Download a pdf of the 2013 lectures brochure - Edinburgh Museums

Lauriston Castle 2013
Lectures
and Tours

Lauriston Castle invites you to a series of special talks and lectures
Lauriston Castle 2013
Lectures and Tours
Booking information
Unless otherwise stated lecture mornings cost £8
and include a special tour of the Castle and coffee
and cakes. Our lecture experiences are truly unique
and intimate, and you often get a chance to see
parts of the Castle not on the guided tours. We also
have special events where different pricing applies
and this is clearly noted.
Our lectures are hugely popular. Pre booking and
advance payment are essential. To secure your
place, call Margaret Findlay on 0131-529-3963.
Please note that people do book very early for events
much later in the year, so if you fancy a particular
event book as soon as the programme comes out.
After booking your place, please send a cheque for
payment to Lauriston Castle, 2a Cramond Road
South, Edinburgh EH4 5QD. Please make cheques
payable to City of Edinburgh Council and include a
note of the lecture that you are booking.
Free car parking is available within the Castle
grounds off Cramond Road South.
Lauriston Castle is easy to reach and is just minutes
from the City Bypass. It sits between Davidson’s
Mains and Cramond. You can take buses to
Davidson’s Mains, or Silverknowes Terminus; both
are around 10 minutes walk from Lauriston Castle.
The lecture mornings last approximately 2 hours.
Lauriston Castle Tours
Visit Lauriston Castle and see one of the most
extraordinary Edwardian interiors in Scotland.
Tour times:
From 1st April – 31st October 2.00pm Saturday -
Thursday (closed Friday)
Winter from 1st November – 31st March 2.00pm
Saturday and Sunday only
Admission charges:
Adult £5.00
Concession £3.00
Family £12.50 (2 Adults + 3 Children under 16)
Group rate £3.00 (for groups of 10 and over)
Out of hours £8 Adult and £5 Concession
group visits
Refreshments can be provided for group visits.
Special Tours and Events
We have one daily ‘no need to book’ guided tour at
Lauriston. Just turn up at the times outlined above.
You can however book group tours at other times by
phoning Lauriston Castle. We offer a range of prebookable
themed tours on subjects like; Edwardian
Social History, the Furniture of Lauriston, the History
of the Gardens and Servants’ Lives.
Lauriston Castle is also the home of the Edinburgh
Croquet Club. Free croquet taster sessions can
be arranged by request. Why not combine a game
of croquet with your visit to the Castle, along with
afternoon tea? For croquet alone, phone 0131 443
1410 or go online at www.edinburghcroquetclub.
com.
For more information about the Castle, or to
book a place on any of our regular organised
tours: telephone 0131 336 2060 or email:
lauristoncastle@edinburgh.gov.uk
Lauriston Castle, 2a Cramond Road South,
Davidson’s Mains, Edinburgh EH4 5QD
New Recruits Needed for Living
Lauriston
Living Lauriston is a group of volunteers who use
‘Living History’ to assist in the interpretation of
the collection and history of Lauriston Castle.
We are on the lookout for some new people!
We need costume makers, props makers,
history enthusiasts, people who would like to do
some research and budding actors. For further
information please contact 0131 336 2060.
Renaissance Extravaganza
Friday 17 May, 6 pm – 8 pm
For Everyone FREE
Celebrating the early period of the house, join us for
an evening celebrating the early history of Lauriston
Castle. Edinburgh Renaissance Band will perform,
our Living Lauriston group will perform short
sketches and there will be Medieval-inspired food.
Edinburgh’s Telford College will perform a fashion
show inspired by headgear of the period.
Vintage Cars at the Castle
Sunday 19 May, 1 pm – 4 pm
For Everyone FREE
Come and look at vintage cars against the magnificent
backdrop of Lauriston Castle. With additional crafts
for children. Make little crafted wooden cars, mobiles
and stained glass panels. Hear magical stories about
special cars and their journeys.
Scottish All Rover Rally
Sunday 26 May 10 am - 4 pm
All Car Lovers Welcome! The Scottish All Rover Rally
Committee present a display of Classic Rover Cars
in the stunning Lauriston Castle grounds. Cars on
display will feature some early pre-war models and
cars from the 50s 60s and 70s - right up to the
latest models from Land Rover and Range Rover.
