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North Street, 287 2999. Workshop that investigates the stories, books and documents of Glasgow’s ‘Square Mile of Murder’, where four infamous murders took place. The Christmas Stocking Workshop Sat 15 Nov, 11am–5pm. £60. The Stitchery, Flat 2/2, 50 Kent Road, 573 0475. Workshop where you’ll emerge with a self-made Christmas stocking for Santa to stash your loot in. FREE Trade School Glasgow: Unscrooged at Christmas Thu 27 Nov, 6–7.30pm. Glasgow Kelvin College, 2 Haghill Road, 630 5000. Make simple Christmas gifts and enjoy stovies, mince pies and some festive tunes. Please bring donations for local food banks or class snacks as payment.
EDINBURGH
Activities & Events Botanic Lights Wed 12–Sat 22 Nov. Tue–Thu & Sun 5–9pm; Fri & Sat 5–10pm. £12.50 (children £6; under 3s free). Royal Botanic Garden, Arboretum Place, 248 2909. Follow a trail of light through the Botanic Garden and see it as you’ve never seen it before. FREE Robert Louis Stevenson Day Thu 13 Nov, times vary. National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge, 623 3734. NLS do RLS with a series of special events. Rare material goes on display from 11am–1pm. At 6pm, Andrew Martin, Curator of Literature and the Arts, presents a portrait of Stevenson’s last years in Samoa in the evening. Booking essential for the talk. Creative Edinburgh Awards and 3rd Birthday Party Thu 13 Nov, 7–10pm. £9 (members £5). Assembly Roxy, 2 Roxburgh Place, 623 3030. The Creative Edinburgh awards are a chance to recognise the contributions of creative and technical people throughout the year. Winter Astronomy Evenings Fridays, 6.30–7.30pm. £4 (£3). Royal Observatory, Blackford Hill, 668 8404. Find out about the Royal Observatory Edinburgh and discover more about the night sky. Booking essential. FREE Edinburgh’s Christmas Light Night Sun 23 Nov, 1.30–5pm. George Street, The capital’s Christmas lights are switched on. There’s fireworks, live music and an estimated 1250 performers. Part of Edinburgh’s Christmas.
✽ FREE Poets Against Humanity Thu 27 Nov, 8–10pm. (donations
accepted). The Banshee Labyrinth, 29–35 Niddry Street, 558 8209. A poetry session inspired by the game ‘Cards Against Humanity’. Neu! Reekie! Fri 28 Nov, 7–11pm. £8. Pilrig St Paul’s Church, Pilrig Street, Leith Walk, 553 1876. Avant-garde spoken word, film and music fusion night hosts End of Year Bash. St Andrew’s Night Ceilidh Fri 28 & Sat 29 Nov, 8pm. £8 in advance; £10 on the door. Lauriston Hall, 28 Lauriston Street, 339 5374. With caller Ken Gourlay and the HLI ceilidh band. FREE Open Doors Weekend at St Margaret’s House Sat 29 & Sun 30 Nov, 10am–6pm. St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road, 661 1924. Take a peek into the creative hub and meet artists, designers and businesses. FREE St Andrew’s Day Celebrations Sun 30 Nov, 10am– 10pm. St Andrew Square, St Andrew Square, edinburghschristmas.com. A programme of free events in St Andrew Square. There’s storytelling, Scottish dance workshops, a family ceilidh and demonstrations on the ice rink. Music lineup includes The Hazey Janes, The Banjo Lounge 4, Stockbridge Pipe Band and The Big Big Sing. All events free but some workshops and performances are ticketed. Part of Edinburgh’s Christmas.
