Police are growing concerned for the welfare of a 44-year-old man who has gone missing.
Mark Moore was last seen in Smiths Place, Leith, around 9am today.
He is 5’2 tall, white, Scottish, and of stocky build with short dark brown hair.
Mark was wearing a black waterproof jacket, denim jeans, a woolly hat and trainers when last seen.
He is known to frequent the Gracemount and City Centre areas.
Anyone who has seen him, or knows where he is, is asked to call Police Scotland on 101.
Festive Afternoon Tea at the Scotsman Hotel Brasserie
Well, Edinburgh certainly has no shortage of amazing places for Afternoon Tea – from the award winning Bollinger Afternoon tea at the Balmoral, the gothic luxury of an afternoon spent at Prestonfield House, One Square’s excellent and regular changing special teas, to the chocolate afternoon tea at the Waldorf Astoria, we are pretty spoiled here.
Now a new festive afternoon tea has appeared at The Scotsman Hotel’s North Bridge Brasserie. So time to get your gladrags on and head into town!
When you’re all shopped out, there is nothing better than heading for a spot of afternoon tea. At the North Bridge Brasserie you can enjoy festive finger foods and seasonal sweet treats crafted by Executive Head Chef Paul Hart, accompanied by rich roasted coffee or traditional tea. The new White Christmas Afternoon Tea menu combines traditional treats including marzipan stollen and homemade Christmas pies with a contemporary snowman cake pop and coconut snowballs, scones, and both sweet and savoury varieties will be served alongside a sandwich selection including smoked salmon with cream cheese roulade on rye bread.
White Christmas Afternoon Tea Menu
Brioche Roll with Truffled Egg Mayonnaise, Finger Roll with Smoked Chicken and Avocado, Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Roulade on Rye Bread, Parma Ham and Pesto Palmier, Mull Cheddar and Bacon Scone with Seaweed Butter.
Freshly Baked Fruit Scone with Butter, Clotted Cream and Strawberry Jam, Selection of Homemade Cakes: Coconut Snowballs, Snowman Cake Pop, Homemade Christmas Pies, Gingerbread Cup Cakes, Fruit and Marzipan Stollen. A Serving of Freshly Brewed, Rich Roasted Coffee or Traditional Tea
Afternoon tea is available throughout December*, and starts at £23.95 per person. Enjoy your afternoon tea with mulled wine for £29.95 per person, and with champagne for £34.95
*Not bookable on the 25th or 26th December or the 1st January
Terrapin found near rubbish tip on Old Dalkeith Road
The Scottish SPCA is appealing for information after a terrapin was found near a rubbish tip in Edinburgh.
Scotland’s animal welfare charity was alerted when a woman walking her dog spotted the creature on a grass verge close to the recycling point on Old Dalkeith Road on Saturday.
The female yellow bellied terrapin is now in the care of the Scottish SPCA’s Edinburgh and Lothians Animal Rescue and Rehoming Centre in Balerno, where she has been aptly nicknamed Tippy.
Senior Inspector Jenny Scott said, “Terrapins need heat and water to survive and Tippy would soon have perished had she gone undiscovered.
“At this stage we don’t know whether she has been deliberately abandoned, although it seems quite likely.
“Just last month we warned people not to be tempted to buy a terrapin following the release of the latest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film.
“Terrapins require a considerable amount of time and commitment and can live for up to 60 years so the decision to take one on shouldn’t be made lightly.
“If anyone knows who may have owned Tippy we would ask them to contact us to help us with our investigation.
“Tippy is around 10 inches in size and in good condition. We’ll look after her until we can find her a loving new home.”
Abandoning an animal is an offence under the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 and anyone found guilty of doing so can expect to be banned from keeping animals for a fixed period or life.
Anyone with information is being urged to contact the Scottish SPCA Animal Helpline on 03000 999 999.
Photo by Scottish SPCA
Edinburgh’s Christmas – Scotch and Soda are in town
A dusty bar. A rowdy mob of misfits. Lose yourself in the extraordinary beauty and power of Scotch and Soda – a whisky-soaked evening of raucous circus, dance and music.
With physical feats and gypsy beats, this evening’s entertainment features live music from The Crusty Suitcase Band, and sensational, gravity-defying circus from some of Australia’s finest acrobats. See St Andrew’s Square’s stunning Spiegeltent transformed into a jazz-soundtracked den of iniquity.
Following a decision made earlier today, the council will now look at adopting a coordinating role on the development of foodbanks here in Edinburgh.
Councillor Alex Lunn the vice-convener of the Communities and Neighbourhoods Committee raised the matter at a committee meeting held earlier today. We had believed that his motion was amended to remove reference to the UK government’s austerity cuts, but this was not in fact the case.
It is clear that the council now believes it is time to take action to ensure that help is given to those organising foodbanks. This is in an effort to avoid ‘reinventing the wheel’ and to make sure that the initiatives get to work as quickly and efficiently as possible to deal with the ever growing need.
The council will make enquiries about any funding available from the Scottish Government’s Emergency Food Fund and will find ways of linking all of those groups involved in this growing area across the city to develop integrated ways of working.
The agreed motion read as follows:
“Committee asks that we acknowledge the continuing worsening situation for a large proportion of the public and highlights the growing need for foodbanks due to the austerity policies implemented by the current Westminster Government and applauds the work by Edinburgh organisations.
“Committee seeks a report back to Communities and Neighbourhoods in two cycles with recommendations on how to liaise with the organisations currently delivering foodbanks to coordinate activity through the City; the report to also include details of what information/advice is made available at foodbanks to support users.
“Committee instructs officers to investigate possible sources of innovative funding such as the Scottish Government’s Emergency Food Fund and to report back on ways in which the Council could engage with the newly appointed Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Communities and Pensioners’ Rights to address issues around foodbanks.”
Councillor Lunn has shared with The Edinburgh Reporter his working list of sources of free and cheap food in Edinburgh and that is reproduced below. If you are involved in any projects like this and they are not included on his list then he would be glad to hear from you. You can access his full contact details by clicking here.
The Trussell Trust which runs many foodbanks across the UK announced last week that the primary trigger leading to someone needing to rely on a foodbank is not unemployment, but low pay, but when Holyrood’s Welfare Reform Committee investigated the rise in demand for food banks earlier in the year, they concluded that welfare reform is a significant cause of this. Watch The Scottish Parliament’s video report here:
The Trussell Trust presented evidence to the committee during which they explained that there was only one foodbank in Scotland in 2011 but that the number had grown to 43 by March 2014. They also stated that in Scotland the number of foodbanks grew faster than in any other area of the UK.
Council discusses live music with the professionals
Local music professionals have joined forces with officials from The City of Edinburgh Council to discuss the state of the Capital’s live music scene.
At Live Music Matters, an open forum held at the Usher Hall earlier this month a jam-packed audience of musicians, gig promoters, venue managers and academics discussed the current live music offering in Edinburgh and shared ideas on how to enhance the experience of live music for musicians and concertgoers.
The Edinburgh Reporter met up with Vice-Convener Councillor Norma Austin Hart to explain what it was all about:
The debate was organised following a commitment in June by the Council’s Culture and Sport Committee to increase understanding and awareness of the live music scene in Edinburgh, in order to capture the key issues and opportunities facing the music community in the Capital.
Council policy on entertainment noise levels, the licensing and provision of live music venues in Edinburgh, and the support of grassroots talent emerged as hot topics for the local music community.
Councillor Norma Austin Hart, Vice Convener for Culture and Sport, said: “It is only right that debate about the city’s music scene is led by the experience and insight of local professionals. The Council-run and operated Usher Hall provides an ideal venue for the Live Music Matters open forum to discuss the current offering that we have in Edinburgh, and ideas for making it even better.
“What has become clear from the debate is that Edinburgh has a passionate and proud music industry, burgeoning with creative talent, and as a city we need to support this talent.
“Many venue owners and musicians feel that the Council’s current policy on noise levels can be a barrier to the development of Edinburgh’s music scene. To tackle this, we will specifically look at the current rules, and how these rules impact entertainment venues and residents.
“The meeting has also highlighted the importance many people attach to music venues, which goes far beyond sentiment and is really around cultural enrichment. The music community has told us they want Edinburgh’s music venues to be protected, and so we will aim to identify whether that is an option, perhaps through a register of cultural venues.
“Looking at ways to maintain and improve the city’s live music offering is a responsibility we need to face head on, and the Live Music Matters debate is only the beginning. We will now be gathering the comments and ideas from today’s discussion to look at ways we might be able to address them. Working in partnership will be crucial and the meeting today has reinforced that message. We will now set up a task force, called Music is Audible, with representatives from the music industry as well as the council.”
Karl Chapman, general manager of the Usher Hall, said: “The Usher Hall is a well placed venue to host this important debate, not just because it’s cultural importance in developing the arts and live music in the city, but also because it’s owned by the Council.
“The debate has been truly fascinating and I was surprised and delighted to see the tickets go so quickly. It’s been incredibly inspiring to hear everyone’s thoughts from across the industry today. The event has certainly shown there is a demand for a healthy live music scene in the city and the City of Edinburgh Council and the Usher Hall are committed to supporting Live Music Matters by hosting future meetings here in the venue.”
John Stout, promoter at Regular Music, added: “It’s fantastic to see the Council kick off this much needed conversation, and the open forum at the Usher Hall has covered the whole spectrum of live music in the city.
“The contribution that these events make to the local economy and towards making Edinburgh a cosmopolitan city can’t be underestimated. It will be interesting to see what the Council’s next steps will be.”
The debate will continue on social media and residents can share thoughts on Twitter using #livemusicmatters, and on the Council’s blog. Further updates on the programme will become available later in the year.
The Usher Hall is owned and managed by the City of Edinburgh Council, is an international concert which has a maximum capacity of 2900, hosts around 200 concerts and sells around 220,000 tickets annually.
Poorly dog abandoned in Midlothian
The Scottish SPCA is appealing for information after a dog in poor condition was tied to a tree in Midlothian.
Scotland’s animal welfare charity was alerted after a member of the public discovered the abandoned dog on wasteland near Easthouses Industrial Estate in Dalkeith at 8.30pm on Thursday (20 November).
The tan and white male crossbreed dog, estimated to be around five years old, was weak and very underweight and began fitting on arrival at a vets. Tragically, the vet had no option but to put him to sleep to end his suffering.
Senior Inspector Jenny Scott said, “This was a very cruel case where a poorly dog was abandoned by being tied to a tree in a remote area.
“He must have been extremely frightened and we don’t know how long he had been there before he was found. Thankfully, a man noticed him after his own dog ran over to him.
“If anyone can shed any light on who owned this tragic dog we would urge them to contact us.”
Abandoning an animal is an offence under the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 and anyone found guilty of doing so can expect to be banned from keeping animals for a fixed period or life.
Anyone with information is being urged to contact the Scottish SPCA Animal Helpline on 03000 999 999.
Edinburgh MP’s anger over East Coast
Edinburgh East MP Sheila Gilmore has campaigned tirelessly alongside other local Labour politicians against the plans to reprivatise the East Coast line since these were announced in 2013, as they believe it would be a backward step on the government run service.
Today she reacted angrily to reports that a joint bid between Keolis – a company largely owned by the French Government – and Eurostar has won the contract to run intercity services on the East Coast Main Line from 2015.
Ms Gilmore said:
‘Passengers recognise the improvements to services that East Coast have made under public ownership over the last four years. They also appreciate that at present, all profits are retained for the benefit of British passengers and taxpayers.’
‘But despite calls from Labour for these arrangements to continue in the long term, today we hear that East Coast is set to be privatised just before the next General Election.’
‘Ironically if the contract is awarded to Keolis – which is largely owned by the French Government – ticket revenue may well be reinvested in improved services. Unfortunately these will be services between places like Paris and Lyon or Marseille and Monaco, rather than Edinburgh and London.’
‘A future Labour Government would allow a public sector operator to bid for rail contracts, so that passengers and taxpayers always get value for money.’
New flights from Edinburgh to Copenhagen from next year
Another direct flight option is now open to you next spring from Edinburgh airport.
Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) has announced that it will launch a new service between Edinburgh and Copenhagen in March 2015.
The new link will also be joined on the 29th March by the return of services to Oslo and Stockholm, strengthening the link between Edinburgh and three Scandinavian capitals.
Services between Edinburgh and Copenhagen will fly five times per week (not Friday or Tuesday) and will then increase to daily between 29th June and 9th August, before switching to six times per week until the end of October. Flights to Stockholm will be on a daily basis and those to Oslo will operate twice a week on Thursday and Sunday.
Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport, said: “We’re committed to growing through choice and this is at the heart of everything we do at Edinburgh Airport. We want to make sure our passengers are able to choose from the very best range of flights and services.
”Scandinavia is an important destination for us to serve and is a popular choice for passengers travelling for both for leisure and business.
“We’re delighted SAS will be joining us again with these new services which will link us into the impressive connectivity options available from the hub in Copenhagen.”
Denise Hill, Head of International Marketing at VisitScotland, said: “Scandinavia is a lucrative market for Scotland and we are delighted to welcome yet more visitors with the introduction of these exciting new direct routes into Edinburgh Airport.
“However as we work to extend Scotland’s international network, adding major international hubs and attracting airlines which are part of the world’s great airline alliances is key. SAS is a key partner of the important Star Alliance, the leading global airline network.
“Creating as many links as we can with Star Alliance partners increases Scotland’s connectivity with the world, enabling visitors to reach our stunning country from every single corner of the
planet. This really is excellent news for Scotland.”
Five things you need to know today Edinburgh!
Lunchtime concert today
Shop at the West End this weekend
Art at the North British Rubber Factory
Benefit concert for LifeCare
Book Week Scotland
Today at Reid Concert Hall in Bristo Square The Edinburgh Quartet will perform Elgar and perhaps a composer known to you? (not to us!) Takemitsu. This is a free concert part of the Edinburgh University series.
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Edinburgh West End traders are keen to have you along this weekend for their Christmas Fair on 27-29 November. Here is a taste of what they have in store for you!
Calum Colvin is delivering an Artist’s Talk on Saturday 29 November 2014 at 12 noon. Calum has created the stunning exhibition using the boarded-up windows of the former North British Rubber Factory at the Castle Mill Works in Fountainbridge; he uses a mixture of painting, sculpture and photography to create his beautiful images.
Edinburgh Printmakers has won Heritage Lottery funding to transform Castle Mill Works into a new centre for printmaking and creativity opening in 2017 – in the meantime come and meet Calum and find out the secrets behind the making of these eyecatching artworks (more exciting exhibitions using the outside of the building coming up next year!) This talk is outside the building at 12 noon and is open to everyone, but please RSVP to Hannah Rye at communitylearning@edinburghprintmakers.co.uk
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Scottish Book Trust is delighted to announce that, as part of Book Week Scotland 2014, Cineworld will show 6 very special screenings of Paddington on Sunday 30th November at 10.30 am.
The Fountainpark Cineworld will hold a special Bookbug session before the film screens for parents and children to attend, featuring stories, activity sheets and goodie bags. Sessions will be bear themed and feature a reading from A Bear Called Paddington Each child will also receive a free hardback copy of the deluxe edition of Michael Bond’s A Bear Called Paddington when they buy their ticket, courtesy of Harper Collins.
Scottish Book Trust’s Bookbug Sessions run all year round, are widely available throughout Scotland and are generally held in libraries or other community venues. The sessions are free, fun and friendly events for babies, toddlers, pre-schoolers and their families to enjoy together. Each session lasts around 40 minutes and includes songs, stories and rhymes.
Every Cineworld cinema in Scotland will also be giving away Scotland’s Stories of Home, the free book collecting stories and poems from the Scottish public about what home means to them.
Elsewhere during Book Week Scotland three free picture books will be gifted to every Primary 1 pupil in the country. The Bookbug Primary 1 Family Pack will introduce children who are just beginning their reading journey to some of the best new Scottish children’s books. The books comprise the shortlist for the Scottish Children’s Book Awards 2015: Robot Rumpus by Sean Taylor and Ross Collins, Princess Penelope and the Runaway Kitten by Alison Murray and Lost for Words by Natalie Russell.
