It’s the 258th birthday of Robert Burns on Wednesday, January 25, 2017, and we’re sharing a list of local celebrations in the Kawarthas along with and 12 things you may not know about Scotland’s national bard.

First, a bit about Robert Burns. Commonly known as “Robbie” (“Rabbie” in Scotland), he was born in 1759 to a poor family in Alloway, Ayr, Scotland. He received his childhood education while working on the family farm (Burns’ father hired a local teacher) and demonstrated exceptional writing talent from an early age.

Burns’ literary fame began at the age of 27 when his first book of poetry, Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect (“The Kilmarnock Edition”) was published. He also wrote original music and collected and adapted folk songs from across Scotland. His poem and song “Auld Lang Syne” is sung world-wide to issue in a new year.

Other well-known poems and songs include “A Red, Red Rose”, “A Man’s a Man for A’ That”, “To a Louse”, “To a Mouse”, “The Battle of Sherramuir”, “Tam o’ Shanter”, and “Ae Fond Kiss”.

Because of his political views (Burns was sympathetic to the French Revolution and a supporter of democratic reform at home), he became a great source of inspiration after his death to the founders of both liberalism and socialism.

Burns, who had a heart condition, died at the age of 37 following a dental extraction.

One of the most celebrated figures in Scottish history and culture, Burns’ birthday is recognized with annual “Burns Night” celebrations held across Scotland and around the world.

Robbie Burns Celebrations in the Kawarthas

Here are some of the Robbie Burns events taking place in the Kawarthas in and around Robbie Burns Day, ranging from modest celebrations to full-blown Burns Nights that include traditional elements like haggis. (If you’re hosting a celebration for Robbie Burns and it’s not on the list, please email us at editor@kawarthanow.com.)

Saturday, January 21

• Haliburton Highlanders Pipes & Drums presents Robbie Burns Night “A Wee Taste of the Highlands” at 6 p.m. at Royal Canadian Legion Branch 129 (719 Mountain St., Haliburton). The event features pipes and drums, dancing, Scottish music, a taste of haggis and buffet meal, and scotch tasting. Doors open at 6.30 p.m. and entertainment begins at 7 p.m. Cost: $15 at the door.
• The Cat & The Fiddle in Lindsay presents its annual Robbie Burns Night from 6 to 11 p.m. at The Cat & The Fiddle (49 William St. N., Lindsay). There’ll be entertainment by the Pipes & Drums of Lindsay, Highland dancers, and traditional Scottish Gay Gordon dancing. The night also includes traditional haggis dinner of cock-a-leekie soup, haggis, roast beef, and mashed potato and turnip, followed by Cranachan trifle. Cost: $22.

Tuesday, January 24

• The Church-key Pub and Grindhouse is hosting its annual Robbie Burns Dinner from 6 to 11 p.m. at The Church-key Pub and Grindhouse (26 Bridge Street W, Campbellford,). The event features a scotch tasting, haggis, roast beef dinner, and pipers. Ticket includes meal and scotch. Cost: $35 per person.

Wednesday, January 25

• Pitchers Place is holding a Robbie Burns Dinner at 5 p.m. at Pitchers Place (8642 Lander Road, Cobourg). There’ll be Scots meat pie, haggis, raspberry pie — and poetry.
• The Black Horse Pub (452 George St. N., Peterborough) is hosting a Robbie Burns celebration at 5 p.m. Reverend Ken Ramsden will be addressing and piping in the haggis.
• Come out to Lakefield for a bonny wee time! Robbie Burns Night begins at 7 p.m. at Canoe & Paddle Pub (18 Bridge Street, Lakefield). Full traditional ceremonies include the piping of the haggis at 7:30 p.m., the Selkirk Grace and supper at 8 p.m., and traditional dancing at 8:30 p.m. from the wonderful young ladies from Collins School of Dance. The menu features Scottish favourites such as cullen skink, oatcakes and cheese, haggis tatties and neeps, and deep-fried Mars bars that will be sure to bring out the grumpy ol’ Scotsman in you. There is no charge for the event but they’ll be taking donations for the dancers.
• Charmin’s Wholesome Foods Catering and The Club House Restaurant (153 Kent St., Lindsay) is hosting a Robbie Burns Dinner at 5 p.m. The Scottish-themed dinner includes roast beef, haggis, tatties and neeps, roasted root veggies and typsy laird, and Scottish shortbread for dessert. There’s also be live entertainment. Cost is $25.
• Head out to Hastings House Restaurant and Bar (27 Front St. W., Hastings) at 7 p.m. to celebrate Robbie Burns’ birthday. Hear the bagpipes bring in the haggis and try a bit as well.
• “A Toast to Robbie Burns” takes place from 7 to 9 p.m. at Trenton Town Hall (55 King St., Trenton). There’ll be Scottish appetizers, birthday cake, a silent auction, and a sample of three different kinds of Scotch whiskey. Kilts are welcome. Cost:
  $15 at the door.
• The Oasis Bar and Grill (31 King St. E., Cobourg) is hosting a Robbie Burns Night from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Madman’s Window will be playing all your favorite Celtic songs, and will be joined by a very special guest for the Address to The Haggis and The Immortal Memory.