Visit www.sarr.co.uk
Skin Care and Beauty Naturally
Saturday 1 June, 10 am – 4 pm
May–June
£30 includes lunch
Do you ever worry about what you’re putting on your
skin? Learn traditional, sustainable ways of keeping
your skin healthy and create fabulous skin care
treats to take home using simple kitchen cupboard
ingredients and wild local plants from the grounds
of Lauriston Castle. Easy on your body, your pocket
and the planet! Facilitated by qualified medical
herbalist Anna Canning.
Since qualifying as a medical herbalist in 2007,
Anna has focused increasingly on community education.
Her key aims are to give people of all ages practical skills
and confidence in the use of plants and foods for health
and wellbeing, and to re-connect people in meaningful
and healthful ways with their local green spaces.

June–July
July–August
China Dogs and Teacups – Collecting
Victoriana
Monday 3 June, 10.30 am
The everyday household and decorative objects
of the Victorian age are now treasured antiques,
but what do they say about the popular taste of
their own time? This illustrated lecture will explore
common and not so common objects from the
personal collection of artist Tessa Asquith-Lamb,
and also illustrate how she uses them in her own
artwork. Tessa will also be bringing along favourite
items for you to see after the lecture.
The Orkney Chair Revival in Britain and
the Netherlands
Monday 17 June, 10.30 am
One of Orkney’s best-known products is the strawbacked
chair which in the 19th century was to
be found in every farm house on the islands. This
talk will discuss the revival of the Orkney chair
in the 1890s, which took it from its rural origins
to Liberty of London and the drawing rooms of
the aristocracy, and its intriguing appearance in
the stock of a Dutch entrepreneur in The Hague.
Annette Carruthers is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Art
History at the University of St Andrews, where she teaches
courses on British decorative arts and design and Museum
and Gallery Studies. Her book on the Arts and Crafts
Movement in Scotland will be published later in the year.
Ill-Charted and Unlighted Seas
Friday 28 June, 10.30 am
In 1888, Robert Louis Stevenson undertook a
photo-literary tour of Polynesia and Micronesia, the
result of which was a substantial literary corpus as
well as four photograph albums. Carla Manfredi
will explore this overlooked, but substantial
photographic collection and examine it in relation to
In the South Seas (1896).
Carla Manfredi is currently a fourth year doctoral
candidate at Queen’s University (Canada). Carla began
research at The Writers’ Museum on Stevenson’s South
Seas photo albums last summer, and with the support
of UCL’s Institute of Historical Research and an Andrew
Mellon Fellowship is currently undertaking further
research.
The Lost Garden of Penicuik
Friday 5 July, 10.30 am
In 1873 plans were drawn up for a magnificent
new garden south of Edinburgh with an immense
range of glasshouses. Roger Kelly’s very personal
presentation follows the growing tradition that led up
to the garden, what became of the place, its heyday
and its decline, and today’s community efforts to
pull it back to productive life. Along the way he picks
up links with Japan, New Zealand, and Portobello,
with Prime Minister Gladstone and Patrick Geddes,
with the influence of journalism, the Soil Association
and Rudolf Steiner, with businesses like Mackenzie
& Moncur, John Dennis, and Saracen Foundry, and
major historical events like the Second World War,
and the housing boom of the sixties and seventies.
Roger Kelly helps lead Penicuik Community
Development Trust and the Campaign to Restore
the Great Polish Map of Scotland. An advisor to the
Government’s Climate Challenge fund and awards, judge
for The Patrick Geddes Trust , he is vice-convener of The
Saltire Society and a former convener of the Royal Town
Planning Institute in Scotland.
Shake, Rattle, Roll and Sheer Terror
Thursday 25 July, 10.30 am
An illustrated talk on how the public, press and
medical professions viewed train travel in the
19th century, and at how well the traveller was
looked after by the railway companies and their
servants. Robin Barnes discusses the highs and the
lows, based on the contemporary observations of
both regular and occasional travellers, the wealthy
and the poor, and the medical advice given to them,
well-founded and otherwise.