Newmarket Road, 01875 819595. The chance to pick up artwork from over 60 UK and European exhibitors. FREE Bohemia Festive Fair Sat 15 Nov, 11am–4pm. Greyfriars Kirk, Greyfriars Place, greyfriarskirk.com Annual festive fair with over 35 stalls of artists, crafters, makers and designers from across Scotland selling their bespoke works. FREE European Christmas Market Fri 21 Nov–Tue 9 Dec, times vary. East Princes Street Gardens, Princes Street. Get your fill of festive wooden toys, meaty sausages and Glühwein at this hive of twinkly festive market stalls. Part of Edinburgh’s Christmas. FREE Children’s Market Fri 21 Nov– Tue 9 Dec, times vary. East Princes Street Gardens, Princes Street. A Christmas market for those not old enough to enjoy a Glühwein. Kids can enjoy face painting, festive crafts and maybe add a few things to their letter to Santa. Part of Edinburgh’s Christmas.
Sport ✽ Capital City Roller Derby Doubleheader: A Bridge Too Far Sat 29 Nov, 12.30–5.30pm. £7–£8 (children free). Meadowbank Sports Centre, 139 London Road, 661 5351. Capital City Roller Derby, Edinburgh’s only mens’ roller derby league, host its first home game, with a bridge theme. First up it’s the Auld Reekie Roller Girls’ Cannon Belles v Malmö’s Crime City Rollers B followed by Capital City Roller Derby v Bristol Vice Quads.
Talks FREE Portrait Gallery Insights: George Jamesone Thu 13 Nov, 5.30–6pm. Scottish National Portrait Gallery, 1 Queen Street, 624 6200. Senior Curator Kate Anderson introduces the work of George Jamesone. FREE Edinburgh Ragged University Talks Thu 13 Nov, 7pm. Counting House, West Nicolson Street, 667 7533. Talks include ‘3D Printing: no-hype, promise, just extraordinary art and design!’ and ‘Cerebral Diabetes and the Reversal of the Flynn Effect’. Bring food for the table. FREE Yati Durant discusses Tony Conrad’s Invented Acoustical Tools Sat 15 Nov, 2–3pm. Inverleith House, Royal Botanic Garden, Arboretum Place/Inverleith Row, 248 2971. Music Director of the Edinburgh Film Music Orchestra, leads a discussion on Tony Conrad’s innovative musical devices. FREE The Speculative Society: 250 Years of Debate, Argument – and Delight Wed 19 Nov, 12.45– 1.30pm. Scottish National Gallery, The Mound, 624 6200. Professor David Purdie tells the story of Edinburgh’s Speculative Society, which promoted public speaking and prose composition. FREE The Two Roberts: An Introduction Mon 24 Nov, 12.45– 1.30pm. Scottish National Gallery, The Mound, 624 6200. Senior Curator Patrick Elliott talks about Colquhoun and MacBryde. FREE War Artists Series - the Second World War: Fighting Fronts & Home Fronts Tue 25 Nov, 12.45–1.30pm. Scottish National Gallery, The Mound, 624 6200. Talk on WWII Scottish art from Dr Patricia Andrew. FREEEdinburgh Café Scientifique Mon 8 Dec, 7–9pm. Edinburgh Zoo, Corstorphine Road, 334 9171. Talk on wildlife surgery. Booking essential. Black Grouse presents Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Kenton Cool, Olly Hicks and Ben Fogle Mon 8 Dec, 8–9.30pm. £16. The Hub, Castlehill, Royal Mile, 473 2000. The four adventurers and explorers talk about what drives them.
Fairs & Markets Edinburgh Art Fair Fri 14 & Sat 15 Nov, 11am–6pm. Sun 16 Nov, 11am–5pm. £5 (£3). Corn Exchange, 11 Workshops The Two Roberts - Painting Course Fridays, 10.15am–1.15pm. £75 Booking essential (£68). Scottish
Events | AROUND TOWN
FOOD AND DRINK WHISKY & WINE TASTINGS
There’s something about long winter nights which lends itself to not just having a drink (responsibly of course: it’s probably a law somewhere that we make it clear), but also to savouring that drink. Or maybe that’s just because we imagine the taste of mulled wine on our tongues from the first day of November onwards. Whatever the reason, there are plenty of opportunities to culture your palate over the holiday season in Scotland.