Friday, January 27

• A Robbie Burns Luncheon takes place at 11:30 a.m. at Activity Haven (180 Barnardo Ave, Peterborough). The menu includes scotch pies, mush peas, chips, sticky toffee and pudding, and coffee and tea. A bagpiper will be entertaining. Cost: $6 per person.

Saturday, January 28

• Cobourg Highland Games Society presents its Robert Burns Dinner at 4:30 p.m. at LIUNA Local 183 Training Centre (560 Dodge Street, Cobourg). The dinner, catered family style by the Dutch Oven, will include salad, carved sirloin roast beef and haggis, potatoes, and turnips and roasted root vegetables, followed by trifle with Drambuie and shortbread cookies, coffee, or tea. There’ll be entertainment from Madman’s Window, The Lindsay Rose Highland Dance Company Dancers, and the Cobourg Legion Pipes and Drums. Cost: $50 per person ($15 for children 12 and under).
• A Robbie Burns Dinner and Dance takes place at 6 p.m. at the Royal Canadian Legion in Brighton (25 Park St., Brighton). The event features a dinner with haggis, DJ and toast master Bert Shutler, the Legion’s drummer and piper, and the McGilly Dancers. The dinner is followed by a dance. Tickets are $20.

12 things you may not know about Robbie Burns

1. He produced a lot more than poetry.

By the time he died at the age of 37, Burns had sired 12 children by four different women. His oldest child Elizabeth was born after he had an affair with his mother’s servant. His youngest child Maxwell was born on the day of Burns’ funeral.

2. He’s a monumental figure.

Burns has more statues dedicated to him around the world than any other non-religious figure, other than Queen Victoria and Christopher Columbus.

3. He almost worked on a slave plantation in Jamaica.

Burns was planning to emigrate to Jamaica to work on a slave plantation, but he changed his mind because of the successful sales of his first book of poetry.

4. He wrote the third most popular song in the world.

Burns’ iconic song “Auld Lang Syne” is one of the three most popular English language songs, after “Happy Birthday” and “For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow.”

5. He had a big head — literally.

When Burns’ body was exhumed in 1815 to be moved to a new mausoleum, a plaster cast was taken of his skull and he was found to have a larger-than-average skull. In 2013, forensic experts at the University of Dundee used the cast along with contemporary portraits to recreate an accurate 3D depiction of his head.

6. Bob Dylan is a big fan.

When asked about the source of his greatest creative inspiration, Bob Dylan said it was Burns’ 1794 song “A Red, Red Rose.”

7. Michael Jackson was a big fan.

Michael Jackson was such a fan of Burns’ poetry that he recorded a collection of show tunes with American producer David Gest based on Burn’s life and work (they were never formally released).

8. The Soviet Union was a big fan.

The former Soviet Union commissioned a commemorative stamp of Robbie Burns in 1956 to mark the 160th anniversary of his death.

9. His work inspired the names of two literary classics.

The titles of J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye and John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men come from Burn’s poems (“Comin Thro the Rye” and “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft agley” from “To a Mouse”).

10. He’s a pop icon.

In 2009, Burns was the first person ever to appear on a commemorative bottle of Coca-Cola.

11. He’s been in space — figuratively.

In 2010, astronaut Nick Patrick took a miniature book of Robert Burns’ poetry into space for a two-week mission.

