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| Stone Formation Archive 1979 |
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 Stone Formations news, views, gallery and archive brought to you by Weird Wiltshire Introduction Latest News News Archive Stonehenge Stonehenge Project Stonehenge 360 Avebury Saviours Stones Village Solstice Wayland Smithy Long Barrow Woodhenge Gallery Summer Solstice Gallery 2002 Summer Solstice Gallery 2004 Postcards Wallpaper Links  |
First published on June 22, 1979 A PERFECT sunrise brought the Summer Solstice to Stonehenge this morning. Thousands of sightseers from all over the world flocked to the ancient monument to watch the Druids' annual ceremony of worship. Led by Coronation Street star William Roach (Ken Barlow) the sunworshippers heralded the dawn after a midnight vigil. At exactly 4.57am the golden sun rose magnificently in a cloudless blue sky directly over the Heel Stone in front of the monument. It brought cheers from the watching crowds and a welcome warmth. Most of them had been there all through the night. Across the fields, thousands of youngsters were just staring from their tents at the Stonehenge Rock Festival. Mr Roach, who has been involved with the Druids for the past six years and is now Herald, told me after the ceremony: "It was wonderful. We've had a very good dawn and we are pleased with the way things have gone." The youngest Druid of them all was eight-and-a-half-month-old Alasdair Miles, from London, who spent most of the ceremony asleep strapped to his mum Fiona. There was a sunny report also from the police. More than 50 officers were drafted in from the county but there was no trouble according to a spokesman. The last time the sun rose in such perfect conditions was during the 1976 heatwave. Thousands of disappointed tourists turned up on Wednesday night, believing the ceremony to be taking place then. But they had forgotten the Druid calendar which makes this a leap year and thus a day later. Back to 1979 index |
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