AROUND TOWN | Museums & Attractions
■ PROVAND’S LORDSHIP 3 Castle Street, 276 1625, glasgowlife. org.uk/museums Tue–Thu & Sat 10am–5pm; Fri & Sun 11am–5pm; closed Mon. Free. The oldest house in Glasgow, and one of only four surviving medieval buildings. Restored to its 17th- century finest, there is also a medicinal garden with the intriguing Tontine Faces stone masks.
■ RIVERSIDE MUSEUM 100 Pointhouse Place, 287 2720, glasgowlife.org.uk/museums Mon–Thu & Sat 10am–5pm; Fri & Sun 11am–5pm. Free. A rebooted version of the Transport Museum housed in a cutting edge piece of architecture by Zaha Hadid. The recently acquired South African locomotive is the largest exhibit in the Glasgow Museums’ collection.
■ SCOTLAND STREET SCHOOL MUSEUM 225 Scotland Street, 287 0500, glasgowlife.org.uk/museums Tue–Thu & Sat 10am–5pm; Fri & Sun 11am–5pm; closed Mon. Free. Another wonderful building designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, the museum details the history of the country’s education system from the time of Queen Victoria right through to the swinging 60s. Bathing Belles Until Jan 2014. A display of over 200 years of swimwear, from those crazy pyjama-like things to teeny tiny speedos, plus trophies, postcards and other memorabilia. See preview, page 35. ■ THE SCOTTISH FOOTBALL MUSEUM Hampden Park, 616 6139, scottishfootballmuseum.org.uk Mon–Sat 10am–5pm; Sun 11am–5pm. Stadium tour £7 (£3.50); museum entry £6 (£3); combined ticket £10 (£5). Located inside Scotland’s national football stadium a couple of miles south of the city
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36 THE LIST 22 Aug–19 Sep 2013
centre, this museum displays all kinds of memorabilia and offers tours of the stadium itself. and underwater tunnel so you can get to grips with the deep. Approximately a 20-minute drive from Edinburgh.
■ ST MUNGO MUSEUM OF RELIGIOUS ART & LIFE 2 Castle Street, 276 1625, glasgowlife. org.uk/museums Tue–Thu & Sat 10am– 5pm; Fri & Sun 11am–5pm; closed Mon. Free. Situated across the road from the Provand’s Lordship, this museum holds artwork and historical artifacts exploring the role of religion in people’s lives, promoting understanding and respect between faiths. ■ THE TALL SHIP AT RIVERSIDE 150 Pointhouse Place, 357 3699, thetallship.com Daily 10am–5pm. Free. Step aboard the Glenlee, one of only five Clyde-built ships still afloat today. Learn about the maritime history of the area through talks, tours and costume days.
EDINBURGH
■ CAMERA OBSCURA & WORLD OF ILLUSIONS Castlehill, 226 3709, camera-obscura. co.uk Daily 9.30am–9pm until Sat 31 Aug; from Sun 1 Sept 9.30am–7pm. £11.95 (£9.95; under 16s £8.75; under 5s free). The ‘camera’ is a giant periscope inside a Victorian rooftop tower on the Royal Mile, giving a spectacular 360° perspective on Edinburgh, plus there’s interactive optical fun galore. The building also contains three galleries and lights up at night. ■ DEEP SEA WORLD Battery Quarry, North Queensferry, 01383 411880, deepseaworld.com Mon– Fri 10am–5pm; Sat & Sun 10am–6pm (last entry one hour before closing). £13 (£11; under 13s £9; under 3s free; family £38–£42). From seals to piranhas, this marine life centre has a petting area
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■ EDINBURGH CASTLE AND NATIONAL WAR MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND Castlehill, 225 9846 (info)/ 668 8081 (bookings), edinburghcastle.gov.uk / nms.ac.uk/war Daily 9.30am–6pm. £16 (£12.80; children £9.60; under 5s free). Perhaps Edinburgh’s most visible landmark, the Castle perches on top of a rocky outcrop at the head of the Royal Mile, and includes ceremonial rooms, fortifications, dungeons and Scotland’s Honours or crown jewels. Inside, the National War Museum delves into the past 400 years of the country’s military history. Arctic Convoys Until Mar 2014. A look at the merchant and military ships that sailed the Arctic during WWII and the thousands of seaman who endured life on board.
■ THE EDINBURGH DUNGEON 31 Market Street, 240 1001 (info)/ 0871 423 2250 (bookings), thedungeons.com Daily 10am–7pm until Sun 1 Sep; from Mon 2 Sep 10am–5pm. £10.95–£16.20 (£10.50–15; under 16s £9.50–£12). A grizzly look into historical Edinburgh, with actor-led tours and rides, just above Waverley Station. With special opening hours around Hallowe’en ■ EDINBURGH ZOO Corstorphine Road, 334 9171, edinburghzoo.org.uk Daily 9am–6pm. £16 (£13.50; under 16s £11.50; under 3s free). Visitors can see the headline- grabbing giant pandas, the famous Penguin Parade and over 1000 other rare and interesting animals and birds at this site three miles west of the city centre. Sand Zoo Until Fri 30 Aug. A sand sculptor sets up shop in the zoo to create masterpiece likenesses of the zoo’s celebrity animals, including Woytek the brown bear and Umfolozi the white rhino.
