In the Lauriston Castle Kitchen with Mrs Mash: join Mrs Mash the Storytelling Cook for stories, songs, games and food fun for all the family. Hear tales in the kitchen, make some homemade butter and add your own creative input to some very special fairy cakes … 10.30am-12.30pm, Lauriston Castle, 2a Cramond Road South. Tickets cost £6 per person and must be booked in advance via the Usher Hall Box Office, Lothian Road, in person, by calling 0131 228 1155 or online here. Please note that these sessions are intended for families working together: at least one paying adult must accompany your child, and no child should be booked into a session alone.
Filmhouse Junior: screenings for a younger audience. Today’s film is Inside Out (U) – the latest film from Disney-Pixar. 11am, Filmhouse, Lothian Road. Tickets cost £4 per person, big or small, and may be purchased from the Filmhouse box office in person, by calling 0131 228 2688 or online here.
Space for Reflection: Living with Environmental Challenge. Organised by the Environmental Physics Group of the Institute of Physics, this exhibition will look at the use of satellite imagery to reflect upon man’s impact on the earth, considered in the light of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) 5th Assessment Report, as well as presenting stunning earth images, and digital artistic interpretations. Today’s launch event will include a preview of the exhibition plus the opportunity to try your hand at analysing some images and to hear from scientists working in the field of environmental satellite imagery, with a talk by postgraduate student Xu Teo at 2.30pm. 11am-3pm today, then during normal opening hours, Penicuik Community Arts, West Street Arts Centre, 2-4 West Street, Penicuik. Free. The exhibition, which is part of the Midlothian Science Festival, will be open until the end of October.
The Balerno Music Festival continues today, when Purves Puppets present Pips and Panda and the Magic Egg. Pips and Panda are camping on the beach and Panda has built a big sand castle. They are about to have their tea when something odd happens and they notice something strange up in the sky. Find out what happens next! Please note all children must be accompanied by an adult. 2-4pm, St Joseph’s Hall, Balerno Parish Church. Tickets cost £7 (adult), £5 (child) or £15 (group of 3). For full details and tickets please visit the festival’s website here. The final part of this year’s festival will take place 6th-11th October; full details may be found on the website.
Greenpeace Edinburgh Eco Fair: come along to the Eco Fair and discover Edinburgh’s green companies and services. Stroll among over 25 stalls of planet-friendly gifts, treats and food – including East Coast Organics, RSPB, Creative Carbon Scotland, Remade in Edinburgh, Stop Climate Chaos, New Caledonian Woodlands, Tiphereth Camphill Edinburgh and Green Gift Company – plus crafts for children, all gathered under one roof. The Drill Hall Cafe will be open for delicious food and drink. 10am-4pm, Out of the Blue Drill Hall, 36 Dalmeny Street. Admission free.
Portobello Book Festival 2015: lots more bookish events today – sessions with Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones, Glasgow Women’s Library, Paul Burgess, Jim Crumley, Kay Sexton, Dennis Canavan, Fiona Ritchie, Sanjeev Singh Kohli and Billy Kay. Various venues around Portobello. All events are free but tickets are required and may be collected from Portobello Library, 14 Rosefield Avenue in advance. Some tickets may be available at venues 15 minutes before the start of some events. To see the full programme, with details of all venues, click here.
Gen Verde – Upfront and Unplugged: a concert of contemporary acoustic music to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Action of Churches Together in Scotland. Gen Verde is the international music group of the Folocare Movement. 6pm, Stockbridge Parish Church, Saxe Coburg Street. Tickets £7 on the door.
Fresh Fruit: Art Taster Workshops. Fresh Fruit is a programme of workshops designed with and for young people and based on current exhibitions. These drawing and sculpture workshops are led by trained young people and artist Louise Fraser. For ages 11-15. No experience is required. 4-6pm, The Fruitmarket Gallery, 45 Market Street. Free: to reserve your place please text or phone Caitlin on 07527 927 916 or 0131 226 8186 or email caitlin@fruitmarket.co.uk. For more information visit the Fresh Fruit blog here.
