DAYS OUT

event for you.

I TAKE T AT DAY Sun 4, 2—3.30pm. Edinburgh Filmhouse, Lothian iload, Edinburgh. 031 228 2688. £2.20. In an attempt to put the fab five in a cultural context, Filmhouse will be screening (or should that be screaming?) clips from Take That performances followed by a fun, entertaining and informative session with Marie Brennan. If you’re a fan, are interested in whether the lads’ material has significantly changed or just want to find out who their fans really are, then this is one crucial

This section gives details of selected event taking place in and around the Central Belt of Scotland this fortnight. Event are listed by area and then

accompanied by a contact phone number for our inionnation. Days Out compiled by Thom Dibdin.

BORDERS '

I RIVER TWEED ORDANISED WALK Sun 4. 1—4pm. Meet at the carpark. Newton St Boswells. Return transport provided. Free. A walk organised by the Borders Ranger Service along the River Tweed from Newton St Boswells to Maxton. which should give plenty of opportunity to see a variety ofducks and other interesting wildlife. Take waterproof footwear.

I A VICTORIAN CHRISTMAS Sat 3. 12.30—5pm. Bowhill House. by Selkirk (on the A708, well signposted from Selkirk). £1.50 (accompanied kids 50p). All proceeds from this craft fair come Christmas fayre will go to the RNLI. Besides table-top sales from seven of the Borders branches of the Institute. attractions included the Eyemouth fisherman‘s choir. handbell ringers. Rikki the magician. a model railway club and demonstrations of lace-making. sugar craft and embroidery. The event also affords an opportunity to look round this Victorian mansion which is normally only open to the public during July.

CENTRAL & TAYSIDE

I MODEL RAILWAY EXHIBITION Sat 3/Sun 4. 10am—5pm. Assembly Hall. Falkirk College of Technology. Grangemouth Road. Falkirk. All the usual tracks and layouts. models and tunnels of a model railway exhibition.

LOTHIANS & FIFE

I THE EVOLUTION OF THE ELEMENTS Fri 9. 7.30pm. Royal Observatory Edinburgh. Blackford Hill. Edinburgh. £2 (£1.50).

L031 668 8405. Nearly all the atoms in our

alphabetically. All submissions should be

from the advertised lecture. Dr Peredur Williams will trace the evolution of the chemical elements now on the surface of the earth from their creation in nuclear reactions occuring inside stars and in super nova to their incorporation in planetary systems.

I THE FOLK THAN NEVER COT MENTIONED Thurs 15. 7 for 7.30pm. Royal Museum of Scotland Lecture

Theatre. Chambers Street. Edinburgh (entrance by Lothian Street). £2 reserved

seats from the museum enquiries desk. A

few tickets at £1 on the door. Professor Ted Cowan of the University of Glasgow's Department of Scottish History talks about people’s history and popular cultures in early modern Scotland.

I THE HISTORY OF HOPETOUN Sun 11. from 1.30pm. Hopetoun House carpark. South Queensferry. £2 (£1). 031 331 2451. A guided walk with the Hopetoun Ranger Service to look at the pre-history of the 100-acre parkland surrounding the house from 375 million years ago to the present day. Stout waterproof footwear recommended as the paths can be muddy and uneven. Dogs should be on a lead. I SANTA CRUISES Sat 3/Sun 4 and Sat lO/Sun 11. first cruise at 10.30am. last cruise at 4.30pm. Edinburgh Canal Centre. The Bridge Inn. 27 Baird Road.

Ratho. £4.50. Booking essential on 031 333 1320. More ‘Ho. ho. 110' than you can shake a cotton-wool beard at. at The Bridge inn with one-hour cruises along the canal to Santa's secret island where he will come on board to distribute stockings to the kids and coffee and mince pies to the grown ups. if you fancy a meal afterwards. then The Bridge lnn has a kids’ licence to 8pm so they will be welcome. so long as you don’t intend to leave them behind. Block bookings available.

I SANTA SLEIOH RIDES Sat 3/Sun 4 and Sat lO/Sun ll. 10am—5pm. Almond Valley Heritage Centre. Livingston Mill. £1.50 (75p). Booking essential on 0506 414957. Still crying ‘ho ho ho' and other such festive mutterings. Santa gets behind the reins of his traditional sleigh for horse drawn rides. Santa's farmland grotto and other seasonal fun. The Centre is open daily with a pennenant collection of old working farm machinary. a mill and coffee shop.

