Family Saturdays: Dessin-moi un petit phantome. At this third all-in-French Family Saturday event your children will be introduced, through cartoons, stories and drawings, to the wee ghosts created by Jacques Duquennoy. As ever there will also be a ‘gouter’ for everyone! For children aged 3-10 years. 12 noon-2pm, Institut francais d’Ecosse, 13 Randolph Crescent. £5 per child (£3 for members): advance booking is recommended and can be made by emailing accueil@ifecosse.org.uk.
St Brides Family Cinema: see your favourite films for free! Juice and choc ices available during the interval for 50p each. Please note: all children aged under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. This week: 101 Dalmatians (U) (original 1961 version). 10.30am-12.30pm (includes interval), St Brides Centre, Orwell Terrace, Dalry.
Institut francais d’Ecosse Open House Spring Session: explore the Institut’s activities, find out about courses for spring, meet the teachers, try a mini-taster course and enjoy a cafe gourmand – children can attend the Family Saturday (see above) at the same time. 12 noon-3pm, Institut francais d’Ecosse, 13 Randolph Crescent.
Children’s Spring Flower Show: the Eco-Schools Daffodil Competition is part of the RCHS Spring Flower Show. Come and see the floral displays and get involved in hands-on activities. 12 noon-5pm, Real Life Science Studio, John Hope Gateway, Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh, Inverleith Row. Free. Also at same times on Sunday 29th March 2015.
Royal Caledonian Horticultural Society Spring Flower Show: 12 noon-5pm, Fletcher Building, Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh, Inverleith Row. Entry £2, children and students with ID free. Also on Sunday 29th March 2015.
Lindt Gold Bunny Hunt: hop around the Gardens with the family this Easter, answer clues along the way and be rewarded with a delicious Easter chocolate treat. Pick up a trail map from the John Hope Gateway reception desk. From 10am today and every day until 6th April 2015, Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh, Inverleith Row. No booking required.
Earth Hour at Boda’s: a totally unplugged acoustic set from Lucas, illuminated only by candlelight. 8.30-9.30pm, Boda’s Bar, 229 Leith Walk.
The Rhubaba Choir Singing Workshop with Christopher Bruerton: Christopher Bruerton is a laid-back Kiwi who also happens to be a member of the internationally acclaimed vocal ensemble The King’s Singers. He is always keen to share his knowledge of ensemble singing with interested listeners: this session will focus on the key aspects of listening, breathing together and engaging with an audience. Using traditional Maori waitata and other folk songs, this will be an interactive day for everyone to participate in and enjoy! It doesn’t matter if you have been in a choir before or only sing in the shower – if you enjoy singing please come along and lend your voice. All are welcome, and lunch and refreshments will be served for everyone involved. 11am-3pm, Basic Mountain, 1a Hill Street. Suggested donation £5.
Tabla Alba and Students from the Sitar Project Present Mehboob Nadeem (sitar) and Vijay Kanguthar (Tabla) in an evening of the very best in Indian classical music, featuring two exceptional artists, both well known to Edinburgh audiences. 7.30pm, Reid Concert Hall, Bristo Square. Tickets cost £10 on the door or in advance from deepchandi108@gmail.com. Tabla Alba has been promoting Indian classical music in Scotland for over a decade; it promotes concerts, teaches in schools, runs evening classes and organises workshops. The Sitar Project began in 2005 and aims to support people who want to learn sitar in Scotland: it meets on Fridays at Tollcross Community Education Centre.
Calton Consort: Herbert Howells Requiem, Gyorgy Ligeti Lux Aeterna. 7.30pm, Canongate Kirk, 153 Canongate. Tickets cost £9/£7.
National Gallery Highlights Tours: an introduction to and tour of the National Gallery’s permanent collection, focusing on key paintings. 2-2.45pm or 3-3.45pm, Scottish National Gallery, The Mound. Free and unticketed.