12. Your clothes may have been designed by one of his descendants.

American fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger is the great, great, great nephew of Robert Burns (Hilfiger’s aunt Rose Kirbis was the granddaughter of Burns’ brother Gilbert).

“It was never discussed in my house, because it was said that Robert Burns was a womaniser and a boozer,” Hilfiger says.

In a city where the walls of numerous iconic buildings speak volumes, a highly engaging 152-year-old conversation at 144 Brock Street will soon be silenced.

On April 22, The Pig’s Ear Tavern — or The Piggy as it’s affectionately known by thousands — will serve its last pint. According to co-owner John Punter, the three-storey building which houses the pub has been purchased by Peterborough-based Parkview Homes months after it went on the market with an original list price of $949,000.

“As we get closer (to April 22), it will be emotional,” notes the affable Punter who (with his wife Lylie) purchased the property, which includes the pub and its two upper floor apartments, in 2000 — the last of 13 owners over its history.

“I’m fine now because it’s still kind of new. But I’m a great weeper. I can weep with the best of them, so I’m sure there’ll be some tears.”

The 67-year-old native of England won’t be alone.

The Pig’s Ear, which opened in 1865 as the St. Maurice Saloon — pre-dating Confederation by two years — has been a home-away-from-home fixture on the downtown Peterborough landscape ever since.

Think about that. 1865. The American Civil War had just ended and Abraham Lincoln’s death at the hands of assassin John Wilkes Booth was still fresh. In Peterborough, the Red Dog and the Montreal House were yet to hang out an “Open” sign.

Thousands upon thousands have darkened The Pig’s Ear’s door since, most notably countless Trent University students. The worn wooden tops of its tables still bear the hastily scratched-in names of many.

“I heard today there will be an auction organized after the closing date where people will hopefully be able to come in and bid on the artifacts…the tables, the chairs, the pool table,” Punter says. “I’m not sure if they’ll want to auction off the little piggy things (displayed pig-related knick-knacks gifted to the pub by patrons) or they’ll just want us to give them away.”

“This is probably one of the funnest — is that a real word? — places in the whole world. It’s such a social gathering point; just the mixture of people we’ve had in here. Not just students but others. I don’t have any particular favourite memories — remembering what I had for breakfast this morning would be good at my age — but the whole experience has been quite a ride.”

With the property’s sale emerges the distinct possibility something else will be lost besides the iconic pub. With no historical designation sought and subsequently never granted, the building itself could be leveled to make room for new development.

Parkview Homes founder Paul Dietrich is declining comment on the purchase and any possible plans for the property.

“We didn’t want it (historical designation),” says Punter, noting Lylie’s parents, who owned property prior, “didn’t want it either.”

“It’s a real pain in the ass. They make you account for everything you want to do (to the building), which is completely restrictive.”

The absence of historical designation having been applied for and granted removes a level of protection for the building in its current state. According to Peterborough Heritage Resources Co-ordinator Erik Hanson, when a planning application is eventually filed for the building by the new owner, council has two options based on input from staff.

“Council may say, based on our need to densify the downtown, we’re going to weigh that against whether saving this building as a heritage structure is worthwhile or not,” explains Hanson.

“On the other hand, they may say the heritage of this building is valuable and we want you (the owner) to work it into your plans for development.”

Hanson adds, in the absence of a planning application currently before the City, “We don’t know what the new owner’s intentions are. The new owner may choose to do any one of a number of things that are of no immediate concern regarding the heritage of the place.”

From where he sits, Downtown Business Improvement Area executive director Terry Guiel describes the property as “one of those buildings that has come to define what our downtown is all about.” The trick, he says, lies in forging a new doesn’t that forget the old.

“You want to encourage new opportunities, new businesses, new construction and development, but you want to keep that other part too. Finding a balance and making sure the two can co-exist … that’s the challenge.”

“I’d love the best of both worlds. I would like any new concept to incorporate the old bricks into the new design. I’d love to see it maintain retail on the lower level, but it’s in the hands of the developer now. Every opportunity to hold onto historic buildings should be looked at but if the numbers don’t crunch for the developer … well, downtown certainly wouldn’t survive without them and their investment.”

“It takes deep pockets and a very brave developer to develop older infrastructure like that downtown. I commend Paul Dietrich. If the intent is to build condos or apartments, that’s wonderful for the downtown (but) the beauty of any downtown shines brighter when its historic features are showcased.”