Edinburgh’s Sistine Chapel: Creation and
Restoration
Friday 26 July, 10.30 am
The Catholic Apostolic Church, now known as the
Mansfield Traquair Centre, was designed in 1872
by Sir Robert Rowand Anderson. The building was a
milestone in Anderson’s career and is a key building
in the New Town of Edinburgh. The building is of
great architectural merit, but what makes it extra
special is that it contains a vast mural painting
cycle by Phoebe Anna Traquair which was executed
in the 1890s. This has led to the building being
called ‘Edinburgh’s Sistine Chapel’. The Catholic
Apostolic Church ceased worship in the building
in 1958, since when the building suffered from
lack of maintenance and the murals from water
penetration, salt efflorescence and deposits left by
invasive pigeons. Rosemary Mann tells the story of
the building and its rescue by a charitable trust, its
renovation and the restoration of the murals.
Rosemary Mann is Secretary of the Mansfield Traquair
Trust and was involved in the restoration of the building
and murals from start to finish.
Enter the World of Jane Austen: History in
the Making
Saturday 27 July, 2 pm
£20 with a special buffet afternoon tea - A talk about the design
and construction of gowns worn during the Regency period.
Julia Soares-McCormick creates fabulous theatrical
costumes along with masks, headdresses and
jewellery. She will present a very interesting,
lively and informative talk about the design and
construction of her gowns. Beautifully costumed
mannequins will accompany the talk. Included
are an ornate gold-encrusted Court Gown inspired
by clothes worn by Empress Josephine wife of
Napoleon Bonaparte and a beautiful Regency
gown in the style of Jane Austen. Underwear and
accessories worn during this period will also be
included.
Julia has a BA Hons Theatre Design; she presents
Renaissance fashion shows and costume displays and
talks to schools, groups, libraries and stately homes.
She has appeared on the BBC wearing her Gowns at
a stately home and has also been featured on radio.
Julia worked in a number of theatres before going on to
design costumes privately.
www.tudortalkandcatwalk.com
The History of Cramond Island
Monday 5 August, 10.30 am
Cramond Island is easily accessible at low tide from
the promenade at Cramond. On the island the most
obvious structures are the remains of a number of
military installations from the Second World War.
This lecture covers island life from its early history
when it was owned by the Bishops of Dunkeld,
through the middle ages, to its short-lived period as
a smallholding in the 1950’s.
John Dods is a retired Electronics Engineer and has
been involved with the Cramond Heritage Trust since
his retirement.
The Arts and Crafts Movement in Scotland
Wednesday 7 August, 10.30 am
At the turn of the 19th and 20th century artists,
architects and designers all over Britain contributed
to a movement which aimed to improve the design
of everyday life - from houses and churches to
interior furnishings and items for personal use such
as jewellery and books. In Scotland the Arts and
Crafts Movement had a distinctive character of its
own, which will be explored in this talk.
Annette Carruthers is a Senior Lecturer in the School of
Art History at the University of St Andrews, where she
teaches courses on British decorative arts and design
and Museum and Gallery Studies. Her book on the Arts
and Crafts Movement in Scotland will be published
later in the year.

August
August–September
Bartholomew’s Maps: A Cartographic
Window Into Edinburgh’s Past
Kings And Queens In Costume: History In
The Making
The Peculiarity Of Scottish Witchcraft:
The Napier Family And The North Berwick
Witches
Monday 26 August, 10.30 am
For the Europeans of the 16th and 17th centuries,
witchcraft was a very real thing. This lecture aims to
look at the ways in which Scottish witchcraft can be
seen as peculiar when compared to the trends found
in the rest of Europe, as Scottish witchcraft had
a darker and more sinister nature. The witchcraft
trials in North Berwick of the 1590s are the perfect
example of witchcraft persecution in Scotland, and
this lecture will also uncover Lauriston Castle’s
family connection with this dark art.
Charlotte Johnson is a recent graduate from the
University of Edinburgh, having studied MA History and
Scottish history. She now works as a Visitor Assistant
for Edinburgh Museums and Galleries.
Decimus Burton Architect Of Many Facets
Monday 2 September, 10.30 am
Of Scottish descent, Decimus Burton had a career
that spanned the Regency period to well into
Victoria’s reign. His buildings range from the well
known Arch and Screen, to London’s Hyde Park,
to the then cutting edge hi-tech Palm House at
Kew Gardens. Unlike other Victorian architects he
refused to take part in “the Battle of the Styles” and
was happy to work in either the Classical, Gothic, or
Vernacular. His aim was to provide his client with the
building that best suited his taste and needs.
Philip Miller organized the successful travelling
exhibition that celebrated the centenary of Decimus
Burton’s death in 1981, and has just revamped this
to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Burton
designed Lancashire town of Fleetwood in 2011. It is
now available online.
