14/08/2026
🏴☠️ AVAST YE!
ANNAN HARBOUR FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR 2026 – SPONSORED BY CUBBY CONSTRUCTION – AND WITH A SPECIAL PIRATES & MERMAIDS THEME 🧜♀️
The much-loved Annan Harbour Festival will return on Saturday, September 19 thanks to the generous support of Cubby Construction – and with a special pirates and mermaids theme to give everyone the opportunity to get dressed up and have some nautical fun.
Festival-goers are invited to dress up and take part in the grand Pirates & Mermaids fancy dress parade, dedicated to the memory of Captain Roy Kerr, one of Dumfries & Galloway’s best-loved characters.
Captain Roy’s Tall Ship La Malouine was a favourite of festivals everywhere and the undoubted star of the show at Annan Harbour Festival. A founder member of The Port Street Pirates , Roy loved to welcome ‘pirates’ of all ages on board – and this year will see the inaugural ‘Captain Roy Prize for Best Dressed Pirate’ – which will be judged and presented by his daughter, Pam Halliday.
There will be prizes for best-dressed mermaids, too, presented by Cubby Construction, and a children’s competition for youngsters to design their own Jolly Roger pirate flag. The best flags will be on display at the festival and the team from the Annandale Observer will pick the winners.
⚓ Held each September at the historic harbour, the free Annan Harbour Festival brings together thousands of people for a day of live music, crafts, food, environmental activities, family fun, and cultural exchange. It plays a vital role in promoting inclusion, creativity, and wellbeing in the town and surrounding region.
It is organised and run by the small, volunteer-run local charity, Annan Harbour Action Group - Charity Sc46732. Trustees are delighted that Cubby Construction – main contractor for the £15.65 million project to transform the harbour – is supporting the festival as headline sponsor for the next two years.
Kirk Taylor, Managing Director of Cubby Construction says:
“We are proud to be supporting the Annan Harbour Festival this year. For Cubby Construction, our involvement is about much more than just supporting the event itself.
"The festival has strong connections to Annan Harbour, an area where we are currently delivering an important regeneration project, so it feels particularly fitting for us to be involved.
"As a company, we believe in playing an active role in the communities where we work, and supporting events like the Harbour Festival is an important part of that commitment.
"We hope it will be a great opportunity to engage with the community and celebrate the future of Annan Harbour.”
The full programme for the 2026 Annan Harbour Festival will be announced next week.