Edinburgh Spanish Film Festival: films for all tastes (‘from the foodies to the fanatics!’), primary and secondary school screenings, gastronomic evening and opening and closing events. Today’s films, all showing at Filmhouse, Lothian Road, are;
(1) at 1.05pm: 5 Days to Dance/5 Dias para bailar (U) (in Spanish with English subtitles). A fascinating insight into two choreographers, Wilfried Van Poppel and Amaya Lubeigt. Based in Germany, they travel to Spain to run a dance workshop with Spanish children. The challenge: to turn a class of self-conscious teenagers into dancers with a performance on stage at the end. Also showing at 6pm on Thursday 8th October. Plus short: The Violinist;
(2) at 3pm: My Dearest Senorita/Mi querida senorita (PG) (in Spanish with English subtitles). Adela is a spinster in her forties who lives alone. She is aware that she is not a normal woman as she needs to shave every day and is attracted to her maid. This was the first Spanish film to talk about sexual orientation, which was a taboo subject during Franco’s regime. Followed by a talk, How Could This Film Pass Censorship? by Professor Nuria Capdevila (University of Exeter);
(3) at 5.45pm, Living is Easy with Eyes Closed/Vivir es facile con los ojos cerrados (15) (in Spanish and Basque with English subtitles). This tale, inspired by true events, takes place in 1966. As John Lennon heads to Almeria to work on Richard Lester’s anti-war film: How I Won the War. Antonio, an English teacher, decides to set out and meet him. On the way he meets two runaways and the three share an adventure that becomes the expression of a country desperate for a better future in the beautiful and backward Almeria of the ’60s. Also showing at 5.45pm on Friday 10th October. Today’s screening will be followed by a Q& A session with Dr Antonio Sánchez (University of Stirling);
(4) at 8pm: Magical Girl (18) (in Spanish with English subtitles). Alicia is an ailing child who dreams of the dress in the Japanese series Magical Girl Yukiko. She soon becomes trapped in a net of obscure blackmailing where instincts and reason spar with one another in a tragic struggle. Today’s screening will be followed by a Q&A session with director Dr Antonio Sánchez (University of Stirling). Also showing at 8.30pm on Friday 9th October.
Tickets may be purchased from the Filmhouse box office in person, by calling 0131 228 2688 or online; prices vary.
St John’s Open Rehearsal and Choral Evensong: if you might like to join this fantastic choir, come along this evening and give it a try. A high level of commitment and good sight-reading ability is essential – but they also have a great social life! 5pm, St John’s Episcopal Church, Princes Street. For more information, use the contact form on the choir’s own website here.
St Giles’ at Six: Organ Recital. Thomas Nipp Liechtenstein, Rheinberger Entrata, Intermezzo, Tema variato Op 167, Buxtehude Praeludium in E minor, Nipp Alma redemptoris mater, Schmidt Prelude and Fugue in D, JL Krebs Freu dich sehr, o meine Seele and Nipp Ave maris stella. 6pm, St Giles’ Cathedral, High Street. Free: retiring collection.
Sofi’s Nocturnes: an open stage every Sunday evening, hosted by Matt Norris and Arno Blok. Unplugged and intimate, all acts welcome – music, spoken-word or anything else – and a free drink for performing! 8-10pm, Sofi’s, 65 Henderson Street.
Sarah Jones in Concert: Sarah Jones shares stories of her life as a vicar near Gloucester and as a transwoman. A passionate singer/songwriter, Sarah has performed with her collection of guitars in folk clubs all over the UK. 
7.30pm, Augustine United Church, George IV Bridge. Tickets cost £8/£5 on the door. For more information please call 0131 220 1677. Part of SMHAFF – the Scottish Mental Health Arts & Film Festival 2015.
Nitekirk: a monthly, creative drop-in experience of church. A time of reflection, gentle music, candlelight and, throughout the sanctuary, places of optional activity such as poetry, art and prayers. Come and go as you like, join in as much or as little as you wish. The theme this month is The Changing Seasons. 5-8pm, Greyfriars Kirk, Greyfriars Place. All welcome. ‘A place of welcome, a space for stillness, a pause on your journey, an open door’.
