A new arts venue in the Carse of Gowrie held its opening performance at the weekend.
The Byre at Inchyra, home of Inchyra Arts Club, has already been hailed by North Tayside MSP John Swinney, who said he felt it would have a very “positive effect” on the community.
Lord and Lady Inchyra, James and Caroline, are behind the club, one of the businesses working to help support and maintain the historic grade A listed, Regency house and estate.
The club is housed in a refurbished cattle byre dating back to 1877 on the Inchyra Estate, near Perth, after significant investment to restore the building.
The byre building was in a poor condition when work started in 2012. Now its feature vaulted timber roof and rough stone and wood walls have been restored and it has the capacity for 600 people standing, 450 for theatre-style performances and 240 people for table-seated events.
The project has been backed by David Littlejohn, head of planning and regeneration at Perth and Kinross Council.
He described the project as “one of the most exciting additions to Perthshire’s leisure and business tourism portfolio for some time”.
The venue is a multi-functional space and sits in 150 acres of private park and woodland.
Comedians, cabaret artists and performers from around the world are already scheduled to come to the Inchyra Arts Club in the autumn.
The club will announce its full programme for the season shortly.
Caroline Inchyra said the renovation of the byre was “a long, challenging project” but she feels the arts club will be known as a “cultural gem” in Scotland.
Mr Swinney opened the new club on Friday, with Glasgow indie band Kassidy playing the venue on Saturday the performance marking the first official booking for the club.
The SNP politician said: “This is an outstanding example of forward thinking investment utilising traditional resources.
“By encouraging visitors into this beautiful part of Scotland, both the Byre at Inchyra and the Inchyra Arts Club will have a very positive effect for the community, creating opportunities for a diverse range of local businesses.
“This is a really exciting venture and I wish them every success.”
Membership of the Inchyra Arts Club is currently free.
Membership is not a requirement for booking tickets but members will receive a number if benefits, including information about forthcoming events, early booking discounts and invitations to special members-only events.