LGBT: Trans* and/or Non-Binary Practical Skills Day: a relaxed and fun opportunity for anyone who is trans* and/or non-binary to take part in some practical activities and workshops in a safe and supportive space. Boost your confidence and explore your gender expression with the opportunity to socialise and meet new people. 11am-3pm – free but booking is essential and the location will be given to you when you book – contact jules@lgbthealth.ork.uk or click here to find out more and reserve your place.
South West Edinburgh Community Learning Partnership: ‘Legal Highs’. A drugs awareness information session for parents and carers, at which experts will help you to separate the myths from the facts about new psychoactive substances (NPS), many of which can be bought over the internet or in high street shops. 10.30am-12 noon, Community Room, Wester Hailes Library, 1 Westside Plaza, Wester Hailes. Free but please book by calling Anne or Christine on 0131 458 5959.
Linlithgow Green Film Festival: inspiring films and documentaries highlighting issues on the environment, climate change and sustainability. Today: Powerful: Tackling the spin of the big energy lobby and equally dispelling the myth of a ‘green utopia’, Powerful is a candid examination of what a sustainable future may actually look like. From amazing innovators and eccentric eco-activists to average communities completely powered by renewable energy, green economy educator David Chernushenko embarks on a global journey, discovering that the implications for political, economic and democratic change are right here on our doorsteps – or just above them. 7pm, Linlithgow Palace Undercroft, Linlithgow. Admission by suggested donation of £5. Soft drinks and locally made cakes will be available. This screening coincides with Earth Hour and will conclude with the switching off of the lights at Linlithgow Palace. Transition Linlithgow is a community-led charity that aims to make Linlithgow a more caring, sharing and resilient place to live, with a focus on finding a beneficial pathway towards a low-carbon future.
Out of the Blue Flea Market: over 45 stalls – small furniture, clothes, jewellery, books, music, bric a brac and more. Delicious coffee, cake and lunch available to purchase from the Drill Hall Arts Cafe. 10am-3pm, Out of the Blue Drill Hall, 36 Dalmeny Street.
Trad Talk: Crossing Points. Two of Scotland’s finest traditional singers, Kathleen MacInnes and Fiona Hunter, find musical crossing points, echoing across landscapes and centuries. An enchanting night of exchange and celebration between Scots and Gaelic, accompanied by multi-instrumentalist Mike Vass. 8pm, Netherbow Theatre, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street. Tickets cost £10/£8 and can be purchased online here or by calling the Box Office on 0131 556 9579. Attendees of Trad Talk may be entitled to a discount – ask at the Box Office.
Frank Walter: a major solo exhibition of the Antiguan outsider artist and self-styled ‘7th Prince of the West Indies, Lord of Follies and the Ding-a-Ding Nook’. Walter was born in Antigua in 1926; prodigiously talented as both an artist and writer, his undeniable genius was flawed by delusions of aristocratic grandeur. His gifts were the product of a fertile but fragile mind, and he spent the last 25 years of his life in an isolated shack on an Antiguan hillside, surrounded by his writings and the extraordinary paintings and carvings that speak with such an unmistakable voice and which announce the discovery of one of the most intriguing and distinctive Caribbean artists of the last 50 years. This exhibition will present the most comprehensive view yet of Frank Walter the artist, assembled from private collections and from the artist’s estate. 10am-6pm Monday to Saturday, Ingleby Gallery, 15 Calton Road. Ends 23rd May 2015.
Edinburgh University Renaissance Singers: German Music for Holy Week and Easter. Compositions by Lassus, Praetorius, Scheidt, Schein and Schutz, performed with period wind instruments. Director: Dr Noel O’Regan. 7.45pm, St Giles’ Cathedral, High Street. Tickets cost £8/£5.
Scots Music Group Ceilidh with Da Hooley. 7.30pm (dancing from 8pm), St Brides Centre, Orwell Terrace, Dalry. Tickets cost £8/£6 in advance from St Brides (0131 346 1405) or The Scots Music Group (0131 555 7668), £10/£8 on the door. Please note there will be a licensed bar and only alcohol purchased from it can be consumed on the premises: water will be freely available.