Thirty Years Of Collecting Rugs In The
Middle East: A Travellers Account
Wednesday 4 September, 10.30 am
Monday 19 August, 10.30 am
This well-illustrated talk will provide an overview of the
extensive archives and maps of John Bartholomew &
Son, and the special insight they give into the history of
Edinburgh over the last two centuries. Bartholomew’s
history spans six generations of family heads from
the 1820s to the 1980s, and their maps were justly
famous all over the world - many of their innovative
techniques and publications still influence map-making
today. Whilst the firm moved several times in the
city, Edinburgh was always their family and business
home, and Bartholomew produced many unusual and
distinctive maps of Edinburgh. The firm also kept an a
very detailed archive of their work, which survives today
in the National Library of Scotland. This allows a unique
insight into practical map-making work.
Chris Fleet is Senior Map Curator at the National
Library of Scotland. His particular responsibilities
relate to digital mapping and the NLS maps website,
but he has had a long-standing interest in researching
the history of Scottish maps and map-makers. In
2011 he co-authored the book Scotland: Mapping the
Nation, published by Birlinn in association with the
National Library of Scotland.
Saturday 24 August,2 pm
£20 with a special buffet afternoon tea - A talk about the design
and construction of costumes for Kings and Queens
Julia Soares-McCormick creates fabulous theatrical
costumes along with masks, headdresses,
underwear and jewellery - she will present a very
interesting, lively and informative talk about their
design and construction. Costumes on display
include a glittering gold outfit for Cleopatra Queen
of the Nile, an elegant pink silk gown for Henry VIII’s
fifth wife Queen Katherine Howard, a new French silk
gown for Mary Queen of Scots and a court gown for
Empress Josephine. Due to popular demand Julia’s
husband will again accompany her in full regalia as
Henry VIII.
Julia has a BA Hons Theatre Design; she presents
Renaissance fashion shows, costume displays and
talks to schools, groups, libraries and stately homes.
She has appeared on the BBC wearing her gowns at
a Stately Home and has also been featured on radio.
Julia worked in a number of theatres before going on to
design costumes privately.
www.tudortalkandcatwalk.com
Rufus Reade has been importing rugs into Edinburgh
since 1983. He has travelled huge distances in
search of the unusual and the interesting, often
diverting along the way to see a remote mosque,
monastery or ruin. In this illustrated talk he takes
us along some of these byways, and gives the
background to running an unusual business, The
Nomads Tent, here in Edinburgh. He will bring along
some of his favourite rugs.
Rufus Reade was born in Kenya, and grew up in Cyprus
speaking English and Greek. He worked as a social
worker, latterly running a refugee centre in Carnwath for
Vietnamese Boat People. It was during the recession
of the early 1980s, and he became intrigued by the
possibilities of their self-employment. This proved
an unsuccessful goal but it galvanized him to give up
teaching social workers at Stevenson College, and to
start his own business, The Nomads Tent, importing
and selling oriental rugs from Turkey.
Corstorphine Old And New
Friday 6 September, 10.30 am
This lecture will cover the history of Corstorphine
from the medieval stone-roofed church and

September
September–October
dovecot right through to the 20th century changes
when old cottages were swept away for shopping
developments. There are many illustrations of
buildings and times that are gone. The photographs
and anecdotes will inform and entertain the
audience whilst illustrating the fate of villages that
were overtaken by the spread of a city.
Ian Anderson is Vice-Chairman of Corstorphine
Trust, a retired investment manager, who has lived in
Corstorphine for almost 50 years. He is passionate
about recording the history of the village in the
Trust’s museum and archive in the listed building that
they occupy in the corner of St. Margaret’s Park on
Corstorphine High Street.
Rooted In Royalty: North Queensferry
Monday 9 September, 10.30 am
An exploration of the timeline of the development of
the Queensferry Passage from the early ferry system
1000AD up to the 2 bridges today, and its effect on
a village community.
James Lawson is retired and has lived in North
Queensferry for 17 years and is currently chairman
of NQ Heritage Trust. James is also involved with the
development of the new Forth Bridges Tourist Group
involving a more ‘professional’ welcome for all cruise liner
passengers coming to either Rosyth or South Queensferry.
