scotland.
Torchlight Procession participants will enjoy a carnival atmosphere at the rebooted event, with a new start location at the Meadows presenting a feast of live Street Theatre, Fire Performers, Pipe Bands and Drummers to get celebrations started, before Vikings from Shetland’s South Mainland Up Helly Aa’ Jarl Squad lead the procession, creating a stunning river of fire through the capital’s historic Old Town.
Directors of UniqueAssembly who create and produce Edinburgh’s Hogmanay on behalf of City of Edinburgh Council, said:
We are thrilled to announce the return of the Torchlight Procession for this year’s 30th anniversary celebrations, the event has been greatly missed by locals and visitors to the city in recent years, and to partner with Social Bite will fundraise to help those most in need of support this winter. Our 4-day programme is packed with spectacular events and artist to be announced, with the return of some old favourites from three decades of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, guaranteed to help bring in 2024 in style.
Josh Littlejohn MBE founder of Social Bite said:
We are delighted to be partnering with Unique Assembly and Edinburgh Council to help bring the Torchlight Procession back to Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Festival. Every Christmas Social Bite open our doors to provide meals and gifts to homeless and vulnerable people and we are always blown away by the support of the Scottish public over the festive period. This partnership builds on this work at this time of year and I can’t wait to see 20,000 people carrying a torch to kick off Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebrations and at the same time to shine a light on homelessness – raising funds and awareness for the most vulnerable people in Edinburgh and beyond.
The world-famous Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Street Party & headline Concert in the Gardens (31st December) will this year welcome 50,000 revellers into Edinburgh city centre and Princes Street, to dance their way into 2024 with friends old and new from around the world, counting down to the spectacular Midnight Moment from Edinburgh Castle. Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Street Party tickets (£28.50 inc. fees) and discounted EH Postcode Resident Street Party Tickets (£23.50 inc. fees) are also available from 10am tomorrow (Friday 25 August). Full programme details will be announced in the coming weeks. 50p from every Street Party ticket purchased will be donated to Social Bite, and additional on-line donations can be made when purchasing tickets.
The full Edinburgh’s Hogmanay programme and ticket details will be released in the coming weeks, but other confirmed events taking place over the 4-day Edinburgh’s Hogmanay 2023/24 festival include the return of the Night Afore Disco Party (30th Dec) beneath Edinburgh Castle, and a packed programme of free New Year’s Day events for young and old, with the return of the First Footin’ culture trail, welcoming artists from across Scotland to perform in landmark buildings, pubs, cafes and venues throughout the city centre, and Sprogmanay family events in the Old Town.
Since the inaugural event in 1993, Edinburgh’s Hogmanay quickly grew into one of the world’s leading New Year celebrations, and over three decades has welcomed millions of visitors and locals to party in Scotland’s capital, the ‘Home of Hogmanay’. Edinburgh’s Hogmanay returned in 2022/23 and was a major factor in aiding economic recovery in the capital’s tourism and hospitality sector, generated over £48.5M for Scotland’s economy and continues to be a bucket list experience for people around the world looking to celebrate at the ‘Home of Hogmanay’.