Young children can also get into the Book Week Scotland spirit by tuning in to watch two of Britain’s best loved poets, Roger McGough and Valerie Bloom, bringing rhythm and rhyme to life during a special free Authors Live webcast on 27 November at 11.00am. Many pupils will also enjoy a personal visit from Steve Cole, author of Astrosaurs and Cows in Action, who will tour schools around the country during the week.
For more information about Book Week Scotland 2014 and how you can get involved, visit www.bookweekscotland.com, where you can find information about all the events taking place in your local area, vote for your favourite character from a Scottish book, make your own Reading Pledge and discover all sorts of ideas to help you celebrate and share whatever it is you love to read.
Tuesday in Edinburgh – What’s On Today
Spanish Rhymetime! Sesiones de Rimas en Espanol! Rhymes and songs for babies and children aged 0-4 and their parents or carers. For Spanish speakers and non-Spanish speakers. 10.30am today and the last Tuesday of each month, Portobello Library, 14 Rosefield Avenue. Ole! Come and enjoy with us!
Tinderbox Presents Youth Music Showcase: The Frontiers Orchestra! An evening of new music from some of the finest young musicians from all over Edinburgh. Tinderbox has been running a brand new orchestra at North Edinburgh Arts, bringing together orchestral instruments, samba drums and electronics. This exciting evening will feature performances from the orchesta plus tunes from their Creative Sessions project, together with a performance by Jellyman’s Daughter. 7pm (doors open 6.30pm), Festival Theatre Foyer, 13-39 Nicolson Street. Suggested donation £3 per person.
Cafe Ceilidh: St Andrew’s Day Celebration. Join Linten Adie and friends from the Scots Music Group for a relaxed afternoon of songs and music celebrating Scotland’s patron saint. 2-4pm, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street. Free and unticketed.
War Artists Series – The Second World War: Fighting Fronts and Home Fronts. Dr Patricia Andrew, freelance art historian, traces the progress of war art from the 1930s to the end of the Second World War in 1945, discussing both official schemes for professional artists and the work of numerous unofficial and amateur artists. This was a war in which everyone was involved, and the images of civilian life are as important and interesting as those which depict actual conflict. This lecture will focus in particular on Scottish artists at home and abroad, and Scotland as seen by the many artists who visited during wartime. 12.45-1.30pm, Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, National Gallery of Scotland, The Mound. Free and unticketed.
Mindfulness: learn the mindfulness techniques of breathing and knowing, and bring your attention to the present moment, invoking your inherent capacity for healing and renewal. 12.15-2pm, St Mark’s Unitarian Church, Castle Terrace.
Blackwell’s Edinburgh Presents Judah Passow and Michael Mail: The Scots Jews. Photographer Judah Passow has created a portrait of Jewish people who live north of the border, exploring the place of the Jewish community in contemporary Scottish society. This fascinating photographic essay shows Scotland’s Jews as firmly rooted in their Jewish identity, but also as patriotic Scots. The photographs are introduced by author Michael Mail, who conceived the project to document Scottish Jewish life. 6.30-7.30pm, Blackwell’s, South Bridge. Free tickets can be obtained from Blackwell’s front desk, by calling 0131 622 8218 or emailing events.edinburgh@blackwell.co.uk. Part of Previously….Scotland’s History Festival.
Interestit in yaising the updatit online’ Dictionar o the Scots Leid‘? Staff from Scottish Language Dictionaries will be available to help and answer questions, and Book Week Scotland publications will be available. 2-4pm, Edinburgh and Scottish Collection area, Central Library, George IV Bridge. Free tickets should be booked via eventbrite.
Christmas Wreaths: make your own seasonal wreath, with materials supplied by Bridgend Growing Communities. 2-3pm, Gilmerton Library, 13 Newtoft Street. Places limited: please book yours by calling the library on 0131 529 5628.
Advancing Religious Freedom: a lecture and discussion by Dr Kishan Manocha, Chair of the International Association for Religious Freedom British Chapter. 7.30-9pm, University of Edinburgh Chaplaincy, 5 Bristo Square. Part of Scottish Interfaith Week.
The Seven Professors of the Far North: children’s author John Fardell will be talking about his new book. For ages (approximately) 7-12. 6-7pm, Sighthill LIbrary, 55 Sighthill Road. Free: please call 0131 529 5566 or drop in to the library to book your place. A Book Week Scotland event.
Introducing Weegee: David Hopkins (University of Glasgow) talks about photographer and photojournalist Weegee – an enigmatic figure known for his stark black and white street photography and his ability to beat police to the scene of crimes in post-war New York. The imagery of Weegee’s work sits behind Stan Douglas’s photographic series Midcentury Studio: read The Edinburgh Reporter’s review of Stan Douglas’s current exhibition here. 7pm, Fruitmarket Gallery, Market Street. Tickets cost £5 and are available from eventbrite. Part of Previously…..Scotland’s History Festival.
Keeping Active Over 50: a talk on the benefits of a healthy and active lifestyle, including a short exercise taster session, tips and a demonstration. 2-3pm, Blackhall Library, 56 Hillhouse Road. Delivered by the Active Lives Project in partnership with Living Well.
Ian Stephen: Poet, Author, Playwright. Ian Stephen is a writer, artist and poet from the Isle of Lewis. His latest publication A Book of Death and Fishtells the story of Peter MacAulay, for whom the writing of his will sets off a compulsive series of reflections on his own life, and how key events in the post-war world filtered through to his Stornaway home. 6-7pm, McDonald Road Library, 2 McDonald Road. Please book via eventbrite. A Book Week Scotland event.
Doug Johnstone The Dead Beat and other writings: Edinburgh writer Doug is the author of five novels, including the acclaimed Gone Again. He is also a freelance journalist, songwriter and musician and has a PhD in Nuclear Physics. 7-8pm, Portobello Library, 14 Rosefield Avenue. Please book via eventbrite.
The Sonics LGBT Basketball Group: a friendly and informal group for beginners and experienced players alike. 7-8pm, Leith Community Education Centre, 12a New Kirkgate. Conact Jules on 0131 523 1100 for more information.
Lunchtime Concert: The Edinburgh Quartet performs Takemitsu Landscape (1960) and Elgar String Quartet in E Minor, Op.83. 1.10pm, Reid Concert Hall, Bristo Square, University of Edinburgh. Free and unticketed.
War Poets Collection Guided Tours: Catherine Walker will provide a guided tour of Edinburgh Napier University’s collection of material relating to the history of its Craiglockhart campus, and will talk about the many interesting characters who have had links with Craiglockhart over the years. 11am-12 noon or 2-3pm, War Poets Collection Exhibition Area, Edinburgh Napier University, Craiglockhart Campus, Glenlockhart Road. Free but numbers are limited to 12 per tour, so please register by calling 0131 455 4260 or emailing events@napier.ac.uk. Also available at same times on Friday 28th November.
FameLab 2015 Edinburgh Heat: How do 3D Glasses Work? Why do men have nipples? Why is wearing red an advantage in sport? How do cabbages keep warm in winter? These are the types of things you could learn at the Edinburgh Heat of FameLab UK – see the region’s finest science communicators as they battle it out to win a place at the FameLab Scottish Final. For ages 18+. 7-9pm, Red Lecture Theatre, Summerhall, 1 Summerhall. Free.
National Museum of Scotland Annual Open Meeting: find out more about NMS’s work, collections and plans for the future at all of its museums. Hosted by Bruce Minto (Chairman) and Dr Gordon Rintoul (Director). 6-8pm, Auditorium, Level One, (via Lothian Street at rear of Museum), National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street. Free: advance booking essential – email events@nms.ac.uk.
Evergreen: Ideas, Poems, Songs. An evening in the beautiful and historic Riddles Court: celebrate the publication of The Evergreenwith poets Marcas Mac an Tuairneir, Richie McCaffery, Ian McDonough, Andrew McDougall, Mario Relich, Nancy Somerville, Jock Stein and singer Kirsty Law. Richie McCaffery will also give a short talk on Patrick Geddes and Hugh MacDiarmid. 7-9pm, The Geddes Room, Riddles Court, Lawnmarket. Free and unticketed: more information from andrew.mcdougall1@btinternet.com.
Muirhouse Community Shop set up a new appeal for Syria
Muirhouse Community Shop on Pennywell Road has just set up its latest partnership with Edinburgh Direct Aid, a charity which is collecting winter clothes to take to Syrian refugees.
The Edinburgh Reporter spoke to the manager of the volunteer led outlet, Robert Pearson, about the way the community shop helps locals, and how those locals can now help people in the Bekaa Valley in Syria where it is about to become very cold. The shop is part of the activity organised by Tenants and Residents in Muirhouse (TRIM) and won an Inspiring volunteering award earlier this year and was nominated for an award in September.
The charity will send the next shipment to help the refugees on 20 December 2014. You can help by handing donations into the community shop on Pennywell Road, or by contacting Edinburgh Direct Aid to make a donation to them.
Rugby – Edinburgh v Cardiff Guinness PRO12
Edinburgh secure fine win against Cardiff
Three yellow cards for Cardiff did nothing to help their cause on Sunday afternoon as they were well beaten by an Edinburgh side welcoming a few returning players.
The first score came after Edinburgh took full advantage of the first Cardiff yellow for a punch after three minutes of play to drive up into their 22. A line out win on the five metre line set up a ruck, which scrum half, Sam Hidalgo-Clyne used to get a pass out to centre, Andries Strauss. He sold a dummy to the defence and ran in for a touch down behind the posts. Tom Heathcote was left with an easy conversion an the score was 7-0, with eight minutes played Cardiff then won a scoring chance of their own with a twelfth minute penalty which Gareth Davies saw over to pull three points back. This score was wiped out three minutes later as Edinburgh pushed Cardiff back and were awarded a penalty of their own on the 22. Heathcote sent the ball over from the kick to restore the seven point lead at 10-3.
Two of the three attempts to scrum fell over, but on the third go, Cardiff again infringed, allowing Edinburgh to clear their lines.
Cardiff started the second half well, but, what must have been, their umptyeth penalty gave Heathcote, an unsuccessful attempt at goal.
Images from the match will appear here over the next few days.
Christmas in the Grassmarket
3-D WINTER SPECTACLE TO LIGHT UP THE GRASSMARKET
A giant Winter Lights display and Christmas Spectacle involving 3-D projections will light up the Grassmarket this Christmas.
Greater Grassmarket, in association with The Grassmarket Hotel, mclcreate and Edinburgh Arts Collective Projector Club, will host the large-scale 3D lights display on the corner of Victoria St and the Grassmarket on 11-12 December and 18-19 December. The display will take place between 5pm and 8pm with live showings at 5.30pm, 6.30pm and 7.30pm.
A free 3-D projection light display will light up the Grassmarket Hotel, among others, in the two weeks before Christmas. Greater Grassmarket is also providing local businesses with free LED light Christmas trees for outside their premises to help create a visual spectacle and attract visitors to the area, and Christmas trees will be sold to the public on Saturdays and Sundays throughout December.
The historic area will sparkle this year, thanks to the new Winter Lights displays located in The Grassmarket, Candlemaker Row and Cowgatehead from early December onwards. And as always, a fantastic array of local traders selling a range of quality handmade artisan products and gifts will make Christmas shopping a breeze.
The project was commissioned by Greater Grassmarket Business Improvement District.
“The combination of heritage of the Greater Grassmarket area along with the vast array of unique shops – many selling exclusive, one-off gifts – not to mention the vast array of restaurants and bars makes it the perfect Christmas shopping experience.” says Georgia Artus, Greater Grassmarket Project Manager.
The Finance Lean Team at RBS Gogarburn in Edinburgh has raised £5,047.70 fundraising target for its 2014 charity partner, Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research.
The team started fundraising for Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research in support of a colleague who was diagnosed with a blood cancer.
Members of the team took part in Kilomathon Scotland, organized raffles and a tombola, held a World Cup event and cake sales, amongst many other fundraising activities. Their fundraising culminated in The Big Ride with staff cycling the distance of Land’s End to John O’Groats on stationery bikes kindly leant by Alpine Bikes, Edinburgh.
Jane Duckworth, Business Manager at RBS and a member of the team said: “Raising money for Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research means better treatments and cures for patients with blood cancer. The equation is simple, the more money raised equals more lives saved. It was important to us to support our colleague and we’re delighted that we hit our target!”
Kirsty Potter, Regional Fundraising Manager for Scotland at Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research, said: “Every penny the team at RBS has raised will help us in our mission to beat blood cancer – stopping people from dying and making patients’ lives better. We can’t thank them enough.”
If you’d like to donate to Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research or would like to take part in one of our events, please visit http://www.beatingbloodcancers.org.uk
The fall-out from the Hearts-Rangers game at Tynecastle on Saturday continues more than 48 hours after the Gorgie side’s victory over their nearest challengers for the SPFL Championship. Hearts today announced that left back Kevin McHattie will be out for at least six weeks with a knee injury sustained following a horrific challenge from Rangers striker Kenny Miller at the beginning of the second half.
Hearts Head Coach Robbie Neilson had feared the worst and today scans revealed McHattie had strained his medial ligament.
“It is not good news but it is better than we had feared” Neilson told Hearts official website. “We knew it was quite a bad one but thankfully no surgery is required, with rest being needed. Kevin be in a brace to begin with and will be missing for six weeks.”
The news came in the aftermath of comments attributed to Rangers striker Jon Daly who suggested Hearts players cheated in order to gain an advantage. Daly remarked some of the home team ‘went down as if shot by a sniper in the stand’.
As if Rangers brutality on the field wasn’t bad enough – and many observers felt Kenny Miller should have also been sent off for the challenge on McHattie while substitute Kris Boyd could have seen red for a lunge on Brad McKay – the sour grapes emanating from Ibrox is difficult to accept without comment.
Rangers game plan on Saturday – particularly after Smith was sent off – was to stop Hearts playing at any cost. Elbows were flying, challenges late and tackles crunching. Admittedly, there were one or two ‘meaty’ challenges from the home side but these were nothing compared to Ally McCoist’s men.
In the end, Hearts passed Rangers into submission and while the Maroons have played much better this season, their victory on Saturday was richly deserved. Rangers are in trouble both on and off the field – and sportsmanship and graciousness in defeat clearly isn’t on their agenda.
Hearts, meanwhile, will lick their wounds and prepare for Sunday’s visit of the other half of the Old Firm in the William Hill Scottish Cup.
40 Nominations for Hibs’ Non-Executive Directors posts
Hibs have announced that over 40 nominations have been received from supporters to put themselves forward for election as Non-Executive Directors of the club.
Nominations closed on Friday, and the next stage in the process will see optional meeting dates set up with some of the Club’s serving Non-Execs to gain greater insight into the role, the time demands and the responsibilities.
After that, those wishing to continue for public election will be invited to provide personal statements to give the wider support base more information on the candidates they will vote for. It is expected that the two new Non-Executives will attend their first Board meeting in January next year.
Hibernian Chief Executive Leeann Dempster, who led the consultation process, said: “We are very pleased with the level of interest shown. We can now let those interested in taking up the offer meet with existing non-executive directors informally so that they can find out all they want to know about what the role entails.
“Then we will move into the election phase.”
Individuals who nominated themselves will receive communication from the Club in the coming days.
SmartWater Campaign – Man Charged With Theft
A 28-year-old man has been arrested and charged with theft as part of an ongoing Police Scotland initiative utilising SmartWater Technology Ltd.
Since September, thousands of homes across Scotland have been provided with the specially designed chemical marking solution to prevent housebreakings in areas that had been previously identified as a hotspot for acquisitive crime offences.
However, in addition, police and SmartWater have also been utilising opportunities to proactively target those involved in crimes of this nature
For the past few weeks, officers in Edinburgh have planted a mountain bike, which is coated in the solution, at various areas of the city.
On Friday 21st November the bike was stolen from outside the University of Edinburgh Library in George Street.
Police were then able to trace the stolen property to an address in Hyvot Gardens the following day and detained a male in connection with the theft.
Using the unique SmartWater UV lamp the male was found to be covered in the marking solution and was subsequently arrested.
