Edinburgh Castle and Stirling Castle are hitting the road as some of Scotland’s top MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) venues go on tour in the Midlands.

Organised by VisitScotland Business Events, Scotland on Tour will see representatives from eight venues around the country meet with event organisers from Worcestershire, Leicestershire, Chesterfield, Derby and Birmingham.

Hosted on a luxury coach, the national tourism organisation’s two-day event gives partners an excellent opportunity to hold face-to-face meetings with key contacts in what has become a popular format among both venues and event organisers.

The north of England and the Midlands is a growing market for VisitScotland Business Events, accounting for nearly 40 per cent of total UK enquiries in 2016/17.

Theresa Ring, Market Manager – The Midlands & North England at VisitScotland Business Events, said: “We have been running Scotland on Tour for over ten years.

“It is very popular with both partners and buyers as it provides agents with an easy way to learn more about Scotland directly from Scottish experts – all they need to do is step out of their office and on to our coach.

!It’s a really effective use of their time, as they can meet several Scottish suppliers in one go and hear about all the latest developments and offerings from Scotland.”

Shakedown brings together five of Edinburgh’s High Schools in a collaborative approach to one of Shakespeare’s most Faerie-frissoned, fun-time plays, A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Featuring talent from secondary schools: Firrhill, Forrester, Tynecastle, Queensferry and The Royal High – it has to be admitted that things are getting better all the time.

These febrile crucibles of aspiring thespian endeavour are all secondary schools within the City of Edinburgh which have mixed catchments covering a range of social and economic strata.

5 schools, 5 Acts, one single purpose, one Dream – it is a Teenage kick-ass kinda magic come true. Adapted and Directed by Pab Roberts, Produced by Festival City Theatres and Broad, a prodigious amount of time and talent has brought this enchanting show to fruition.

As if the topsy-turvy parallel worlds of the Ducal palace, Oberon’s Faerie demi-monde and not least the Rude Mechanicals were not enough – we have the gloriously love-struck Athenian air-heads to contend with. Then add multi-role swopping character shifts in the blink of an eye.

To mention individuals would not only diminish the ensemble ethos but incite guaranteed internecine playground/social media carnage.

Nevertheless, several scenes are not only worthy of, but demand, special mention. What of Helena and Hermia’s foot-stamping, cat fight tantrums with relishing side-ordure insults?

The pithily, near perfectly pitched Pyramus & Thysby tableau where Wall looks on with distain as though Moonshine’s dog has just widdled on her plimsoles. Or perhaps the silver deely-bopper faeries and Titania’s dreamy bower lullaby?

These stage-hungry proto-thesps have already sniffed the smell of the crowd, the phwar of the grease-paint.

Dreamily, delicious, magnificently magical, these young actors out on loan to Fate’s capricious whim, will never forget this experience.

One can only hope they become, like Bottom, transported. Shakedown are mustard keen, no fusty cobwebs here. They put put a girdle round the Earth in eighty minutes.

Watch them spin it off in to spaces where no man, woman or small, furry creatures have ever been before.

All hail the Dude Mechanicals and divers knavish sprites. Foresooth – theirs is no idle fancy.

The council has taken some time to get going since the elections in early May. Today they will meet as a proper council with Conveners and Vice Conveners for the first time. Previous meetings have dealt with the appointments of the Lord Provost the Rt Hon Frank Ross and also the Conveners and Vice Conveners.

Councillor Joan Griffiths was appointed Depute Lord Provost last week too.

Follow today’s proceedings here as they unfold :

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Edinburgh Trams have today announced that their latest accounts show a pre-tax profit of £252,000. This means that the tram operator has returned a profit well ahead of any forecasts.

The original projection were for a positive return to be made in 2018, and the council had envisaged a pre-tax loss of £170,000 for the year to December 2016.

Lea Harrison, Edinburgh Trams’ Managing Director, said: “We’re delighted with these results and they firmly reflect the growing popularity of the tram.

“Over the past year we’ve seen patronage increase by 10 per cent and revenue rise by 12 per cent. These encouraging figures have been driven by our move to increase the frequency of trams combined with our ongoing commitment to exceptional service.

“We’ve recorded industry-leading levels of customer satisfaction and exceeded the expectations of the initial business model, but we’re not about to become complacent. We’ll continue our efforts to further improve services and strengthen the tram’s position at the heart of the city’s transport network.”

George Lowder, Chief Executive of Transport for Edinburgh, added: “The financial results of the Operator for 2016 are yet further evidence of the vital part the tramway plays in Edinburgh’s integrated transport system.

“Edinburgh Trams are working tirelessly to offer a safe, reliable and customer focused operation with performance for 2017 already showing further growth.”

Councillor Lesley Macinnes, Transport Convener for City of Edinburgh Council, said: “These are fantastic figures, demonstrating how popular trams have become. It’s especially welcome news so soon after the capital’s trams were nationally recognised for having the highest customer satisfaction rating of any public transport operator in the UK. Full credit to everyone at Edinburgh Trams for the sterling job they’re doing. ”

• Full council meeting
• Liberton High School pupils raise funds for local food bank
• St Columba’s Hospice Summer to Remember campaign
• Three lifelong friends graduate from Edinburgh Napier University
• Gordon’s Blooming Big Tea Party tomorrow

Today will be the first regular council meeting since the council elections on 4 May 2017, and the last before the summer recess.

From the council papers it seems that the new councillors are determined to make a mark with many questions from them for answer by the newly appointed conveners.

Topics covered include congestion at Kirkliston Crossroads, a traffic study at Lauriston Farm Road, waste collection in the city, repairs to Water of Leith Walkway, Burnshot Bridge, Edinburgh Airport flight paths, review of janitorial services, pavement slurry works, waste collection, Meadows Festival parking, Redford Barracks and planning applications.

There is a long agenda facing all 63 councillors, part of which is the list of actions that the Chief Executive Andrew Kerr had to take while there was no council formed. This includes the appointment of a contractor to landscape Saughton Park which is a contract worth just over £4 million.

