Stranraer ( , in Scotland also ; gd, An t-Sròn Reamhar ), also known as The Toon, is a town in

Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the counties of Scotland, historic counties of ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

. It is located in the historical parish of

Inch Measuring tape with inches The inch (symbol: in or ″) is a unit of length in the British imperial and the United States customary systems of measurement. It is equal to yard or of a foot. Derived from the Roman uncia ("twelfth") ...

in the historic county of Wigtownshire. It lies on the shores of Loch Ryan, on the northern side of the isthmus joining the Rhins of Galloway to the mainland. Stranraer is

's second-largest town, with a population including the immediate surrounding area of nearly 13,000 inhabitants. Stranraer is an administrative centre for the West Galloway Wigtownshire area of Dumfries and Galloway. It was formerly a ferry port, connecting Scotland with

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingd ...

and Larne in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. North ...

; the last service was transferred to nearby Cairnryan in November 2011. It lies by road southwest of

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated pop ...

, miles southwest of Ayr and to the west of

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; sco, Dumfries; from gd, Dùn Phris ) is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is located near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth about by road from ...

. The name comes from Scottish Gaelic '' An t-Sròn Reamhar'' meaning "the broad headland" or "the fat nose".

History

The Battle of Loch Ryan was fought near Stranraer on 9/10 February 1307 during the Scottish Wars of Independence. King

Robert I of Scotland Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (Scottish Gaelic: ''Raibeart an Bruis''), was King of Scots from 1306 to his death in 1329. One of the most renowned warriors of his generation, Robert eventuall ...

's invasion of his ancestral lands in Annandale and

Carrick Carrick is an Anglicised version of ''creag/carraig'', Gaelic for "rock", and may refer to: People *Carrick (surname) * Donnchadh, Earl of Carrick (died 1250), Scottish Mormaer and first Earl of Carrick * Marjorie of Carrick (1256–1292), ...

began in 1307. The Annandale and Galloway invasion force was led by his brothers

Alexander de Brus Alexander de Brus (c. 1285 – 17 February 1307), Dean of Glasgow, was a younger brother of King Robert I of Scotland, who supported his brother in the struggle for the crown of Scotland. He was captured by forces at Loch Ryan, Galloway, Scotland ...

and Thomas de Brus, Malcolm McQuillan, Lord of Kintyre, an Irish sub-king and Sir Reginald de Crawford. The force consisted of 1,000 men and 18 galleys. They sailed into Loch Ryan and landed near Stranraer. The invasion force was quickly overwhelmed by local forces, led by

Dungal MacDouall Dungal MacDouall (died before 1327/1328) was a fourteenth-century Scottish nobleman, and a member of the MacDouall family. He was a vigorous opponent of Robert I, King of Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence, and was knighted ...

, who was a supporter of the Balliols, Comyns and King Edward I of England, and only two galleys escaped. All the leaders were captured. MacDouall summarily executed the Irish sub-king and Malcolm McQuillan, Lord of Kintyre. Alexander, Thomas and Reginald de Crawford were sent to Carlisle, England, where they were executed. The heads of McQuillan and two Irish chiefs were sent to King Edward I. On 12 November 1595, the "Clashant of Stranrawer" was named part of Ninian Adair's lands of Barony and in 1596 was erected into a burgh of barony, the Barony of Kinhilt. This is recorded in the Register of the Great Seal of Scotland. The partial translation into English is:

At Linlithgow, 12 November 1595, the King confirms and for faithful service again dedicates to Ninian Adair of Kinhilt, and the legitimate male heirs of his body, which failing his nearest legitimate male heirs whosoever bear the name and insignia of Adair various lands....In addition, the King creates the village at Clauchane de Stranraer as a free burgh of the barony with a free port, called the Burgh and Port of Stranraer; and the said Ninian etc shall have the authority to appoint a bailiff, treasurer,
Dean of Guild A Dean of Guild, under Scots law, was one of a group of burgh magistrates who, in later years, had the care of buildings. The leader of the group was known as Lord Dean of Guild. Originally, the post was held by the head of the Guild brethren o ...
, magistrate, burgesses, officials etc; and the burgesses shall have the authority and leave to pack and unpack eaning the selling of bulk merchandise (wholesale trade) allowed by law only by free men in a free burgh to buy and sell lso allowed only in a free burghetc; ..and the said Ninian etc shall have authority to hold the position of governor of the said burgh, ..to hold weekly markets on Saturday, with free (untaxed) market days twice a year, viz Saint Barnabas' day the 11th of June, and at Peter's Imprisonment called Lammas on the 1st of August, ..and the said Ninian etc shall have authority over all the port customs of the said burgh raised by sea or land among the land tenents of the said burgh and support of the said port; and the said Ninian etc shall have authority to receive resignations of lands of the said burgh etc .e. recover his lands from towns people who choose to sell them or give them up from those persons whatsoever who chose to dispose of them; the townspeople may meet three times a week on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

