It just so happens that this year of historic events happening in Scotland will also see the relatively minor but not inconsiderable 50th anniversary of the Forth Road Bridge arrive, even as the Firth’s third bridge, the Queensferry Crossing, rises from the river alongside it. Fortunately, with the second bi-annual Year of Homecoming also going on, the occasion has been noticed and is being celebrated with a ten-day festival devoted entirely to one of the most iconic and atmospheric crossing points in the world.

‘The Forth Bridges Festival’s a celebration of the 50th birthday of the Forth Road Bridge,’ says Chris Waite, chair of the festival’s steering group, ‘and also a celebration of three centuries of world-class bridge engineering on the Forth. Both the Forth Road Bridge and the Forth Bridge are iconic symbols of Scotland that people at home and abroad identify and have an affinity with. These are special bridges, and both are at the heart of the festival.’

The programme of events running across the festival incorporate the bridges themselves and the surrounding communities in North and South Queensferry, including a day-long celebration of the nation’s food entitled ‘Scotland Welcomes the World to Lunch’, car and bike rallies across the Road Bridge, boat flotillas on the Forth itself and digital and exhibited projects capturing people’s memories of living in the shadow of the bridges. With walking trips to the top of the Road Bridge proving popular in the run-up to the event, a torchlit procession and fireworks display will bring it to a close on Sun 10 September.

Various venues around the Firth of Forth, Thu 4-Sat 13 Sep.