You can follow us on Twitter for updates during the meeting.

***

Liberton High School pupils will be delivering food parcels to South East Foodbank later today.

Pupils raised £270 from various events to buy the food from businesses the S2 pupils set up to raise money for the local Foodbank.  Businesses included a bakery, a car wash, nail salon, florist and tuck shop.

The pupils all had to apply for a business loan of £1 each, set up a partnership and produce a business plan.  In addition to this they all needed to ‘meet the bank manager’ their teacher Miss Mathie to get their loans approved.

Pupils will be heading to Morrisons supermarket to collect the food and then drop it off at the Foodbank.

***

Our main photo is there to remind you that St Columba’s Hospice have launched their Summer to Remember fundraising campaign this week which will end up with cake and bunting in Lomond Park on 20 August 2017 between 1 and 3pm.

They explain what it is all about here : “Please support our new appeal by making a donation. When you make a donation, you can complete a piece of bunting, with the name of your loved one and a special memory. We will then display all the bunting at a special event in August, details below.

“When you make a donation online, you can chose to have a piece of bunting posted to you for you to complete and return to us. Or you can chose to type in the name of your loved one and your special memory and we will complete the bunting for you.”

***

Three close friends yesterday completed an academic journey by celebrating their graduation after being in the same class at school, college and university.

Szymon Fiuk, 23,Stefan Przybylowicz 22 and Marcin Augustyn, 21, sat on the same bench for more than five years for lessons at Edinburgh’s St Augustine’s High School.

They were stunned to find, on their first day at Edinburgh College, that they were in the same HND Interactive Media class.

The inseparable trio completed a BSc (Hons) in web design and development at the School of Computing at Edinburgh Napier University.

***

Gordon Macdonald MSP is to hold a Marie Curie tea party as part of the “Great Blooming Tea Party” campaign.

The event will be held at his constituency office tomorrow Friday 30 June 2017.

Gordon said : “The idea of Marie Curie’s campaign is that we can host a simple event with cups of tea and a slices of cake in order to raise funds.  The money raised from these events will pay towards supporting Marie Curie Nurses and the care they provide for people with terminal illnesses.

“Marie Curie provide a vital service to those in need and I would encourage people to host their own tea party”.

Marie Curie provide fundraising packs for anyone wishing throw a tea party.

You can apply here: https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/teaparty/about

The campaigners who made so much noise at the council meeting in May by singing outside the chamber are planning on coming back today.

Two groups All About Me and Power to the People will join in a deputation to demand housing for homeless families. They already staged a protest and attempted a sit in when the council met to elect the Lord Provost in May.

They spoke to the Lord Provost the Rt Hon Frank Ross after the meeting who offered at the time to meet them to discuss their plight. As far as we can ascertain no meeting has taken place.

They claim that some of the tenants are being offered hostel accommodation in Motherwell or Fife.

In their letter to the Councillors the deputations said:

“All About Me group involves or is working with at least 13 families, including 35 children, who either face eviction from their privately rented homes in North Edinburgh due to the Benefits Cap, or who have already been evicted. Some are at this moment in appalling homeless hostels, others are sleeping on relatives’ sofas. Some face losing their homes imminently.Many families thoughout the city are in this situation too, and unless something is done more families will be made homeless as they are unable to pay their rent due to drastic reductions in their Housing Benefit.  More families are getting in touch every week – this is a crisis.“

• they ask the council to stop the evictions and ask them to use Discretionary Housing Payments so that the tenants are able to settle their rent.
• they want the council to find local temporary flats for those evicted.
• they call for more social housing and claim that the Pennywell/Muirhouse developments will mean a 70 per cent reduction in social housing.
• they want private sector rents regulated, empty homes repaired and improvements in the standard of temporary accommodation

Danny Huston directs and stars in this powerful story which goes back and forth between 2003 and 1988 as the plot unfolds.  Tom Hammond (Huston) is a widower with a son Luke (Jonah Hauer-King) who has fallen deeply in love with New Yorker, Bird (Stacy Martin), agreeing to spend Christmas 1988 with her and her family.  A city wheeler and dealer, Tom promises Luke that he will think about giving up the job he hates and open the small book shop he has always talked about.  They have a pre-Christmas supper together with friends and take Polaroid photos as they play bingo.  The next day Tom takes his son to the airport to catch PanAm Flight 102.  We watch in growing horror as Tom sees the news reports of the downing of the aircraft and sets off to Lockerbie with the sweater he bought for his son, poignantly demanding of the police and rescue services there that he give it to him as he will be feeling the cold.  Tom collapses when eventually one of the men starkly tells him that there are no survivors.

2003 sees an unhappy, isolated Tom with a dilapidated book shop, ostracised from his shopkeeper neighbours and his friends.  His briefcase is stolen from the shop by two customers: in it is £500, a book and also the Polaroid photo of Tom and Luke at that last Christmas supper. This almost robs Tom of what is left of his sanity.  He is comforted by his cafe-owning neighbour Hannah (the wonderful Sarita Choudhory) and finds solace in telling her his story.

While the tale is a compelling one, it is not enhanced by the constant forwarding and rewinding or by the more abstract scenes, sometimes rather inexplicably out of focus.  The final sequences set once more in Lockerbie are rather unconvincing and trite.  The fact remains however that this is an interesting drama, a fictional representation of one of the most shocking events in modern history.

In French with English subtitles, we meet Claire (Catherine Frot) calmly and competently delivering babies in a small Parisian maternity unit.  She is vehemently against the imminent closure of the unit, which is being replaced by a large ‘baby factory’.  She leads an ordinary existence, cycling to work and her allotment.  It is there she meets Paul (Olivier Gourmet) and they are attracted to one another.  Suddenly her life is turned upside down by the reappearance of her father’s former mistress Beatrice (Catherine Deneuve).  Her coolness to the older woman is eventually explained by the fact that, shortly after Beatrice’s betrayal of him, her father took his own life.  Beatrice is devastated by this revelation but then she tells Claire that she has a brain tumour and Claire ultimately finds she cannot reject the woman she once loved more than her birth mother.

