Vote for Skara Brae!

Orkney’s Neolithic village of Skara Brae has been shortlisted as Heritage Site of the Year in the latest BBC Countryfile Magazine Awards.

Orkney’s Neolithic village of Skara Brae has been shortlisted as Heritage Site of the Year in the latest BBC Countryfile Magazine Awards.

The 5,000 year old settlement is the only Scottish visitor attraction in the running for the title. It was nominated alongside the likes of Stonehenge and Durham Cathedral by bestselling author, Bill Bryson.

Now Skara Brae needs your help to top the list! Members of the public have until the 28th of February to cast their votes online and help choose a winner.

Orkney's Neolithic village of Skara Brae - image by Paul Tomkins


The village was discovered in the 1850s following a great storm that battered the nearby Bay of Skaill. Excavations revealed a stunning network of homes, complete with stone-built furnishings and linked by a communal passage.

Nowadays it is part of the Heart of Neolithic Orkney UNESCO World Heritage Site and can be toured daily. It’s a fascinating place to explore and gives a unique insight into the lives of ancient Orcadians.

Describing his nomination, Bill Bryson said: ‘Orkney has the greatest concentration of archaeological sites in Scotland, but none is more arresting than this miraculously preserved Neolithic village. The eight stone dwellings are roofless but otherwise intact. They are older than Stonehenge and the Great Pyramids of Egypt and yet they feel as if they were vacated only yesterday.’

You can tour the buildings and their incredible furnishings all year round - image by Colin Keldie


To vote for Skara Brae in the Heritage Site of the Year category, visit the official BBC Countryfile Magazine Awards website before midnight on the 28th of February.

The winners will be announced online in March and will feature in the May edition of the magazine.

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