![Loony Dook (3167158172)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Loony_Dook_%283167158172%29.jpg)
The Loony Dook is an annual event held on
New Year's Day in which people dive into the freezing waters of the
Firth of Forth at
South Queensferry
Queensferry, also called South Queensferry or simply "The Ferry", is a town to the west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Traditionally a royal burgh of West Lothian, it is administered by the City of Edinburgh council area. It lies ten miles to the no ...
(north of
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
), often in fancy dress.
The name "Loony Dook" is a combination of "Loony" (short for "
lunatic
Lunatic is an antiquated term referring to a person who is seen as mentally ill, dangerous, foolish, or crazy—conditions once attributed to "lunacy". The word derives from ''lunaticus'' meaning "of the moon" or "moonstruck".
History
The te ...
") and "Dook", a
Scots term meaning "dip" or "bathe".
Course of events
On New Year's Day, typically in the forenoon (but times vary according to tides), around 1,000 Dookers first take part in the so-called Dookers' Fancy Dress Parade, leading from the Hawes car park at the far end of the town to the old mole. Over 4,000 spectators cheer on the participants at various vantage points.
The Dookers are then greeted by bagpipe pipers and warmed with bowls of "energising porridge", prior to plunging themselves into the freezing Firth of Forth.
History
The event was conceived in 1986 as a joking suggestion by three locals for a New Year's Day hangover cure. The following year, it was decided to repeat the event for charity.
After a few years of only local significance, the event gradually grew in the 1990s, both in popularity and number of participants. The growth accelerated after the event began to be mentioned in the official Edinburgh Hogmanay publicity material and got a boost when the Millennium edition was broadcast live by the BBC.
Originally organised by locals and starting from the Moorings pub (now the Inchcolm), factors such as increased crowds, safety issues and popularity necessitated a different handling. As a consequence, the events from 2009 onwards were professionally handled by event managers Unique Events. Being the organisers of the
Edinburgh Hogmanay Festival, they included the Loony Dook into the latter from 2011. In the same year a registration fee was introduced to cover the cost of organisation and stewarding. The fee of originally £6 was raised to £10 in 2016.
This went up to £12 in 2020, attracting criticism from the event's founders, who described it as a "damned disgrace".
The proceeds benefit
RNLI Queensferry and local charities.
The Loony Dook received sponsorship from the tour company Haggis Adventures (from 2011) and then from the porridge company
Stoats
The stoat (''Mustela erminea''), also known as the Eurasian ermine, Beringian ermine and ermine, is a mustelid native to Eurasia and the northern portions of North America. Because of its wide circumpolar distribution, it is listed as Least Conc ...
.
Up to 2016, three of the original Dookers, James MacKenzie, Keith 'Rambo' Armstrong and Kenny Ross, have the distinction of taking part in every Loony Dook and the trio wore specially designed T-shirts with '30 yrs' to celebrate the achievement.
Other Loony Dooks
The event has inspired similar annual New Year's day Loony Dooks, such as in
North Berwick
North Berwick (; gd, Bearaig a Tuath) is a seaside town and former royal burgh in East Lothian, Scotland. It is situated on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, approximately east-northeast of Edinburgh. North Berwick became a fashionable ...
and Dunbar in East Lothian, Portobello in Edinburgh, St Andrews, Dalgety Bay and
Kirkcaldy in
Fife and Coldingham Sands in Berwickshire all of which are on the south east coast of Scotland.
See also
*
Edinburgh's Hogmanay
Edinburgh's Hogmanay is the observance of Hogmanay—the Scottish celebration of the New Year—held in Edinburgh, Scotland.
History
The annual Hogmanay celebration was originally an informal street party focused on the Tron Kirk in the High ...
*
South Queensferry
Queensferry, also called South Queensferry or simply "The Ferry", is a town to the west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Traditionally a royal burgh of West Lothian, it is administered by the City of Edinburgh council area. It lies ten miles to the no ...
*
Forth Bridge
The Forth Bridge is a cantilever railway bridge across the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, west of central Edinburgh. Completed in 1890, it is considered a symbol of Scotland (having been voted Scotland's greatest man-made wonder in ...
References
External links
South Queensferry Stoats Loony Dook 2016on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
Stoats 2016 Loony Dook New Years Day South Queensferry Near Edinburgh Scotlandon YouTube
{{Coord, 55, 59, 34, N, 3, 23, 12, W, type:event_region:GB-EDH, display=title
1986 establishments in Scotland
Recurring events established in 1986
Festivals in Edinburgh
Annual events in Scotland
Hogmanay
Firth of Forth
Swimming in Scotland