The Edinburgh Reporter April 2022
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Beach robots
Mystery robot maker supports
Ukraine orphan charity
Pass or fail? Save our Souls Roseburn reborn
End of term councillors’ report
card marked up
Old Town residents put out
distress signal
Traders upbeat and ready to
welcome shoppers to city village
Rivals square up
Hibs and Hearts toe to toe in
semi-final clash
Page 3 Page 4 Page 8 Page 12
Page 22
April 2022
EDINBURGH’S FREE LOCAL NEWSPAPER...A CAPITAL READ FROM START TO FINISH
Saturday
traffic stops
for play street
By PHYLLIS STEPHEN
Martin P McAdam
Tarn (9), Lyra (9),
Yasmin (10) and Tilly (9)
A PLAY STREET was set up where local
children played with bubbles, skipping
ropes and roller blades in space usually
used for cars and other vehicles.
Ewen Maclean of Blackford Safe Routes
said: “We used the council’s play street
scheme to apply for a temporary road
closure of the junction on
Spottiswoode Road. This allowed
locals to enjoy the space free from
vehicular traffic. The event allowed
people to see how much of our public
realm is given over to vehicles. This
junction is wide, but between two
residential streets where only local access
is necessary. We encouraged local kids to
use chalk to redesign what they would
like to see at the junction, and the result
was joyful and spontaneous.
“This is a route to and from school for
hundreds of school children from James
Gillespie’s Primary and High Schools and
yet is a long crossing with poor sightlines.
With political will and courage there is
the opportunity to redesign such spaces
with parklets, trees which provide
sustainable drainage, and play-making
spaces to enhance the local community.
Liveable spaces promote well-being not
only through greater safety, reduced
noise and localised pollution but also
through promoting connectedness
for all members of the community.
By deprioritising vehicular traffic, but
maintaining access for those that require
it, everyone in the community can
benefit, and play streets such as this are
an opportunity to show what is possible
throughout our city if we value liveability
and social connectedness above car use.”
2 NEWS
Planning News
Editorial
IN THE MIDST of all the bad news, there
was one truly good news story during the
last month which brought a happy tear to
many eyes.
The release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe
after six long years of imprisonment and
house arrest in Iran was a bright light in the
darkness of other recent world affairs. The
separation of a mother from her young
daughter was heartbreaking, the hunger
strikes by her and her husband Richard
impossibly brave, and the apparent blunder
by the then Foreign Secretary, Boris
Johnson, who told a committee at the
Commons that she was “simply teaching
people journalism” was unforgivable.
Words matter particularly when it comes
to politicians. As we went to press the
council had entered purdah, and
electioneering has begun in earnest.
There will be 63 councillors elected on 5
May, with most wards electing three or more
councillors, often from different political
parties. There is no such thing as a protest
vote in local elections since the votes are
counted according to the Single Transferable
Vote system and not first past the post as
they are in Westminster elections, or the
partial proportional representation as they
are in Scottish Parliament elections. So
when you cast your vote you will rank them
in order of preference rather than voting for
one single candidate. It is key to know who
is standing in your Ward, and of course
to register to vote if you wish to have your
say. Read our candidate profiles online from
1 April.
We look back over the past five years of
the coalition between SNP and Labour
which has run the council on page 4.
Cllrs Adam McVey and Cammy Day -
were instrumental in ensuring the
Ukrainian president and the Mayor of Kyiv
our twin city will receive Edinburgh’s
highest honour, the Freedom of the City.
There are five living Freemen of the City:
HM The Queen (1947), Sir Chris Hoy
(2012), Professor Peter Higgs (2014)
Squadron 603 of the Royal Auxiliary Air
Force granted in 2018 and the Scottish and
North Irish Yeomanry (2 April 2022).
Phyllis Stephen, Editor
A NEW PassivHaus school - Scotland’s first
- will be built as plans for Currie Community
High School have been given the go ahead.
Construction is expected to begin this
summer and the school will be ready for
pupils in 2024. The energy consumption for
heating will be reduced by around 90% on a
traditional building - and overall energy
consumption is said to be reduced by 70%
and minimises carbon emissions.
