Friday in Edinburgh – What’s On Today

The Edinburgh Sketcher at Lauriston Castle: Sketching for Families. Special family sessions with the famous Edinburgh Sketcher! In this tour you will get the chance to learn speed sketching skills and time-saving solutions so that you can capture the world around you in ink and watercolour, no matter how much time you have. Make delightful drawings and be inspired to do more in the future! 10am or 1pm, Lauriston Castle, 2a Cramond Road South. Tickets cost £5 and must be booked in advance via the Usher Hall Box Office, in person, by calling 0131 228 1155 or online here. Please note that these sessions are intended for children and adults to experience together; children must be accompanied by at least one paying adult, and no child should be booked into a session alone. No adult unaccompanied by a child will be admitted – but there are two masterclasses for adults (over 16 years) on Saturday 15th August (£20 per person).

Record Breakers Quick-Change Challenge! 2pm, Blackhall Library, Hillhouse Road.

Summer Yoga: 10.30am-12 noon today and every Friday until 14th August, Eric Liddell Centre, 15 Morningside Road. £6/£5 (mats provided). For more information please contact fiona@ericliddell.org or call 0131 446 3321.

That’s Jammy: homemade jellies, jams and chutneys on sale from the Edinburgh-based makers. 2.30-6.30pm, Leith Walk Police Box, Croall Place.

Record Breakers Record Breaking Sports! Who can top the library’s leader board? For ages 5+ years. 2.30pm, Corstorphine Library, Kirk Loan.

The Water Hen: Kantor, Demarco and the Edinburgh Festival. The RSA premier’s newly discovered and hitherto unknown footage of an entire performance of Tadeusz Kantor’s seminal production of Stanislaw Ignacy Witkiewicz’s The Water Hen (Edinburgh 1972).  2015 is the ‘Year of Kantor‘ in Poland, being the centenary of his birth. Like several other eastern European artists, his work with Richard Demarco (in the 1972, 1973 and 1976 Edinburgh Festivals) established his international reputation. Accompanying the film will be six new filmed performances made in Edinburgh by three Polish-based and three Scottish-based artists, Zuzanna Janin, Karolina Kubik, Norbert Delman, Steven Anderson, Jedrzej Cichosz and Peter McRae. There will be a seated public preview of The Water Hen at 4pm today, Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, Scottish National Gallery, The Mound. (Free but booking is recommended – email info@royalscottishacademy.org); from Saturday 25th July it will be showing at the Finlay Room, Royal Scottish Academy, The Mound. Admission free; ends 5th September 2015.

Bo’ness & Kinneil Railway Summer Diesel Gala: an event primarily for diesel enthusiasts, with trains on the railway this weekend being hauled by some of the society’s impressive collection of diesel locomotives, and other locos on show. Relive the sights – and smells – of these great diesel engines of the Swinging Sixties, which took us to work and for days out at the seaside until the 1980s. Special timetables and fares will apply. The Station Buffet at Bo’ness will be open for delicious home made food each day, and there will be an on-train buffet serving snacks and real ale. Begins 5pm today, Bo’ness Station, Union Street, Bo’ness. Ends Sunday 25th July 2015 (last train departs Bo’ness 6pm). For details of timetables and tickets, please see the railway’s website here.

Gallery Social: Lee Miller and Picasso. A relaxed and informal guided tour with refreshments for anyone affected by dementia, their relatives, friends and supporters. 10.30am-12 noon, Scottish National Portrait Gallery, 1 Queen Street. To book a free place please contact the Information Desk on 0131 624 6560.

Abstract Art Attack: explore the possibilities and leave the rules behind! Join artist Erik Petrie for an introduction to abstract art, exploring the gallery’s fantastic collection. 2.30-4pm, City Art Centre, 2 Market Street. Tickets cost £4 and must be booked in advance via the Usher Hall Box Office, in person, by calling 0131 228 1155 or online here. Please note that this workshop is intended for children and adults to experience together; children must be accompanied by at least one paying adult, and no child should be booked into a workshop alone.

