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  • Pedal on Parliament
  • Underbelly Circus Hub returns to the Meadows 
  • Tradfest 2016
  • Tartan for EIFF
  • AMA to build in Shandon

Pedal on Parliament takes place today. It is an unbelievable five years since the first one when they expected a few hundred cyclists to join in and around 3,000 turned up.

Party political leaders Kezia Dugdale, Willie Rennie, Patrick Harvie and Transport Minister Derek Mackay will all turn up on bikes to support the cause.

Pedal on Parliament is a grass roots campaign which calls for 10 per cent of the Scottish Government’s transport budget to be invested in ‘active travel’.

The ride will start at 11.30 from the Meadows and make its way to Holyrood by way of George IV Bridge and the Royal Mile. At 12.45 there will be a minute’s silence at Holyrood and then the rally and speeches will follow.

Some cyclists will be in fancy dress and others will have cycled from Fife with the Talking Tandems which is a cycle club for visually impaired and sighted riders.

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This summer Underbelly will bring its circus hub back to The Meadows following the successful shows they put on last year.

If you are in London anytime soon then you can see The Raunch at the Underbelly London Wonderground from early next month. This will then come up to Edinburgh in the summer and will include sic-fi bedtime stories, songs by Bowie and Brel, technology addition and the Most Wanted of International Cabaret.

Ten world class shows will come to the capital from the UK, Ireland and Australia. There will be two world premiers and one European premiere among them.

Directors of Underbelly, Ed Bartlam and Charlie Wood, share their plans for the second year of Circus Hub 2016:

‘We’re delighted to bring Circus Hub back to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe for its second year. As we expected with the public appetite for circus, it proved hugely popular with local residents, loyal Fringe audiences and international visitors, selling over 47,000 tickets and winning awards.

‘Being able to present circus of world-class quality with high technical and presentation requirements also ensured that the artform has its place in the world’s best cultural showcase. Around 200 promoters and producers attended shows at the Circus Hub last year and onward bookings in 14 countries and counting have been confirmed as a result of performances here last year.

‘This year’s Circus Hub programme focuses on the best of British and Irish talent and the leading exponents of circus in Australia and will offer everyone, from families to late night fringe revellers, fantastic circus to enjoy.’

FREE PIC TradFest Edinburgh Launch 06

Tradition goes live in Edinburgh, when the fourth annual showcase of traditional arts and culture takes place in Scotland’s capital from Wednesday 27 April to Sunday 8 May 2016. 
FREE PIC TradFest Edinburgh Launch 05
Dan Abrahams (guitar), Phil Alexander (accordion) and Rachel Walker (fiddle) from band Dowally enjoy a trad trail along Edinburgh’s Union Canal with Meadows Mummer (storyteller) Fiona Allen as ‘Doctor Brown’, to celebrate the start of traditional arts festival TradFest Edinburgh on Wednesday 27 April.
More details of what’s on and how to book here

Photography for TradFest from: Colin Hattersley Photography – www.colinhattersley.com – colinhattersley@btinternet.com – 07974 957 388

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EIFFtartanEdinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) has collaborated with Edinburgh College of Art (ECA) and world renowned fabric suppliers, Bute Fabrics, to produce a tartan to celebrate the Festival’s 70th edition in 2016.

The design incorporates the red, black and white of EIFF’s logo, and integrates the aspect ratio of 70mm film, simultaneously commemorating EIFF’s 70th edition, whilst also representing its commitment to the heritage, artistic integrity and technical skill of cinema exhibition and projection.

Edinburgh-based AMA Homes has secured £3million as one of the first Housing Growth Partnership investments, part of a drive to increase the supply of new homes and provide much needed capital into the UK’s housebuilding sector.

The funding has helped AMA Homes to complete a 34-unit townhouse and apartment development in Shandon Garden in central Edinburgh.

The £100m partnership, launched in July 2015, is adedicated initiative between the Government and Lloyds Banking Group which invests between £500,000 and £5 million in housing developments alongside regional builders. The fund expects to make around 50 investments and fund the building of 2,000 UK homes over the next three years.

Ali Afshar, joint managing director, AMA Homes, said:  “We’ve had a great experience in working with the Housing Growth Partnership throughout this process.  The team really took the time to understand our business strategy. We welcome this investment, which will help us to accelerate our growth plans while remaining in full control of the business.

 “We are particularly proud of this development which has been carefully designed to ensure the aesthetics complement the existing colony style housing of the surround area.”

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