The school will have a series of learning
zones for pupils with breakout areas, a strong
emphasis on outdoor learning and a special
terrace on the second floor which will give
access to outside teaching spaces.
Councillor Neil Gardiner, Planning
Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council,
said: “I welcome the decision taken today in
approving the planning application for the
new Currie Community High School. This will
provide the community with a state-of-theart
sustainable high school, sports and
community facilities which will meet both
future educational and environmental needs.
“It’s great to see such a strong emphasis on
outdoor learning with the creation of a
special terrace and how the outdoor spaces
will promote sustainability for the school and
local community.”
Councillor Ian Perry, Education, Children
and Families Convener for the City of
Edinburgh Council, said: “The pioneering
designs that have been approved today really
are the blueprint for the schools of the future.
There are many innovative elements to the
plans with energy efficiency at its centre. This
will make the new campus the first high
school in Scotland to meet Passivhaus
standards and supports Edinburgh’s aim of
net zero emissions by 2030.
“The new Currie Community High School
will provide a first-class learning environment
and an exciting, inspirational and creative
hub for the whole community.”
GET IN
TOUCH
TODAY!
The new Currie Community
High School
A PLANNING application has been made
by house builder CALA for 267 houses on
land to the south west of Meadowfield Farm.
This site - plots 6, 7 and 8 - lies between
Turnhouse Road and the railway line and
particular attention has been given to
transport matters including electric vehicle
charging spaces. There are plans for 56 of
these and 263 parking spaces and 272 cycle
parking spaces. Two new bus stops are
included in the plans and a toucan signalised
crossing at the main access to the
development. There will also be a new bridge
over the railway with connection to the trams
and Edinburgh Gateway.
CHANGE OF USE and alterations has been
sought for current Hollister and Amor
Cashmere and Tweed units at 80 George
Street, converting them for occupation by
Norwegian social gaming brand Oche, which
is a darts-themed bar and restaurant with
sites in Oslo, Brisbane, Gothenburg,
Amsterdam and Miami.
THE COUNCIL granted permission for a
residential redevelopment of the former
Lismore Primary School site in Duddingston
as part of the council’s 21st Century Homes
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programme with 40 homes in four blocks in
2019. That development at Bingham Avenue
has now been shortlisted for this year’s Homes
for Scotland Awards. There are one, two, three
bedroom homes in a mix of flats, cottage flats
and colony style houses. The “ecologyfocused”
landscaping includes an abundance
of private and communal greenspace.
EDIBLE ESTATES has lodged an
application for a proposed community farm
in Niddrie Mill Grove. This will include work to
put up a six feet high perimeter mesh fence
and three polytunnels with a wooden shed
and raised beds to grow fruit and vegetables.
CHANGE OF USE has been applied for for
a row of three shops on Multrees Walk to
become a car showroom. The units formerly
occupied by Castle Fine Art, The Pen Shop &
North America Travel Service would be
converted into a single unit for Korean luxury
car brand Genesis which is the luxe division of
Hyundai. The brand’s first “immersive studio”
opened in London last year, with other
branches in Munich and Zurich. Prices are
generally around ten per cent cheaper than
their rivals including Mercedes and BMW. The
brand also includes three electric models.
Architype
About us...
We write about news relating to the Edinburgh area. If you
have any news, or if you would like to submit an article or
photograph for publication then please contact us
Editor: Phyllis Stephen
Designer: Felipe Perez
Photos: Martin P McAdam
/EdinReporter
edinburghreporter
@EdinReporter
theedinburghreporter.co.uk
07791 406 498
editor@theedinburghreporter.co.uk
3
Portobello bots
Porty Robot Maker aids Ukrainian kids charity
Jackie Stark of Dnipro Kids
accepts cheque from Karen
Mackay of Cahoots
By PHYLLIS STEPHEN
THE SUM OF £6,545 was handed over to
charity Dnipro Kids to help them resettle
Ukrainian orphans they have brought from the
war zone to temporary refuge in Scotland.
The money was raised by people buying Porty
Robots specially decorated in Ukrainian
colours. The Porty Robot Maker prefers to
remain anonymous and so the sales were
coordinated through Portobello art collective,
Cahoots. One hundred percent of the proceeds
has been handed over to the charity.
