60 years at the top

This week at the City Chambers

Weekend demo at the Russian Consulate

Community Cafes launch loyalty card

Murrayfield Madge-ic

Today marks the 60th anniversary since Queen Elizabeth II became Queen on the death of her father, George VI. The Reporter was very pleased to be one of the first to view the fabulous set of 60 photographs on display at Windsor Castle at the weekend. Windsor, along with Holyrood Palace and Buckingham Palace, is one of the three official royal residences. The photographs show the monarch at various times since 1952 in a variety of poses, but often informally with a horse or a dog alongside. Few of us will ever be photographed as often as she has been throughout her life, and this exhibition is a remarkable record of one person’s life, as well as a record of a changing Britain. In one of the later photos, the Queen is shown right in the centre of a crowd at the races, in what must have been an unthinkable environment at the beginning of her reign. You can see some of the photographs here on the BBC website. 

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The City of Edinburgh Council has a big week coming up with the budget meeting on Thursday morning at 10a.m.

Other meetings include The City of Edinburgh Licensing Forum on Tuesday 7 February 2012 at 2.00 pm in the Octagon Room, City Chambers, High Street and The Planning Local Review Body on Wednesday 8 February 2012 at the City Chambers at 10 a.m.

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Well for those of you who were not aware that we had one, we do. A Russian Consulate that is. Except that if you read the STV news website you might well think that it is situated at Fettes… In their bid for a suitable photograph of the Russian Consulate which is actually in Melville Street, their weekend photo editor found a snap of Lothian and Borders HQ. Apparently the police comment on the weekend demonstration outside the consulate was enough to merit a view of the Lothian and Borders Police HQ’s front door. The protesters were making their views known on the Russian veto of the UN Security Council resolution on Syria.

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The Edinburgh Community Café Network is launching a loyalty card scheme to encourage people to eat healthily and visit new community cafes.

With 20 community cafes across the city participating in the scheme there is a diverse and varied selection of cafes to choose from. Customers can rest assured that they will find a friendly and welcoming environment selling good food and drink at a good price. Every café in the network gives any profit made back to a community.

Some cafes are ideal for younger people Dr Bells Family Centre café for example with their 50p meal for under 5s! Some have events and exhibitions such as Art Beat Café at North Edinburgh Arts.

Customers get their loyalty card stamped each time they buy a soup with a roll in any of the participating cafes. After five stamps have been collected their sixth portion will be free in exchange for the completed card. If they manage to collect each of the five stamps from a different café and write their contact details on the card they’ll be entered into a prize draw to win a fantastic fruit basket! Find out more about the network at www.edinburghcommunitycafes.org.uk

Edinburgh Community Cafes has been working together for over a year with the launch of its website in early 2011. The network supports cafes to learn from each other and access training for staff and volunteers.

The Reporter is going out at noon today to meet up with the other two members of the Cake-Off Team to try out one of these cafes so we will report back on what we find.

Coordinator of the Edinburgh Community Café Network, Lyndsey McLellan, said: “Edinburgh Communities cafes are going from strength to strength. In more difficult financial times people are looking for ways to make their money go further and discovering the wealth of community cafes out there.

With profits going to help a community whether it is local or far away they are getting an added extra with their meal. This scheme will reward regular community café customers and hopefully allow a few more people to discover what they are missing”

Perc U Up Café Manager, Marion Stout said: “I think the scheme will be really great for getting people into the cafes. It’s something new and a bit different for the new year.”

Participating Cafes

· Art Beat Café, 15a Pennywell Court EH4 4TZ

· Butterflies, 1A Kilgraston Road, Marchmont EH9 1TZ

· Café Broma, 548 Gilmerton Road EH17 7JD

· Café Life, 2 Cheyne Street EH4 1JB

· Captain Taylor’s Coffee House, 18 South Bridge EH1 1LL

· CORE World Café, 15a Pennywell Court EH4 4TZ

· Crescent Kitchen, 79/89 Broomhouse Crescent EH11 3RH

· Dr Bells Family Centre Café, 15 Junction Place, 15 Junction Place, EH6 5JA

· Drill Hall Arts Café, Out of the Blue, 36 Dalmeny Street

· Fairtrade Café, Edinburgh University Chaplaincy Centre, 1 Bristo Square EH8 9AL

· Gorgie Farm Café, 51 Gorgie Road EH11 2LA

· Hub Grub Café, 198 Restalrig Road South EH7 6DZ

· Muirhouse Millennium Centre Café 7, Muirhouse Medway Edinburgh EH4 4RW

· Newhaven Connections, 7 Craighall Road, Edinburgh EH6 4ND

· Perc U Up café, South Leith Parish Church Halls 6 Henderson Street Edinburgh, EH6 6BS

· Punjab N’De Rasoi, 122/124 Leith Walk EH6 5DT

· Southside Community Centre Café, 117 Nicolson Street EH8 9ER

· Square Centre, 25 Nicolson Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9BX

· St Brides Centre Café

· The Bridge Café, 2 Hailesland Place, Westerhailes EH14 2SL

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News broke over the weekend that following all the stars who played there on Saturday in Scotland’s Calcutta Cup defeat, Madonna is ready to get on the pitch at Murrayfield. Except that she wants to charge anyone buying a ticket £200 each for the privilege, according to The Daily Record.  We don’t think well bother Madge. We liked your old stuff anyway, and we have that on iTunes….

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