He will appear in court at a later date.
reported.
Royal Mail change posting times
Have the last posting times changed on a postbox near you?
Our reader Jon Chase realised that the collection time on his local postbox near Ferry Road has been changed from evening to morning, and he has explained that this does not really suit him. See the conversation below between Mr Chase and the Royal Mail on Twitter.
Royal Mail replied to us that they had given notice of the changes, which Jon then confirmed have affected several postboxes in his area.
Check yours out – and let us know what has happened across the city.
@RoyalMail The last posting time at my local post box is now 9AM, used to be 5:30PM. Is this a benefit of privatisation? @marklazarowicz
We asked Royal Mail for their comment and they explained that the new times had been publicised on their website where they said: “Over the next few months we will move between 45,000-50,000 of our 115,3001 postboxes to an earlier collection time, with the mail picked up by the postman or woman as part of their delivery round.”
The company has also announced 2,000 new postboxes to add to the 115,300 which they already have. Any which are uneconomic are not being removed, but the “efficiency of collection arrangements” are being improved.
Book Week Scotland 2014 – How to save our libraries
Today, on the first day of Book Week Scotland 2014, Marc Lambert, Director of Scottish Book Trust, has commented on the imminent threat to libraries in Scotland and what can be done to help save libraries at the heart of every community.
Marc Lambert, Director of Scottish Book Trust, said:
“This Book Week Scotland I want to launch a call to action to local authorities and schools. Every child when they start nursery, primary and secondary school should be introduced to their local library and receive automatic membership. If children and young people learn early on to love their library, they will become library users for the rest of their lives. This relationship, between the individual and their local library, is one of the most important there is, benefitting the individual in many different and wonderful ways throughout the whole of their life.”
“At the same time, libraries must be enabled to advertise and communicate with their customers and potential customers better. In order to survive the local authority cuts that are coming and prosper in the 21st Century, libraries need to reach out to their local communities in more evident and assertive ways. Survival for libraries is not just a matter of meeting the technological changes of the digital age. Like any business, it’s about the relationship one has and the services one delivers to one’s customers.”
“Book Week Scotland, the national celebration of reading, wants to celebrate the hard work of librarians and shout about how fantastic libraries are. Over the next week, library users across the country will be invited to write a love letter to their local library explaining how much they mean to them, and libraries will display the letters they have received.”
Further to celebrating the place libraries occupy in people’s hearts, Book Week Scotland will also shine a light on the place they occupy in communities. Five large library artworks will be unveiled across Scotland during the week, with the aim of making the chosen libraries visible and valued in their local areas. The artworks have been inspired by a very special love letter to libraries, Dear Library, written by best-selling author Jackie Kay. The artworks will be appearing in: North Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, Edinburgh and The Shetland Islands.
For those who want to use Book Week Scotland as a chance to get their teeth into reading, the Reading Pledge campaign will serve as a motivation to pick up that book you’ve been meaning to read, share a book with your child each night or simply pass on a much-loved book to a neighbour. People can choose from a list of pledges or create their own, share them on social media and then carry out the pledge during the week.
Hundreds of free book-related events will pop up in a diverse range of locations across Scotland, including some of Scotland’s best-loved writers and illustrators appearing in libraries, a programme funded by The Scottish Library and Information Council (SLIC).
For those who would prefer to spend the week in splendid isolation getting lost in some beautiful stories, 150,000 free copies of a short story and poem collection written by Scottish people, Scotland’s Stories of Home, will be distributed throughout the week via libraries, bookshops and other outlets. Schools will also receive an e-publication featuring Scottish pupil’s stories of home.
In addition to this, three free picture books will be gifted to every Primary 1 pupil in Scotland. The Bookbug Primary 1 Family Pack will introduce children who are just beginning their reading journey to some of the best new Scottish children’s books . The books comprise the shortlist for the Scottish Children’s Book Awards 2015: Robot Rumpus by Sean Taylor and Ross Collins, Princess Penelope and the Runaway Kitten by Alison Murray and Lost for Words by Natalie Russell.
Young children can also get into the Book Week Scotland spirit by tuning in to watch two of Britain’s best loved poets, Roger McGough and Valerie Bloom, bringing rhythm and rhyme to lifeSteve Cole, author of Astrosaurs and Cows in Action, who will tour schools around the country during the week.
Everyone will be able to find out who their ideal fictional lover is with the fun personality quiz Who’s your literary love match? Launched today the whole world can get loved up with Book Week Scotland by discovering if Mr Darcy, Sherlock Holmes or Scarlet O’Hara would be their ideal partner.
In a fitting end to a week celebrating the wonders of the written word, Scottish Book Trust will reveal the nation’s favourite ever character from Scottish books – will Harry Potter swoop to victory, will Miss Jean Brodie sweep the board, or will they both be frightened off by The Gruffalo? For over a month book lovers of all ages have been choosing from a shortlist of 50 characters, but now there’s only 48 hours left to vote. Vote here on the Scottish Book Week website
Jenny Niven, Portfolio Manager for Literature, Publishing and Languages at Creative Scotland, said:
“Scotland’s biggest celebration of books and reading is upon us! Too often we expect reading will somehow fit in amongst everything else in our busy lives. We encourage everyone in Scotland this week to begin your relationship with books all over again. Make time to reread your favourite authors, ask your friends and colleagues to recommend new ones, and of course spend some time going to any one of the literally hundreds of events happening all across Scotland this week to meet writers first hand.”
“Working with partners across the country Scottish Book Trust has once again delivered a fantastic programme of events that will celebrate, spark, and reignite peoples love affairs with books and reading – so please take the Book Week Scotland ‘Reading Pledge’ now and get involved.”
Amina Shah, CEO of the Scottish Library and Information Council (SLIC) said:
“Book Week Scotland gives us an opportunity to demonstrate and celebrate the role that libraries play in relation to literacy, developing a love of books and reading and giving people opportunities to get together in the heart of their communities to share their love of reading. Libraries also play an important role in helping to improve opportunities for individuals and communities through free access to books, information and learning. This week, I would urge people of all ages to show their love for libraries by going along to their local library and joining in this national celebration of books and reading.”
Initiated by the Scottish Government and supported, along with a Readers in Residence programme in libraries, by £250,000 from Creative Scotland, Book Week Scotland will be delivered by Scottish Book Trust. Book Week Scotland in libraries is funded by The Scottish Library and Information Council.
Five things you need to know today Edinburgh!
Community Council meeting
Ian Murray MP – two birds with one stone
Edinburgh Award
Serious assault in Edinburgh at the weekend
Post your festive greetings here!
Craigentinny/Meadowbank Community Council hold their meeting this evening at 6.30pm at the Craigentinny Community Education Centre, 9 Loaning Road EH7 6JE. All local residents welcome.
***
In a cleverly worded question, Ian Murray MP for Edinburgh South managed to include references to both James Gillespie’s High School and local Edinburgh man Mohammed Asghar at Westminster last week.
The MP explained that during a visit to the school he had been asked by pupils there about the possibility of 16 and 17 year-olds having the right to vote at next year’s General Election, and that he had met Mr Asghar’s granddaughter.
Mohammed Asghar is being held in prison in Pakistan despite having a mental health condition. Mr Murray asked : “May we have an urgent statement or debate on how we can get British nationals who have been diagnosed with health concerns back to this country so that they can be treated with their loving families?”
William Hague the Leader of the House assured Mr Murray that actions were being taken on both counts.
***
Votes for the Edinburgh Award 2014 must be submitted online or by post no later than Thursday 27 November 2014.
The Lord Provost, Councillor Donald Wilson, said: “The Edinburgh Award is the City’s chance to pay public tribute to an extraordinary individual whose work or achievements have brought positive attention to Edinburgh in the past twelve months.
“Whoever receives the award in 2014 will become the latest member of a very elite club indeed. If you haven’t cast your vote yet, fill out the nomination form right away and send it in to us to make sure your chosen candidate has a chance of gaining the recognition they deserve.”
To nominate, fill in the survey online or download and post the Edinburgh Award nomination form. Submissions are quick and easy to fill in and are available from http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/edinburghaward.
Completed nomination forms must be received by Thursday 27 November 2014.
The 2014 recipient of The Edinburgh Award will be honoured at a ceremony to be held in Edinburgh early next year.
***
Police in Edinburgh are appealing for witnesses after a man was seriously assaulted in the city in the early hours of Saturday morning 22 November 2014.
The 41-year-old man was attacked in Murrayburn Green around 2am by three men, all aged around 15 to 18 years and all wearing hooded tops, jeans or cottons.
The man was stamped and kicked by his attackers, who also struck him with a pole.
He was taken to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, where he remains in a serious but stable condition.
Detective Constable Steven Livingstone, who is leading the enquiry, said: “This was a horrific and sustained attack on a man by three others, who used significant violence and a weapon to inflict serious injuries rendering him unconscious and lying on the ground.
“We have only a very sketchy description, but believe his attackers walked away towards a nearby bridge.
“I would appeal to anyone who witnessed this assault, or has any other information which could help us, to call Police Scotland on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”
***
Are you part of a team at work? Then why not use our Festive Greetings storyboard here to post your message to customers or colleagues? There’s room for video or photos along with a Christmas message.
Mrs Mash at The Skylark: songs, stories and joining in fun from Mrs Mash aka Marie Louise Cochrane, the Storytelling Cook, for the under-5s and their parents and carers – this week with patterns for knitted mice! 10.30am, The Skylark, 241/243 Portobello High Street.
Tiger Tales: parent and child story and craft session aimed at ages 4-8 after school. 3.30-4.15pm, South Neighbourhood Office and Library, 40 Captain’s Road. No booking required – just come along!
Write Shoot Cut: Skeletons. The Write Shoot Cut platform is dedicated to showcasing independent film from Scotland and beyond. Skeletons is the debut feature film from Scottish filmmaker Craig-James Moncur, ‘a voyeuristic assessment of what goes on behind closed doors’ shot on a micro-budget in Edinburgh. Followed by a Q & A session with Craig and various cast and crew members. 6.15pm, Filmhouse, Lothian Road. Tickets £6/£5 from the Box Office on 0131 228 2688 or online.
Writers At War: three experts from the University of Edinburgh will consider changing representations of war in the work of Scottish writers. Professor Greg Walker will discuss David Lindsay’s play A Satire of the Three Estates, Dr Alex Thomson will explore Walter Scott’s fiction and Professor Penny Fielding will examine work by Robert Louis Stevenson. 6-7pm, The Saltire Society, 9 Fountain Close, 22 High Street. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite. A Previously….Scotland’s History Festival event.
The Edinburgh Quilting Collective: come and join this monthly collective, who make, sew and do! Edinburgh Quilting Collective creates group quilts, designed and made by its members; the quilts are then exhibited or donated to charities. A friendly group welcoming all levels of ability. 6.30-9.30pm tonight and the last Monday of every month, 3rd Floor, St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road. Contact lorna@lovelorncreative.com or see the collective’s Facebook page.
The Two Roberts: An Introduction. Patrick Elliott, Senior Curator at the Gallery of Modern Art and curator of this new exhibition, discusses the lives and work of Robert Colquhoun and Robert MacBryde. 12.45-1.30pm, Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, National Gallery of Scotland, The Mound. Free and unticketed.
Edinburgh Napier University Inclusion Week: Transforming Preconceptions – a personal view on inclusion through the perspective of artistic practice from engaging and inspirational speaker Sue Austin, whose accomplishments include scuba diving in an adapted wheelchair and taking part in the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. Sue’s film Finding the Flame was specially commissioned for the Paralympic Flame Festivals and shows her retrieving the torch from an underwater cave in the depths of the ocean. This event forms part of a week of events at Napier to promote and enhance approaches to inclusiveness and develop knowledge and awareness of inclusiveness issues. 1-2pm, The Glassroom, Edinburgh Napier University Merchiston Campus, Colinton Road. Free but please register with disabilityandinclusion@napier.ac.uk.
Daily Highlight Tours of the Portrait Gallery: 30 minute guided tours of the gallery. Discover more about the history of the building and explore highlights from the collection with a curator, educator or gallery attendant. 3-3.30pm today and every day until 19th December 2014, Scottish National Portrait Gallery, 1 Queen Street. Free but places limited to 15 per tour: book your place at the Portrait Gallery information desk.
Blackwell’s Edinburgh Presents Tom Pow: Wild Adventure and Concerning the Atlas of the Dead. Tom Pow discusses his poetry collection Wild Adventure on the remarkable life of Thomas Watling, and his own experience as Writer in Residence at the National Library of Scotland’s Map Library. Tom Watling was born in Dumfries in 1762 and later transported to Botany Bay for forging bank notes; as the first professional artist to arrive in the colony, he was seconded to its Surgeon General (and amateur naturalist) John White. His pioneering pictures of birds, animals and landscapes became some of the principal records of the first days of the colony. Concerning the Atlas of Scotland, meanwhile, was inspired by the Map Library’s collection and is a ‘beautiful and quite haunting collection (that will) appeal to map lovers as well as poetry lovers.’ 6.30-7.30pm, Blackwell’s, South Bridge. Free tickets can be obtained from Blackwell’s front desk, by calling 0131 622 8218 or emailing events.edinburgh@blackwell.co.uk. Part of Previously….Scotland’s History Festival.
South Queensferry Library Craft Club: a chance to get together and share knowledge and skills. This month a member will demonstrate how to make bunting, so bring material scraps, ribbons, etc as well as your needles and thread! 6-7.45pm tonight and the last Monday of each month, South Queensferry Library, 9 Shore Road.
Faith and Identity: Documentary Premiere.Edinburgh Interfaith Association premieres this short documentary exploring the daily lives of three young women from different faith traditions – Islam, Judaism and Sikhism – in response to a recent government report on the rise in hate crime towards minority religious communities. The film (and accompanying educational pack) highlights the fact these are young women with shared hopes and fears that all can identify with, regardless of beliefs, values and practices. Followed by a Q & A session with producer Nur Sakina Kadar and director and filmmaker Justine Gordon-Smith. 7pm, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street. Free tickets are available online or by calling the Box Office on 0131 556 9579. Shown as part of Scottish Interfaith Week.
Guided Tour of the National Library: a tour of the building and an introduction to the library’s collections and history. Please let the library know if you have any special access requirements. 2pm, National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge. Free but numbers are limited and booking is essential, either online or by calling 0131 623 3734.
LGBT: Spiritual Space. Maxwell Reay, NHS Mental Health Community Chaplain,offers a supportive space for people to discuss and develop ideas of spirituality and identity. For people of all faiths or none. This month: Forgiveness – what does it mean to forgive ourselves or others? 6.30-7.30pm (within weekly Drop-In, which is open 5.30-8pm), LGBT Health and Wellbeing, 9 Howe Street.
Philosophy Think Tank 2014: the most promising philosophers at the University of Edinburgh will showcase their exciting and thought-provoking research in 5-minute presentations at this vibrant event. From Philosophy of Cognitive Science and Philosophy of Language to Epistemology and Ethics – be inspired by the future of philosophy! 6-7pm, Informatics Forum, 10 Crichton Street. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite.
Image: Alisdair Mclean
Hello World: The Poetics and Processes of Code. A collaborative event celebrating the aesthetic and creative potentials of computing and software development, co-convened by three leading academics at the University of Edinburgh, Maria Fusco (School of Art), John Lee (School of Informatics) and Chris Speed (School of Design). The day is split into two sessions: 10am-12 noon – a keynote lecture by Dr Geoff Cox, Associate Professor in the Department of Aesthetics and Communications at Aarhus University, Denmark, 2-4pm – a practical workshop led by ECA Research Associate Hadi Mehrpouya, in which you will have the chance to put some technical processes into action. No prior experience is necessary but you must bring a laptop, charger, etc. The lecture is free and open to everyone: no booking is required. The workshop, with lunch before, is also free but places are limited and must be booked by emailing the organiser Fabrizio Gesuelli at f.gesuelli@ed.ac.uk. The event will take place at Edinburgh College of Art, Lauriston Place.