Karen Mackay from Cahoots asked people to
sponsor a robot to give to Ukrainian children
who arrived in Scotland last month. Karen said:
“Thank you to the Porty Robot Maker. I
thought they had put a ceiling on how many
Leaping
into Easter
at Craigie’s
TAKE YOUR LITTLE ONES to
Craigie’s this Easter weekend for
an interactive event helping Little
Bo Peep solve the clues to find
her mischievous missing sheep.
Kirsteen Sinclair,owner of Craigie’s
told us about an orphan lamb
rejected by its mother.
Kirsteen said: “The mother was
early having her lamb, so she
lambed in the field rather than
indoors. One of the other sheep
tried to pinch the lamb from her.
robots they would make at about 20 or 30, but
so far we have sold 300 and the Robot Maker is
happy to keep producing them as long as people
want them. It will only be the Ukrainian robots
they will make for now, and the Robot Maker
will continue their magic hiding amongst us.
“When Dnipro Kids first heard of the Porty
Robots, Steven Carr from the charity asked if he
could buy some for the children, but I put a
shout out for people to sponsor a robot for
each child.
“People were allocated a name with the age of
the child and they are making up a gift bag for
“their” child, and in each one there will be a
Ukrainian robot. So hopefully when they go
home to Ukraine in the future their robots will
go with them.”
Jackie Stark, fundraising coordinator for
By the time we got out the
mother thought she only had one
lamb and she won’t accept this
one. We will bottle feed it until we
get a mother with a single lamb
and we will try and make her
adopt it if we can.”
Noah Osborough (5) from
Kirkliston and Jessica Anderson
(4) from Dalmeny pictured
above gave the newly born
lamb a warm welcome.
Book tickets which include:
• 1 hour play session in Little
Farmers adventure play area
Dnipro Kids, set up by a group of Hibs
supporters in 2005 said: “There are 50 children
and 9 adults who have arrived in Scotland. The
plan is that they stay in Callander for 12 weeks.
“We have been donated huge things like bunk
beds and food, but all of this money will go
towards helping them settle in Edinburgh and
in Scotland. This is massive for them. None of
these kids had left Ukraine before, none of them
had passports and had not ever left Dnipro.
“So this feels like a huge adventure for them
but I am sure in a couple of weeks time they
may realise they are missing home.
“This money will be used to take them on
great experiences and lots of trips while they
are here.
“They still have to do school work but this
will help a lot. Thank you so much everyone.”
• Craigie’s Easter Egg
• Breakfast or lunch platter at
Craigie’s Cafe
• Creative Easter activities
with the Easter Bunny
• £14.99 for adults and £19.99
for children, with children 0-12
months free
Martin P McAdam
Martin P McAdam
Flats plan
raise the Eyre
of residents
By OLIVIA THOMAS
PEOPLE LIVING near Eyre Place
submitted a formal response to the
consultation by CA Student Living who
plan to build a six storey block of 210
student flats on a gap site there.
The pre planning consultation has now
ended and the Eyre Place residents say
that nearly all residents are either
opposed or strongly opposed to the
development. Their comments to the
developers say that building 200 student
flats on this site would have a “disastrous”
effect on their living environment, local
amenities, public transport, traffic and
primary healthcare facilities.
They point out that while they realised
the former Jewsons site would be
developed they had envisaged
sustainable family housing would be built
there, and that they would welcome new
permanent neighbours joining the
community. Locals have also explained to
The Edinburgh Reporter that with four
student developments in the area - where
there are no universities or colleges within
a 20 minute walk - it is difficult to
understand the need.
A spokesperson said: “As a longestablished
community, we are aggrieved
that no representative of CA Ventures
communicated with the Canonmills
residents about the proposal of student
flats before preparing the Public
Consultation Document showing bed
numbers, architectural drawings,
and landscape proposals. Had the
developer, or its representative,
met with the community they would
have understood the breadth of anger
and resistance throughout Canonmills
that the proposal has generated.
