Lights Up: Archiving miscellaneous Islesburgh Drama Group papers
With the panto season upon us, we thought it would be timely to share this blog post from our Archives Volunteer, Amber Paton. After graduating from Edinburgh University with a degree in Scottish History, Amber began volunteering with us — her first project was cataloguing the Islesburgh Drama Group papers.
Beginning in August 2025, I began the process of cataloguing some papers of the Islesburgh Drama Group, assembled over the years by a lighting engineer, my first contribution to the Shetland Archives online catalogue. Having no knowledge or experience of Shetland’s theatre scene in the 1980s and 90s, I was unsure of what to expect. For those of you readers like me who were born on this side of the 21st century, you may have little to no idea of the scale of the theatre scene in Shetland in the 80s and 90s, but as I came to learn it was quite significant.
The collection presents a wonderful timeline of the many plays conducted by Islesburgh Drama Group and other local stage enthusiasts. I was impressed at the sheer number of performances that took to Shetland’s many stages throughout the late 1970s, 80s and 90s, and in working through this collection I got a glimpse of how much work went into each performance.
The collection encompasses not only programmes and scripts, but often handwritten lighting and stage plans, accommodation details for travelling performers, posters, running orders and more. The theatre groups of Shetland did not focus only on the works of Shakespeare, there is material among the collection from numerous plays celebrating Shetland’s unique culture and dialect. Entire scripts for plays such as An Aald Lion Lies Doon by local Robert Alan Jamieson can be found among the collection, which showcase dialect, traditions and folklore.
There are a few notable items among the collection that to even the uneducated theatre enthusiast, are of considerable value. In recent years a ticket to watch Scotland’s most famous comedian, Billy Connolly, could set you back anywhere between £60 to £500, but in the Garrison Theatre in 1988, it was only £7. When I found this ticket among the loose items we were given, it had bluetak still on the back, so I can assume that it must have been displayed somewhere, maybe even in the Garrison Theatre, for spectators and performers to see evidence from one of the most notable events in Shetland entertainment history. A treasured piece of memorabilia for any Big Yin fan.
Billy Connolly was not the only celebrity to perform on the Garrison Theatre stage. The collection boasts tickets, programmes, (some of which are signed), and correspondence from the likes of Ken Dodd and Eddie Izzard. These items hold memories of a great time in Shetland’s arts and entertainment history and give valuable insight into the hard work that went into providing a space for Shetlanders to come, sit back and enjoy a show. While we are maybe not far enough away in time from the 1980s and 90s to establish a written history of its social life, one day I’m sure these items will be of considerable value to a historian.
While the material from visiting acts and performers will be a wonderful walk down memory lane for some, it is the work of local volunteers that stands out. Countless names reappear time and time again throughout the 80s and 90s, notable local figures such as Izzy Swanson, Fraser Cluness and more have definitely paid their dues to Shetland’s theatre scene. Their work in cultivating a space for adults and children alike to spread their wings across the Garrison’s well-trodden stage and find community in arts and culture is evident throughout the entire collection.
The collection is available to view at the Shetland Archives and can be searched for under the D73 identifier in the online catalogue.