Royal Norwegian Advent Concert: carols and music for advent and Christmas from Schola Cantorum of Edinburgh (Conductor and Solo Organ: Eric von Ibler) and The Edvard Grieg Choir of Hordaland, Norway. 7pm, St Giles’ Cathedral, High Street. Free entry.
Until Only The Mountain Remains: four short public talks on the themes in the Talbot Rice Gallery’s new Christopher Orr exhibition. Viccy Coltman, Senior Lecturer in History of Art: The Romance of Romanticism, Kate McLean, Lecturer: Gothic perspectives: at the edge of the uncanny, Russell Jones, Researcher and Writer: Technophilia: dreamed technologies and technological dreams, and Lena Wanggren, Research Fellow in English: Gazing at the Technological Sublime. 6-8pm, Talbot Rice Gallery, University of Edinburgh, Old College, South Bridge. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite.
Until Only The Mountain Remains: Christopher Orr
I Still Have No Satisfaction…
These are reputed to be genuine letters of complaint to local authorities in Scotland….
1.. I wish to report that tiles are missing from the outside toilet roof. I think it was bad wind the other day that blew them off.
2..My lavatory seat is cracked, where do I stand?
3.. I am writing on behalf of my sink, which is coming away from the wall.
4… Will you please send someone to mend the garden path. My wife tripped and fell on it yesterday and now she is pregnant.
5.. I request permission to remove my drawers in the kitchen.
6.. 50% of the walls are damp, 50% have crumbling plaster, and 50% are plain filthy.
7.. I am still having problems with smoke in my new drawers.
8.. The toilet is blocked and we cannot bath the children until it is cleared.
9..Will you please send a man to look at my water, it is a funny colour and not fit to drink.
10..Our lavatory seat is broken in half and now is in three pieces.
11…Our kitchen floor is damp. We have two children and would like a third so please send someone round to do something about it.
12..I am a single woman living in a downstairs flat and would you please do something about the noise made by the man on top of me every night.
13.. I have had the clerk of works down on the floor six times but I still have no satisfaction.
14.. This is to let you know that our lavatory seat is broke and we can’t get BBC2.
Edinburgh’s Christmas is here
Yes it really is that time of the year again. The Christmas Wheel is now up in Princes Street Gardens and the Star Flyer is whizzing people to screaming pitch alongside this year.
In St Andrew Square, much to the chagrin of the Broughton Spurtle, the whole area has the tinge of mulled wine in the air and snow on the horizon.
In a slightly incongruous match the airline Quatar Airways has become the main sponsor of the new ice rink around the Melville Monument. Although we are not sure that ice skating is a common activity in the Middle East, flying is and they have a sales outlet nearby to entice you to book your next flight with them.
The stages along George Street were much better spaced out this year and there was not the crushing and pushing that we encountered previously. We chose to go up the Mound for a different view and found that the street there was closed off and fairly empty, making it easier to concentrate on getting some shots of the Wheel.
We hope our short video will give you a flavour of what we saw. Edinburgh’s Christmas runs till 4 January 2015.
Qatar Airways sponsor St Andrew Square skating rink
Edinburgh’s Christmas launches today with Light Night and in advance of that new sponsorship has just been announced for the skating in St Andrew Square.
Qatar Airways has been announced as the main sponsor of the new St Andrew Square Ice Rink at this year’s event, further signalling Qatar Airways’ commitment to Scotland following the launch six months ago of direct services between Edinburgh and Doha.
Qatar Airways has also recently announced that services between the two cities will be become daily from 1st May 2015 allowing even greater flexibility and travel options for customers. .
This brand new offering for 2014 will allow revellers to glide all the way round the Melville Monument in St Andrew Square during a 45-minute session. Edinburgh’s Christmas is a six week long season of festive entertainment in the heart of the city which takes place in St Andrew Square and East Princes St Gardens.
For visitors who may be dreaming of warmer times there is also the chance to win flights to tropical destinations courtesy of Qatar Airways when they visit the Qatar Airways cabin which will be fitted out in a Balinese style with a thatched roof and situated by the entrance of the event. Visitors will be encouraged to enter the #WarmYourWinter competition using four iPads situated in the cabin.
UK and Ireland Country Manager, Richard Oliver, said: “Qatar Airways is proud to sponsor Edinburgh’s Christmas event which attracts millions of locals and tourists to Scotland’s capital city. Qatar Airways began flying from Edinburgh in May 2014 and from May 2015 the service will become daily, this move further supports both local businesses and the needs of leisure passengers by offering convenient and direct flights to Doha and the 145 worldwide destinations that the airline serves.”
From 1st December Qatar Airways will launch the highly anticipated A380 on the Doha to Bangkok route providing customers travelling from Edinburgh the perfect combination of travelling on two of the world’s most modern aircraft with a convenient connection time of 2hrs and 15 minutes through Hamad International Airport.
Lorry driver dies after South Queensferry incident
Police in Edinburgh are appealing for witnesses after the driver of a bin lorry died when he was crushed by his own vehicle.
The 58-year-old man, who is not being named until family are informed, died in hospital last night from his injuries.
Sergeant Brian Smith, from Police Sscotland’s Edinburgh Road Policing Unit, said: “This tragic accident happened as the driver tried to stop his lorry from rolling out of the car park of the Hawes Inn.
“He was crushed against the wall by the lorry, which then hit a parked Jaguar car before rolling across the road and mounting the pavement. demolishing a bench and fencing before it came to rest hanging over the edge of the pier.
“Although this is a busy road, with a number of pedestrians in the area at the time, fortunately no one else was injured.
“We are carrying out a full investigation and I am appealing for any witnesses who have not already spoken to us, to call Police Scotland on 101.”
What’s On in Edinburgh this week
MONDAY 24TH NOVEMBER 2014
Mrs Mash at The Skylark: songs, stories and joining in fun from Mrs Mash aka Marie Louise Cochrane, the Storytelling Cook, for the under-5s and their parents and carers – this week with patterns for knitted mice! 10.30am, The Skylark, 241/243 Portobello High Street.
Tiger Tales: parent and child story and craft session aimed at ages 4-8 after school. 3.30-4.15pm, South Neighbourhood Office and Library, 40 Captain’s Road. No booking required – just come along!
Write Shoot Cut: Skeletons. The Write Shoot Cut platform is dedicated to showcasing independent film from Scotland and beyond. Skeletons is the debut feature film from Scottish filmmaker Craig-James Moncur, ‘a voyeuristic assessment of what goes on behind closed doors’ shot on a micro-budget in Edinburgh. Followed by a Q & A session with Craig and various cast and crew members. 6.15pm, Filmhouse, Lothian Road. Tickets £6/£5 from the Box Office on 0131 228 2688 or online.
Writers At War: three experts from the University of Edinburgh will consider changing representations of war in the work of Scottish writers. Professor Greg Walker will discuss David Lindsay’s play A Satire of the Three Estates, Dr Alex Thomson will explore Walter Scott’s fiction and Professor Penny Fielding will examine work by Robert Louis Stevenson. 6-7pm, The Saltire Society, 9 Fountain Close, 22 High Street. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite. A Previously….Scotland’s History Festival event.
The Edinburgh Quilting Collective: come and join this monthly collective, who make, sew and do! Edinburgh Quilting Collective creates group quilts, designed and made by its members; the quilts are then exhibited or donated to charities. A friendly group welcoming all levels of ability. 6.30-9.30pm tonight and the last Monday of every month, 3rd Floor, St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road. Contact lorna@lovelorncreative.com or see the collective’s Facebook page.
The Two Roberts: An Introduction. Patrick Elliott, Senior Curator at the Gallery of Modern Art and curator of this new exhibition, discusses the lives and work of Robert Colquhoun and Robert MacBryde. 12.45-1.30pm, Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, National Gallery of Scotland, The Mound. Free and unticketed.
Edinburgh Napier University Inclusion Week: Transforming Preconceptions – a personal view on inclusion through the perspective of artistic practice from engaging and inspirational speaker Sue Austin, whose accomplishments include scuba diving in an adapted wheelchair and taking part in the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. Sue’s film Finding the Flame was specially commissioned for the Paralympic Flame Festivals and shows her retrieving the torch from an underwater cave in the depths of the ocean. This event forms part of a week of events at Napier to promote and enhance approaches to inclusiveness and develop knowledge and awareness of inclusiveness issues. 1-2pm, The Glassroom, Edinburgh Napier University Merchiston Campus, Colinton Road. Free but please register with disabilityandinclusion@napier.ac.uk.
Daily Highlight Tours of the Portrait Gallery: 30 minute guided tours of the gallery. Discover more about the history of the building and explore highlights from the collection with a curator, educator or gallery attendant. 3-3.30pm today and every day until 19th December 2014, Scottish National Portrait Gallery, 1 Queen Street. Free but places limited to 15 per tour: book your place at the Portrait Gallery information desk.
Blackwell’s Edinburgh Presents Tom Pow: AWild Adventure and Concerning the Atlas of the Dead. Tom Pow discusses his poetry collection Wild Adventure on the remarkable life of Thomas Watling, and his own experience as Writer in Residence at the National Library of Scotland’s Map Library. Tom Watling was born in Dumfries in 1762 and later transported to Botany Bay for forging bank notes; as the first professional artist to arrive in the colony, he was seconded to its Surgeon General (and amateur naturalist) John White. His pioneering pictures of birds, animals and landscapes became some of the principal records of the first days of the colony. Concerning the Atlas of Scotland, meanwhile, was inspired by the Map Library’s collection and is a ‘beautiful and quite haunting collection (that will) appeal to map lovers as well as poetry lovers.’ 6.30-7.30pm, Blackwell’s, South Bridge. Free tickets can be obtained from Blackwell’s front desk, by calling 0131 622 8218 or emailing events.edinburgh@blackwell.co.uk. Part of Previously….Scotland’s History Festival.
South Queensferry Library Craft Club: a chance to get together and share knowledge and skills. This month a member will demonstrate how to make bunting, so bring material scraps, ribbons, etc as well as your needles and thread! 6-7.45pm tonight and the last Monday of each month, South Queensferry Library, 9 Shore Road.
Faith and Identity: Documentary Premiere.Edinburgh Interfaith Association premieres this short documentary exploring the daily lives of three young women from different faith traditions – Islam, Judaism and Sikhism – in response to a recent government report on the rise in hate crime towards minority religious communities. The film (and accompanying educational pack) highlights the fact these are young women with shared hopes and fears that all can identify with, regardless of beliefs, values and practices. Followed by a Q & A session with producer Nur Sakina Kadar and director and filmmaker Justine Gordon-Smith. 7pm, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street. Free tickets are available online or by calling the Box Office on 0131 556 9579. Shown as part of Scottish Interfaith Week.
Guided Tour of the National Library: a tour of the building and an introduction to the library’s collections and history. Please let the library know if you have any special access requirements. 2pm, National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge. Free but numbers are limited and booking is essential, either online or by calling 0131 623 3734.
LGBT: Spiritual Space. Maxwell Reay, NHS Mental Health Community Chaplain,offers a supportive space for people to discuss and develop ideas of spirituality and identity. For people of all faiths or none. This month: Forgiveness – what does it mean to forgive ourselves or others? 6.30-7.30pm (within weekly Drop-In, which is open 5.30-8pm), LGBT Health and Wellbeing, 9 Howe Street.
Philosophy Think Tank 2014: the most promising philosophers at the University of Edinburgh will showcase their exciting and thought-provoking research in 5-minute presentations at this vibrant event. From Philosophy of Cognitive Science and Philosophy of Language to Epistemology and Ethics – be inspired by the future of philosophy! 6-7pm, Informatics Forum, 10 Crichton Street. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite.
Image: Alisdair Mclean
Hello World: The Poetics and Processes of Code. A collaborative event celebrating the aesthetic and creative potentials of computing and software development, co-convened by three leading academics at the University of Edinburgh, Maria Fusco (School of Art), John Lee (School of Informatics) and Chris Speed (School of Design). The day is split into two sessions: 10am-12 noon – a keynote lecture by Dr Geoff Cox, Associate Professor in the Department of Aesthetics and Communications at Aarhus University, Denmark, 2-4pm – a practical workshop led by ECA Research Associate Hadi Mehrpouya, in which you will have the chance to put some technical processes into action. No prior experience is necessary but you must bring a laptop, charger, etc. The lecture is free and open to everyone: no booking is required. The workshop, with lunch before, is also free but places are limited and must be booked by emailing the organiser Fabrizio Gesuelli at f.gesuelli@ed.ac.uk. The event will take place at Edinburgh College of Art, Lauriston Place.
Until Only The Mountain Remains: Christopher Orr
Until Only The Mountain Remains: four short public talks on the themes in the Talbot Rice Gallery’s new Christopher Orr exhibition. Viccy Coltman, Senior Lecturer in History of Art: The Romance of Romanticism, Kate McLean, Lecturer: Gothic perspectives: at the edge of the uncanny, Russell Jones, Researcher and Writer: Technophilia: dreamed technologies and technological dreams, and Lena Wanggren, Research Fellow in English: Gazing at the Technological Sublime. 6-8pm, Talbot Rice Gallery, University of Edinburgh, Old College, South Bridge. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite.
Royal Norwegian Advent Concert: carols and music for advent and Christmas from Schola Cantorum of Edinburgh (Conductor and Solo Organ: Eric von Ibler) and The Edvard Grieg Choir of Hordaland, Norway. 7pm, St Giles’ Cathedral, High Street. Free entry.
TUESDAY 25TH NOVEMBER 2014
Spanish Rhymetime! Sesiones de Rimas en Espanol! Rhymes and songs for babies and children aged 0-4 and their parents or carers. For Spanish speakers and non-Spanish speakers. 10.30am today and the last Tuesday of each month, Portobello Library, 14 Rosefield Avenue. Ole! Come and enjoy with us!
Tinderbox Presents Youth Music Showcase: The Frontiers Orchestra! An evening of new music from some of the finest young musicians from all over Edinburgh. Tinderbox has been running a brand new orchestra at North Edinburgh Arts, bringing together orchestral instruments, samba drums and electronics. This exciting evening will feature performances from the orchesta plus tunes from their Creative Sessions project, together with a performance by Jellyman’s Daughter. 7pm (doors open 6.30pm), Festival Theatre Foyer, 13-39 Nicolson Street. Suggested donation £3 per person.
Cafe Ceilidh: St Andrew’s Day Celebration. Join Linten Adie and friends from the Scots Music Group for a relaxed afternoon of songs and music celebrating Scotland’s patron saint. 2-4pm, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street. Free and unticketed.
War Artists Series – The Second World War: Fighting Fronts and Home Fronts. Dr Patricia Andrew, freelance art historian, traces the progress of war art from the 1930s to the end of the Second World War in 1945, discussing both official schemes for professional artists and the work of numerous unofficial and amateur artists. This was a war in which everyone was involved, and the images of civilian life are as important and interesting as those which depict actual conflict. This lecture will focus in particular on Scottish artists at home and abroad, and Scotland as seen by the many artists who visited during wartime. 12.45-1.30pm, Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, National Gallery of Scotland, The Mound. Free and unticketed.
Mindfulness: learn the mindfulness techniques of breathing and knowing, and bring your attention to the present moment, invoking your inherent capacity for healing and renewal. 12.15-2pm, St Mark’s Unitarian Church, Castle Terrace. More information here.
Blackwell’s Edinburgh Presents Judah Passow and Michael Mail: The Scots Jews. Photographer Judah Passow has created a portrait of Jewish people who live north of the border, exploring the place of the Jewish community in contemporary Scottish society. This fascinating photographic essay shows Scotland’s Jews as firmly rooted in their Jewish identity, but also as patriotic Scots. The photographs are introduced by author Michael Mail, who conceived the project to document Scottish Jewish life. 6.30-7.30pm, Blackwell’s, South Bridge. Free tickets can be obtained from Blackwell’s front desk, by calling 0131 622 8218 or emailing events.edinburgh@blackwell.co.uk. Part of Previously….Scotland’s History Festival.
