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Shetland's capital town, Lerwick, has been shortlisted to be named UK Town of Culture in 2028. ⁠ ⁠ Out of nearly 400 towns from across the UK, we're in the running to host a major season of culture in 2028. The aim of the award is to restore pride in local areas around Britain. Lerwick boasts a huge range of cultural significance, from the world-famous Up Helly Aa festival to hosting the annual Wool Week. Local pride of place is flourishing here!⁠ ⁠ Lerwick will now receive £60,000 funding to develop a bid for the award. Should Lerwick win, it would receive a £3 million grant to host cultural events.
Who are we cheering for on at the FIFA World Cup on Saturday? Well... ⚽🇳🇴⁠ ⁠ We're not saying anything. We're just saying Shetland was part of the Kingdom of Norway for 600 years, Bergen is closer to us than Edinburgh is, and many of our place names come directly from Old Norse, like Scalloway, from the Old Norse Skálavágr, meaning bay of the big houses. ⁠ ⁠ Make of that what you will.
🐧 Puffin season is officially on, and here’s how to actually see them this summer 1. Get your timing right They’re only here May to early August. Blink and the simmer dim’s taken them back out to sea. 2. Sumburgh Head is the easy win Clifftop colony five minutes from the airport. Puffins practically at your feet, no boat required. 3. Go early morning or early evening Quieter cliffs, softer light, and the birds are more active.  4. Visit Hermaness in Unst, if you want the full seabird show Puffins alongside gannets, skuas and some of the best coastal walking in Shetland. 5. Bring binoculars! You’ll see them clearly without needing to lean over the edge or getting too close to their nests.  6. Pack a jacket regardless of what the forecast says Clifftop Shetland in July has its own rules.
Did you know you can fly from Norway to Shetland in the summer months? ⁠ ⁠ You can find out everything you need to know about visiting (or moving to!) Shetland on shetland.org. ⁠
The harbour village of Scalloway and its surrounding areas are home to a lively, aspiring, and resourceful community. Some of those responsible for building a bright future spoke to Genevieve White about their ambitions.⁠ ⁠ Find out more on the blog via the link in our bio 💙
Lerwick had beautiful blue skies this morning. By midday, we’d lost sight of Bressay entirely, swallowed by the harr. Harr is sea fog, and it forms because our sea is slow to warm up. Even at the height of summer, the water around Shetland barely gets above 13°C, peaking in August. When milder, moist air blows in off the Atlantic and passes over that cold surface, the air right above the water cools fast — fast enough for its moisture to condense into fog. That same sluggishness is behind our whole climate. Water heats up and cools down far more slowly than land or air, so our sea barely shifts all year, around 7°C in February, up to 13°C by August. In summer, the sea’s still catching up on warmth, so it cools the air above it; the exact condition that produces harr on a sunny day. In winter, that stored warmth works in reverse. The sea spends all summer and autumn absorbing heat, then releases it slowly, keeping the air mild long after the land alone would’ve turned properly cold. Frost is common, but it rarely drops below -5°C, even in the depths of winter. So, no baking summers, no bitter winters. Just a steady, sea-tempered climate, with the harr as visible proof of it happening right in front of you.
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