Best Before Midnight

 

A five piece ceilidh and covers band, comprises Phil MacFarlane on fiddle, Fraser Campbell on keyboards, Craig Scott on drums and percussion, Ronald Webster on Bass guitar, electro-accoustic guitar and vocals, Jim Campbell on lead guitar and harmonies. The band is a collaboration of versatile and richly talented musicians with an enviable wealth of experience in the music business.

In addition to countless other bands, performing many styles from classical music to jazz, Best Before Midnights' members have all worked together in previous musical incarnations,  Phil and Fraser in the Canny Clamjamphries, Ronnie and Craig in ShoeString, and Ronnie, Jim and Fraser in Focus,  to name a few.
  

ShoeString fronted by Ronnie, with Craig on drums and with Gillian Whitelaw calling for the ceilidh dances became a hugely succesful ceilidh and covers band, performing at all the major ceilidh and wedding venues throughout Scotland, including Edinburgh and Stirling Castles and
two years running the ceilidh band for the Hogmanay ceilidh at Cameron House Hotel Loch Lomond, arguably Scotlands premier hotel hogmanay ceilidh event.
  

During 2008/2009 Jim, Phil, and Fraser all became frequent stand-in musicians for ShoeStrings' regulars, and Craig and Ronnie found a common interest with these three in forming a new ceilidh and covers band, with a particular desire to create an entirely fresh, structured and high
energy ceilidh sound, polished pop classics and covers, and Celtic folk/rock.

   And so Best Before Midnight was launched.

Best before Midnight use an eclectic mixture of traditional ceilidh tunes, ceilidh tunes with funky and catchy arrangements unique to Best Before Midnight, and ceilidh tunes such as "The Broken Chair" "The Cukoos nest" and "Gillians Muckle Lochan"  written and arranged by band members. This mix of music ensures no two sets are alike, music for each dance being vibrant unexpected and different.

Our caller is ex 3 times Senior Scottish Highland Dancing champion Gillian Whitelaw. Gillian is also principal and choreographer of the world renowned Ballochleam Highland Dancers, and one of the arts most succesful teachers, with many champions Scottish and British from her
own dancing school. Accompanied by Ronnie and Craig, and an assortment of other musicians
Gillian and the Ballochleam Dancers have appeared in the USA, at many festivals in France, Majorca, Germany, Italy, Galicia, Astouria, Ireland, Wales, England, Belgium, and twice in Taiwan.  

In many of these countries whilst touring with the dancers, Gillian has hosted many ceilidh workshops, often using an interpreter, and has an extensive catalogue of reels, and set dances, from which she can have guests at a ceilidh or wedding performing in minutes. Your guests can be in no safer hands than with Gillian calling.

   ……….And when you tire of ceilidh dancing or would like a change of mood, Best before Midnight will give Gillian a rest, and slip into a set of polished pop classics, Rock and Roll, and modern covers. Or perhaps you just want to listen for a while, to Best Before Midnights' Celtic Folk/Rock music….. 

 

Gillian / Dance Caller

Best Before Midnights' ceilidh caller, Gillian Whitelaw, began learning the art of Highland Dancing at the age of 3 years, under the instruction of Mary McHarg and Gillin Anderson.

For ten successive years Gillian dominated every age group in which she competed at Highland dancing championships, competitions and Highland games all over Scotland.

Every trophy available to Gillian during these ten years has her name emblazoned on it many times.

Due to family circumstances, Gillian was unable to compete for three years and was quickly forgotten by the Highland Dancing World, until at the age of 16 years , she made a spectacular return at The Edinburgh City Championships,in Portobello Town Hall and  closely missed out on taking the  championship title.

 With the change in circumstances Gillian could again compete regularly, and went on to win the Senior Scottish Highland Dancing championship three times in four years. A feat never before accomplished.

Gillian began teaching Highland Dancing herself at the age of seventeen, and her success as a teacher is almost without equal.

 Her classes produced many many champions over the years, including Senior Scottish and Senior British Highland Dancing champions.

Gillian has also coached many dancers to successfully become teachers within their own right.

Visiting  Celtic and International festivals as a dancer, sparked an interest in Gillian in the much wider culture of folk dancing and music

Gillian formed her own dance group, the Ballochleam Highland Dancers, studied dance at Moray House University,  and began to research and delve into the history of Scottish dancing.

Before long Gillian  started to choreograph dances of her own, using traditional steps.

Gillian was to quickly marry up the dances with the contemporary, and traditional Celtic music that was beginning to interest her so much at the festivals, and The Ballochleam Highland Dancers began to be noticed.

In the ensuing years, the Ballochleam Highland Dancers, have appeared at festivals in  Germany, Ireland, Italy, Holland, Belgium, Wales, England, Majorca, Galicia, Austurias and the USA, at The Lorient Interceltique festival, appearing no less than 16 times, between 1989 and 2004. The dancers appeared in front of 20,000 strong crowds, and performed on stage with such Celtic Giants as Capercaillie, and Alan Stivell.

Two trips to Taiwan, one to a festival and one professionally followed. The group attended the World Folk dancing competition in Majorca on three occasions and Gillian guided them to a third and then a second place in the juvinille section of the World Folk Dance Competition at that event.

Ballochleam have appeared countless times in Spain, Galicia and Asturia  and in 2007 performed for three weeks at Worldfest, Silver Dollar City, Missouri.USA.

Ballochleam Highland Dancers have appeared on television in many countries in  the world including Italy, France, Belgium, in the UK Ballochleam have appeared on Ant and Dec Saturday night Takeaway, GMTV breakfast show, and the Jeremy Kyle Wedding Show.
 

The ultimate highlight of the Ballochleam Dancers history was to be in October 2008, when the dance group appeared at the home of rock star Sting, at a ceilidh to celebrate his 57th birthday. The dancers performed, and then assisted the star studded guests in learning the ceilidh dances as these were called.

During the many trips abroad, requests for dance workshops regularly occurred, and Gillian found that teaching Scottish ceilidh dancing, was more successful, than attempting to have untrained dancers learn the Highland Dances, which require a fair amount of skill and fitness, or injury can easily occur.

Over the years Gillian perfected her skill at teaching the ceilidh dances [calling] during the many workshops, Often this had to be done through an interpreter, and so Gillian developed an easy way of explaining the dances, for complete beginners and enthusiasts alike.

With several years experience working with the ceilidh bands, "Calum Lowe Sound" and "ShoeString" calling at weddings and events all over Scotland including Hogmanay at Cameron House Hotel Loch Lomond, Edinburgh and Stirling Castles etc. Gillian was the obvious choice as ceilidh caller for "Best before Midnight".

With her pedigree as an extraordinary dancer, teacher, choreographer and caller, your guests can be in no safer hands than with Gillian calling for the ceilidh dances.