By 1600, Stranraer had become the market town for western Wigtownshire. Around this time, Stranraer was reached by a military road built from

to allow easier access to Portpatrick for transportation of people to Ireland for the

Plantation of Ulster The Plantation of Ulster ( gle, Plandáil Uladh; Ulster-Scots: ''Plantin o Ulstèr'') was the organised colonisation (''plantation'') of Ulstera province of Irelandby people from Great Britain during the reign of King James I. Most of the sett ...

. Stranraer became a royal burgh in 1617. The first harbour in Stranraer was built in the mid-18th century, with further port development in the 1820s. The arrival of the railway from Dumfries in 1861 (closed 1965), giving the shortest journey to/from London, finally established Stranraer as the area's main port. In 1862, the line was extended to serve the harbour directly, and a link to Portpatrick was also opened. In 1877, a rail connection north to Girvan and

was also established. Stranraer remained the main Scottish port for the Irish ferries for the next 150 years or so. On 31 January 1953, 133 people died when the '' Princess Victoria'' sank near Belfast Lough after its car deck was swamped by heavy seas. Stranraer and its surrounding area saw a significant amount of activity during the Second World War, as it became a focus for anti-U-boat work. Flying boats operated from the area in an attempt to secure the waters of the North Channel and the south western coast of Scotland. Almost all of Britain's shipping imports passed through those two sea areas en route to the Clyde or the Mersey. Indeed, the flying boat '' Supermarine Stranraer'' is named after the town. Winston Churchill himself departed from Stranraer in a Boeing Flying Boat on the night of 25 June 1942, when making his second visit of the war to the United States. Churchill also spent time at nearby Knockinaam Lodge during the war years. Stranraer has an active local history trust, which publishes work on the area's history, commissioned from local authors.

Transport

The A77 runs north towards Ayr, Prestwick and

. The A75 runs east from Stranraer to Gretna, with links to the M6 going to Carlisle. The A75 is part of European route E18, but, like all European routes, it is not signposted as such in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The main national coach providers operate services from Stranraer. National Express offer a service to London, and Scottish Citylink (in association with

Ulsterbus Ulsterbus is a public transport operator in Northern Ireland and operates bus services outside Belfast. It is part of Translink, the brand name for the subsidiary operating companies of the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company, which also ...

) operate services to

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. Local transport in and around the town is provided by Stagecoach Western, and local companies, including McCulloch's Coaches. Stranraer railway station is the southern terminus for one of the branch lines of the Glasgow South Western Line. Trains are provided by

ScotRail ScotRail Trains Limited, trading as ScotRail ( gd, Rèile na h-Alba), is a Scottish train operating company that is publicly owned by Scottish Rail Holdings on behalf of the Scottish Government. It has been operating the ScotRail franchise a ...

daily to Ayr, Glasgow Central, and

Kilmarnock Kilmarnock (, sco, Kilmaurnock; gd, Cill Mheàrnaig (IPA: ʰʲɪʎˈveaːɾnəkʲ, "Marnock's church") is a large town and former burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland and is the administrative centre of East Ayrshire, East Ayrshire Council. ...

. From

Stranraer Stranraer ( , in Scotland also ; gd, An t-Sròn Reamhar ), also known as The Toon, is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is located in the historical parish of Inch in the historic county of Wigtownshire. It lies on the shores of L ...

connections to the West Coast Main Line, can be made at Glasgow Central, or traveling via Ayr,

to Carlisle. Onward trains from either Glasgow Central or Carlisle connect direct to London Euston and other destinations such as

Manchester Piccadilly Manchester Piccadilly is the principal railway station in Manchester, England. Opened as Store Street in 1842, it was renamed Manchester London Road in 1847 and became Manchester Piccadilly in 1960. Located to the south-east of Manchester city ...

, Crewe and Birmingham New Street. In November 2011,

Stena Line Stena Line is a Swedish shipping line company and one of the largest ferry operators in the world. It services Denmark, Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden. Stena Line is a major unit of Ste ...

relocated its ferry services to a new port at Old House Point, north of Cairnryan, which is a few miles north of Stranraer. The existing port in Stranraer may be redeveloped with the departure of Stena Line; proposals to build a transport hub have been made. Both Campbeltown Airport and Glasgow Prestwick Airport, at around , are the closest airports in Scotland to Stranraer. Belfast City Airport in Northern Ireland is distant.

