WATCH: Thousands of revellers see in the bells at Inverness's Hogmanay big bash
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Amidst an atmosphere brimming with laughter and cheers, thousands gathered to witness the spectacular Hogmanay big bash in Inverness last night and bid farewell to 2023.
As the clock struck midnight, a wave of excitement swept through the crowd, echoing the collective joy that filled the air.
The event at the Northern Meeting Park followed a parade through the city centre which started in Falcon Square.
Incredible musicians, including one of Scotland’s finest ceilidh bands, Highland Fire who include local lads Calum MacPhail and Sean Cousins from the band Horo, kept the crowd entertained until the very end.
Skipinnish’s very own Norrie MacIver took to the stage for some songs in both English and Gaelic and three-time winner of the Scots Trad Music Award and BBC Radio 2 Folk Award winner Siobhan Miller led everyone up to the bells.
Instrumental fireworks provided by multi-award winning duo Ali Hutton and Ross Ainslie who were the driving force behind The Treacherous Orchestra, were spectacular.
They were then joined by Ewan Robertson, from current winners of the Scots folk band of the year Breabach, who kept spirits high.
Along with the incredible music, the world's biggest ceilidh took place, with the thousands dancing through the night arm-in-arm.
Some people travelled far and wide to attend the event, including one couple from South Africa who ticked off a bucket list item by attending the event.
Highland Council's Inverness city manager David Haas said: "As the event organisers, we are delighted that the revised format produced a high-quality event for the city and the Highlands.
"Nearly 4000 guests joined us to celebrate the bells for what was a new twist on a traditional Inverness event.
"The parade, a new addition to this year’s line-up set the tone for what became a memorable night with fire performers, drummers and pipe bands involved.
"Revellers were entertained by the highest-quality performances from Scotland’s leading traditional music artists and we were amazed at the engagement shown by the audience in joining in the dancing and singing along throughout the evening.
"We would like to thank all those who joined us to celebrate Hogmanay, with a special thanks to the public who created a fantastic atmosphere and, as with all our events, we will be undertaking a review which will look at areas for improvement and this will include how we can reduce wait times for refreshments.
"We're looking forward to developing the Red Hot Highland Fling for the future and to continue to improve what we can offer in our events programme supported by the city of Inverness councillors and the Inverness Common Good Fund."
Overall the atmosphere was electric, teeming with anticipation and camaraderie, as revellers joined in unison to welcome the new year.