Interestit in yaising the updatit online’ Dictionar o the Scots Leid‘? Staff from Scottish Language Dictionaries will be available to help and answer questions, and Book Week Scotland publications will be available. 2-4pm, Edinburgh and Scottish Collection area, Central Library, George IV Bridge. Free tickets should be booked via eventbrite.
Christmas Wreaths: make your own seasonal wreath, with materials supplied by Bridgend Growing Communities. 2-3pm, Gilmerton Library, 13 Newtoft Street. Places limited: please book yours by calling the library on 0131 529 5628.
Advancing Religious Freedom: a lecture and discussion by Dr Kishan Manocha, Chair of the International Association for Religious Freedom British Chapter. 7.30-9pm, University of Edinburgh Chaplaincy, 5 Bristo Square. Part of Scottish Interfaith Week.
The Seven Professors of the Far North: children’s author John Fardell will be talking about his new book. For ages (approximately) 7-12. 6-7pm, Sighthill LIbrary, 55 Sighthill Road. Free: please call 0131 529 5566 or drop in to the library to book your place. A Book Week Scotland event.
Introducing Weegee: David Hopkins (University of Glasgow) talks about photographer and photojournalist Weegee – an enigmatic figure known for his stark black and white street photography and his ability to beat police to the scene of crimes in post-war New York. The imagery of Weegee’s work sits behind Stan Douglas’s photographic series Midcentury Studio: read The Edinburgh Reporter’s review of Stan Douglas’s current exhibition here. 7pm, Fruitmarket Gallery, Market Street. Tickets cost £5 and are available from eventbrite. Part of Previously…..Scotland’s History Festival.
Keeping Active Over 50: a talk on the benefits of a healthy and active lifestyle, including a short exercise taster session, tips and a demonstration. 2-3pm, Blackhall Library, 56 Hillhouse Road. Delivered by the Active Lives Project in partnership with Living Well.
Ian Stephen: Poet, Author, Playwright. Ian Stephen is a writer, artist and poet from the Isle of Lewis. His latest publication A Book of Death and Fishtells the story of Peter MacAulay, for whom the writing of his will sets off a compulsive series of reflections on his own life, and how key events in the post-war world filtered through to his Stornaway home. 6-7pm, McDonald Road Library, 2 McDonald Road. Please book via eventbrite. A Book Week Scotland event.
Doug Johnstone The Dead Beat and other writings: Edinburgh writer Doug is the author of five novels, including the acclaimed Gone Again. He is also a freelance journalist, songwriter and musician and has a PhD in Nuclear Physics. 7-8pm, Portobello Library, 14 Rosefield Avenue. Please book via eventbrite.
The Sonics LGBT Basketball Group: a friendly and informal group for beginners and experienced players alike. 7-8pm, Leith Community Education Centre, 12a New Kirkgate. Conact Jules on 0131 523 1100 for more information.
Lunchtime Concert: The Edinburgh Quartet performs Takemitsu Landscape (1960) and Elgar String Quartet in E Minor, Op.83. 1.10pm, Reid Concert Hall, Bristo Square, University of Edinburgh. Free and unticketed.
War Poets Collection Guided Tours: Catherine Walker will provide a guided tour of Edinburgh Napier University’s collection of material relating to the history of its Craiglockhart campus, and will talk about the many interesting characters who have had links with Craiglockhart over the years. 11am-12 noon or 2-3pm, War Poets Collection Exhibition Area, Edinburgh Napier University, Craiglockhart Campus, Glenlockhart Road. Free but numbers are limited to 12 per tour, so please register by calling 0131 455 4260 or emailing events@napier.ac.uk. Also available at same times on Friday 28th November.
FameLab 2015 Edinburgh Heat: How do 3D Glasses Work? Why do men have nipples? Why is wearing red an advantage in sport? How do cabbages keep warm in winter? These are the types of things you could learn at the Edinburgh Heat of FameLab UK – see the region’s finest science communicators as they battle it out to win a place at the FameLab Scottish Final. For ages 18+. 7-9pm, Red Lecture Theatre, Summerhall, 1 Summerhall. Free.
National Museum of Scotland Annual Open Meeting: find out more about NMS’s work, collections and plans for the future at all of its museums. Hosted by Bruce Minto (Chairman) and Dr Gordon Rintoul (Director). 6-8pm, Auditorium, Level One, (via Lothian Street at rear of Museum), National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street. Free: advance booking essential – email events@nms.ac.uk.
Evergreen: Ideas, Poems, Songs. An evening in the beautiful and historic Riddles Court: celebrate the publication of The Evergreenwith poets Marcas Mac an Tuairneir, Richie McCaffery, Ian McDonough, Andrew McDougall, Mario Relich, Nancy Somerville, Jock Stein and singer Kirsty Law. Richie McCaffery will also give a short talk on Patrick Geddes and Hugh MacDiarmid. 7-9pm, The Geddes Room, Riddles Court, Lawnmarket. Free and unticketed: more information from andrew.mcdougall1@btinternet.com.
WEDNESDAY 26TH NOVEMBER 2014
Blackwell’s Edinburgh Presents JD Oswald: The Ballad of Sir Benfro. An epic fantasy series from one of Scotland’s most successful new crime writers, ‘an unputdownable tale of the great dragons returning to the kingdom of men’. In a small village, miles from the great cities of the Twin Kingdoms, a young boy called Errol tries to make his way in the world….Deep in the forest Benfro, a young dragon, begins his training in the subtle arts. 6.30-7.30pm, Blackwell’s, South Bridge. Free tickets can be obtained from Blackwell’s front desk, by calling 0131 622 8218 or emailing events.edinburgh@blackwell.co.uk. Part of Book Week Scotland.
Dr Patricia Andrew: Scottish War Art and Artists in the 20th Century. Dr Andrew discusses her new book A Chasm of Time: Scottish War Art and Artists in the 20th Century, looking at Scottish artists and their experience of war, and how they recorded and interpreted Scotland at war. 2.30-3.30pm, George Washington Browne Room, Central Library, George IV Bridge. Free tickets should be booked via eventbrite.
Catriona Child: Swim Until You Can’t See Land. Catriona’s latest novel contrasts the struggles of injured swimmer Hannah Wright with the life of Mariele Downie, a wartime spy. 7-8pm, South Queensferry Library, 9 Shore Road. Please book via eventbrite. A Book Week Scotland event.
Patrick Richardson: In Search of Landfall: The Odyssey of An Indefatigable Adventure. Patrick Richardson will talk about his second book , ‘an almost mythical meditation on childhood, the loss of innocence, love and the passing of time’. He has been travelling to exceedingly remote parts of the world for the past 45 years, and writing travel articles about these places for the last 20; ‘teeming with the fascinating characters and even more fascinating encounters that have contributed to a very rich life‘ (Alan Spence). 7-8pm, Stockbridge Library, 11 Hamilton Place. To book a place call the library on 0131 529 5665 or email stockbridge.library@edinburgh.gov.uk.
Gorgie Tots: for babies and children 0-5 years – come on in and enjoy tea, coffee and snacks. 10am-12 noon, Destiny Church, 52 Gorgie Road. All welcome: £1 entry.
Image: Cassandra Nelson for Mercy Corps
Morningside Justice and Peace Group: Our Work In The Middle East – a speaker from Mercy Corps, which has the largest humanitarian presence in Gaza after the UN. 10.30-11.30am, The Open Door 420 Morningside Road. All welcome: for more information see website or email b.darcy20@gmail.com. £1 per person.
Russel McLean: Crime Noir. Russel D McLean’s new novel Cry Uncle is a sequel to four previous criminal stories featuring private investigator J McNee. In his mission to get closer to ageing gangster David Burns and uncover his secrets, how far can McNee go until he crosses the line? 7-8pm, Gilmerton Library, 13 Newtoft Street. Please book your free place via eventbrite.
Bookbug: songs and rhymes for young children and babies. 10.30-11.15am, Leith Library, 28-30 Ferry Road.
Arts by the Book: meet local artists, appreciate original art, listen to live music from The Spylaw Scarlets with Frances Cockburn, enjoy wine and nibbles – and the library will even be open for the borrowing and return of books! 5-7pm, Colinton Library, 14 Thorburn Road.
Bookbug: songs and rhymes for young children and babies. 2pm, Piershill Library, Piersfield Terrace.
LGBT: Stigma and Stones – living with a diagnosis of BPD. Poets Jo MacFarlane and Sally Fox share their relationships with the stigmatising diagnosis of borderline personality disorder through creative and compassionate spoken work performances, discussion and information. Whether you feel personally or professionally impacted by this often misunderstood diagnosis, or you simply love poetry that will make you want to laugh, cry and become an activist, this event is for you! 6-8.30pm, Serenity Cafe, The Tun, 8 Jackson’s Entry, off Holyrood Road. Free but booking is essential and can be made via eventbrite. A Book Week Scotland event.
LGBT Community Discussion: the Future of LGBT Equality in Scotland. A unique opportunity to explore what’s next for the campaign for equality in Scotland, with guest speakers Tom French from the Equality Network, Jacq Kelly from Leonard Cheshire Disability and trans playwright Jo Clifford, this friendly, informal event will give you the chance to have your say on equality issues and hear what others’ hopes are for LGBT people in Scotland. 6.30-9.30pm, Eric Liddell Centre,15 Morningside Road. Please book if possible, via this online link or by contacting Jules on 0131 523 1100.
LGBT: Edinburgh Gay Men’s Book Group – an inclusive book group where you can meet new people and read and discuss interesting books. 7-9pm, LGBT Health and Wellbeing, 9 Howe Street. For more information contact info@gaybookgroup.co.uk.
Anselm Kiefer: Forest Stories. Dr Christian Weikop delivers this talk about the importance of the representation of trees and mythic forests in Anselm Kiefer’s art practice, from his earliest artworks to more recent, large-scale, composite woodcuts, drawing on an interview Christian conducted with the artist in Paris in 2013 as an envoy of the Royal Academy. This event coincides with the current major retrospective of Anselm Kiefer’s work at the Royal Academy, London. 5-6pm, Main Lecture Theatre, Edinburgh College of Art, Lauriston Place. RA exhibition ends 14th December 2014.
Edinburgh Napier University Undergraduate Web Chat: if you are a UK student and thinking of studying at Napier, join in online and chat to staff and other potential students – about courses, the UCAS process and living in Edinburgh. 4-6pm: register here.
Conversations in Faith: the third in a series of six sessions aiming to foster understanding and respect, make a contribution to world peace and create an international community of faith. The conversations will be chaired by Dr Anthony Allison on behalf of the Bishops’ Committee for Interreligious Dialogue. This week:Janice Oliver will speak about Islam. 7.30-9pm, Lauriston Jesuit Centre, 28 Lauriston Street. For more information call 0131 229 9821.
THURSDAY 27TH NOVEMBER 2014
Bookbug: songs and rhymes for young children and babies. 10.30-11am, Oxgangs Library, 343 Oxgangs Road North.
Live Music Now: Slide Too Far. Formed two years ago in Glasgow, trombone quartet Slide Too Far has gone from strength to strength, winning prizes and performing throughout the UK and Europe. Described as theatrical, virtuosic and with beautiful lyricism, their repertoire links the visual art of Venice with opera overtures and Italian arias, as well as music dating from the time of Titian (using period instruments). From Scotland, there are Dougie Maclean, Phil Cunningham and traditional Scots songs to celebrate St Andrew’s Day. 6-6.30pm, National Gallery of Scotland, The Mound. Free and unticketed.
Gaelic Bookbug: songs and rhymes for young children and babies. 10.30am, Blackhall Library, 56 Hillhouse Road
Blackwell’s Edinburgh Presents Elizabeth Laird: The Lure of the Honey Bird. In 1967, at the age of 23, Elizabeth Laird set off for Addis Ababa to take up her first teaching post. She was introduced to Haile Sellasie, made a pilgrimage across the mountains on foot to the ancient city of Lalibela, hitched a ride on an oil tanker across the Danakil Desert and was arrested for a murder she had not committed. Back in Britain Laird established herself as a major author of fiction for children and young adults, but she always wanted to return to Ethiopia and her chance came in the late 1990s when the British Council in Addis Ababa invited her to collect folk stories from every region of the country. Encountering ex-guerilla fighters, camel traders, Coptic nuns and tribal people en route, Laird has written a remarkable account of her journey, interwoven with a treasure trove of stories featuring princes and maidens, snakes and lions, zombies and hyena-women. 6.30-7.30pm, Blackwell’s, South Bridge. Free tickets can be obtained from Blackwell’s front desk, by calling 0131 622 8218 or emailing events.edinburgh@blackwell.co.uk. Part of Previously….Scotland’s History Festival.
Bookbug: songs and rhymes for young children and babies. 11am, Granton Library, Wardieburn Terrace.
Bridgend Growing Communities Gardening Workshop: help transform the garden into a friendly and relaxing space for the whole community. No experience necessary, all tools and materials provided. 12 noon-2pm today and every Thursday, Craigmillar Library, 101 Niddrie Mains Road.
Banned Book Club: Little Brother. Author Cory Doctorow is a science fiction writer, journalist, activist and blogger: his book Little Brother has been challenged by a Florida school for questioning authority and lauding hacking culture. This evening the group will be led by Cory himself, in a friendly discussion about freedom of expression at home, online and internationally. Cory has made the book available free here: please read it before attending the meeting. 5.15pm, The Saltire Society, 9 Fountain Close, 22 High Street. Free but please book via Brown Paper Tickets as space is limited. A Book Week Scotland event.
Ewan McLennan playing live at Coda: Ewan McLennan has, in a short space of time, become known as a guitarist, balladeer and storyteller cut in the old style: a songwriter for whom social justice is still a burning issue. His new album was released just last month, and he drops in today as part of his UK promotional tour. 5.30pm, Coda Music, 12 Bank Street, The Mound. All welcome.
In The Shadow of Forward Motion: this film, a collaboration between artists David Wojnarowicz and Ben Neill, will be screened as part of Edinburgh College of Art’s History of Art Research Seminar series. 5.15pm, Hunter Building Lecture Theatre, Edinburgh College of Art, Lauriston Place.
LGBT: What You Need To Know about Power of Attorney. A special presentation by family counsel Alan Inglis on the benefits of Power of Attorney and its value to the LGBT community; there will be an opportunity to ask questions after the presentation. 2.30-4pm, LGBT Health and Wellbeing, 9 Howe Street. Booking preferred: contact lynda@lgbthealth.org.uk or call 0131 523 1100.
The Naming of Cancer: Tracy S Rosenberg launches this fourteen-poem book, which begins in hospital and from there explores the experience of cancer from a multitude of perspectives. 6-7pm, Scottish Poetry Library, 5 Crichton’s Close. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite.
Poets Against Humanity. Poets are horrible people – to prove this Rachel McCrum, Marianne MacRae and Kevin McLean will be inserting rude things into works of great literature, in order to desecrate and entertain in equal measure. Based on the game ‘Cards Against Humanity’ – but with poets. 8pm, Banshee Labyrinth, Niddry Street. Free: donations welcome! No booking required – just turn up. For more information contact chutneyexhibition@gmail.com.
Lunchtime Concert: Tim Cais (cello) and Chris Harding (piano) will play Mendelsshon Cello Sonata in B Flat Major Op 45, Prokofiev Cello Sonata in C Major, Op 119 and Webbern Two Pieces for Cello and Piano (1899). 1.15-2.15pm, St Andrew’s and St George’s West Church, George Street. Free entry.
Telling Stories: Collecting Contemporary Middle Eastern Art at the British Museum. Venetia Porter, Curator of Islamic and Modern Middle East Art at the British Museum, will explore the process by which art from the Middle East is both acquired and displayed at the BM. 6-8pm, Edinburgh College of Art, Lauriston Place. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite.
Ecumenical Friends of St Cuthbert’s: Hanne Gormley – The Story of the German Church. Everyone welcome: bring your own sandwiches, tea and coffee provided. 12.30-2pm, St Cuthbert’s Church, Lothian Road. £1.50 per person, Organised by Edinburgh City Centre Churches TOGETHER.