■ HOLYROOD PARK Holyrood Park Road, 652 8150, historic- scotland.gov.uk Open at all times; Holyrood Lodge Information Centre daily 9.30am–3pm. Free. The main entrance to this large royal park, east of the city centre, is flanked by the Palace of Holyrood House and the Scottish Parliament Building. Its main feature is Arthur’s Seat, an 823-foot hill which has a number of smaller peaks and ponds surrounding it.
■ MUSEUM OF CHILDHOOD 42 High Street, 529 4142, edinburghmuseums.org.uk Mon–Sat 10am–5pm; Sun noon–5pm. Free. Kids can learn about the toys, clothes and lifestyles of children of the past in this Royal Mile museum. Nostalgia for grown-ups guaranteed. ■ MUSEUM ON THE MOUND The Mound, 243 5464, museumonthemound.com Tue–Fri 10am–5pm; Sat & Sun 1–5pm; closed Mon. Free. Hosted inside the Bank of Scotland’s head office, this museum is all about money. Learn how money has evolved over the past 4000 years or try cracking a safe.
■ NATIONAL MINING MUSEUM SCOTLAND Lady Victoria Colliery, Newtongrange, 663 7519, scottishminingmuseum.com Daily 10am–5pm. £7.50 (£5.50; children free). Nine miles south of Edinburgh, this museum is one of the best-preserved Victorian collieries in Europe. Learn about the life of a miner by taking a tour around the site. ■ NATIONAL MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND Chambers Street, 0300 123 6789, nms. ac.uk Daily 10am–5pm. Free. Renovated in 2011, this national beacon of culture has exhibitions on natural history, science
and technology, Scottish history, art and design and world cultures in galleries surrounding a beautiful naturally lit atrium space. Amazing Amber Until Sun 8 Sept. This exhibition of fossilised tree resin contains that famous walking stick from Jurassic Park, as well as pieces from Myanmar, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and much more. Mary, Queen of Scots Until Sun 17 Nov. A fresh look at the enigmatic monarch, looking at the drama of her story through personal items, documents and portraits.
■ NATIONAL MUSEUMS COLLECTION CENTRE 242 West Granton Road, 247 4770, nms.ac.uk Visits by appointment only or with occasional tours. Following the redevelopment of the National Museum, two new collection buildings have also been added to the storage and conservation centre at Granton. From vintage motorbikes to whale and dinosaur bones – it’s all there. ■ OUR DYNAMIC EARTH Holyrood Road, 550 7800, dynamicearth. co.uk Daily 10am–6pm until Sat 31 Aug; from Sun 1 Sep 10am–5.30pm (last entry 1.5 hours before close). £11.50 (£9.75; under 16s £7.50; under 3s free). Take an interactive journey through the history of the earth. Go to the tundra or the bottom of the ocean, never being more than a stone’s throw from the Scottish Parliament and Arthur’s Seat.
■ PALACE OF HOLYROODHOUSE Royal Mile, 556 5100, royalcollection. org.uk Daily 9.30am–6pm (last admission 5pm). £11 (£10; under 17s £6.65; under 5s free). The official Scottish residence of the Queen, this baroque palace was once home to Mary, Queen of Scots and now houses the great artworks and tapestries of its regal residents.
■ REAL MARY KING’S CLOSE 2 Warriston’s Close, High St, 0845 070 6244, realmarykingsclose.com Daily 10am–9pm. £12.95 (£11.45; children £7.45). Beneath the Royal Mile lies a warren of hidden closes where citizens of Edinburgh lived and died in the 16th and 17th centuries. The underground tours are led by guides in the character of real people who lived in the close. ■ ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN EDINBURGH Inverleith Row, 552 7171, rbge.org.uk Daily 10am–6pm (last admission 5pm). Free; glasshouse entry £4.50 (£3.50; children £1; family £9). These gardens, founded in the 17th century, cover over 70 acres and are just one mile from the city centre. There are glasshouses and cafés within the grounds, as well as high- profile art exhibitions at Inverleith House. Scotland’s Lost Gardens Until Sun 29 Sep. Outdoor exhibition of images of the lost gardens of Scotland and the people who created them. Patchwork Meadow Until Sun 29 Sep. Wildflower Europe celebrates all things wild and flowery with this giant patchwork.
■ ROYAL OBSERVATORY VISITOR CENTRE Blackford Hill, 668 8404, roe.ac.uk/ vc Entry by arrangement or at Public Astronomy evenings (weekly, Fri 7.30–9pm). Public Astronomy evenings £4 (£3). See the stars through the research centre’s magnificent copper domes at weekly astronomy evenings. ■ ROYAL YACHT BRITANNIA Ocean Terminal, Leith, 555 5566, royalyachtbritannia.co.uk Daily 9.30am– 4.30pm. £12 (£10.50; under 18s £7.50; under 5s free; family £35). Take a guided tour of the ornate floating royal residence (and the naval quarters below) and learn about life aboard the yacht, which served the royal family for almost 50 years.