Ross students selected for Belladrum opportunity

Students from North Highland College UHI will be showcasing and developing their skills at this year’s Belladrum festival. Music and hospitality students have been selected for opportunities offered through the University of the Highlands and Islands’ careers and employability centre and music department.

Nicola McAuley, a hospitality graduate and childcare student from Tain, has secured a work experience placement as an entertainment assistant. She will work with the entertainments team to manage festival stages and liaise with Belladrum’s street theatre performers. She said: “I am overwhelmed that I have been given the opportunity to go backstage at my favourite festival and learn more about what happens before you see an act.”

Student band Dead Zebras, meanwhile, will showcase their talents with an appearance on the XpoNorth Seedlings stage. The Alness-based five-piece, made up of students from the university’s HNC music performance course, will open the stage at 11:30am on Friday with a set of original rock songs and covers.

Fraser MacIntosh (17) from Alness plays rhythm guitar with dead Dead Zebras. He said: “We would like to thank Belladrum and those involved with the festival as well as the tutors and other students at North Highland College UHI Alness for making this sort of thing possible. We think it’s brilliant that Belladrum gives emerging local musicians the chance to play at such a high profile event and we're buzzing for the whole thing.”

Joe Gibbs, the festival founder, said: “Students from North Highland College UHI are always reliable and proactive, which gives our team comfort when selecting new students for the festival each year. Many of these students impress to the extent that they return to work at the event in subsequent years.”