Our Famous Caravan Holiday’, Elsie
Jollyman’s Visit To Scotland Of 1909
Wednesday 11 September, 10.30am
Scotland was well-established as a tourist destination
by 1909 when Elsie Jollyman toured the west of
Scotland in a horse-drawn caravan. By this time,
seasoned travellers had begun to react to the
commercialism of organised tours and simple
holidays in the fresh air became popular. This talk will
explore the development of tourism in Scotland with
particular reference to this delightful journal of a visit
to Scotland by a group of friends in search of novelty.
Olive Geddes, Senior Curator in the Manuscript
Collections Division of the National Library of Scotland.
Musing The News
June 1903: Breakfast With WR Reid
Saturday 21 September, 11 am – 1.30 pm
£20 with a buffet brunch
It’s June 1903 and William Robert Reid and his wife
Margaret have taken occupancy of Lauriston Castle.
A man of regular habits, Mr Reid has ordered the
Scotsman newspaper to be delivered to Lauriston
every day and to be placed in the Oak Room of the
Castle, which he has renovated as his office. Due
to the distractions of moving, however, Mr Reid has
fallen behind with the news. He invites you to join
him as he catches up with the events, local and
global, of June 1903. Afterwards brunch will be
served in the old Castle kitchen.
A Dish Of Tea
Monday 23 September, 10.30 am (with some very
interesting teas to sample)
What is now regarded as Britain’s national drink
was unknown before the mid 17th century,
in fact its first mention was in the newspaper
announcing the death of Oliver Cromwell. At first
it was fabulously expensive and was regarded for
its cure-all properties, but soon it became part of
the ritual of the drawing room, the mistress of the
house presiding over the locked tea chest. The 19th
century saw the invention of that British institution
“afternoon tea”, by the Duchess of Bedford.
Tea had previously been the monopoly of China
but Scottish botanist Robert Fortune pioneered the
establishment of tea plantations in India and Ceylon
making the leaf more available to the less wealthy
classes and providing an alternative to stronger
drinks and thus encouraging the teetotal movement.
Philip Miller organized a record-breaking exhibition at
London’s Building Centre based upon his collection of
tea ephemera and his vast collection of teapots, 2000
of which are now in the Norwich museum. Although he
still has over 1000, the most interesting of which he
will use to illustrate his talk.
Granton’s Industrial Past
Wednesday 25 September, 10.30 am
Granton used to be an industrial area. It had one of
the first car factories, wireworks, fishing, coal and a
lot more. It also had one of the first train ferries. This
lecture will explore some of the industries and the
area in general and also give an account of growing
up in Granton.
Kenneth Williamson, born in 1951, has lived in Granton
all his life, and has extensive knowledge of the local
area. He played rugby for Leith Accies and Broughton
and plays bowls at Maitland Bowling Club, Davidson’s
Mains. Kenneth is a railway enthusiast, and has had
several articles and pictures published in national
railway magazines.
The Glasgow Boys
Tuesday 1 October, 10.30 am
The Glasgow Boys were a group of artists whose
emergence in the 1880s led to a radical shift in
Scottish art. Crawhall, Guthrie, Henry, Hornel, Lavery,
Melville, Paterson and Walton were young, talented
and ambitious, producing work that was new and
challenging and which rapidly gained international
recognition. This lecture looks at the work of the Boys,
including examples from the City Art Centre’s collection
of Scottish art, as well as placing them in the context
of parallel contemporary developments at Newlyn
in Cornwall and Skagen in Denmark. Ian O’Riordan
is Senior Curator of Art, Edinburgh Museums and
Galleries.
The Poetry Of Motion: The Motor Car In
Edwardian Literature
Thursday 3 October, 10.30 am
The emergence of the motor car was greeted with an
equal measure of elation and despair in Edwardian
writing. While some writers such as Rudyard Kipling
embraced the car as a wonderful and exciting
example of modernity, others imagined the motorist
as Mr Toad, throwing up dust and defiling the
countryside as he sped by. This lecture will delve deep
into the Edwardian literary scene to suggest how early
motor cars were introduced to the reading public.
Jonathan Wild is Senior Lecturer in Victorian Literature
at the University of Edinburgh. He is completing a
book entitled The Great Edwardian Emporium which
examines the literary culture of the Edwardian period.