Though rather too long, Martin Provost directed and wrote the screenplay of this film which explores birth and rebirth and the responsibilities we have in looking after those we love.  Les deux Catherines make the film eminently watchable and support us to ponder on life’s joys, sadnesses and surprises.

See it:

Friday 30th June1800 Odeon 2

Saturday 1st July 1515 Cineworld

Four students on the Brewing and Distilling MSc course at Heriot-Watt University have won the support of Stewart Brewing in producing some of their own brand beer.

Patrick, Phil, Louis and Mark have now made a beer called Common Ancestor.

Patrick Smith is in charge of marketing and he spoke to us at Stewart Brewing where the beer has been designed and made. He said : “I’ve been studying for a Masters in Brewing and Distilling at Heriot-Watt.

“Steve is a graduate from the course way back, and when he came back to Edinburgh to start his own brewery he wanted to give something back to the university. He started up this project called Natural Selection Brewing. Each year four students get the opportunity to brew, brand, design, sell and market a brand new beer.”

Tonight at an event at OX184 on Cowgate their new beer, developed and bottled with support from the Loanhead based beer  producers will be officially launched.

Camera legend Roger Protz will be giving a talk at the start and you can still get tickets on the Stewart Brewing Facebook page.

The students have risen to the challenge of producing 5000 litres of their own brew and will now be responsible for selling it across the UK.

The beer is called Common Ancestor, a 5.2% ABV California Common which is made according to a style which began in the US in the 1800s when lager yeasts were fermented at the higher ale yeast temperature due to lack of refrigeration.

Katherine Dieckmann, experienced director and Creative Advisor to the Sundance Film Festival, wrote and directed this story of a mother’s grief and retribution based in the southern United States.

Darcey Baylor (Holly Hunter) goes through the motions of life with her beloved dog but is still coming to terms with the death of her son to suicide seven years before.  By chance she discovers that her son’s best friend at the time of his death, has replicated exactly a business plan her son came up with, based on where he and she used to go when he was a small child, and has become a multi-millionaire.  He may also have been instrumental in her son taking his own life.  Darcey sets out to find out the truth.

With haunting music by Sharon Van Etten, we are taken down the banks of the great Mississippi.  Hunter is mesmerising as she journeys through the difference stages of grief, blaming herself and pondering what might have been.

See it:

Friday 30th June 2050 Odeon 2

Saturday 1st July 2055 Cineworld

Howard Wakefield (Bryan Cranston) is a hard-nosed city lawyer whose lives revolves around his work in the city.  He is direct, rude, short-tempered and has a tense relationship based on sexual jealousy with his wife (Jennifer Garner).  One night there is an electricity outage on his way home from work causing him to be very late and he finds himself waiting in his garage attic for his wife and twin daughters to go to bed so that he can get into the house without confrontation.  He falls asleep and in the morning finds himself watching the family from his vantage point and again waiting until his wife goes to work so he can shave and change and resume normal life.  In the meantime she calls his work and then the police to report him missing.  It is at this point that Howard decides to opt out of his life and for the next many months he lives secretly in the garage attic, becoming a street person by night scavenging from bins and eventually befriending the young people who live next door and have learning disabilities.  Through all of this he learns to live, appreciate nature and he falls back in love with his wife and family.

Throughout, until its ‘will he, won’t he?’ ending, Wakefield is intensely gripping and thought-provoking.  Bryan Cranston inhabits the detestable character of Howard and takes us on a voyage of discovery with him until ultimately we feel we like and understand him and await with interest his decisions about his future.  What’s more Howard begins to like and understand himself.

Directed and written by Robin Swicord, based on a short story by EL Doctorow, this is a Film Festival must-see.

See it:

Friday 30th June 1805 Cineworld

Saturday 1st July 1520 Cineworld

Edinburgh World Heritage and Edinburgh Tourism Action Group have helped Anne Daly a guide with tour company Mary’s Meanders and the Edinburgh Sketcher produce a new book featuring Outlander locations near Edinburgh.

Yesterday Midhope and more, a new book with sketches and descriptions showing off locations where Outlander was filmed in and around the capital was revealed.

The book features 10 different filming locations and is promoted as an ideal guide for an upcoming trip or even as a memory of time spent in Edinburgh.

The Edinburgh Sketcher, Mark Kirkham spoke about his experience of sketching the capital city.

Mark said: “Always a doodler it wasn’t until 2010 when I started uploading my scribbles to show the world. Living in Edinburgh, surrounded by stunning architecture and beautiful landscapes, I was spoilt for choice when it came to subjects to draw. I now offer commissions, prints, various merchandise, sketching workshops and sketching tours within the city, as well as live sketching from events such as festivals and weddings.”

Anne Daly from Mary’s Meanders was the author of the book. She is a guide with the tour company based in Linlithgow. She said that both she and her colleague Emma Chalmers are both huge Outlander fans. “We have been offering the TV series location tours since they started filming right on our doorstep, and in locations around our area.”

Anne continued : “We feel very privileged to play a small part in our guests’ dream vacation and we have shared some fun experiences and memories. We have made lots of new friends and look forward to meeting many more.”

Mary’s Meanders are offering Outlander themed sketching and history tours, which will run on Thursday evenings.

Meet outside Serenity Cafe, Jackson’s Close at 6.10pm.  Book here.

There is renewed interest in the Outlander series which will be shown on UK TV for the first time from tomorrow Thursday 29 June 2017. More4 will air the series which till now has only been available on Amazon Prime.

You can buy the book (£9.99) here

A new book about #Outlander was launched today by @MarysMeanders and @edinsketcher Here they are talking about it! pic.twitter.com/729AupAWRY

— Edinburgh Reporter (@EdinReporter) June 28, 2017

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Five days after he first arrived at Tynecastle for talks about moving to Gorgie, Northern Ireland striker Kyle Lafferty finally put pen to paper today when he signed a two-year contract with Hearts.

