TICKETS have gone on sale for the World Pipe Band Championships this summer.

 

Around 8000 pipers and drummers are expected to compete in the popular event which will be staged on Glasgow Green on August 14 and 15.

Tickets are available for the Grade 1 arena which offers ringside seats while the top bands compete for the World Champion title. General admission tickets for both days are also available.

Bands have until July to enter the competition but it is expected around 220 from around the world will take part in the event.

Ticket prices range from £2 for a concession on Friday August 14 to £28 for the Grade 1 competition on Saturday afternoon.

Family tickets for two adults and up to three children cost £43 on August 15 while children aged five or under are admitted for free.

The Worlds, as they are known, are a showcase for some of the finest pipe bands, pipers and drummers from around the world.

The event also features Highland dancing, a Highland Games, a children's zone and dedicated food village.

Piping Live! Glasgow International Piping Festival, the biggest festival of its kind in the world, will also return to venues across Glasgow between August 10 to 16.

This year, it will return to George Square where pipers will perform all day.

There will also be over 200 events across the city ranging from workshops to masterclasses, ceilidhs to concert and street performers.

Early bird 'Golden Tickets' giving access to all the Piping Live! evening concerts have also gone on sale. The £90 package includes free entry to the festival club and a free t-shirt.

They are available from www.thebagpipeshop.co.uk and can be collected from the National Piping Centre.

Glasgow Life chairman Archie Graham said: "The World Pipe Band Championships are a long established cornerstone of Glasgow's cultural calendar which the city looks forward to hosting every year.

"Everywhere you go, bands are practising for the competition performances which they have spent months and in some cases years perfecting.

"There is nothing quite like the sights and sounds of Glasgow Green during the Worlds."

Ian Embelton, chief executive of the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association, said: "The World Pipe Band Championship is a unique event which not only showcases Scottish culture but is a stage on which many of the most talented pipers and drummers come to shine.

"The Worlds is a great day out and an absolute must for anyone who loves to see and hear the talent, dedication and sheer hard work of musicians from all over the world as they test themselves competing for the ultimate prize in pipe band music."

For further information on tickets for the Worlds go to www.theworlds.co.uk