Book Marks: a festival of books, celebrating the huge variety of ways in which the book form is used by staff, students and alumni of the College. Meet the makers, browse and buy zines, comics and artists’ books, or debate the future of the book over a coffee in the College’s Grand Sculpture Court. 4-8pm, Grand Sculpture Court, Edinburgh College of Art, Lauriston Place. Free and open to all. For further information call 0131 651 5732.
Michel Doneda 60th Birthday Concert: Swiss improvising saxophonist Michel Doneda will celebrate his birthday with a concert of solo improvised saxophone; he will be joined and supported by Edinburgh’s free improvisation collective, Edimpro.This event is part of the gap in the airfestival, a celebration of experimental music and sonic art at the Talbot Rice Gallery. 8.45 for 9pm, Talbot Rice Gallery, University of Edinburgh, Old College, South Bridge. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite.
McCrae’s Battalion: a service to commemorate the centenary of the Raising of the Battalion in the Parish of St Cuthbert. Made up of young Edinburgh men from all walks of life, it was officially the 16th Royal Scots, but is better known by its affectionate name, McCrae’s Battalion, after its charismatic colonel Sir George McCrae. It is also known as the sporting battalion because it was largely composed of professional and amateur sportsmen. The 1350 men who signed up after a meeting in the Usher Hall 100 years ago today made their way on foot down Lothian Road, past St Cuthbert’s and St John’s, to sign up formally in Castle Street. The Padre to the Battalion was The Revd James Black, later to become Minister of St George’s West (now St Andrew’s and St George’s West), and subsequently Moderator of the General Assembly. The men left to go to war from Waverley Station, most of them destined never to return. 12.45pm, St Cuthbert’s Church, Lothian Road. All welcome. Organised by OASIS in partnership with Business Matters, Workplace Chaplaincy Scotland and McCrae’s Battalion Trust.
Edinburgh Napier University Postgraduate Open Evening: whether you want to study full-time, part-time or by distance learning, find out more about postgraduate and professional courses at Napier, with start dates in January and September 2015. Talks, plus the opportunity to discuss your questions about courses, finance, accommodation and admissions with academic and support staff. Refreshments available; live music from Napier students! 5.30-7.30pm, Edinburgh Napier University, Craiglockhart Campus, Glenlockhart Road.
Dinner Church at Canongate Kirk: a community potluck meal around a common table. Eat together, read scripture, offer prayers, reflect and sing. Whatever your tradition, whatever your community, everyone is welcome at the table – visitors to Edinburgh as much as local residents. Dinner Church is based on an idea from St Lydia’s Church in Brooklyn. 6.30pm, Harry Younger Hall, Little Lochend Close, down the Royal Mile from Canongate Kirk. All welcome; for more information contact Katie at katiemunnik@yahoo.ca.
PRINT MEDIA: a series of lectures exploring the broad scope of print within the field of contemporary visual arts practice. Henry Collingham, a designer from NE England working across media in product design, interaction design, film and animation – and a ‘committed nerd’ – will consider how 3D printing has changed our world, and explore technological advances within artistic printmaking practice, how they often herald new developments in the industry, and what problems these advances have addressed. 6.30-7.30pm, Edinburgh Printmakers, Union Street. Tickets cost £5 or two for £8 and can be booked via eventbrite.
St John’s RC Primary School Parent Council’s Pamper, Presents and Prosecco Spa Night! Amazing beauty treatments and unique handmade gifts. Complementary glass of bubbles on arrival and free goody bag for the first 50 people. 7-10pm, St John’s School Hall, Hamilton Terrace, Portobello. Tickets £5 – reserve via the Parent Council Facebook page or pay on the door.
FRIDAY 28TH NOVEMBER 2014
Serenity Cafe Club Night: Robbie Williams Tribute. Serenity Cafe is run for people in recovery by people in recovery – and for anyone else who wants good value, good quality food in a relaxed space. Serenity’s club nights are family friendly and drink and drug free. Serenity Cafe, 8 Jackson Entry, The Tun (off Holyrood Road). £4 unwaged, £6 waged. Contact Serenity on 0131 556 8765 for times.
Storytime with Lapin: a puppet show performance for 3-5 year olds with Tania and rabbit Lapin. Tania set up puppet theatre company Le Petit Monde to introduce young children and their families to her native French language and culture in the most natural way – through authentic French-speaking puppets! 2.30-3.30pm, Gilmerton Library, 13 Newtoft Street.
Image: Edinburgh Museums
Regi Claire: The Waiting. Regi Claire discusses her latest novel, set against the backdrop of wartime Edinburgh. Elderly Lizzie Fairbairn opens her door to a strange young girl with stigmata-marked palms; her name is Rachel and she is a Scottish-Swiss student bent on discovering more about her grandmother, Lizzie’s esrtwhile friend Marlene. What follows is a pilgrimage of recollection, a cathartic skittering between past and present. 3-4pm, Writers’ Museum, Lady Stair’s House, Lady Stair’s Close, Lawnmarket. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite. A Previously….Scotland’s History Festival event.
Gallery Social: Highlights from the National Collection. Join artists for relaxed guided tours for anyone affected by dementia, their friends, relatives and supporters. This very informal tour will explore highlights from the permanent collection and will begin with refreshments in the Learning Centre. 10.30am-12 noon, National Gallery of Scotland (meet at Gardens Entrance), The Mound. Free but please book by contacting the Information Desk on 0131 624 6560.
Bookbug: songs and rhymes for young children and babies. 10.30-11am, Corstorphine Library, 12 Kirk Loan.
Image: Scottish Storytelling Centre
Guid Crack: Broth, Breid and Bannocks – a feast of tales celebrating guid Scots fare with storyteller Sheila Kinninmouth. Edinburgh’s monthly storytelling night, upstairs at the Waverley Bar (accompanied young adults welcome). 7.30-9.30pm, Waverley Bar, 1 St Mary’s Street. Free – suggested donation £3.
Stories from the NLS Shelves: a two-part workshop led by James Robertson. In the morning there will be a behind-the-scenes tour with a curator; after lunch novelist and poet James Robertson will lead a writing workshop based on the morning’s experiences. For more information about the workshop click here. 10.30am-3pm, National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge. Free but numbers are limited and booking is essential via info@moniackmhor.ork.uk. This event is sponsored by Moniack Mhor, Scotland’s creative writing centre.
Understanding the role of meditation in religion: Alex Holmes (Christian Meditation Scotland), Bryan Webb (Wild Geese Sangha) and Ani Rinchen Khandro (Kaygu Samye Dzong Edinburgh) will discuss this topic. 3-4pm, St Mark’s Unitarian Church, Castle Terrace. Part of Scottish Interfaith Week.
Eco Kidz Pop Up Stall: a fantastic selection of recycled gifts. Eco Kidz is a Creative Social Enterprise project for children aged 8-12, set up by North Edinburgh Arts and funded by the Big Lottery Young Start Fund: it aims to develop young people’s art, design and business skills by helping them to create their own brand of handmade market-ready products using recycled materials and upcycling techniques. The pop up stalls will offer jewellery, notebooks, pincushions, vases, brooches, key rings, magnets, Christmas cards and more. Today there will also be an Eco Kidz workshop in which you can make your own Christmas cards and gift tags from recycled materials. 2-4.30pm, Muirhouse Community Shop, Pennywell Road. (Next pop up stall 30th November at Ice Retail, St James’s Centre, Princes Street.) For more information click here.
Mokssh: Journey of the Soul (Ajit Bhairavkar, 2013, Hindi with English subtitles). An adaptation of the multiple award winning Marathi film Gajar – ‘a fascinating tale of spirituality and self-discovery’. 6pm, Screening Room, G.04, 50 George Square, University of Edinburgh. Shown as part of Scottish Interfaith Week.
LGBT Women’s Wellbeing Group: an inclusive group offering the opportunity to meet other LGBT women in a relaxed environment, Chat, information and activities promoting health and wellbeing. The group is open to all LGBT women and we welcome transgendered people who primarily identify as women. This week: We Got The Power – Disability History Month discussion on how different forms of disability impact LGBT women, with a focus on how activism has given people a platform to be visible and heard. 2-4.30pm, LGBT Health and Wellbeing, 9 Howe Street. To stay up to date with the group, including meeting times and locations for outings, email alison@lgbthealth.org.uk
Shot At Dawn: free drop-in tours of Chloe Dewe Mathews’ current exhibition. 5.30-6pm today and every Friday, Stills Gallery, 23 Cockburn Street. No booking required, just turn up! Also available on Sunday 30th November at 2pm.
LGBT Film Nights: see LGBT and mainstream films in a friendly sociable setting. Vote via email and at the events for each month’s film choices; you are welcome just to turn up, but please be aware that the film for that month will already have been chosen. This month: Trans Remembrance. 6.30-9.30pm, LGBT Health and Wellbeing, 9 Howe Street. For more information contact admin@lgbthealth.org.uk.
War Poets Collection Guided Tours: Catherine Walker will provide a guided tour of Edinburgh Napier University’s collection of material relating to the history of its Craiglockhart campus, and will talk about the many interesting characters who have had links with Craiglockhart over the years. 11am-12 noon or 2-3pm, War Poets Collection Exhibition Area, Edinburgh Napier University, Craiglockhart Campus, Glenlockhart Road. Free but numbers are limited to 12 per tour, so please register by calling 0131 455 4260 or emailing events@napier.ac.uk.
St Andrew’s Day Talk with Professor Gordon Findlater: with the increase in anatomy schools in the 18th century, a growing demand for bodies for dissection provided ideal conditions for the infamous serial killers Burke and Hare. Join Edinburgh University Museum of Anatomy’s Gordon Findlater to discover the historic landscape of Edinburgh, where Burke and Hare preyed on the vulnerable to sell bodies to anatomist Robert Knox. 6-7.30pm, Surgeons’ Hall Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons, Nicolson Street. Free tickets can be booked via eventbrite.
Edinburgh Greek Film Festival starts today and continues until 4th December 2014. It will present some of the most exciting new Greek films, alongside a modern masterpiece of Greek resistance The Rehearsal (showing on 1st December). Tonight: The Enemy Within/O ehthros mou (2013) Cert 18. The screening will be followed by a Q & A session with director Yorgos Tsemperopoulos. Film shown in Greek with English subtitles. 8.20pm , Filmhouse, Lothian Road. For prices and tickets contact the Box Office on 0131 228 2688 or book online
Crohn’s and Colitis Fundraiser Ceilidh with The Occasionals. 7pm-12 midnight, St Brides Centre, Orwell Terrace. Tickets are £10.50 and can be booked via eventbrite.
SATURDAY 29TH NOVEMBER 2014
Garvald Christmas Bazaar: handcrafted goods made by members of Garvald Edinburgh, live music, children’s activities, refreshments. 10.30am-1.30pm, Garvald Gorgie Workshops, 454/1 Gorgie Road. Entry by donation. Garvald Edinburgh is a Scottish charity offering creative opportunities and support for people with learning difficulties.
Advent Fair: want to celebrate Advent in the countryside? The Pishwanton Community Wood near Gifford will be holding its Advent Fair today, 11am-3pm: traditional crafts and products for sale (cards, books, jams, baking, gifts), craft activity workshops – make an Advent wreath or a candle holder, – homemade organic food, hot soup and rolls, hot punch and cakes. From 3-5pm there will be a candlelit concert with music from Peaty Millers and Frank’s Folk Group andreadings and poems with Charles Lawrie. Pishwanton Community Wood, Longester, Near Gifford, East Lothian. Free entry to the fair, suggested donation of £5 for the concert. For more details contact The Life Science Trust on 01620 810259 or email admin@pishwanton.com.
Enchanted Edwardian Christmas: a craft workshop for families with the Lauriston team. Enjoy Lauriston’s very special Edwardian Christmas experience, evoking the memories and atmosphere of a past era, and take home some charming crafts. Christmas snacks included! 10am-1pm, Lauriston Castle, 2a Cramond Road South. £7 per person: booking must be made via the Usher Hall Box Office, in person, by phone or via the Usher Hall website. Also available at same times on Sunday 30th November.
GENERATION tours at Modern One: free, discussion-led tours of the exhibition, focusing on key themes and artists. 11-11.45am or 1-1.45pm, Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art ONE, 75 Belford Road. Free and unticketed.
Linlithgow Advent Fair: 10am – craft fair in The Burgh Halls and a street fair around The Cross Well; 4.30pm – torchlight procession from Low Port Centre/School along High Street; 6pm – Christmas Tree Lights Switch-On at Linlithgow Cross.
Portobello and Joppa Parish Church Guild Table Top Sale: baking, stocking fillers, jewellery, cards, arts and crafts, bespoke gifts. Visit Santa’s Grotto! 10am-12.30pm, Portobello and Joppa Parish Church, 1 Brunstane Road North, Joppa. Admission free: refreshments for sale.
National Gallery Highlight Tours: An introduction to, and tour of, the Gallery’s permanent collection, focusing on key paintings. 2-2.45pm or 3-3.45pm, National Gallery of Scotland, The Mound. Free and unticketed.
Mrs Mash The Storytelling Cook: join Mrs Mash for a generous serving of Scottish stories about our nation’s fabulous food. Taste for yourself the Queen’s ‘Balmoral drop scones’, which will be made on Mrs Mash’s very own cast-iron girdle. For ages 4+. 10.30-11.30am, Storytelling Bothy, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street. £5 per child (accompanying adult free). Book via the Box Office on 0131 556 9579 or online – please remember to select a free adult ticket as well as a ticket for your child.
Edinburgh Palette Winter Open Studios: the artists, makers and craftspeople of St Margaret’s open their studios to the public in this weekend-long event. Family-friendly workshops, a craft fair, a cafe and one-off performances will take place across the building’s eight storeys. 10am-6pm, St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road. Also on Sunday 30th November, 10am-5pm. For full programme click here or see event Facebook page.
The Makers’ Fair: as part of St Margaret’s Open Studios event, a cluster of St Margaret’s artists will offer paintings, cards, prints, ceramics, soaps, candles and textiles in this special two day fair. 11am-7pm, Gallery 2, St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road. The fair will also be open 10am-5pm on Sunday 30th November.
Suspect 1950 (2010): Stan Douglas, courtesy of the artist, David Zwirner, NY/London and Victoria Miro, London
Murder At The Fruitmarket: as part of Book Week Scotland the Gallery hosts an evening of crime, which will include readings from Tartan Noir author Doug Johnstone, a specially commissioned short story from Hannah McGill and a private viewing of the Stan Douglas exhibition, whilst an exclusive performance from jazz chanteuse and La Clique star Becc Sanderson will take you back in time to the post war era. 7.30-10.30pm, Fruitmarket Gallery, Market Street. Tickets cost £5 and are available via eventbrite.
Lunchtime Concert: Giacomo Scinardo, piano. 12.15pm, St Giles’ Cathedral, High Street. Free.
Cramond Kirk Christmas Fair: gifts, crafts, toys, cakes, hampers, candy, refreshments, Santa, face painting, lunches. All proceeds will go to Fresh Start and the Forget Me Not Therapeutic Garden and Tea Room Project. 11.30am-2pm, Cramond Kirk Hall, Cramond Glebe Road.
The Torrance Gallery Christmas Exhibition: including jewellery by Sheana Stephen, inspired by gardens, sea and shore. Plus over 220 paintings by over 70 artists, sculpture, ceramics and glass -gifts from under £50 to £5,000! 11am-6pm Monday to Friday, 10.30am-4pm Saturdays, from today until 10th January 2015, Torrance Gallery, 36 Dundas Street.
Blackwell’s Edinburgh Presents Hugh Cornwell: Arnold Drive. Nothing much has ever happened to the Reverend Arnold Drive…until the day his church is sold off to property developers. Thrust into the modern world, for which he is utterly ill-equipped, Arnold is faced with a series of moral dilemmas that test his faith, his judgement and his understanding of human nature. ‘The story of a man’s journey from innocence to experience.’ Hugh Cornwell was the original guitarist, singer and main songwriter for The Stranglers and is one of the UK’s finest songwriting talents and accomplished live performers. After the talk Hugh will sign copies of his book; please note he will not be able to sign any Stranglers’ or other music memorabilia unless a copy of the book has been purchased. 2-3.30pm, Blackwell’s, South Bridge. Free tickets can be obtained from Blackwell’s front desk, by calling 0131 622 8218 or emailing events.edinburgh@blackwell.co.uk.