The deal, which is subject to a medical, sees the 29-year-old become Hearts fourth signing of the summer following the captures of Christophe Berra, Rafal Grzelak and Cole Stockton.

Lafferty was released from English Championship side Norwich City at the end of last season but the former Rangers, Burnley, Sion and Palermo player is a regular in the Northern Ireland team, with 58 caps and 20 goals for his country.

“Having spoken to Ian Cathro, the way he wants his team to play football and the way I play my football, I’m sure that we’ll click.”

While Lafferty arrived, defender Juwon Oshaniwa has left Tynecastle. The Nigerian defender arrived at Tynecastle in September 2015 but flitted in and out of the team. He fell out of the picture completely when Ian Cathro arrived as Hearts Head Coach in December and he has now left Hearts by mutual agreement.

In other Hearts news, the club’s Ladbrokes Premiership fixtures against Kilmarnock and Motherwell, both scheduled to be played at Tynecastle in August, will now be played away from Gorgie. Kilmarnock and Motherwell have both agreed to host Hearts whilst Tynecastle’s new Main Stand is completed. Hearts will now play their home fixture against Kilmarnock on November 4^th with the home game with Motherwell being played on December 9^th.

Hearts have also announced that tickets for their pre-season friendly with English Championship side Newcastle United on 14^th July are now on sale for season ticket holders. Tickets are priced at £20 for adults and £10 for concessions.

Finally, there was sad news for Hearts fans yesterday when it was announced that former Hearts striker Stephane Paille had died, on his 52^nd birthday, after a short illness. The Frenchman played for the Maroons during season 1996/97 and scored a memorable goal in Hearts League Cup semi-final win over Dundee at Easter Road.

A Scotland-wide campaign to tackle offensive weapons, disorder and anti-social behaviour was launched in Wester Hailes today.

Chief Inspector Helen Harrison explained that there have been some serious crimes in the area in recent months including a murder, 2 serious assaults and an attempted murder of a 16 year-old at Quarryknowe Park.

The three month long Safe Summer campaign was discussed at a Community Safety Partnership meeting first before officers went out to deliver leaflets to local households and also talk with residents in the area. The hope is that more people will feel they can report incidents of violence to the police.

Alcohol was a topic of discussion at the meeting, and the police said it is a big driver in violent crime. As it is often bought in supermarkets and off licenses it can lead to domestic violence taking place ‘behind closed doors’.

The Safe Summer campaign was launched by Assistant Chief Constable Mark Williams, who has the national violence portfolio in Police Scotland, at the police station in Wester Hailes where he was a young cop about 20 years ago.

Earlier this morning the police had already been out to find known violent offenders and had made one arrest.

Watch our video below!

Edinburgh Division has already taken positive steps to address violence in the city as part of their ongoing Operation Myriad which began in the north of the city at the beginning of this week.  Over the past few days officers across the city have reported numerous individuals to the Procurator Fiscal for breaches of the peace, drug possession and breach of bail.

Operation Myriad disruption activity will continue throughout this week to send a clear message to communities that violence and other forms of serious crime will not be tolerated.

As well as the police other partners such as the environmental officers from the City of Edinburgh Council and housing support officers were in attendance, and will be involved in the initiative.

Assistant Chief Constable Mark Williams said: “Tackling violent crime and disorder is a priority for us and Operation Myriad is a great example of the local work being undertaking to tackle this issue.

“Whilst overall violent crime continues to drop across the country, we have seen increases in some specific crime types such as murder, serious assault and robbery.

” Violent crime has a substantial economic and social cost to Scotland’s communities and it is really clear that the over consumption of alcohol is a major factor. Local crime analysis indicates that alcohol is a factor in over half of all violent incidents we deal with and whilst understanding the root causes of violence is complex this clear link is very concerning.

“Over the summer ahead local officers will be  working closely with the licensed trade to implement measures that can reduce violence such as ‘Best Bar None’ staff training, or education and diversionary work with young people on the triggers and consequences of violence.

“This work will complement the range of operations carried out by divisions to target violence that is specific to them at a local level.”

Chief Inspector Helen Harrison is the Area Commander for the South West region. She was in charge of the meeting and briefing today and explained that while crime follows the usual pattern and that this is similar to this time last year, there have been some recent incidents of note in the area.

She said : “What we’re here to do today, and this is a particularly important strand throughout our campaign, is we are looking at engaging with members of the public. We are taking a more proactive, preventative approach in terms of recent incidents of violent crime that have occurred.

“So officers are out this morning to engage with members of the public, to speak to them and to understand a bit more about their thoughts about the area and what work we could be doing.”

Councillor Donald Wilson has a new responsibility as Convener of Culture and Communities was in attendance at the meeting to find out about the partnership working.

He told us : “My new role includes community safety and community justice and so this is a new area for me, but this locality and topic are not new to me. There are always initiatives like this going on across Edinburgh, but this is a national programme.

“There has been a large number of violent crimes in this area in recent months and so it has been picked as the place to launch this campaign.

“There has always been partnership working involving the police and other stakeholders as the police cannot solve these problems on their own. They work with others in a whole global approach.”

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Residents and the local community of Colinton enjoyed a day of fun at Cairdean House as part of the celebration of Care Home Open Day.

The open day which is now a countrywide initiative, aims to strengthen the relationship between care homes and surrounding communities.

Residents and visitors from the community had the opportunity to enjoy games such as tombola, croquet as well as a bouncy castle for youngsters. Guests also took part in a sponge throw for charity, aiming for the care home manager, Gillian Goodall.

Ms Goodall spoke of the open day and its success. She said: “We had a wonderful afternoon celebrating Care Home Open Day with the local community. The event was a brilliant opportunity to break down preconceptions about care home life and showcase the warm and welcoming care environment here at Cairdean House.”

She then added: “The residents loved taking part in the summer games, and everyone had a giggle during the sponge throw. We look forward to welcoming the people of Colinton to join us again very soon.”

Home Manager Gillian Goodall gets sponged by a young visitor
Care UK’s latest guide “A Helping Hand” was also available for visitors to pick up.