I SANTA STEAM TRAINS Sat 3/Sun 4 and Sat lO/Sun 11. Ham-3pm. Bo'ness and Kinneil Railway. Bo’ness Station. Bo'ness. £4.50 (£4). Booking essential on 0506 822298. And before you can say The Nightmare Before Christmas. even more ho. ho. he's at Bo'ness from busy Santa as he hops on the not so conventional North Pole Express steam train. The kids get a free gift from Santa while the parean get a cuppa and a mince pie.

I TAKE THAT DAY Sun 4. 2—3.30pm. Edinburgh Filmhouse. Lothian Road. Edinburgh. £2.20. 031 228 2688. See photo caption.

STRATHCLYDE

I ARTS CENTRE OPEN DAY Sun 4. 3—5pm. East Kilbride Arts Centre. Old Coach Road. East Kilbride. Free. 03552 61000. Your big chanced to find out what goes down in the centre, with something for everyone whether you are a complete beginner or an experienced artist. In the evening. from 7.30pm. the centre is holding an ‘unplugged' session. with performances limited to a maximum of fifteen minutes or four songs.

I CHRISTMAS EVENTS FOR GLASGOW Sun 4, Sun 11. Various venues around Glasgow city centre. Sun 4: Street Theatre

and performance. Sun 11: Buskers and music stages. See photo caption.

I FROM HERE TO MATERNITY From Thurs 8. lOam—Spm. lronworks Gallery. Summerlee Heritage Trust. West Canal Street. Coatbridge. Free. 0236 431261. Using oral history. illustrations and objects. this touring exhibition aims to express the power and joy of pregnancy and the act of childbirth. beginning with the creation myths and following through to a child's first birthday. Five different sections cover creation myths. gestation and pregnancy. birth. the first few days and the celebration of the infant. With a strong emphasis on oral history. some of which is contrasted with medical opinion. the exhibition examines maternity from both contemporary and historical vieWpoints. it is accompanied by a series of paintings by Kate Downie who spent four weeks as artist in residence at Rottenrow maternity hospital. Sumerlee is always a good bet for a day out. with plenty to see in the twenty acre museum which celebrates 200 years of Scottish industry.

CRAFT FAIRS

if you can't find enough ideas for those Crimbo presents in our comprehensive shopping guide. have a look round one of the craft fairs that seem to spring up everywhere at this time of year. They sell everything from silk scarves to spirtles. Entry is 60p (30p concessions. kids free) unless indicated.

I Sat 3/Sun 4 Dec:

Edinburgh Assembly Rooms. George Street. 10.30am—5pm.

Glasgow Couper institute. 86 Clarkston Road. 10.30am—5pm.

Haddington Corn Exchange. 10.30am—5pm.

I Sun 4:

Linlirhgow Burgh Halls. The Cross. Antiques Fair. 10am—5pm. 30p.

I Sat 10:

Edinburgh St Stephens Centre. St Stephen Street. 10am—4.30pm.

Perth City Hall. mam—4.30pm.

Stirling Albert Hall. 10.30am—5pm.

I Sun 11:

Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. 2 Sauchiehall Street. 11am—5pm.

Stirling Albert Hall. 10.30am—5pm.

DAVID TRIVES

I CHRISTMAS mars re 6

0w Sun 4, Sun 11. Various venues around Glasgow

city centre. in the Sundays leading up to Christmas, ill event are promoting a series of free entertainment around the street of the city. Sunday 4 is a day of street theatre and performance, 12.30—4pm, with some seriously weird and wacky troups parading up and down Buchanan Street, Sauchiehall Street and Arger Street, and static displays in George Square and St Enoch Square. So if you’re walking round the city centre and see a perspex cement mixer with a band playing in the back or gigantic wheel with a person running round inside like a demented hamster, you are not necessarily under the influence of anything exotic, it’s just ilalogen Bilux or Clintonbaco (pictured above) doing their thing.

On Sunday 11 things get a bit more conventional with stages in George Square (4.30-6.30pm) and St Enoch’s Square (3—7pnt) and buslters performing round the city centre street. The George Square stage features the Scottish Fiddle orchestra for the first half an hour, followed by a 40-minute set from a ceilidh band and another 40 minutes from The Silencers. Expect a few surprises in St Enoch’s Square where ‘four contemporary Scottish bands’ will be providing the music in a variety of styles.

65 The List 2—15 December 1994