An amazing honour came as a total surprise to the whole town of Aberfeldy when the Highland Perthshire residents were thanked on a special Christmas TV programme for the welcome they have given to refugees from Ukraine.
What had been billed as a normal carol concert in the town hall resulted in an unforgettable evening that involved BBC Scotland’s camera crews, presenter Jackie Bird and an exclusive appearance by Brit Award-winning musician, Tom Walker.
When Russia invaded Ukraine the community in Aberfeldy got together and decided to take action. They sorted visas, funded flights, set up English language lessons, community groups and support networks and have welcome 33 young families from Ukraine into their community.
Three weeks ago, after days of practice with a Ukrainian opera singer, Aberfeldy Community Choir and some Breadalbane Academy pupils sang carols in Aberfeldy Town Hall.
Minutes in, the full situation was revealed to an astounded audience: They were at the top secret filming of ‘Scotland’s People with Jackie Bird’, a festive celebration of Scotland’s unsung heroes.
People from across the country had been nominated by community groups, friends, family members or those who have benefitted from the nominees’ good deeds. Aberfeldy, which has a large number of host families taking care of people from war-torn Ukraine, was being handed a Scotland’s People award.
Incredulous glances were exchanged as the velvet curtain behind the singers opened and out came journalist Jackie Bird.
She told the community their goodwill to Ukrainians had not gone unnoticed and to prove it, showed them a round-up of messages from famous personalities, each speaking directly to the citizens of Aberfeldy.
Video messages of thanks came from Annie Lennox, Judge Rinder, Alan Cumming, Benedict Cumberbatch, Andriy Shevchenko and Serhiy Prytula.
The final surprise and finale of the evening was the moment when Jackie pulled back the curtain to reveal ‘I will Leave the Light On’ music star, Tom Walker.
On a sparkling stage styled as a Christmas wonderland, wearing his trademark beanie hat, Tom played a surprise gig for the town.
He played a sneak preview of a song he’d just written for Christmas.
It happened in a Perthshire community hall, with some older audience members unaware that this gentle bearded musician had entertained many thousands at Wembley Stadium earlier in the year.
Tearful Ukrainians were in the seats among school parents and community members.
Tom gamely posed for selfies with the astonished choir singers and everybody was asked to keep their amazing broadcast adventure quiet and off social media - until now.
“Keeping a secret from an entire town is the biggest challenge Scotland’s People has yet attempted,” said Jackie Bird.
“But I’m pleased to say it paid off.
“The remarkable achievements of so many Aberfeldy residents deserved a big thank you, and Tom Walker didn’t need to be asked twice to be our star performer. I hope it was a night to remember for all concerned.”
Speaking of the Scotland’s People programme, Jackie said: “We are saying thank you to people who do so much for others, often without a thought for themselves. Their stories are so inspiring and it is lovely at this time of the year to acknowledge what they have done for their communities across Scotland. And this year we are going bigger than before with our surprises. We are highlighting the amazing stories and achievements of people from Shetland to Inverness and Glasgow, from Elgin to East Lothian and even a whole town in Perthshire. Many of those featured have said that ‘the surprise’ was a life-changing moment, which is terrific.
“We are putting our Scotland’s People centre stage with surprises, which we hope will astonish and delight them.”
The programme ‘Scotland’s People 2022: A Thank You’ goes out on Tuesday, December 20 at 8pm on BBC One Scotland.