Care UK, who manage Cairdean Home, are the leading independent providers of health and social care services in the UK. They run 110 care homes which have over 7,000 places.

Photos by Neil Hanna Photography
www.neilhannaphotography.co.uk
07702 246823

Hibernian Community Foundation has announced the appointment of Joelle Murray as Hibernian Girls Academy Manager.

The innovative move is designed to increase participation in girls football in Edinburgh and the Lothian’s and ensure a conveyor belt of talent moving through to the Ladies Premier League team.

Hibernian Ladies Captain and Scottish Internationalist Joelle, who was named in the Euro 2017 squad on Tuesday, will have responsibility across the whole Academy including player development, technical development, recruitment, sports science and will also look to develop the Girls Performance Centre.

Commenting on the appointment Charlie Bennett Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation said: ‘This is a fantastic appointment as we continue to build on an already successful Academy set up.

“Joelle will bring experience, commitment and she is the right person at the right time for this next stage of development for the girls’ and ladies football at Hibernian.”

Joelle Murray says “This is an exciting time for the women’s game and one I’m privileged to be part of.

“This role is one that I’m delighted to accept and look forward to the challenge during this era for the girl’s and ladies development.

“Opportunities for women to work full time within the game is limited, so to have this opportunity fills me with real excitement and gratitude to Hibernian Community Foundation for this investment“.

If you would like further information on Girls football at Hibernian please contact kmcewan@hiberniancommunityfoundation.org.uk

Hibernian Colts will face Elgin City at home in the First Round of the Irn Bru Cup.

Development Squad defender Ryan Porteous played against the Borough Briggs outfit during the 2016/17 campaign during his loan spell with Edinburgh City and says he is anticipating the game being a tough test against Jim Weir’s side.

Speaking about the draw Porteous told Hibernian Media: “Elgin will be a tough task for us and it will be a good test for all the boys.

“The ones who weren’t out on loan will be able to see what it is like playing against a first-team and to give them a taste of what it is like and how physical and demanding it is. For the boys were out on loan we can all see how far we’ve come after the experience.

“It’s an interesting tie for myself as well because I played against them a couple of times last year and went up to Elgin. It’s not the most enjoyable as it is a long journey, so I’m glad that we got them at home.

“Kevin Waugh was out on loan to Gala and they played Elgin, so myself and Kev both played against them, that will hopefully help us.

“I think we are all good enough to be able to compete at that level and it is a good stage for us to all show that we can play at a good first-team level at our age just now.”

“I think it is a good idea to have the younger teams playing in the competition. The Development League is competitive in its own way, but it’s not as competitive as a first-team tournament is.

“It will help everyone and the Colt teams that are in it will become a lot more competitive, just like a first-team would.

“The first-team at Hibs go into every game looking to win, this is the exact same at every other club from the top flight down to Ladbrokes League 2. When you play in a first-team the objective is to win, and in the Irn Bru Cup we are hopeful we can do that and we want to see how far we can get.”

Full details for the fixture will be made available in due course.

Hibernian Ladies will be represented by three players at the UEFA Women’s EURO 2017 Championships this summer.

Joelle Murray, Kirsty Smith and Rachel McLauchlan have all been named in Anna Signeul’s 22-player squad for the tournament, which will take place in the Netherlands in July.

Scotland face England on Wednesday 19 July, Portugal on Sunday 23 July and Spain on Thursday 27 July.

The full Scotland squad is listed below:

Goalkeepers

Gemma Fay (Glasgow City) 199 caps
Lee Alexander (Glasgow City) 0 caps
Shannon Lynn (Vittsjö GIK) 24 caps

Defenders

Vaila Barsley (Eskilstuna United) 3 caps
Frankie Brown (Bristol City) 87 caps
Rachel Corsie (Seattle Reign) 88 caps
Ifeoma Dieke (Vittsjö GIK) 119 caps
Sophie Howard (TSG 1899 Hoffenheim) 2 caps
Joelle Murray (Hibernian) 43 caps
Rachel McLauchlan (Hibernian) 3 caps
Kirsty Smith (Hibernian) 23 caps

Midfielders

Leanne Crichton (Glasgow City) 51 caps
Erin Cuthbert (Chelsea) 8 caps
Lisa Evans (FC Bayern München) 60 caps
Hayley Lauder (Glasgow City) 84 caps
Jo Love (Glasgow City) 177 caps
Leanne Ross (Glasgow City) 131 caps
Caroline Weir (Liverpool) 37 caps

Forwards

Fiona Brown (Eskilstuna United) 18 caps
Lana Clelland (UPC Tavagnacco) 14 caps
Christie Murray (Doncaster Rovers Belles) 47 caps
Jane Ross (Manchester City) 105 caps

Following an apparent power cut this morning which has led to disruption at check in desks in Edinburgh Airport, a spokesman said that things are getting back to normal  

He said : “We can confirm that power is now returning to the terminal and that flights have resumed. We’re working to allow passengers to continue their journeys in a safe and ordered manner and we thank passengers for their patience whilst we do this. 

“As always, the safety of passengers and staff is our priority.

“We expect there to be further delays whilst we clear the backlog.”

This year Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival is celebrating the Centenary of Jazz – and the history of the Blues.

Jazz 100 offers historic concerts, New Orleans comes to Edinburgh in the shape of a host of musicians from the birthplace of jazz, Cross the Tracks blurs the boundaries between jazz and contemporary music, and Scottish Jazz Expo celebrates Scottish jazz musicians.

There’s something for everyone here, but we all have our favourites – here (in no particular order) are The Edinburgh Reporter’s top five sessions.

The Bad Plus

Bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson, and drummer David King came together at the end of the 20th century and have won critical hosannas and a legion of fans worldwide with their creativity, unique sound and flair for live performance. From Minneapolis, now based in New York City, the intensely collaborative trio has constantly searched for rules to break and boundaries to cross, bridging genres and techniques while exploring the infinite possibilities of three exceptional musicians working in perfect sync. After four albums focusing almost exclusively on original compositions  It’s Hard (released August 2016) marked a return to an aspect of their roots, the very thing that first made The Bad Plus famous: the deconstruction of songs from the Pop/Rock and R&B worlds. You may also know them from their memorable Gaston on Disney Jazz Volume I: Everybody Wants To Be A Cat.

