While the Edinburgh festival grabs the headlines, just 10 miles away, one of Scotland’s most remarkable traditions takes place every August – the Burryman procession.
In this, part of the Ferry Fair, a local volunteer is covered in thousands of hooked burdock seedheads, which are attached in dense patches like Velcro. He spends up to 10 hours perambulating a seven-mile route around town, accompanied by two attendants, pausing at some 20 stops to collect charitable donations and accepting a libation of unmeasured whisky through a straw. This year’s procession is especially significant, as the identity of the Burryman is changing.
