Whether it considers historical re-enactment to constitute a form of theatre in terms of the 2007 Custodial Sentences and Weapons (Scotland…

Section 61 of the Custodial Sentences and Weapons (Scotland) Act 2007 enables the Scottish ministers to prohibit the manufacture, sale, hire, etc. of swords, and to provide defences for religious, cultural and sporting purposes. No such prohibitions or defences are yet in place. The policy memorandum for the bill made it clear that use relating to historical re-enactment will be recognised as one of the defences. It is not relevant to these provisions whether historical re-enactment is a form of theatre.
However, section 60 of the Custodial Sentences and Weapons (Scotland) Act 2007 does refer to theatre, and will provide a new defence in section 141 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 relating to the manufacture, sale, hire, etc. of offensive weapons for the purposes of theatrical performances. Those defences will apply to all offences weapons covered by section 141.
The Custodial Sentences and Weapons (Scotland) Act 2007 does not change the law on the carrying of swords or other weapons in public. It is an offence under section 49 of the Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995 to have any article which has a blade or is sharply pointed in a public place without good reason or lawful authority. Any individual instance will be a matter for the police, and ultimately the courts, but having a sword for the purpose of historical re-enactment would generally appear to be a good reason. Under section 47 of the same act it is an offence to carry an offensive weapon, which might for example be an axe or pike. Section 47 also includes a defence of “reasonable excuse” which has generally been seen to include historical re-enactment.