After 20 years this will be one of their last concerts with the original line up;  as of January 2018, The Bad Plus will consist of founding members Reid Anderson, Dave King and new member Orrin Evans (piano). The end of one extraordinary era; the beginning of another.

5pm Sunday 23 July, Rose Theatre (formerly Charlotte Baptist Chapel), Rose Street. Tickets £25.

Ryan Quigley Quintet plays Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker

Trumpet virtuoso Ryan Quigley’s band recreates the musical fireworks of the early days of bebop in Gillespie’s centenary year. High energy trumpet swagger and serpentine alto sax brilliance were Diz and Bird’s trademarks -and always with bands packed with great players. For this concert Ryan is joined by Soweto Kinch (saxophone) and Emmet Cohen (piano).

Derry born and Glasgow raised, Quigley has performed and recorded with big names such as Quincy Jones, Aretha Franklin, George Michael, Michael Buble, Tom Jones, Robbie Williams, Bob Geldof, Randy Brecker, Till Bronner, Michel Le Grand and Kurt Elling. In 2016 he realeased What Doesn’t Kill You (recorded as a quintet with Paul Booth (tenor sax, flutes), Steve Hamilton (piano, Fender Rhodes), Michael Janisch (double bass) and Clarence Penn (drums).

Quigley’s also the jazz trumpet tutor and one of the directors of the Big Band at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. His live shows are absolutely brilliant – read about his session at the 2016 Islay Jazz Festival in our review of the festival here – so get your tickets now!

2pm, Sunday 23 July, Rose Theatre (formerly Charlotte Baptist Chapel), Rose Street. Tickets £13.50.

Blind Boys of Alabama/The Como Mamas

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0EN_Hmq534?feature=oembed&w=696&h=392]

‘The secret to our longevity is, we love what we do.  And when you love what you do, that keeps you motivated.  That keeps you alive.’ (Jimmy Carter, current leader.)

The Blind Boys of Alabama have the rare distinction of being recognised around the world as both living legends and modern-day innovators. Since the original members first sang together as kids at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Blind in the late 1930s, the band has persevered through seven decades to become one of the most recognized and decorated roots music groups in the world, almost single-handedly creating a new gospel sound for the 21st century.

In the early 1960s the band sang at benefits for Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, and were part of the soundtrack to the Civil Rights movement. They’ve worked with Peter Gabriel, Ben Harper, Aaron Neville, Mavis Staples, The Preservation Hall Jazz Band and Willie Nelson.

A group of blind, African-American singers, who started out touring during a time of of whites-only bathrooms, restaurants and hotels, went on to win five Grammy Awards, a Lifetime Achievement Grammy, be inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, and to perform at the White House for three different presidents. There’s nothing quite like the uplifting power they produce – a unique musical experience.

Opening the show, The Como Mamas are three lifelong Gospel singers from the small town of Como, Mississippi. As on their new, critically acclaimed, Daptone album Get an Understanding there are only three instruments – the voices of Ester Mae Smith, Angela Taylor, and Della Daniels – and they’re so powerful you don’t need anything else. (Image: Zack Smith)

8pm, Friday 21 July, Festival Theatre, Nicolson Street. Tickets £25-£35.

Colin Steele Quartet plays The Pearlfishers

‘Colin Steele has been described as the Sibelius of Scotland. His music is a joyous celebration of Scottish melody and rhythm, liberated and enhanced by the spirit, sophistication and technique of jazz.’

Fronted by singer/songwriter David Scott, Glasgow-based band The Pearlfishers has a back catalogue of smooth seductive melodies. Now Scottish trumpeter Colin Steele, a collaborator on some of the band’s  albums (Sky Meadows, Across the Milky Way) gives this distinctive music a jazz twist. With his new Quartet (Dave Milligan [piano], Calum Gourlay [bass] and Alyn Cosker [drums] ) Steele makes warming, heartening music played with love, affection, and huge imagination.

Since the release of his debut album Twilight Dreams in 2002, Steele’s highly original and melodic Scottish folk-influenced jazz has won just about every UK jazz plaudit there is, from BBC Jazz CD of the Year and Jazz Review international CD of the Year (for his album The Journey Home) to CD of the year accolades in The Guardian, Observer, Independent and The New Statesman. Steele’s compositions are inspired by Scottish and Irish folk music, but are firmly rooted in the jazz tradition.

8pm, Monday 17 July, Rose Theatre (formerly Charlotte Baptist Chapel), Rose Street. Tickets £15.

Tommy Smith Plays Coltrane

Edinburgh-born Smith took up the tenor saxophone at the age of twelve. Two years later he won Edinburgh International Jazz Festival Best Soloist and (with Vincenzo Crucioli and John Rae) Best Group award; his first CD was recorded in 1983.  A leading light in European jazz, first and foremost as one of the finest saxophonists of his generation, and latterly as the founder and current director of The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra, Smith is held in the highest esteem by the best in the world, a musician whose career-defining achievements are framed by his status as an international recording artist, a composer and arranger of extraordinary ambition, and not least, as a jazz educator.

Smith has a new Quartet and celebrates turning 50 with a homage to John Coltrane, 50 years after the revolutionary’s death. The John Coltrane Quartet created some of the most innovative and expressive music in jazz history, including the hit albums My Favorite Things, Africa Brass,  Impressions, Giant Steps and Coltrane’s monumental work A Love Supreme, often viewed as one of the greatest albums of all time. Smith’s astonishing technique, power, passion and purpose make him the perfect player of Coltrane’s music, and his band is full of equally passionate musicians: Pete Johnstone (piano), Calum Gourlay (bass) and Sebastian de Krom (drums).  They’ll play Coltrane classics and new music by Smith inspired by the great man.

8pm, Tuesday 18 July, Rose Theatre (formerly Charlotte Baptist Chapel), Rose Street. Tickets £15.50.

The Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival begins on 14 July. Ticketing information here.

Robert Cooper will tee off alongside Andrew Oldcorn at this year’s Scottish Senior Open after triumphing by one point in a qualifying event at The Renaissance Club.

Cooper, who plays at Pannel Golf Club in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, scored 33 Stableford points in testing conditions to secure his spot at this year’s championship.

The seven-handicapper will play against Scottish golfer Oldcorn, a three-time winner on the European Tour and two-time Senior Tour winner, during the first two rounds of the tournament, taking part in the Alliance competition against other amateurs.

Cooper said: “I saw the qualifier advertised on the Senior Tour website and decided to enter. I couldn’t play in the first event which took place a couple of weeks ago, so Russell at the club called me to say there was another event and that I should enter.

“I set off at quarter to nine in the morning and didn’t get home until just after midnight, but winning makes it worthwhile.

“I’m really looking forward to playing with Andrew. I’m sure I’ll be nervous on the first tee, but I’m really looking forward to it.

“It was very, very windy out there, and a lot of people struggled but we all had to play in the same conditions. I struggled as well but managed to get 33 points to qualify.”

Cooper will join fellow Yorkshire golfer Ben Crowther, from Dewsbury and District GC, who won the first qualifier earlier this month.

Oldcorn said: “These qualifiers have been a brilliant initiative for what I regard as one of our best tournaments. The golf course is a magnificent venue and I’m looking forward to teeing it up alongside Robert in August.

“The Alliance format is very popular with sponsors, amateurs and promoters, so it’ll be a great two days.”

A third qualifier will take place on July 6 presenting the opportunity for some of East Lothian’s most talented young golfers the opportunity to play in the Scottish Senior Open.

Three talented young golfers will each get the chance to take part in the Alliance Pro-Am, rewarding the hard work of East Lothian’s young golfers and encourage more young people to become involved in the sport.

The Scottish Senior Open returns to East Lothian at the Tom Doak-designed Renaissance Club from August 4-6.

Entrance to the only European Tour event in the Lothians region in 2017 will be free to everyone, with a nominal charge being made for car parking, situated just a short walk from the first tee and 18th at the internationally-acclaimed course.

Cars with solo occupancy will be charged £5 per day while vehicles with one or more passenger will pay £10.

All proceeds will be donated to the official event charity which will be determined at a later date.

The Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open will return to East Lothian from July 12 to 15, 2018 when Gullane Golf Club hosts the prestige event for the second time.

It will be followed two weeks later by the Aberdeen Asset Management Ladies Scottish Open from July 26-29.

Rickie Fowler won the last Scottish Open held there in 2015 when the American birdied three of the last four holes to surge past Ryder Cup team-mate Matt Kuchar and Frenchman Raphaël Jacquelin to seal his maiden European Tour title.

Martin Gilbert, Chief Executive of Aberdeen Asset Management said: “We had a great tournament with a great winner in Rickie at Gullane in 2015.

“Gullane is a spectacular course and together with our tournament partners we will continue to host our events at the best possible venues which showcase Scotland in all its glory to an ever increasing global TV audience.”

Paul Bush, Director of Events with VisitScotland, said: “Gullane Golf Club is home to three of Scotland’s finest links courses and will provide an outstanding venue for both the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open and Ladies Scottish Open in 2018.

“With strong men’s, ladies and junior sections it is the epitome of a traditional Scottish golf club at the heart of the local community.”

The Caledonian Riders’ Championship at Armadale on Friday (June 30) will feature well-known names like Dan Bewley, Max Clegg, Mitchell Davey and Liam Carr.

Event organiser Scott Frame believes there is a great mix, top end riders who’ll be chasing the win but also racers in the field who will benefit from the experience.

The meeting is being run in association with Linlithgow Tyres and Exhausts and Frame highlighted the name of Kyle Bickley who is in his first year with Belle Vue Aces in the National League.

He is an up-and-coming racer after a decorated career in the youth ranks and alongside him will be local youngster Kev Whelan.

Frame wants to make this a family occasion at Armadale and has invited youth clubs, sports teams and boys brigades that are interested in attending to get in touch with him.

Free entry is available for all children who are part of an associated club and any adult accompanying the club will be admitted for only £5.

For further details contact Scott  scott.frame@edinburghmonarchs.co.uk

Changeworks has partnered with the University of Edinburgh to deliver IDEAL, a
cutting edge research project exploring how smart technology can help save
energy in the home.

They have recently extended the project to all of Edinburgh and the Lothians and are looking for households in postcodes EH1-55 with gas combi boiler heating to participate.

The benefits include:

• Gaining insight into your home energy use
• Receiving a free android tablet used to
  display energy use information
•  Receiving tailored advice from University of
  Edinburgh experts
• Hopefully saving money on gas and electricity
  bills

For more information visit changeworks.org.uk/projects/ideal. To get involved email your name, address, and contact details to IDEAL@changeworks.org.uk, or call 0131 539 8610.

Undefeated Scottish prospects Gary Murray, Aston Brown and Gary Rae plus former Celtic super lightweight title challenger Ally Black will feature on the undercard of for Lothians fighter Josh Taylor’s clash with Londonder Ohara Davies on Saturday, July 8 at Braehead.

Edinburgh’s undefeated rising star Jason Easton also appears and squares-up to highly-ranked Belgian contender Steve Jamoye for the vacant IBO Intercontinental super lightweight title in the chief support bout.

Unbeaten Coatbridge welterweight Murray will box for the second time this year in a four-round contest against an opponent to be named shortly.

Murray said: “It’s great to be on a big bill like this and I can’t wait to put on a show for my fans at Braehead Arena.”

Also featuring is former amateur star Brown who is making only his second professional start in a four-round middleweight contest.

Brown said: “I’m buzzing. It’s a massive night for Scottish boxing headlined by my good friend Josh Taylor. This has been a long time coming for me. I’m with a brilliant new coach in Anthony Farnell and I can’t wait to show all of my fans how much I’ve improved.”

