King Auk - Film Premiere about the Papa Westray Great Auk
| Date | Thursday 29th October 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Time | 7:30 PM | |
| Doors Open | 7:00 PM | |
| Venue | High Street Baptist Church | |
About the Film: King Auk
In May 1813, on the remote Orkney island of Papa Westray, a local hunter collected a flightless seabird to fulfill a bounty placed by a private collector. That bird was one of the last breeding Great Auks in Britain. Today, its preserved remains are held as a long-term treasure within the Natural History Museum—one of the oldest and most historic specimens in its collection.
*King Auk* follows the six-year journey to create a life-sized bronze memorial on the clifftops of Papa Westray, crafted using high-resolution 3D digital scans of the fragile museum specimen. Bringing together the voices of islanders, scientists, and curators, the film weaves a captivating historical mystery with a stark, contemporary warning about human impact on wildlife.
About Brian McClave & The Natural History Museum at Tring
Brian McClave is an acclaimed filmmaker and artist known for combining scientific detail with evocative, narrative storytelling. His documentary work frequently explores time, place, and environmental memory through visually striking cinematography.
The Natural History Museum at Tring was originally built in 1889 to house the private collection of Lionel Walter, 2nd Lord Rothschild. Today, as part of the Natural History Museum, it houses one of the world's finest collections of bird specimens and research archives, standing as an international center for ornithological study and historical conservation.