Economy

The main industries in the area are the ferry port, with associated industries, tourism and, more traditionally, farming.

Redevelopment

The

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been ...

was partly financing "The Stranraer and Loch Ryan Waterfront Project" to regenerate the area. At an estimated cost of £1.29m, the Castle Square development was the first phase of the redevelopment of Stranraer town centre and significantly changed the flow of traffic, with Castle Street and George Street both being narrowed in a bid to be more pedestrian friendly. By January 2010, work on the streets around the town centre was complete, with the streets around the Castle of St John re-paved and re-profiled. The Castle Square was formally unveiled in March 2011 and has so far hosted a range of activities, including music and family events. Stranraer is currently undergoing redevelopment in the South Central Area (known as Dick's Hill, Ochtrelure and the southern part of Liddesdale Road area into the Gallow Hill).

Historic and notable buildings

The Castle of St John is a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

tower house, built around 1500 by the Adairs of Kilhilt. It has been used as a home, a court, a prison, and a military garrison, the last during

the Killing Time The Killing Time was a period of conflict in Scottish history between the Presbyterian Covenanter movement, based largely in the south west of the country, and the government forces of Kings Charles II and James VII. The period, roughl ...

in the 1680s. The Old Town Hall, built in 1776, now houses the Stranraer Museum with its displays of

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...

Wigtownshire and the town's polar explorers, Sir John Ross and his nephew James Clark Ross. The town is also home to the

North West Castle North West Castle is a 19th-century four star country house hotel in Stranraer, Dumfries and Galloway, in the south west of Scotland. It is noteworthy for being the home of Sir John Ross, a famous Scottish rear admiral and Arctic explorer. Ros ...

, built in 1820 and the first hotel in the world with its own indoor curling ice rink.

Tourist attractions

Other local tourist attractions include: * Ardwell Gardens – landscape gardens * Castle Kennedy Gardens – a garden between two lochs, noted for its rhododendrons, azaleas and embothriums in the grounds of Lochinch Castle, the seat of the Earls of Stair. * Glenluce Abbey – a 12th century Cistercian monastery. *Glenwhan Gardens – a garden near Dunragit. * Logan Botanic Garden, near Port Logan village – one of the four sites of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. * Mull of Galloway – the most southerly point of Scotland, with a lighthouse, visitor centre and

RSPB The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a Charitable_organization#United_Kingdom, charitable organisation registered in Charity Commission for England and Wales, England and Wales and in Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, ...

bird reserve. * Portpatrick – small fishing town *The Robert the Bruce Trail begins at Loch Ryan, near Stranraer. * Southern Upland Way – a coast-to-coast path between Portpatrick and Cockburnspath. * Whithorn – with its relics of St Ninian. * Wigtown – Scotland's national book town.

Education

The town of Stranraer has five primary schools: Belmont, Park, Rephad, Sheuchan and St. Joseph's R.C., while villages in the local area usually have their own local school or nursery. The secondary school,

Stranraer Academy Stranraer Academy is a secondary school in Stranraer in south west Scotland. It serves the area of Stranraer, the Rhins, and parts of the Machars. The original Stranraer Academy was opened in 1845 on the site of the present Stranraer Campus of ...

, is a comprehensive school consisting of one modern building (New Building Phase 2 completed in 2010). The school has around 1,200 pupils, 90 members of staff and serves the area of Stranraer, the Rhins, and parts of the Machars, Wigtownshire. Stranraer Academy has another seven associated primary schools from areas outwith Stranraer: Glenluce, Castle Kennedy, Drummore, Kirkcolm, Leswalt, Sandhead and Portpatrick. The original

was opened in 1845 on the site of the present Stranraer Campus of Dumfries and Galloway College. In 1965, a new Academy (B Block) was built alongside a new High School (A Block) and in 1970 the schools amalgamated.

Dumfries and Galloway College Dumfries and Galloway College is a further education college in Dumfries and Galloway, with campuses in Dumfries and Stranraer Stranraer ( , in Scotland also ; gd, An t-Sròn Reamhar ), also known as The Toon, is a town in Dumfries and G ...

has a campus in the town. In 1990, the John Niven Further Education College was built on Academy Street in the town; it has since been absorbed into the Dumfries and Galloway College.

Sport

The town is the home of

Stranraer F.C. Stranraer Football Club is a Scottish semi-professional football club based in the town of Stranraer in Dumfries and Galloway. The club was founded in 1870, making it the third-oldest football club in Scotland behind Queen's Park and Kilmarnoc ...