Barrhead’s undefeated super bantamweight prospect Rae – nicknamed Razor – goes in against Spanish hard-man Luis Espinosa in a four-round contest.

Rae said: “I’m over the moon to be fighting for the fourth time this year and to be on huge show like this one is fantastic. It’s going to be a great night of boxing.”

Glasgow-based Black will also feature on the big Braehead bill in a four-round welterweight contest.

He said: “It’s going to be a massive night of boxing. I’m coming off a good win in May and I’m fully focused getting another one at Braehead Arena.”

Scotland’s Chief Statistician has published Drugs Seizures and Offender Characteristics for 2014-15 and 2015-16.

The report provides information on drugs seized by Police Scotland in both periods and also includes an analysis of the characteristics of drug possession crimes for the first time.

The quantity of drugs seized fluctuates considerably each year and does not necessarily move in line with the number of seizures made.

Whilst most drug seizures consist of relatively small quantities (usually possession-related crimes), annual quantities of drugs seized can be greatly influenced by a small number of large seizures (usually from supply-related crimes).

For crimes of drug supply, the main Class A drugs seized by Police Scotland in 2015-16 were heroin (74.0 kilograms), cocaine (82.7 kilograms) and crack cocaine (4.2 kilograms). In addition they also seized 13,000 ecstasy-type tablets.

Again for crimes of drug supply the main Class B drugs seized by Police Scotland were herbal cannabis (413.9 kilograms) and cannabis resin (570.4 kilograms). In addition they also seized 31,400 cannabis plants. For Class C the main drug seized by Police Scotland was diazepam or other benzodiazepines (1.3 million tablets).

A sample of drug possession crime across 2014-15 and 2015-16 found that nearly two thirds of drug possession crimes involved cannabis, with diazepam being the next most common type of drug seized.

According to the figures the vast majority of drug possession offenders were male and the average age of an offender was 30 years-old with the majority (65 per cent) between 20 and 39 years old. 16 per cent of offenders were under 20 years old and 19 per cent were 40 years old or older.

You can read the report in full here.

Charlie (Harry Gilby) is a talented footballer, being scouted for some major teams fulfilling his father’s long held dreams.  But he is inwardly tormented by the feeling that he looks all wrong for how he feels inside.  He begins wearing his sister’s clothes secretly and eventually is discovered by his father (Scot Williams), fully made up and dressed like the girl he believes he is.  His dad finds it increasingly difficult to come to terms with his son’s trans-gender journey the further it progresses. His mother (Patricia Potter) and sister (Elinor Machen-Fortune) support Charlie in her new women’s football team and her change of school uniform but Charlie’s best friend Tommy (Travis Blake Hall) feels betrayed and horrified.  Soon the family is in crisis.

Harry Gilby portrays the young boy transitioning into a girl with sensitivity and is quietly assured in his debut role.  Director Rebekah Fortune uses Tamworth locations such as the rivers and castle (big shout out to my Tamworth cousins) to make the story realistic and believable.  There is a nice little twist at the end which gives an optimistic air to what must be a traumatic and difficult journey for many young trans-gender people and their families.

Just Charlie is Rebekah Fortune’s first feature film.

Plans by Australian financial services company Computershare to open a new technology centre of excellence in Edinburgh, creating 300 jobs, have been welcomed by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

The company secured a £2m grant from Scottish Enterprise and has worked closely with Scottish Development International (SDI) to develop the project.

The expansion plans were announced on the same day SDI annual results were published, which showed 7,839 jobs were secured in Scotland through new and existing investors, an increase of 10 per cent on the previous year.

Computershare was founded in Melbourne in 1978 and its existing Edinburgh operation was established in 1998, serving locally-based clients and those further afield.

From its current base in Edinburgh Park, the company provides relationship management and registry services to around 150 listed companies – from FTSE100 to AIM – many of whom are registered in Scotland.

The First Minister visited Computershare’s new office in the city centre which is being fully refurbished and will open next year.

She said: “This announcement, with the creation of 300 highly-skilled technology jobs and investment in the city centre, is fantastic news for Edinburgh’s economy.

“Scotland is open for business and continues to be a very attractive location for investment, as evidenced by the recent EY Attractiveness survey, which noted that Scotland was the top UK location for foreign direct investment outside London for the fifth consecutive year.

“Together with the inward investment figures published by SDI, this offers further evidence that we have the skills and expertise to attract and retain global companies like Computershare.”

Stuart Irving, global President and CEO of Computershare said: “As a truly international capital city, Edinburgh has a bright future and is a natural home for a global company. As a growing business we need the skills and hard work we see on offer in this city.

“We are grateful to the Scottish Government, Scottish Enterprise and Scottish Development International for helping us with our plans and are looking forward to our continued partnership.”

Neil Francis, operations director at SDI, said: “When a company like Computershare chooses to invest in Scotland, it sends a message to the rest of the world that Scotland is a first-class destination.

“We have a clear focus on winning the right kind of investment for Scotland – which is secured because of our skills base, science and research excellence and our connected business infrastructure, and this investment by Computershare is an example of this.

“We’re thrilled to have secured these new jobs for Edinburgh; it’s a ringing endorsement of our offering to international investors and we look forward to working with the Computershare team to help them fulfil their growth ambitions in Scotland.”

Photo courtesy of The Scottish Government

A police investigation is underway after a 75-year-old woman and 82-year-old man from North Berwick were conned into transferring more than £29,000 from their accounts by a telephone scammer claiming to be from a bank on Thursday, June 22.

The caller convinced the couple to move around £4,000 into a Santander account and £25,000 into a Barclays account.

Community Inspector Andy Hill said: “Such incidents are fortunately rare, however, there are a small number of despicable individuals who specifically target the elderly and vulnerable to defraud them out of money.

“Often these fraudulent callers sound extremely convincing and authentic but we would urge the public to remain vigilant.

“If you are in any doubt that a call is not genuine then please hang up the phone and report the matter to your bank using either a contact number that you 100% know to be genuine or by attending at your bank in person.”