Museum of Edinburgh: The Holyrood Art Pottery of Henry Taylor Wyse (1879-1951) and the Museum of Edinburgh collection. The Holyrood Pottery existed for just ten years (1917-27) and was managed by Helann Wyse on behalf of her father, who was by then Principal Lecturer in Art at Moray House. This talk by former President of the Scottish Pottery Society Heather Jack will provide the background to the notable collection that Mrs Helann Wannop (nee Wyse) donated to the museum in the 1970s, and demonstrate the distinguished contribution made by Henry Wyse to the arts in Scotland. 10.30am, Museum of Edinburgh, Huntly House, 142 Canongate. Tickets cost £5/£3.50 and must be booked in advance via the Usher Hall Box Office, in person, by calling 0131 228 1155 or online here.

Record Breakers – Get Beachy! Painting sea shells and more sun-filled crafts. For all ages. 2.30-3.30pm, Stockbridge Library, Hamilton Place. Free.

Love Like Hate: Australians Heather Cheketri and Sonja Ter Horst bring their ‘catchy and slightly off kilter’ brand of alternative indie/rock/dark pop to Edinburgh. As part of Vegan Roadshow, Love Like Hate are touring the country with blogger and event planner Fat Gay Vegan; each stop of the tour will feature an information and merchandise desk by activist group Animal Equality. Tonight’s event will be a stripped-back ‘condensed’ version of Vegan Roadshow, with a short set from Love Like Hate followed by the chance to meet Fat Gay Vegan and activists from Animal Equality. 6.30pm, Word Power Books, West Nicolson Street. Free: all welcome – donations also welcome!

The Torrance Gallery Edinburgh Festival Exhibition: paintings by Joseph Maxwell Stuart, Janet McCrorie, Sonas Maclean, Shazia Mahmood, Lynn Rodgie, Stuart Herd and Tom Watt, with jewellery by Sheana Stephen. Opening tonight 5.30-8pm, then 11am-6pm Monday to Friday, 11am-1pm Saturdays, The Torrance Gallery, Dundas Street. Ends 22nd August 2015.

The Bluesbroker Experience: blues, acoustic and electric, with some classic rock for good measure. For over 18s only. 7.30pm, The Voodoo Rooms, West Register Street. Tickets cost £6 in advance or £7 on the door.

The Traditional Singing Weekend at Cullerlie. Your first opportunity to leave the city this weekend is an unusual one, bringing together traditional singers from Scotland, Ireland and England.  It’s especially for those who like to hear, enjoy and join in unaccompanied traditional singing in a friendly, informal and non-competitive environment. Guest singers include Francy Devine (Dublin), Bella Hardy (Derbyshire – BBC Folk Singer of the Year 2014) and Billy Jolly (Orkney), and the programme also offers ceilidhs, workshops, craft demos and a talk. Starts today at 7.30pm with the Come-All-Ye welcome, ends 5pm Sunday after the Farewell Concert, Cullerlie Farm Park, Skene, Aberdeenshire AB32 6XL. Tickets cost £28/£22 for the whole weekend, day tickets, camping and meal-inclusive tickets also available (no bar – BYOB). For full programme, booking form and accommodation options, click here.

The Wickerman: your second chance to get out of Edinburgh this weekend is quite different – the Wickerman Festival in Kircudbright offers a huge line-up with acts including The Waterboys, Squeeze, Lulu, The Vaselines, Bella and the Bear, Edinburgh’s own Withered Hand, – and lots, lots more. Plus the Wee Green Cinema, the Karaoke Taxi, mobile zip wire, Festival Circus, children’s activities (storytelling, singalongs, art, puppet shows) and a Retreat offering relaxing treatments and yoga. Street food, cakes, ice-cream – and the intriguing Granny Turismo, ‘the first and only granny shopping trolley dance display team’. The Wickerman Festival starts today at 12 noon (camping open from 12 noon on Thursday 23rd July) at East Kirkcarswell, Near Dundrennan. For full information, including programme and accommodation options (yes, the luxury yurt is in evidence…), see the festival’s website here.