Fundamentally, the majority of the
community in Canonmills does not want
200+ beds of student accommodation
built on 72-72 Eyre Place.”
4 POLITICS INTERVIEW
End of term
Report
Leaders who have run council in tandem
for five years claim some key successes
THE COUNCIL LEADER, Cllr Adam McVey
(SNP), and Depute Leader, Cllr Cammy Day
(Labour), were both very upbeat about their “end
of term report” marking the end of a five year
coalition, and both are determined to be
re-elected. Whether or not that will result in a
further five years of SNP and Labour running
Edinburgh remains to be seen and of course
depends on the result of the election on 5 May.
The way councillors are elected means that
at least three, if not four, councillors represent
each ward. It is unusual, but not unheard of,
for two members of the same political group to
represent one area. There can be a rainbow of
parties representing a ward, and then it is for the
largest single political group - or groups - to run
the council.
Cllr Day said that the success of the coalition
which began in 2017 is underlined by the fact that
the parties have not once had to use the dispute
procedure in their coalition agreement.
Councillor
Cammy Day
A few councillors from the two main parties
resigned the party whip, becoming independent.
One Conservative councillor also became
independent, but the coalition remained in power
throughout. The coalition agreement made 52
commitments, forming the council business plan,
and the document has been used to drive
progress during the SNP/Labour administration.
In many people’s eyes the rollout of the Spaces
for People measures led to the administration
losing credibility, in spite of the fact that many
citizens recognise the need for alternative modes
of transport both during the pandemic and
beyond, partly to meet the needs of the climate
emergency. And there was much discussion over
the use of Princes Street Gardens as a venue for
festivals which critics said only filled the pockets
of a London based production company.
Continuing to fulfil their initial pledges to the city
during the pandemic has also been challenging.
Cllr McVey said: “As leader I have had to deal
with what nobody saw coming - a global
pandemic. Everyone has had to adapt and change
their approach, and it has been incredibly
demanding. I have tried hard to be honest, direct,
open and transparent throughout that time, and
hopefully people will recognise that. Even if they
have not agreed with me on every decision I hope
people will respect how much I have given to
the role.”
Of course not everyone does, as is testified by
the often very personal social media comments
about both council leaders, but McVey said he
just ignores any abuse.
He said: “Nobody wins a popularity contest by
becoming leader of the city council. It is not
particularly hard for me as I just don’t engage
with it. What still motivates me most in public
office is the ability to find the solutions and work
with council officers to break through all the red
tape and get them a positive outcome. When
people are just rude there is no point in the
punchbag talking back. If you are in a senior role
then you have to expect some of this. Some of
this has got better and some has got worse
Cllr Adam McVey
particularly for female councillors.
“But having said that our list of candidates is
gender balanced. We’ve got this fantastically
talented, diverse group of people. I am
determined that we stand as a team against this
kind of behaviour.”
He noted a couple of high points - keeping the
tram project on time and on budget is a major
achievement for him. He said: “It has been largely
due to setting up an experienced team of
contractors as one unit with an external scrutiny
body. I think, to be on the cusp of completing
construction this year, within budget, is an
enormous achievement. For young people we are
swimming against the tide of UK benefit changes
as well as a cost of living crisis, but we have tried
to provide even more support within our
classrooms. And that has meant building amazing
new schools and believe it or not we have closed
the gap in spending on roads.”
And with regard to the festivals and their future
McVey admitted that “it has been a difficult
debate”. More than 8,000 people responded to the
council consultation. He thinks changes will be
made. He said: “I expect there to be less reliance
on green public space and a shift towards hard
standing public spaces and making that work.”
There are many opportunities to create
in-house services, saving millions of
pounds and creating apprenticeships
What motivates me the most is finding
solutions and working with council
officers to break through red tape
CLLR CAMMY DAY
CLLR ADAM MCVEY
It took several weeks in 2017 for the SNP and
Edinburgh Labour groups to agree the contents of
their coalition agreement. Cammy Day was
remarkably frank about the birth of the
administration, saying this was one of the most
difficult things he had ever had to do.