Gavin Francis: Empire Antarctica. Gavin Francis, non-fiction category winner in the 2013 Scottish Book Awards, talks about Empire Antarctica: Ice, Silence and Emperor Penguins, based on his experience as a resident doctor with the British Antarctic Survey, ‘the last great wilderness on earth’. 2.30-3.30pm, Central Library, George IV Bridge. Free tickets should be booked via eventbrite.
The Scottish Gallery: four new exhibitions. Ed Kluz: Architecture of the Enlightenment (collages exploring the architecture of the New Town); Beth Legg: Surfaces (jewellery inspired by the Scottish landscape); Frances MacDonald: Beyond the Island of Storms, and Jill Fanshawe Kato: Nature’s Garden (ceramics). 10am-6pm Monday to Friday, 10am-4pm Saturdays, until 24th December 2014. The Scottish Gallery, 16 Dundas Street.
James Oswald: Dead Man’s Bones. James Oswald is the author of the Inspector McLean series of detective mysteries set in Edinburgh, the first two of which were shortlisted for the CWA Debut Dagger Award; he has also written The Ballad of Sir Benfro, a classic fantasy series inspired by the language and folklore of Wales. 3-4pm, Muirhouse Library, Pennywell Court. Please book via eventbrite. A Book Week Scotland event.
Millie Gray: When Sorry Is Not Enough. Sally Stuart’s adventures in post-war Leith continue with this thrilling sequel to The Tangling of the Web. Millie’s reading from her new book will be followed by a Q & A session and signing. Refreshments provided! 2.30-4pm, Leith Library, 28-30 Ferry Road. Free, but as space is limited please drop in to book with library staff or call them on 0131 529 5517.
LGBT Trans Action Theatre and Activism Workshop: a fun and supportive theatre workshop for trans people. Explore drama skills and ways to boost your confidence through voice and movement; no experience necessary – just a willingness to have a go. 2-5pm, LGBT Health and Wellbeing, 9 Howe Street. Booking essential via this link, which also has more details about the workshop.
Philip Guston: Late Paintings. A reception to celebrate the publication of this book, which documents the acclaimed 2012 Inverleith House exhibition and includes photography by Michael Wolchover and text by David Anfamm, Paul Nesbitt and Philip Larratt-Smith. 1-3pm, Inverleith House, Royal Botanic Garden, Inverleith Row. Free, no booking required. A Book Week Scotland event.
Portobello Poetry Circus Presents Twenty Poets: two hours of Pulsating Poetry Performance on the Prom. 7.30 for 8pm, Dalriada, 77 Promenade, Portobello. £3: tickets available from the Dalriada. For further details contact max.scratchmann@btinternet.com.
Winter Guided Walk: join a garden guide for a leisurely afternoon walk around the Garden. Discover stunning seasonal highlights and learn about the history of the Garden and its plants. For ages 14+. 2pm, Royal Botanic Garden (meet at John Hope Gateway reception), Inverleith Row. £5 per person, no booking required. Also available at same time on Sunday 30th November.
The Naming of the Shrew: A Walk with John Wright. Join John Wright, forager and author, on a stroll round the Garden to explore the stories behind the names we use to organise nature, and the humour and humanity of the people who devote their lives to giving names to it (over 2,000 new plant species are named each year). Expect to be entertained and to be left forever wondering about the people and stories behind the names. For ages 12+. 12.30-1.30pm, Royal Botanic Garden (meet at John Hope Gateway reception), Inverleith Row. Free, no booking required. John will also give a free talk about his new bookThe Naming of the Shrew at 2.30pm in the Real Life Science Studio, John Hope Gateway.
Lau-Lau Festival Club feat. Anais Mitchell, Kris Drever and Eamonn Coyne, Mystery Juice and Martin Green: Celebrate the end of Lau-Land with this after show club party extravaganza. Sessions, tunes and cocktail invention competition. For ages 18+. Doors open 10pm, The Dissection Room, Summerhall, 1 Summerhall. £5 – book via Summerhall website or call box office on 0131 560 1581.
Pop Maskulinity: a new, thought-provoking, collective exhibition by Polish, British and international artists. Eleven artists at different stages of their artistic practice will investigate the underexploited subject of masculinity in the 21st century. Via photography, painting, drawing, collage and sculpture the artists will provoke a discussion on the status of men and the meaning of masculinity in the contemporary world. Opening tonight at 5pm, then 10am-6pm every day until 11th December 2014, Gayfield Creative Spaces, 11 Gayfield Square. Organised by The Polish Contemporary Art Organisation.
Meet Your Maker: Jewellery. Join six makers in celebration of Scottish craft as they showcase the design, process and techniques behind their work. 10am-4pm, Learning Centre, National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street. Free drop-in, but please note that some makers will be unavailable at certain times – see website for details. Also available on Sunday 30th November.
Children’s Puppet Show and Storytime: Tania from Le Petit Monde is a native French puppeteer who introduces young children and their parents/carers to her language and culture through shows and workshops: for ages 3-5. 12 noon-12.30pm, Blackhall Library, 56 Hillhouse Road. Free but booking required: drop into the library in advance or call them on 0131 529 5595.
Holomodor Commemoration: organised by the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain Edinburgh branch. A representative of the Scottish government will attend and all are welcome. 2pm, Edinburgh Ukrainian Club, 14 Royal Terrace.
Morningside Makers Market: over 40 talented makers will be exhibiting their work. Jewellery, woodwork, cards, toys, soaps, bags, glasswork, photography, candles, decorations and more.11am-4pm, Columcille Centre, Newbattle Terrace. Also at same times on Sunday 30th November.
German Speaking Congregation of Edinburgh Christmas Bazaar: 2-4pm with carol singing at 3.30pm, German Church, Laudate House, 1 Chalmers Crescent.
Edinburgh Greek Film Festival continues today with Wild Duck/Agriopapia(‘the Greek Watergate’),Cert 18. The screening will be followed by a Q & A session with director Yannis Sakaridis. Film shown in Greek with English subtitles. 8.20pm , Filmhouse, Lothian Road. For prices and tickets contact the Box Office on 0131 228 2688 or book online.
The Line of Best Fit: place + platform presents a collaborative exhibition and event featuring MR CHOON!, Deejay Yourself, The Occasional Flickers, Krishkrush, The Beirdo, Two Wrongs, Urvanovic and Edyta. Artists have been invited to respond to the theme on paper: musicians and performers will respond to it live on the night. 8pm, Settlement Projects, 34a Haddington Place, Leith Walk. Free entry.The Edinburgh Settlement is a multi-purpose voluntary organisation with a rich history spanning more than 100 years.
Portobello Pop Up Festive Market: ceramics, textiles, organic soaps, homewares, photography, art, jams & preserves, gifts, illustration & print, glass, jewellery and accessories, writing and poetry! 12 noon-5pm, Dalriada, 77 Promenade, Portobello. Free entry.
Souper Saturday Annual Fundraising Jamboree: Souper Saturday provides food and friendship for those in need in St John’s Hall on Saturday mornings. Today you can help to raise funds for this worthwhile cause by buying postcard art by local artists, whilst enjoying live music – and of course, soup! 4-7pm, St John’s Episcopal Church Hall, Princes Street.
Winter 2014: a mixed exhibition including works from Michael G Clark, Simon Rivett, Linda Park, Alan McLeod, Mark Robertson, Laurna Ogilvie, Jane Gray, John Gardner, Annie Broadley, Anupa Gardner and John Wilson. 10am-5pm Monday to Friday, 12 noon-5pm Saturdays, Doubtfire Gallery, 3 South East Circus Place.
Scots Music Group Ceilidh with the Canongate Cadgers: licensed bar (no BYOB), free water available. 8pm (doors open 7.30pm) -12 midnight, St Brides Centre, Orwell Terrace. Tickets £8/£6 in advance from St Brides (in person or by calling 0131 346 1405) or the Scots Music Group, £10/£8 on the door.
Calum Colvin: Artist’s Talk: Calum has created the stunning exhibition using the boarded-up windows of the former North British Rubber Factory at the Castle Mill Works in Fountainbridge; he uses a mixture of painting, sculpture and photography to create his beautiful images. Edinburgh Printmakers has won Heritage Lottery funding to transform Castle Mill Works into a new centre for printmaking and creativity opening in 2017 – in the meantime come and meet Calum and find out the secrets behind the making of these eyecatching artworks (more exciting exhibitions using the outside of the building coming up next year!) This talk is outside the building at 12 noon and is open to everyone, but please RSVP to Hannah Rye at communitylearning@edinburghprintmakers.co.uk.
Interfaith Shabbat Service: the service will be led by Rabbi Mark Solomon and will last approximately 1 hour 45 minutes; it will be followed by a special kiddush. Everyone is welcome, but please contact norman.crane@googlemail.com giving the names of all those intending to attend. 11am, St Mark’s Unitarian Church, Castle Terrace. Part of Scottish Interfaith Week.
Selected: a selling exhibition of craft and design bringing together 27 Scotland-based makers. Ceramics, jewellery, furniture,textiles, glass and silver from some of the most talented makers in Scotland today, hand picked by an industry panel. 10.30am-5.30pm, today and then Monday to Saturday until 21st December 2014, Dovecot Studios, Infirmary Street.
Faith In Women: Fresh Perspectives – Seeing Through Young Women’s Eyes. 10am-12.30pm, St John’s Church Hall, Princes Street. Part of Scottish Interfaith Week.
SUNDAY 30TH NOVEMBER 2014
Filmhouse Junior: Antboy (Denmark 2013 – English language version) Cert PG. Re-energising the superhero genre for a younger audience – who needs Spiderman when Antboy is in town? ‘a rollicking good fun caper movie’. 11am, Filmhouse, Lothian Road. £3.50 per person, big or small! Tickets can be booked online or by calling the Box Office on 0131 228 2688. Part of the Discovery Film Festival’s touring programme.
The Big Interfaith Quiz: get your thinking caps on and test your knowledge of different world religions – one of the favourites of Scottish Interfaith Week returns! 7-9pm, The Mosque Kitchen, 31 Nicolson Square. A free buffet will be provided. Please contact Sakina on 0131 629 9058 or sakina@eifa.org.uk. Free entry: donations welcome.
Celebrate St Andrew’s Day in Edinburgh! A series of free events for all the family: live music, dancing and storytelling, historical tours of the area, free skate sessions on the ice rink, curling club demonstrations, Murrayfield Skating School performance, a St Andrew’s Day-inspired show from Pyroceltica, Robert Fish Band ceilidh, face-painting, fancy dress, children’s haggis hunt, The Scottish Market – and lots more. 10am-10pm (individual times vary), St Andrew’s Square. All events are free but some are ticketed: pre-book at edinburghschristmas.com to avoid disappointment. Part of Scotland’s Winter Festivals: read The Edinburgh Reporter’s article about the St Andrew’s Day launch here.
Santa Cruises with Re-Union Canal Boats! A fun, unique and memorable trip along the Union Canal and a special visit from Santa himself. Games, songs, craft activities, seasonal refreshments and a gift from Santa for every child. Begins at Re-Union Canal Centre, 1 Union Path. £10 per person, babies under 12 months go free (but must be included in booking). Booking & prompt arrival essential: see website: trips will run three times a day every weekend until Christmas, with an additional three trips on December 22nd.
Advent Music and Reflection: Mary, The Rose. Music by Michael Praetorius, Hugo Distler and Andrew Carvel, sung by the choir of St Andrew’s and Sr George’s West, with a reflection for the season of Advent. 1.30-2pm, St Andrew’s and St George’s West Church, George Street. Free entry: all welcome.
Shot At Dawn: free drop-in tours of Chloe Dewe Mathews’ current exhibition. 2-2.30pm today and every Sunday, Stills Gallery, 23 Cockburn Street. No booking required, just turn up!
Enchanted Edwardian Christmas: a craft workshop for families with the Lauriston team. Enjoy Lauriston’s very special Edwardian Christmas experience, evoking the memories and atmosphere of a past era and take home some charming crafts. Christmas snacks included! 10am-1pm, Lauriston Castle, 2a Cramond Road South. £7 per person: booking must be made via the Usher Hall Box Office, in person, by phone or via the Usher Hall website.
St Andrew’s Porty Ceilidh featuring Fun Fiddlers and The Belle Star Band. 3.30-5.30pm, The Wash House, Adelphi Grove, Portobello. £6 adult, £4 child, under-5s free: tickets on the door or in advance from Wild Flower Shop, 90 Portobello High Street.
Artists’ Books Spotlight: Jean Johnstone at the Royal Botanic Garden. Scottish artist Jean Johnstone invites you slowly to unwrap her artists’ books to experience the fine words of leading contemporary poets. Each small book contains one poem only, complemented by delicate images from the natural world, on Lokta, Tsasho and Resho papers. 11.30am or 2.30pm, Patrick Geddes Room, John Hope Gateway, Royal Botanic Garden, Arboretum Place. Tickets £5/£4 available via eventbrite. A Book Week Scotland event in partnership with RBGE: for more information contact the Scottish Poetry Library at reception@spl.org.uk.
Morningside Makers Market: over 40 talented makers will be exhibiting their work. Jewellery, woodwork, cards, toys, soaps, bags, glasswork, photography, candles, decorations and more.11am-4pm, Columcille Centre, Newbattle Terrace.
Alpha Art Christmas Exhibition: a mixed exhibition of gallery favourites and new artists, plus a new collection of jewellery and gifts. 11am-5pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 12 noon-4pm Sundays, Alpha Art Gallery, 52 Hamilton Place. Today until 23rd December 2014.
Eco Kidz Pop Up Stall: a fantastic selection of recycled gifts. Eco Kidz is a Creative Social Enterprise project for children aged 8-12, set up by North Edinburgh Arts and funded by the Big Lottery Young Start Fund: it aims to develop young people’s art, design and business skills by helping them to create their own brand of handmade market-ready products using recycled materials and upcycling techniques. Today’s pop up stall will offer jewellery, notebooks, pincushions, vases, brooches, key rings, magnets, Christmas cards and more. 1.30-4pm, Ice Retail, St James’s Centre, Princes Street. (Next pop up stall 6th December, North Edinburgh Arts Cafe, 15a Pennywell Court.) For more information click here.
Shore Poets BE THE FIRST TO LIKE THIS Quiet Slam: Shore Poets host their first ever slam, teaming up with Book Week Scotland, the Vagabond Voices and their brand new anthology BE THE FIRST TO LIKE THIS. Six of the slam slots will be taken by poets who appear in the anthology; the other four slots will be open to absolutely anyone, with names being drawn from a hat. This is a ‘quiet slam’ that welcomes slam virgins, self-identified ‘page poets’ and anyone who’s always liked the idea of a slam but is worried about how noisy they look! Prizes for the winners! 7.15pm, Henderson’s @ St John’s, 3 Lothian Road. Tickets £5/£3 on the door. More information from publicity@shorepoets.org.uk.
Whale Arts Christmas Craft Fair: arts, crafts, gifts, accessories, designware – and a chance for children to have their photo taken with Santa! 1.30-4.30pm, Whale Arts, 30 Westburn Grove.
Winter Guided Walk: join a garden guide for a leisurely afternoon walk around the Garden. Discover stunning seasonal highlights and learn about the history of the Garden and its plants. For ages 14+. 2pm, Royal Botanic Garden (meet at John Hope Gateway reception), Inverleith Row. £5 per person, no booking required.
Garvald Christmas Market: handcrafted goods for sale, cafe with soup and cakes. 11am-2pm, Mayfield House, McSense Business Park, 32 Sycamore Road, Dalkeith.
University of Edinburgh St Andrew’s Day Celebration: a celebration of Scotland’s music and song traditions, including a special tribute to the late Dr Jean Redpath MBE. 7.30-9pm, McEwan Hall, Teviot Square. All welcome: free tickets can be booked via eventbrite, and must be printed out and brought to the event.
