Burns Night sees Scotland's national poet remembered across the globe...

On 25 January millions of people celebrated Burns' Night, not just the across the length and breadth of Scotland, but across every continent of the world. It's a night of celebration that marks the anniversary of the birth of Scotland's national poet, Robert Burns, born on 25 January 1759 in Alloway, Ayrshire.

Edinburgh Folk Club held it's Annual Burns Supper on January 23rd, with a couple of short tune spots from The East Lothian fiddlers and several fine songs from local and visiting singers - as well as a "nice hot steaming soup". Further north, there were celebrations in Blairbeg - a Burns Ceilidh with local band Torridon - and of course, BBC Scotland was serving up it's usual Burn's fayre.

Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796) (also known as Rabbie Burns, Scotland's favourite son, the Ploughman Poet, the Bard of Ayrshire and in Scotland as simply The Bard) was a poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best-known of the poets who have written in the Scots language, although much of his writing is also in English and a 'light' Scots dialect, accessible to an audience beyond Scotland. He also wrote in standard English, and in these pieces, his political or civil commentary is often at its most blunt.

He is regarded as a pioneer of the Romantic movement and after his death became an important source of inspiration to the founders of both liberalism and socialism. A cultural icon in Scotland and among Scots who have relocated to other parts of the world (the Scottish Diaspora), celebration of his life and work became almost a national charismatic cult during the 19th and 20th centuries, and his influence has long been strong on Scottish literature.

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