Big Burns Supper to be scrapped

The Big Burns Supper festival will be scrapped after 14 years and replaced by a new three-day carnival in Dumfries, it has been revealed.

Organisers, Electric Theatre Workshop, have made plans for the festival to “pivot into a new, fully free-to-access event model” and rebranded as Dumfries and Galloway Carnival.

Councillors will next week review these proposals and consider an allocation of transitional funding of £15,000 to organisers for the January 2027 event.

A mid-term review of the festival, carried out by the Dumfries and Galloway Events Partnership, confirmed the event will transition into the free-to-access carnival from January 29 to 31, 2027.

Big Burns Supper has received five-figure funding from the council for more than ten years, but its income model has now flipped.

Council papers states the festival once ran on “approximately 90 percent self-generated income” but now operates on “an estimated 20 percent self-funded basis.”

Funding problems have already hit the event hard, which meant that the 2024 festival did not go ahead at all, after cash dried up when the Scottish Winter Festival programme ended.

In January 2025, more than 6,700 tickets were sold and almost 16,900 people took part in free activities. By January 2026, ticket sales had collapsed to just 177, while free events drew around 27,000 people.

The council report states the new carnival will focus on “community participation, schools engagement and high-visibility public events.”

Organisers are aiming to involve 25 schools and 65 community groups from across the region, with a total audience of around 16,000 people expected over the three days.

They estimate the event could bring £1.8 million into the regional economy, though the council report states this figure “is not verified independently.”

The Northern Lights light show, a popular part of recent festivals, will continue as part of the carnival. It is being backed by the Scottish Government’s Expanded Festivals programme during the changeover.

The council report states: “The Dumfries and Galloway Carnival will not ‘inherit’ the Signature Event status afforded to the Big Burns Supper Festival.”

Instead, councillors will be asked to approve transition funding of £15,000 for the January 2027 event, the maximum amount available through the Major Events Open Fund. Any funding beyond that would have to be won through a competitive bidding process.

The review describes the shake-up as “an evolution rather than a retreat,” saying the event is being reshaped to fit a smaller budget while keeping its focus on “celebration, participation and inclusivity.”

It also acknowledges the loss of the Burns Night element is significant, warning it removes a “key cultural and heritage link for the town of Dumfries.”

Dumfries and Galloway Council’s education, skills and community wellbeing committee will discuss the switch when it meets on September 8.