Finnish Christmas Carols and Bazaar: 11am-2pm, German Church, 1 Chalmers Crescent.
Meet Your Maker: Jewellery. Join six makers in celebration of Scottish craft as they showcase the design, process and techniques behind their work. 10am-4pm, Learning Centre, National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street. Free: drop in and chat to the makers – but please note that some makers will be unavailable at certain times; see website for details.
Scottish Jewellers in Conversation: Stephen Bottomley, Programme Director of Jewellery and Silversmithing at Edinburgh College of Art, hosts a wide-ranging discussion with three contemporary jewellers, Melanie Muir, Grainne Morton and Gilly Langton. 2-3pm, Seminar Room, Learning Centre, Level 4, National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street. Free tickets can be booked here.
Edinburgh Palette Winter Open Studios: the artists, makers and craftspeople of St Margaret’s open their studios to the public in this weekend-long event. Family-friendly workshops, a craft fair, a cafe and one-off performances will take place across the building’s eight storeys. 10am-5pm, St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road. For full programme click here or see event Facebook page.
The Makers’ Fair: as part of St Margaret’s Open Studios event, a cluster of St Margaret’s artists will offer paintings, cards, prints, ceramics, soaps, candles and textiles in this special two day fair. 10am-5pm, Gallery 2, St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road.
Lapin Wants To See Santa! Lapin has decided to invite Santa for hot chocolate – but will he have time to accept Lapin’s invitation? Join Lapin and his friends in a festive adventure! An interactive Le Petit Monde puppet show performed in English with short French sentences from the puppets. All ticket holders will get a free place at the French Puppet Making Workshop, in which lolly sticks, crayons and material will be used to make your very own festive puppet – whilst speaking French! For children aged 3-5 and their families. 1.30-2.05pm (show), 2.45-3.30pm (workshop) St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road. Tickets cost £5 and are available from Brown Paper Tickets. Part of St Margaret’s House Open Studios Weekend.
Danish Film Club at The Outhouse: Flame and Citron (2008). Copenhagen 1944: Denmark is occupied by Nazi Germany. Flame and Citron are two resistance fighters charged with liquidating Danish informers: when Flame is asked to execute his girlfriend Ketty, an enigmatic Stockholm courier, he questions his orders, wondering who Ketty really is. Based on true events. Subtitled in English. For ages 18+. 7pm, First Floor, The Outhouse, 12a Broughton Street Lane. Free and unticketed. Facilitated by the Danish Film Institute, the Danish Cultural Institute and The Outhouse.
Nativity Blessing and Carol Service: All are welcome to join Exile Gospel Choir, St Mary’s Leith Primary School Choir and Edinburgh Deaf Choir to celebrate the start of Christmas in the city. 3pm, St Andrew’s Square.
Edinburgh Greek Film Festival continues today with A.C.A.B. – All Cats Are Brilliant?/Sygharitiria stous aisiodoxous?– ‘one of the funniest, most accurate and heartbreaking scenes of Greek family life’,Cert 15. Film shown in Greek with English subtitles. 8.20pm, Filmhouse, Lothian Road. For prices and tickets contact the Box Office on 0131 228 2688 or book online.
St Giles’ At Six: The Southside Choir. Christmas is coming – Edinburgh’s Southside Choir present a light and varied programme to put you in the mood for the festive season. 6pm, St Giles’ Cathedral, High Street. Free: retiring collection.
Talbot Rice Gallery : Christopher Orr
If every picture tells a story, each one of Christopher Orr’s paintings tells many. At first they may seem simple – if strange – depictions of people in natural scenes; rivers, mountain ranges, country roads. The figures are frequently in 1950’s clothes and we have no idea why they are where they are – but they’re still just people, right? Until we take a closer look and see not only that they are rather odd – a woman with a wide-brimmed sunhat on her head turns out to have no head at all…..another head floats in clouds – but that they are surrounded by other shapes and forms emerging from the landscape.
Christopher Orr ‘Until Only the Mountain Remains’ Burger Collection, Hong Kong.
Until Only Mountain Remains, 2010. Christopher Orr. Burger Collection, Hong Kong.
In Until Only The Mountain Remains (2010) two girls in colourful pink and blue dresses stand on a white surface, backs to us, looking out across a sombre mountain scene – then in the shadows we begin to discern a huge white owl, head turned back, watching them. Other ethereal shapes appear…they could be peaks or clouds, or perhaps strange people, fantasy figures; half way down the ravine into which the girls peer, a bell seems to be suspended in air. Everything apart from the dresses is dark; browns, murky whites. Why are the women in this place, and how did they get here? The contrast is not only in the colours; the scenery is reminiscent of a Romantic nineteenth century vision of the sublime, but the women superimposed upon it are far more modern – perhaps the stock characters of a minor Hollywood film.
In The Beguiled Eye, a new exhibition at Talbot Rice Gallery (University of Edinburgh) and Christopher Orr’s first solo show in his native Scotland, our perceptions are constantly challenged and realigned. The title painting itself is a Dali-esque representation of an older man looking down into something hidden from us; he is surrounded by strange objects – a cameo of a younger man, a disembodied heart, a nail, a skull, a shoe, a wood stump. A tiny house in pale blue light provides a contrast to the darkness of everything else, until we notice that opposite the man a sapphire blue eye also shines out from a bird with a menacing hooked beak, and behind that bird there is another bird, with an eye that may be smaller but is just as blue. Returning to the left-hand side of the canvas we see that behind the man there is the shape of another man, also looking down. What are they looking at? And are all these objects the symbols they would be in a Renaissance painting, or something else? Caoimhin Mac Giolla Leith suggests (in the catalogue to Orr’s 2008 exhibition at Nyehaus, NY) that Orr’s work reflects ‘the Romantic disdain for reason’, but we can’t resist trying to find that reason, whether or not it ultimately exists.
Pat Fisher, Talbot Rice’s Principal Curator, describes Orr’s works as having ‘an illusionistic depth that moves beyond their physical scale and takes the viewer into a different world’. They are of course not the only paintings to do this, but in Orr’s case that world seems especially different and enigmatic.
In Silent One (2010), a couple stare into a rocky crevice. They look as though they have just stepped out of an Agatha Christie novel – he in long khaki shorts and socks, she with sensible shoes and hat; they probably have a copy of Baedeker with them. As we follow their gaze, however, we see the floating head of an old man between the rocks. The sightseers are characteristically turned away from us, but although we cannot see their faces their stance suggests that they are neither shocked nor scared – they inspect this strange apparition in the same way that they would approach an archaelogical site or an unusual botanical specimen. Again we are provided with no answers, no apparent reason why these 1950’s people are walking about in such a bizarre landscape. In his wonderful and illuminating notebooks, exhibited here for the first time, Orr writes of ‘the possibility to be forced as the viewer to see (within) the painting various contradictions within the single viewpoint…..it is this quality that allows the painting to arise above discourse and the ‘sayable’ without having recourse to vagueness or mystification.’
Geometric shapes feature in several of Orr’s works; All In A Moment Through The Gloom Were Seen (2014) shows a woman and two men sitting on rocks, their backs to us as usual, looking at unnaturally angular mountains…but in those mountains are the faceless shapes of people. What do these apparently impassive onlookers see? In Together We Sing (2013) a group of figures again sit looking out over a valley, a triangular shape rising above them and forming a frame to the vista, whilst Darkness Visible depicts a man looking into a circle drawn around part of a mottled dark brown surface. A similar framing device is seen in No Birds Do Sing (2014), whenwe seem to be looking through what could be a huge keyhole or a medieval window at a Turner-esque sky of wild, swirling clouds beneath which there is a tiny patch of red, possibly a boat.
Orr frequently plays tricks with perspective too; Tower (2007) shows a moving scaffold of the kind used by artists to paint huge friezes or by circus performers climbing up to high wires – below is a tiny figure, a person who could not even reach the first step without difficulty. ‘Untitled’ (2007) reverses this; an enormous man in a carpenter’s apron seems to be attaching something (possibly a telegraph wire) to the top of a fir tree – a tree half his size. Is he huge or are the trees tiny? How are these terms defined?
To Your Scattered Bodies Go, 2010. Christopher Orr. Hauser & Wirth Collection, Switzerland.
Many of the paintings involve birds in one way or another – the white owl of Until Only The Mountain Remains, the strange hawk-like creatures of The Beguiled Eye – and in To Your Scattered Bodies Go garden birds seem suspended in space, some upside down, others perched on non-existent branches. A nest of eggs floats past. Orr’s notebooks reveal his fascination with cut-out figures; he appropriates images from sources as diverse as National Geographic magazines and old family photos, and these little birds recall Disney’s Song of the South (‘Mr Bluebird’s On My Shoulder’), whilst in one of the notebook pictures men stand among birds in a desert-like landscape or a beach. The men are holding the birds, picking them up, peering at them…..each man is identical, wearing the same baseball cap; they are possibly one and the same man. A collage in the notebooks is of bird pictures cut out and stuck on top of a woman in 18th century dress; the birds do not appear to be eagles, but they are somehow much bigger than the woman, swamping her.
Lying Muddy Humours (2014) is another whirlpool of dark browns, greens and murky yellows dotted with tiny points of pink….and once more closer inspection reveals heads – again perfect representations of 1950’s American men, the stuff that advertising was made from – drifting in space, whilst at the bottom of the canvas we can make out a railway shed or perhaps a gypsy caravan, recalling the tiny house in The Beguiled Eye. These are worlds, writes Fisher, ‘in which figures, often historicised and seen in Rembrandt-like chiaroscuro, appear trapped by natural phenomena…where the viewer cannot quite understand the narrative but is still drawn in.’
Orr’s work is full of dramatic possibilities, and Talbot Rice is inviting both academics and writers (or would-be writers) to draw on these to produce an imaginative response. On Monday 24th November four experts will give short public talks designed to inspire interest in the exhibition’s themes: Viccy Coltman looks at The Romance of Romanticism, whilst Kate McLean investigates Gothic Perspective: at the edge of the uncanny. Russell Jones considers Technophilia: dreamed technologies and technological dreams and Lena Wanggren concludes the evening with Gazing at the Technological Sublime. If you would like to attend this free event, book your ticket via eventbrite.
On 6th February next year creative writers Dilys Rose, Allyson Stack, Jane McKie and Russell Jones will lead a night of storytelling, reading new fictions inspired by The Beguiled Eye and a selection of public submissions, all celebrating the role of the imagination in interpreting art. To this end, the Gallery is inviting everyone to try their hands at providing an imaginative written response to the exhibition; flash fiction of no more than 1,000 words and/or poetry of up to 42 lines should be submitted electronically by 9th January 2015; for full details contact the Gallery or see its website.
This cryptic and atmospheric exhibition (generously supported by Hauser and Wirth, London, NY & Zurich) is on now at Talbot Rice Gallery, Old College, University of Edinburgh, South Bridge. The Gallery is open 10am-5pm Tuesday to Friday, 12 noon-5pm Saturdays, and The Beguiled Eye will close on 14th February 2015.
With thanks to Stuart Fallon at Talbot Rice.
Edinburgh seaweed company rewarded for innovation
Edinburgh business using superfood of the sea wins award
MARA Seaweed of Edinburgh has won the Sustained Partnership of the Year award in the Interface Excellence Awards 2014, which mark successful collaborations between businesses and Scottish universities and research institutions. The Award was presented by John Swinney MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth, at a ceremony in the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh on Thursday evening 20 November 2014.
Working in partnership with the Scottish Association for Marine Science, University of the Highlands and Islands, MARA Seaweed has developed commercially viable tank-based seaweed cultivation. Seaweed is referred to as ‘the superfood of the sea’, and is the most highly mineralised vegetable on earth. Seasoning derived from seaweed is being used increasingly by chefs as an alternative to salt, for both its nutritional value and flavour.
The judges commended MARA Seaweed on their relationship with their partners, and on their combined efforts to secure increasing amounts of funding, underlining their mutual commitment to the partnership. It was also noted that it is sound business strategy to be investing in the cultivation of seaweed in controlled conditions and that this was the key innovation of this project.
Finance Secretary John Swinney said:
“Innovation plays a vital role in driving productivity and sustainable economic growth. Interface is a key partner in supporting businesses accessing knowledge from our fantastic research base.
“The Interface Excellence Awards highlight the outstanding contributions and successes of business and academic collaborations throughout Scotland. Congratulations to all the winners and nominees for their ingenuity, industry and creativity.”
MARA Seaweed overcame strong opposition from the other finalists in this category, React2of Peebles which, in collaboration with Queen Margaret University, created interactive products to help people experiencing problems with speech and language as the result of a stroke, brain injury, learning difficulties or dementia, and Xanthellaof Oban is working with the University of Strathclyde to produced photobioreactors for growing algae for use in biofuel production.
Dr Siobhán Jordan, director of Interface, adds:
“The Interface Excellence Awards celebrate the success of collaborations between SMEs and Scottish academia and recognise the efforts to grow their organisations and drive innovation across the marketplace. Through individual projects and their continued contribution towards Knowledge Exchange the companies and their academic partners are making a real difference to the Scottish economy.”
PHOTO shows Fiona Houston Director of MARA with Deputy First Minister John Swinney.
Winners of the other Interface excellence Awards were:
The Innovation of the Year Award – Loadfast Systems of Amulree, Perthshire, which has worked with Glasgow Caledonian University to develop a cascade chute system for the vertical transportation of materials.
The Outstanding Contribution to Knowledge Exchange – Awarded to Dr Nigel Kerby, Managing Director of Mylnefield Research Services (MRS) Ltd of Invergowrie, who specialises in crop science, analytical chemistry, environmental science and soil science and is a regular speaker on these topics at conferences, trade shows and symposia in Scotland, the rest of the UK and internationally.
The Multi-Party Collaboration Award – Awarded to the Industry Advisory Group on Resource Efficiency which comprises Zero Waste Scotland, The Scottish Food and Drink Federation and Interface Food and Drink, and which is working with food and drink companies on the challenges around resource efficiency and minimising waste.
Scottish Opera : Inés de Castro
If you already have your tickets organised for the Christmas period then perhaps this will allow you to look beyond the festive madness and plan for January when acclaimed Scottish composer, James MacMillan will conduct his opera, Inés de Castro for the first time at performances in Edinburgh.
Of course tickets might also make a great Christmas present for the opera lover on your list. Hailed “a major triumph” when it was premiered by Scottish Opera in 1996, this new production has given Macmillan the chance to revisit, and alter, the original score.
Composer and Conductor, James MacMillan said:
“In the 20 years that have lapsed since composing the work I have been able to rethink some of it for this revival, and I hope that it will communicate even more strongly second time round. Inéswas my first large-scale theatrical work and I’ve been able to bring subsequent experience, in terms of theatrical pacing, musical expression and various different approaches to music drama, to bear on the way I approached the trimmings and tightenings that I now feel were necessary for Inés.
“I am proud to be able to work with Scotland’s national opera company, Scottish Opera, and I hope that our performances will draw our audiences into the drama and emotion of this great, tragic love story from long ago.”
Based on the play by Jo Clifford – itself rooted in historical events – Inés de Castro tells the tragic and horrifying story of Inés,Spanish mistress to the Portuguese crown prince, who finds herself in a nightmare of deadly political and personal intrigue as the two kingdoms go to war.
Director, Olivia Fuchs’ new production explores the idea of ‘the enemy within’ and is inspired by the 1970s dictatorships of South America, Spain and Portugal – societies characterised by torture, oppression and civil rights abuse – and the staging reflects a world of concrete, steel and ash.
Stephanie Corley (Pirates of Penzance, 2013) returns to Scottish Opera to sing the role of Inés, while former Royal Opera House principal Peter Wedd makes his debut with the Company. Soprano Susannah Glanville, praised for singing with “rapturous intensity” (Tosca 2012), sings Blanca. Paul Carey Jones, whose performances with Scottish Opera in Hansel & Gretel were hailed as “outstanding”, will sing the role of scheming Pacheco, while world-renowned bass Brindley Sherratt takes on the role of the King.
Festival Theatre, 13–29 Nicolson Street, Edinburgh EH8 9FT
