LANARK LANIMER DAY
An ancient celebration held within the Royal Burgh of Lanark on the Thursday between the Sixth and Twelfth days of June annually since the year 1140.
 

Being A Lanimer Judge Is No Nostalgia Trip!

by Ian Donnachie

In 2001 I was privileged to be asked to be a judge at Lanimers, and although it was likely to clash with long-standing work commitments, I knew I could never forgive myself if I didn't agree. The Lanimers, one of Lanark's great traditions, had cast its spell on me from boyhood. And as so many ex-patriot Lanarkians will tell you, no matter how long you are away from the place, you try to come back at Lanimers - and think about it from a distance if you can't!

After agreeing and having cause to reflect, I realised it would be 50 years to the day from my first official role in Lanimers. In 1951 fellow school mate, Douglas Allan, and I had been page-boys to Queen Kitty Mason, a fact confirmed nearer the event by the delivery of my 2000 Lanimer brochure. Someone had done their homework in the archive and dug out a photo featuring us both with a diminutive yours truly - kitted out in page-boy costume, big ears and all - and looking somewhat overwhelmed by proceedings at the medal ceremony after the crowning.

I was extremely nervous about my forthcoming function, something I later found is a common reaction among all prospective Lanimer judges. On the face of it I ought to have been well enough qualified but nothing really prepares you for the daunting prospect of the actual assignment. I took the wise precaution of arriving the night before, which was a good strategic move on a number of counts, I thought. But meeting several ex-judges that evening and listening to their do's and don'ts did little to raise my confidence, unless they were just winding me up with stories of the dilemmas and hopelessly difficult decisions they'd faced in previous years!

The great day dawned, thank goodness dry and potentially bright. I was up and about early and immediately caught the buzz of excitement that typifies the morning of Lanimers. I think my nervousness began to ease at this juncture and certainly a quick call at the Wallace Cave, already crowded at 8am, worked wonders. A gang from one of the humorous entries were fortifying themselves for the morning's proceedings and had us all in stitches. And the dram made me fell a lot better. Meeting the organisers, all the other judges, and the famous 'minders', fortunately, for me, old friends, finally convinced me that I wasn't, after all, on my own, and that although a bit nail-biting this might actually be fun as well.

The first thing I can say about the actual proceedings is that I was tremendously lucky both in my fellow judges and the categories we were asked to assess. A second thing that struck me was the fact that we seemed to spend ages weighing up this and that attribute of our entries, under the watchful eyes of our minders, yet the time seemed to fly. Some tricky decision, certainly, but within the space of 45 minutes or so the deed had been done and the awards allocated. A few disappointments, but thankfully no tears, which is what I'd feared more than anything, knowing from childhood the huge amount of enthusiasm and energy that goes into a typical float or pageant.

Then it was back down to the Cross, an amazing thrill walking down through the crowds, which, of course, I hadn't done for years, maybe since the last time I was in the procession myself. One major task remained with a fellow judge, selecting 'Best on the Move', another really tricky one. Many things need to be taken into account and there's no doubt that a moving float or pageant looks very different as it makes its way down the High Street to the Cross and round into Wellgate. It's also interesting and something of a privilege to look down on all this from the main stand (at Wallace's height!), a very different perspective of the proceedings which I'd never seen before. As happened earlier in the morning, there was much debate but consensus was reached and the vital decision taken.

Lanimer page Ian is on the left.

I had learned a lot about being a judge, and not just about following the official guidelines and sticking to the checklist. While there are clearly important in standardising the assessment, in the end it's the overall impression that counts. Thankfully most of the comments afterwards were highly positive, so whatever I managed to contribute personally, it helped get the right results.

Another thing struck me as being very interesting and in some ways exceptional about the 2001 proceedings. Because of the foot and mouth tragedy, tractors and lorries were effectively banned, and Lanimers, though not entirely Green, was devoid of the massive and often complex floats of recent years. Not only was the procession back to being simpler and on a more human scale (see the old postcards of years gone by!) but the large number of pageants meant that many more children than usual actually participated in the procession. I wondered if there were any lessons to be learned from this set of circumstances and whether a change of policy or direction might be on the cards for the future. Anyway, I'd survived being a judge for what proved a memorable day back among old friends.

Ian Donnachie, born and brought up in Lanark, is a university lecturer and write, publishing most recently a new biography of Robert Owen. He is vice-chair of the Friends of New Lanark.