The post-April 22 future of the property and what that may hold aside, Punter is excited for a time that will see him and Lylie fully pursue their passion of traveling and diving — a Caribbean cruise is set for later this year — as well as to “investigate and explore” where they will eventually take up permanent residence.

“Outside Peterborough? Could be. Warmer? Probably. Near a lot of water? Definitely.”

One thing for certain: a return to England isn’t in the cards, Punter noting “It’s so bloody expensive now, we could never afford to retire there.”

Wherever they end up, The Pig’s Ear chapter of their life together will never be far from their thoughts. The pair met in 1981 in Pittsburgh where John, a big-time England-based record producer, was on tour with Nazareth. They hit it off, returning to England together. Come 1988, they were back in Canada where John continued in the music profession, meeting his share of success.

By 1996, they were in Peterborough where they took over management of The Pig’s Ear, working for Lylie’s parents. Four years later, they bought The Pig’s Ear outright.

“It’s much the same as it was 20 years ago and there’s a lot to be said about that, especially when kids come back time after time and it’s still the same as they remember it, sort of like drinking in grandma’s basement,” says Punter.

“It’s funny. I always wanted to own a pub in England. I ended up with a pub in another country. We’ve had a blast here. It’s been a major part of our life but it was time (to sell and retire). I think a lot of people figured I would croak here and get carried out.”

As for what’s ahead between now and the final last call, the trademark Pig’s Ear events — Pingo, Karaoinke, trivia and open mic nights — will be staged as per usual. Also continuing will be the third-Saturday-afternoon-of-every-month music jam in aid of the Peterborough Musicians’ Benevolent Association, which aids musicians struggling with costs due to unforeseen circumstances.

Punter says the committee overseeing the PMBA is searching for a new home for the music jam but admits that will be “tricky”, given that The Pig’s Ear setting is so very much a part of its attraction.

But the day to mark on the calendar is April 22: a day, Punter assures, that will feature non-stop live music highlighting many of the regular acts that have habitually graced The Pig’s Ear small stage over the years. Among them have been Josh Fewings and Benj Rowland of the folk-rock duo Mayhemingways.

“While it’s more known as a straight-up bar than a music venue, it has been one of the important sites for music in Peterborough,” assesses Fewings, who also performed there as part of a 2015 tribute to Blue Rodeo.

“I’ve seen people fall in love there. I’ve seen some great shows. I’ve had the crowd chanting during a show. It’s always felt familiar and friendly, like your grandfather’s rec room. There are a lot of great times that those walls have seen. We will miss playing shows there. Some of the best bar staff I’ve ever met and known work there. It’s a shame.”

Guiel, a working musician for many years, concurs regarding The Pig Ear’s place in local live music circles.

“I recall it as the first place I heard Johnny Cash on the old jukebox … there were only a handful of songs on there and they didn’t change for 20 years,” he laughs.

“You have your unique places that embrace more of the avante garde and the ability to perform things like original music,” Guiel says. “The Pig’s Ear was always a safe place to delve into experimental music. And you didn’t have to worry about having muddy boots. There was no such thing as ambient lighting. It was, and still is, unapologetically plain.”

“If you walked into The Pig’s Ear and you were from out of town, you’d go how the hell does this place survive? Everything in the book of Entrepreneurs 101 would tell you that’s not the formula. But it worked because the owners allowed it to be what it is and resisted the temptation to change it. It was always the rebellious pub.”

Rebellious pub. Unapologetically plain. Grandfather’s rec room. One of the “funnest” places in the world. However you remember The Pig’s Ear, there’s no question it will be missed, no more than by the couple who have called it home for 20 years.

“It’s going to be really weird not getting up, having breakfast, and then coming down here,” says Punter.

“In a way, it’s kind of scary. We certainly have no regrets. We’ve had a blast here. It’s been a major part of our life but it’s time; it was a conscious decision to do it now so we have time, hopefully, to go out and enjoy ourselves.”

VIDEO: My Peterborough: The Pig’s Ear (Part 1)

VIDEO: My Peterborough: The Pig’s Ear (Part 2)

All photos courtesy of Esther Vincent of evmustang.ca, except where noted.