, the local semi-professional football team who play at

Stair Park Stair Park is a public park and football stadium in the town of Stranraer, Scotland and is the home of Stranraer F.C. It is owned by Dumfries and Galloway Council and is situated next to the London Road and the railway line in the town. The pa ...

. They currently play in the Scottish League Two. The rugby team Wigtownshire RFC are based in the town, playing at London Road Playing Fields, opposite Stair Park and are currently in West League Division 2. Also at Stair Park are

BMX BMX, an abbreviation for bicycle motocross or bike motocross, is a cycle sport performed on BMX bikes, either in competitive BMX racing or freestyle BMX, or else in general street or off-road recreation. History BMX began during the earl ...

and

skateboarding Skateboarding is an extreme sport, action sport originating in the United States that involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry Profession, job, and a ...

ramps, and all-weather tennis and netball courts. The town also has a swimming pool (with flume), fitness suite, gymnasium and large sports hall at the council-run Ryan Centre, as well as other football fields, parks and all-weather multi-purpose pitches. Throughout the years, Stranraer has also been a centre of excellence for Scottish curling. The town boasts the first hotel in the world with an indoor curling ice rink (

), and was the birthplace of Hammy McMillan, a World Champion curler, and current resident. The town is host to a number of annual curling championships, including the Scottish Ladies Curling Championship and the World Juniors Curling Championship. In 2019 the Scottish Coastal Rowing world championships, Skiffieworld, was held at Stranraer between 7 and 13 July. Over 50 clubs raced St Ayles Skiffs during the week.

Public services

NHS Dumfries and Galloway provides healthcare services in the town. The

Galloway Community Hospital The Galloway Community Hospital is a small hospital in Stranraer, Galloway, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Dumfries and Galloway NHS Dumfries and Galloway is an NHS board serving the Dumfries and Galloway region. It is one of the fourteen reg ...

opened in 2006 and replaced the Garrick and Dalrymple hospitals of the town. GP services are based in the Waverly Medical Centre, adjacent to the new hospital. The town has several care homes for the elderly, the biggest being Thorneycroft on the edges of the town, run by the CIC company.

Districts

*Ailsa Gait *Ailsa View *Bishopburn *Ochtrelure *Sheuchan Parks / Liddesdale *Stair *Stranraer Town *West End

Outer districts

*Auchtrelure *Blackparks *Culhorn *Gallowhill *Inchparks *Innermessan *Sandmill *Soulseat

Media

Local newspaper the ''

Stranraer and Wigtownshire Free Press The Stranraer and Wigtownshire Free Press is a local weekly newspaper based in Stranraer, Rhins Rhins may refer to: * Rhins of Galloway, peninsula in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland * Jules Léon Dutreuil de Rhins (1846 –1894), French geograp ...

'' is based and was previously printed in the town's St Andrews Street. The ''Galloway Gazette'' also covers the town and surrounding area. Stranraer falls in the

ITV Border ITV Border, previously Border Television and commonly referred to as simply Border, is the Channel 3 service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the England/Scotland border region, covering most of Cumbria, Dumfries and Galloway, the S ...

television area. The nearest radio station is based in

; however, the nearest local station is based in

West Sound FM Westsound is an Independent Local Radio station based in Glasgow, Scotland, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio Network. It broadcasts to Dumfries and Galloway. Overview Westsound in Dumfries and Galloway is one of t ...

broadcasts at 96.5 FM in the town.

In popular culture

*The song "Cap in Hand" by The Proclaimers says "I can understand why Stranraer lie so lowly, they could save a lot of points by signing Hibs' goalie", a reference to goalkeeper Andy Goram, and to Stranraer FC's poor league position at the time the song was written. *In the fourth episode of the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of Talk radio, spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history fro ...

series '' Knowing Me, Knowing You... with Alan Partridge'', one of the guests was the 'Duchess of Stranraer'. No such title exists. *Stranraer has featured in Peter Kay's

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

'' Phoenix Nights'' series, albeit only by name. One character, Alan, is said to be stuck in Stranraer with his lorry and not at the club.Phoenix Nights
/ref> *BBC TV series ''2000'' ''Acres of Sky'' (starring Paul Kaye & ex-''Eastenders'' star Michelle Collins was filmed in and around Stranraer (the village used for many exteriors in the show was Port Logan, approx. to the south on coast).

Notable people

* Vicki Adams, Olympic medalist in curling * Richard Arkless, former MP * David Broadfoot, hero of the 1953 ''Princess Victoria'' sinking *

Sir James Caird James Caird may refer to: * Sir James Caird (politician) (1816–1892), Scottish writer and politician * Sir James Caird, 1st Baronet, of Belmont Castle (1837–1916), Scottish jute baron and philanthropist who sponsored Ernest Shackleton's ''Endur ...