For lovers of the grain, the Glasgow Whisky Festival (Arches,
Glasgow, Sat 15 Nov) will be hard to miss, while through in Edinburgh the Whiski Rooms restaurant offers an Introduction to Whisky (every Fri & Sat) that includes discussion of Scottish whisky regions and geographic factors as well as tastings. Meanwhile, the Summerhall Beer FestivALE (Summerhall, Edinburgh, Fri 5 & Sat 6 Dec) celebrates craft beers from Scotland, including the venue’s own brand, Barney’s, and their in-house gin, Pickering’s. Elsewhere, there are a number of wine tasting events on both sides
of the country, and writer and expert Rose Murray Brown seems to be behind a whole bunch of them. For example, she’ll be doing a Cult Wines v Lesser-Known Wines evening (Scotch Malt Whisky Society, Edinburgh, Tue 2 Dec), an Italian Wine Series (Scotch Malt Whisky Society, Edinburgh, Wed 19, 26 Nov) and California Wine Tasting (Baby Abode, Glasgow, Thu 27 Nov). There’s also the Great Grog Christmas Wine Fair (Merchants’ Hall, Edinburgh, Fri 21 Nov), the touring Wine Gang Christmas Fair with a bunch of UK critics (Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh, Sat 29 Nov) and a Winter Classics Wine Tasting (Café Grande, Edinburgh, Sun 16 Nov). Finally, the Glasgow Wine School run events such as Champagne and Sparkling Wine Tasting, and Travels of a Winemaker (Radisson Blu Hotel, Glasgow, Thu 11 Dec). (David Pol lock)
National Gallery of Modern Art Two, 73 Belford Road, 624 6200. Learn how to develop paintings from observational drawings. Scots Fiddle Festival Workshops Sat 22 Nov, 10am–5.30pm. £8. Summerhall, 1 Summerhall, 560 1581. Fiddle-based musical workshops. Please book in advance. Sat workshops include Orcadian Tunes (10am & noon), Melody Rhythm and Chords (2pm) and Lessons in Bowing (4pm). Part of The Scots Fiddle Festival. Project Day: The City/Architecture Photography Sat 22 Nov, 11am–5pm. £65 (£55). Stills, 23 Cockburn Street, 622 6200. One day introduction to city and architecture photography aimed at beginners and those looking to improve their skills in DSLR photography. Hand Sewn Christmas Ornaments Sat 29 Nov, 10.30am–4pm. £45. myBearpaw, 50 Lochrin Buildings, Gilmore Place, 228 6377. Make a patchwork robin, garland or star (or all three) to decorate your home over the festive season. All materials provided, but bring along your own fabrics if you wish. Illustrating Books for Children Sat 29 Nov, 10.30am–4pm. £30 Booking essential (£25). Scottish National Gallery, The Mound, 624 6200. Tips on children’s book illustration from the veteran author Vivian French.
Unique Upcycled Tree Ornaments Tue 2 Dec, 6.30–9pm. £22 (£18). Remade in Edinburgh, 17 Guthrie Street, 261 5904. Create unique decs from pre-used or waste materials. There are examples to inspire you and all the tools you need. Wassailing and Carolling Sat 6 Dec, 2–4.30pm. £10. Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43–45 High Street, 556 9579. Learn about wassailing – the tradition of singing and drinking the health of apples. Plus traditional carols. Festive Bunting Tue 9 Dec, 6.30–9pm. £22 (£18). Remade in Edinburgh, 17 Guthrie Street, 261 5904. Hand or machine sew some festive decs. Suitable for all levels.
SCOTLAND
Activities & Events Previously . . . Scotland’s History Festival Thu 13 Nov–Sun 30 Nov, times vary. Prices vary. Various Central Belt venues. Previously brings Scotland’s history to life in a packed programme of talks, walks, tours, teas, activities, debates, exhibitions, theatre, comedy, art, photography, family history, film, open days and much, much more that will appeal to all ages. See 5 Reasons column, page 41. 13 Nov–11 Dec 2014 THE LIST 45