While the pandemic continues to affect cultural and other events, the council continues to set aside funding for some events, in case restrictions are relaxed and they can take place.
The funding will also allow planning for online events if needed to replace the in person events, and will be discussed at Tuesday’s Culture and Communities Committee.
The council plans to allocate funding from the Culture budget as follows:
- £70,000 towards the Tour of Britain
- £30,000 towards the Edinburgh Winter Run
- £7,000 towards the Squash European Masters Championships
- £10,000 towards the Small Countries Beach Volleyball International
- £10,000 towards the UK Beach Volleyball Tour
- £15,000 towards the Commonwealth Games Qualification Tournament
- £20,000 towards the Edinburgh International Swim Meet
- £30,000 towards the Scottish Album of the Year Awards
- £25,000 towards Burns&Beyond Festival in 2022
- £5,000 for Armed Forces Day which was cancelled in 2020
- £18,000 for the Edinburgh Award
- £8,000 for the Remembrance Day Service
The Tour of Britain will return to Edinburgh on 11 September after the Grand Depart was held here in 2017 starting from The Royal Mile. The plans are for the race to begin in the Borders with the race finish in Holyrood Park. The event involving some of the world’s top cyclists will be free to watch. Some roads would have to be closed to allow the race to take place with motorcycle escorts.
The Edinburgh Winter Run was cancelled last year and it is hoped to bring it back in January 2022 with a 5k loop around Arthur’s Seat for up to 2,000 competitors.
The Scottish Album of the Year Award made Edinburgh its home when it took place in Assembly Rooms in 2019, and continued with an online version in 2020. This is a huge award of £20,000 for the winner and £1,000 awards for the others in the ten finalists. Edinburgh based rapper Nova won the event in 2020
Scottish Squash plan the European Masters Championships in June this year with around 500 competitors. These matches will be played at Oriam and Edinburgh Sports Club.
Plans for Beach Volleyball events at Portobello are also being made all subject to government regulations. If the Commonwealth Games Qualification Tournament proceeds then there will be male and female teams competing for places in the teams for the Birmingham Games in 2022.
The Edinburgh International Swim Meet takes place in the Royal Commonwealth Pool and is planned for March 2022.
Funding for Burns&Beyond of £25,000 would allow the January event to proceed next year with large scale public art and performances by some of the best Scottish talent in music, spoken word and poetry to celebrate the bard.
The Edinburgh Award recognises an outstanding Edinburgh citizen with the award of an engraved Loving Cup, a cast of their handprints in the Quad at The City of Edinburgh Chambers and a ceremony there with invited guests. This year the gilding on all the handprints of previous winners requires refurbishment. The Edinburgh Award 2020 was won by author Alexander McCall Smith.
The Remembrance Day Service takes place in St Giles Cathedral with a wreath laying ceremony at the Stone of Remembrance at the City Chambers.
Summer Sessions is due to take place in Princes Street Gardens this year after being cancelled in 2020. Following earlier controversy over the impact of events in the gardens this is being managed by an Event Planning Officer Group.
The Granton Gasometer is a landmark in North Edinburgh where so much new development is planned. Last year the council approved £100,000 of funding to illuminate it. Although this was reduced to £75,000 there is now extra funding of around £100,000 from Edinburgh College. This project will illuminate the skyline beginning in early spring 2021 and lighting up the structure for two years, showcasing the council’s commitment to the creation of a new coastal town in the north of the city.
These are all the CEC Funded Events in Calendar Year 2021 to 31 March 2022:
- * denotes one of the major festivals ** denotes one of the major festivals with dates still to be confirmed
- 28 December 2020 – 1 January 2021 Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Festival*
- 22 – 31 January 2021 Burns & Beyond Festival
- April/May 2021 Small Countries Beach Volleyball International
- 19 May – 30 May 2021 Imaginate Festival*
- 16 – 19 June 2021 Squash European Masters Championship
- 26 June 2020 Armed Forces Day
- Date TBC Edinburgh International Film Festival**
- 26 June – 11 July 2021 Edinburgh International Science Festival*
- July 2021 (date TBC) UK Beach Volleyball Tour
- 16 – 25 July 2021 Edinburgh International Jazz and Blues Festival*
- 29 July – 29 August 2021 Edinburgh Art Festival*
- August (various dates) Edinburgh Summer Sessions
- 6 – 30 August 2021 Edinburgh International Festival*
- 6 – 30 August 2021 Edinburgh Festival Fringe*
- 6– 28 August 2021 Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo*
- 14 – 30 August 2021 Edinburgh International Book Festival*
- 11 September 2021 Tour of Britain
- September (date TBC) Scottish Album of the Year Awards
- September (date TBC) Commonwealth Games Qualification Tournament.
- 16 – 31 October 2021 Scottish International Storytelling Festival* November 2021 (date TBC) The Edinburgh Award
- 14 November 2021 Remembrance Sunday
- 30 December 2021 – January 2022 Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Festival*
- January 2022 (date TBC) Edinburgh Winter Run
- January 2022 (date TBC) Burns&Beyond
- March 2022 (date TBC) Edinburgh International Swimming Meet
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