Oddfellows procession in Fife is one of Scotland’s strangest Hogmanay events

Organised by the Newburgh Caledonian Lodge of Oddfellows - the only organisation of its kind in Scotland - it will see members dressed up in scary costumes for a torchlight procession with its youngest apprentice donning a mask and sitting backwards on a horse for the walk through the town.

The procession of oddly dressed fellows, which starts at 7:00pm, begins and ends at the steeple on the High Street, and continues a tradition that dates back to the 1800s. It is also a fundraiser with donations taken for local charities.

The Newburgh Caledonian Lodge of Oddfellows (NCLO) was formed in 1827 as a friendly society by visitors from Dundee, who came up the River Tay for their holidays.and the procession is its main event. The first torchlight procession was held in 1885. Over the years it has drawn thousands of visitors to Newburgh. The oddfellows, many in fancy dress, are led by a silver band and their trusty cuddie.

Anyone aged over 16 can become an oddfellow, and once a member they are an Oddfellow for life - the Newburgh group is one of the few surviving active Oddfellow lodges in the UK if not the world.

It promotes friendship, truth and love and brotherhood and says taking part in the Hogmanay event is “an experience never to be forgotten.”

Over the past decade, the charitable group has donated to Age Concern, Newburgh Old Folks Treat, and Newburgh Pensioners.