TheRealist So much culture, so little time. We boil it down to ten of the best events 1

National Museum of Scotland reopening AROUND TOWN Closed for renovation since April 2008, the National Museum of Scotland on Chambers Street is finally ready to open its doors once again. Inside, the new building will boast 16 new galleries, an increase of public space by 50 per cent, and thousands of new exhibits around 80 per cent of the objects in the new galleries will be on display for the first time. We’ve asked several Scottish cultural figures to share with us their fondest memories of the museum, including actor Ewen Bremner, architect Malcolm Fraser and writer Sophie Cooke. See feature, page 12. National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, open from Fri 29 Jul.

2 4 THE LIST 21 Jul–4 Aug 2011

Fringe for (around) a fiver FESTIVAL The Edinburgh Fringe is almost upon us, in all its fire- juggling, flyer- thrusting, wallet- lightening intensity. Although that last part needn’t be the case just check out our handy guides to preview shows for around a five pounds in Comedy (page 50) and Theatre and Dance (page 87, including Penny Dreadful’s Etherdome, pictured). For more Fringe news, see page 2. Various venues, Edinburgh, Tue 2–Sat 6 Aug.