Song workshop: Slighe nan Eun | The Way of the Birds

Màiri McMillan leads a song workshop called Slighe nan Eun (The Way of the Birds) at the National Library of Scotland on Wednesday 28 October, from 11:00 to 12:30. It's a 90-minute session that looks at Gaelic culture's long history of stories and songs about birds, and it's run in English, though it includes Gaelic songs, words and phrases along the way. It's for ages 12 and over.

McMillan is a native fluent Gàidhlig speaker and a Traditional Singing Gold Medal winner. She released the solo album Gu Deas in 2021, followed by an EP in 2023 and an album of self-penned Gàidhlig songs in 2025, and has performed across Scotland, Ireland, England and Canada, contributing regularly to Gàidhlig media programmes. During the session she shares the songs and references books held within the National Library of Scotland's own collections.

The workshop is part of the Go Local programme of the Scottish International Storytelling Festival, which this year explores the relationship between storytelling and the natural world under the theme 'Bird and Beast', with storytellers from across Scotland bringing the tales to life. The festival also celebrates Scotland's cèilidh tradition, inviting international guests to share their stories, traditions and contemporary practices alongside Scotland's own talent.

Tickets are £15, with a handling fee of £1.25 per ticket capped at four. The session runs from 11:00 to 12:30 at the National Library of Scotland on George IV Bridge, Edinburgh EH1 1EW.