Destination: Corby!

 

Capturing Diaspora history and recruiting the all-important Stitchers are going hand in hand in Corby this November! And to heighten awareness and interest, the original Battle of Prestonpans Tapestry will be on show for a week as well: it will be a star exhibit at the town’s annual St Andrew’s Day Celebrations as we promote its successor, the Scottish Diaspora Tapestry.

Corby’s Grampian Club is a members’ co-operative established by Aberdonians in the 1970s, and it was always going to be the natural home for the town’s Scottish community. So what better place to gather diaspora stories and recruit embroiderers? From 25th-30th November 2012 the Battle of Prestonpans Tapestry will be on show with evening and daytime activities all the way through. It’s there to show just what can be/has been done, and at the same time to give Corby Scots and the wider community an opportunity to enjoy the Prince’s Tale from 1745. The Club’s Pipes & Drums have been invited to raise awareness downtown and their Scottish Dancers are invited to join in the occasion. The Burns Society are already well known for its historical predelictions, so in partnership with the Corby Heritage Centre they will be sifting through many a migrant tale – not forgetting deep fried mince-pies and Mars bars!

 

And there will be two or three specific afternoon workshops talking embroidery and stitching too. Already a number of volunteers have come forward, so optimism is very much in the air.

 

History themes are already emerging: Aberdonians and Glaswegians went south in large numbers in the 1930s to work in the new Stewart and Lloyds Steel Mills built to exploit open cast drag mining of iron ore in Northamptonshire. The Grampian Club itself is proud Diaspora history. So too is the creation of DDay PLUTO [Project 99: Pipe Line Under The Ocean] steel pipeline taking petrol across the Channel for the Allied armies.