William Robert Reid & The Luxury Train
Monday 7 October, 10.30 am
The superb quality of furniture and interior design
produced by Morison & Company of Edinburgh
under the direction of W.R.Reid is widely
recognised. Not so is the fact that Mr Reid and his
company designed and produced luxury railway
carriage interiors which ranked amongst the finest
of their kind in the late 19th to early 20th century,
establishing a truly international reputation.
Robin Barnes takes an illustrated look at this work,
which Mr. Reid continued to undertake on behalf of his
former company for a decade following his ‘retirement’
to Lauriston Castle in April 1903.

October-November
November
Medicines From The Mud
Tuesday 8 October, 10.30 am
Since 1986, the Soutra Research Project has
been exploring the medieval hospital, south-east
of Edinburgh. Modifying traditional archaeology
– itself silent on medical practice – techniques
from geophysics, forensics, medical diagnostics,
toxicology et al. have been applied. This has allowed
precise study of ‘medical waste’, including medicinal
recipes selected for use – with interpretation through
medieval recipe collections. Evaluate this new
science for yourself – and see what archaeologists
and historians overlook.
Dr Brian Moffat has been the Director of Investigations
throughout. By background, he is a biogeographer/
ecologist. He is known as the ‘Hermit of Soutra Aisle’
The Scottish Home In The 16th Century
Wednesday 23 October, 10.30 am
Michael Pearce explores the furnishings of the
homes of the wealthier classes from a survey
of 16th century inventories and court records,
uncovering what must have been essential and
what seems exotic. He is researching furnishing in
Scotland (1500-1700) as a PhD with the National
Museums and the University of Dundee, an interest
sparked by his work with Historic Scotland and the
re-instatement of interiors at Stirling Palace. The
comparison of inventory and artefact evidence is
intended to help the interpretation of the museum’s
collection and built heritage in Scotland.
Michael Pearce has been Historic Scotland’s
Conservation Group “Historic Interiors Researcher”
since 2000, after training as a conservator in Lincoln.
He contributed to the restoration of the interior
of General Register House and the Stirling Castle
palace project. Currently he is researching domestic
furnishings as an AHRC funded PhD with the National
Museums and Charles McKean at Dundee Unversity.
Buying New Art In Edwardian Britain: The
Case Of The Rowats Of Paisley
Monday 4 November, 10.30 am
The best work of designers such as Charles Rennie
Mackintosh and George Walton depended on the
patronage of a very small number of committed
enthusiasts. The Rowat family commissioned work
from Mackintosh on four occasions, the starting
point for a talk which will examine the place of
avant-garde taste among Edwardian entrepreneurs.
Stephen Jackson is Senior Curator, Applied Art and
Design at National Museums Scotland.
A Millennium Of Scottish Wheel Thrown
Pottery: A 21st Century Perspective
Wednesday 6 November, 10.30 am
Just over a decade ago a small a small group of
Scottish archaeologists and medieval ceramic
researchers decided that developer driven
archaeology was in the main doing little to support
ceramic studies. They therefore convened a
meeting of interested parties, formed the Medieval
Archaeology Group (MARG) in a bid to try and
change its direction. At the same time the speaker,
with help from a small group of volunteers, decided
in what has become known as the National
Museums Scotland shard project, that they would
try and put into the public domain the entire corpus
of excavated and unpublished ceramic material from
Scottish 18th and 19th century pottery production
sites. As the result of all this work, which had
invaluable support from Historic Scotland, we have
begun to see the benefits of a unified approach at a
national level. Scotland, now almost certainly has a
better grip than most countries on its wheel thrown
ceramic heritage.
George R. Haggarty FSA, FSA Scot is a Research
Associate: National Museums Scotland.
Medical Care: Intervention By The State
Monday 18 November, 10.30 am
This lecture will explore the part played by the state
in the development of medicine in Scotland in the
hundred years before 1948.
Morrice McCrae graduated in medicine at
Glasgow. After service in the army he returned to
Glasgow University as Hall Fellow in Medicine. He
was then a lecturer in medicine at Glasgow before
becoming a consultant physician the Royal Hospital for
Sick Children in Edinburgh. After retiring from medical
practice he studied history at Edinburgh. Since then
he has written a number of books including Physicians
in Society, Sir James Simpson: The Turbulent Life of a
Medical Pioneer and Scottish Medicine: An Illustrated
History.