, agricultural writer and politician * Colin Calderwood, football player and manager * James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of Stair, jurist and author of the Institutions of the Laws of Scotland * John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of Stair, sat as MP for the Burgh of Stranraer in the 1689 Convention Parliament * Craig Hamilton, rugby player * Thomas Hamilton, recipient of the Victoria Cross *

Ryan Hardie Ryan Hardie (born 17 March 1997) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Plymouth Argyle. Hardie started his career with Rangers, and was loaned by them to Raith Rovers, St Mirren and Livingston. In July 2019 he move ...

, footballer *

Emma Harper Emma Harper is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. She has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the South Scotland region since the 2016 Scottish Parliament election. Early life Harper was born and raised on a farm n ...

, MSP * Leander Starr Jameson, leader of the Jameson Raid, a precursor of the Second Boer War, and Prime Minister of the Cape Colony, and editor of the ''Wigtownshire Free Press'' *

Robert William Jameson Robert William Jameson, WS (27 September 1805 – 10 December 1868), was a Scottish Writer to the Signet in Edinburgh, Town Councillor, newspaper editor, poet and playwright. He was the father of Sir Leander Starr Jameson, South African states ...

, author, editor of the ''Wigtownshire Free Press'', and father of Leander Starr Jameson * Allan Jenkins, footballer * Sir John Noble Kennedy, army officer, author and colonial governor *

William King William King may refer to: Arts *Willie King (1943–2009), American blues guitarist and singer *William King (author) (born 1959), British science fiction author and game designer, also known as Bill King *William King (artist) (1925–2015), Ame ...

, writer of a number of science fiction and fantasy books most notably in Games Workshop's Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 series. * Keith Knox, footballer *

Kevin Kyle Kevin Alastair Kyle (born 7 June 1981) is a Scottish retired footballer and media personality who played as a centre forward. He played for eleven senior clubs in his career. Kyle gained ten full Scotland international caps and scored one goal. ...

, footballer *

Allan Little James Allan Stuart Little (born 11 October 1959) is a former BBC researcher, reporter and, latterly, special correspondent. He left the BBC at the end of 2014, "to pursue other projects". Early life Little was born on 11 October 1959 in Dunragit, ...

, BBC foreign correspondent * John Livingstone, minister banished to Rotterdam * John Claudius Loudon, landscape gardener and horticultural writer, who laid out the grounds at Castle Kennedy in 1841 * Rory Loy, footballer * Robert McDouall, officer, Napoleonic Wars * William McFadzean, Baron McFadzean, industrialist and President of the Federation of British Industries * Hammy McMillan, World Curling Champion, 1999 *

Shaun McSkimming Shaun McSkimming (born 29 May 1970 in Stranraer) is a Scottish former footballer who played as a left-sided attacking midfielder for Dundee, Kilmarnock, Motherwell and Peterhead in Scotland as well as Atlanta Silverbacks in the USA. Club car ...

, footballer * James Mavor, economist, economic historian and Professor of Political Economy and Constitutional History at the University of Toronto * Sir Robert Pringle, Director-General Army Veterinary Corps 1910-1917 * John Rennie, naval architect * Sir John Ross, polar explorer * David Speirs, Australian politician * Dame Leslie Strathie, Chief Executive of HM Revenue and Customs * Peter Wilson, World Junior Curling champion, 1981 *

Vicky Wright Victoria Wright (born 15 August 1993) is a retired Scottish curler from Stranraer, and 2022 Olympic Champion in women's curling, playing third on Team Muirhead. Career Before playing for Muirhead, Wright curled for Hannah Fleming. She was ...

, Olympic curler

Climate

Like most of the United Kingdom, Stranraer has an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

( Köppen: ''Cfb''). The nearest weather station to Stranraer is located at RAF West Freugh, around 5 miles (8 km) to the south of Stranraer.

Gallery

Image:Panoramic view of Stranraer, Scotland.jpg, Panoramic view of Stranraer, as viewed from Gallowhill Image:Stranraer from NE.jpg, Stranraer and the shores of Loch Ryan, viewed from north-east end of town. Image:Stranraer Close Up.JPG, Part of the Dick's Hill area taken from the Gallowhill area 2008 File:Stranraer Castle.jpg, Stranraer Castle (Castle of St John). Image:Johnniven.jpg, Dumfries and Galloway College's Stranraer Campus, 2008 File:Stranraer Station - geograph.org.uk - 934303.jpg, Stranraer railway station. File:Innermessan, near Stranraer - geograph.org.uk - 1302313.jpg, Innermessan, near Stranraer.