Birnam Highland Games takes place on Saturday, August 29th at the Games Park in the picturesque central Scotland village just north of Perth. Record visitor numbers have featured for the last two years and organisers anticipate another busy day.
Birnam is a member of the Perthshire Highland Games Association (PHGA) Junior Piping League which is being re-introduced for 2026. There are 13 Highland games affiliated to the PHGA. Competitors must be living in Perthshire OR living within five miles of a PHGA member games for a minimum of six months minimum. The league table will be updated throughout the summer, with the presentation of prizes taking place at Pitlochry Games on September 12.
In 2025 there were 22 entries in the Seniors and nine in the Junior events. In the Seniors, one piper withdrew from the Ceòl Mòr competition when he realised his teacher was on the bench. A spokesman for Birnam said: “In this regard, we expect pipers to continue to take cognisance of the codes of conduct operated by the Solo Piping Judges and Competing Pipers Associations, as included in their recent joint statement published on Bagpipe.news in late March.”
Birnam Games is always held on the last Saturday in August – sandwiched between the Argyllshire Gathering and the Northern Meeting. The Senior events comprise Ceòl Mòr and Ceòl Mòr categories whereas the Junior events comprise only Ceòl Beag competitions, although we understand a Ceòl Mòr competition is being considered for 2027 if a sponsor can be found.
Entries can be on the day, or in advance by emailing the Piping Convenor at stuartletford@hotmail.com. All competitors – Junior and Senior – must register by 11:00 and the draw for all events will be made thereafter.