The Laird’s Kitchen: Three Hundred Years
Of Food In Scotland
Monday 25 November, 10.30 am
Sheep’s heid broth, haggis, crappit heids; these
are the images conjured up by traditional Scottish
food. But what did our ancestors really eat? Using
diet books, household accounts, inventories and
manuscript recipe books from the collections of the
National Library of Scotland, this talk explores the
eating habits of the wealthier members of society
from the early 1600s to Edwardian times.
Olive Geddes is Senior Curator in the Manuscript
Collections Division of the National Library of Scotland.
You Must Never Travel Without One:
Advice For The Lady Traveller At Home
And Abroad
Thursday 28 November, 10.30 am
At a time when manufacturers produced a huge
range of travel paraphernalia what were the
essentials for the Victorian and Edwardian lady
travellers? What should you take and what could you
safely leave behind? This lecture will look at some of
the range of goods on offer to travellers, hints and
tips for lady travellers, as well as some of their reallife
experiences.
Helen Edwards is Curator of Applied Art at the Museum
of Edinburgh and Lauriston Castle
Musing The News
Christmas 1918: Breakfast With WR Reid
Saturday 30 November, 11 am – 1.30 pm
£20 with a buffet brunch
It’s 24 December 1918 and William Robert Reid
and his wife Margaret prepare for Christmas at
Lauriston Castle, their last Christmas together. Mr
Reid has ordered the Scotsman newspaper to be
delivered and placed in the Oak Room of the Castle.
We welcome you to join him as he catches up with
events local and global, of Christmas 1918, just
months before his death. A brunch will be served
afterwards in the old Castle Kitchen.

Living Lauriston
Living Lauriston
1910
Be transported back to the Edwardian period and
meet Mr and Mrs Reid and their staff as they go
about their daily lives at Lauriston Castle. Living
Lauriston is a group of volunteers who work with the
City of Edinburgh Museum staff to assist with the
interpretation of the collections at Lauriston Castle.
To book and for further information, please
telephone 0131 336 2060 or email
lauristoncastle@edinburgh.gov.uk (events only)
Spick And Span
Sunday 7 April, 2 pm, 3 pm or 4 pm
Adult £5, Child £3, Family £12.50
With refreshments: Adult £6.50, Child £4.50, Family £17
Visit Lauriston Castle and meet the owners and
servants as they begin their big spring clean. Find
out what they think about new cleaning methods
and how they spend their leisure time.
At Home
Sunday 26 May, 2 pm, 3 pm or 4 pm
Adult £5, Child £3, Family £12.50
With refreshments: Adult £6.50, Child £4.50, Family £17
Meet Mr and Mrs Reid as they welcome friends to
their home. Join the servants downstairs as they
prepare tea and go about their duties.
A Summer Day
Sunday 8 September, 2 pm, 3 pm or 4 pm
Adult £5, Child £3, Family £12.50
With refreshments: Adult £6.50, Child £4.50, Family £17
The end of summer is approaching as Mr and Mrs
Reid prepare to travel abroad. However, they still
have visitors in the house and must entertain them.
Eavesdrop on their plans.
The 5 Ghosts At Halloween
Thursday 31 October 7 pm
£20 with wine and canapés
On this Halloween night meet five ghosts of
Lauriston from each century of the house’s history
and hear their tales in the atmospheric setting of
Lauriston Castle.
Murder Mysteries
Death Pays A Visit
Saturday 15 June, 7 pm
£30 with wine and canapés
Friends gather at the Laurels to celebrate the
birthday of Alice Oliver. However, events take a turn
for the worse when a body is discovered. Join us
to find out whodunit! Exercise your grey cells and
decide for yourself who is guilty and who may be
innocent.
Deep and Crisp and… Dead!
Friday 6 December, 7 pm
£30 with wine and canapés
Christmas at the Laurels – an idyllic setting in a crisp
snowy landscape…… until a body is discovered!
Everyone is presumed guilty unless they prove
otherwise. Can you unwrap the mystery? Can you
work out whodunit and what their motives are?
You can get this document on tape, in Braille,
large print and various computer formats if you
ask us. Please contact the Interpretation and
Translation Service (ITS) on 0131 242 8181
and quote reference number 12-1041. ITS can
also give information on community language
translations.
You can get more copies of this document by calling
0131 529 3963
Illustration by Mairi Crighton
Designed by the City of Edinburgh Council Corporate
Governance 12.359/CG/DW/February 2013