Podium spot for band at Borders Contest

ANNAN Town Band earned another podium finish as they took to the competition stage again last weekend.

The band finished in third place overall at the Borders Entertainment Contest in Jedburgh on Saturday, after a valiant attempt to defend the title they won at the same event last year.

Band communications officer Charlotte MacKay said: “The Borders contest is always a very closely fought competition. This year was no different with a field of 15 great bands, so we’re delighted to make it onto the podium for the third year in a row.

“We have enjoyed a really strong run of competitions in 2025, winning prizes in all but one of the contests we’ve entered, and this latest result gives us a huge boost as we head into preparations for next year’s Scottish Championships”

Under the baton of musical director Lewis Wilkinson, the band performed a short concert programme titled Pure Imagination: Action and Adventure on the Silver Screen.

It opened with Daniel Hall’s arrangement of Asteroid, better known as the theme music for cinema advertising company Pearl and Dean, and featured music from popular fantasy and adventure films including How to Train Your Dragon, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, and Walt Disney’s Dinosaur.

The band would like to thank the Scottish Borders Brass Band Association for organising another fantastic event this year, and also for helping to publicise the band’s petition against proposed cuts to music tuition in Dumfries and Galloway by printing details in the competition’s official programme.