Queenstown a piping-hot venue

After judging the inaugural Queenstown Pipe Band Championships late last month, world champion pipe major Richard Parkes, from Northern Ireland, will beat the drum for the resort to host future major comps.

Parkes (above), who took his Lisburn-based Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band to a world record-breaking 13th world championship title in 2022, was originally coming to New Zealand to judge the nationals in Auckland in a week’s time.

However, the 64-year-old —whose band won its first world champs in 1992 — jumped at the chance to come to the Queenstown champs, because of fond memories from his first visit in ’09.

"It’s a beautiful destination for a pipe band competition, so it would be excellent to have a major competition here.

"I’ll definitely help spread the word about how great a venue Queenstown is."