But he said: “Ultimately we got all of our
manifesto agreed as part of the coalition and got
some influential positions in the council to ensure
that we could deliver what Edinburgh Labour
wanted. The alternative could have been a
Conservative/LibDem pact so I am very pleased
we were part of the decision making process for
the last five years.
“I am proud of the work of the Poverty
Commission. The city has never had one - we had
a social exclusion programme under the former
Lord Provost Eric Milligan - but there has never
been an independent public commission. I think
the outcome of that was bold.”
The other highlights for him (and you can read
more in our full length interviews online) are the
Climate Commission and also the development
of the Waterfront is in his own Forth ward - again
something which he is proud of.
Cllr Day said: “”We have turned our backs on
the shorefront for decades and now we need to
open it up. We have just put contracts out to
tender for the next development phase and I am
sure we will attract great interest in what is a ten
year project with really exciting opportunities for
the north of the city.
“If I am re-elected then the top three things I
would like to address (apart from climate change
of course) includes the regeneration of the
Granton Waterfront, continuing to fight the battle
against poverty and bringing more council
services back in-house. There are many
opportunities to create in-house services, saving
millions of pounds and creating apprenticeships
on good terms and conditions.”
NEWS 5
Sparks fly
in New Town
Bid to unplug electric chargers
Walking for Ukraine
THE PUPILS AND staff of Towerbank Primary School in Portobello responded to
the crisis in Ukraine, by undertaking fundraising walks.
Primary 7 children and House Captains suggested the plan and older children will
walk 1800 km which is the distance from Towerbank to the Ukraine border.
Any monies raised will be handed over to the Disasters Emergency Committee which
is a coalition of 15 UK aid charities. The school has set up a Just Giving page.
By DONALD TURVILL
Local Democracy Reporter
NEW TOWN residents complained that
electric chargers planned for India Street would
attract unwanted traffic to the area.
It comes amid a £2.2 million roll out of 81
new on-street chargers from The City of
Edinburgh Council serving 141 parking bays
across the capital.
This programme includes 21 already
operational at Ingliston Park and Ride and a
further 19 at Hermiston Park and Ride,which
will soon be ready for drivers to start using.
Electric car power points will also be set up
on city streets including Maxwell Street,
Thirlestane Road, Stewart Terrace, Comely
Bank Terrace/Avenue, Sheriff Brae, King’s
Road, Montgomery Street, Fettes Avenue, East
London Street and Heriot Row.
However, two chargers previously approved
by councillors to be installed on India Street
could be reassigned to another location after a
Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) was met with
15 objections.
Residents called for the New Town street to
be removed from plans and raised concerns
about the potential increase in vehicles the
chargers would attract, loss of permit parking
spaces for those who live there and late night
visits from taxi drivers.
One objector wrote: “The cul-de-sac is
frequently used by many local residents,
including children, dogs, and the elderly,
to walk across the road to the gardens
and beyond.
“This end of India Street is mostly made up
of flats, 12 with no private gardens. This will
greatly impede access to India Street Gardens
including for my own primary aged daughters.”
Another said: “The proposal will encourage
significant numbers of extra vehicles in search
of charging points thereby having an adverse
effect on the nature of the street.”
In addition to the objections, transport
officers said site investigations found there
would be “significant challenges” installing
charging points on India Street.
They noted in a report to councillors that
due to the street’s distance from the nearest
substation, 140 metres of track would then
have to be excavated across two roads.
This would require diversion routes in place
causing “significant disruption.”
They added that would risk “significant
financial cost and negative impacts to delivery
timescales for the broader electric vehicle
project programme”.
A Movement for Good
AS PART OF their commitment
to keeping people active and well,
Edinburgh’s leading sport and
physical activity charity,
Edinburgh Leisure, is launching a
new month-long physical activity
challenge that aims to inspire
people to get active every day
this May.
The Movement for Good
challenge is aimed at everyone,
not just their members. It’s
well-evidenced that moving and
being physically active benefits
our overall health and wellbeing,
but putting it into practice can be
hard, with family life, work
commitments and household
chores often taking precedence
over exercise.
Helen Macfarlane, in the newly
created role as Edinburgh Leisure’s
Director of Wellbeing explains:
“Whether people are new to
physical activity or need a helping
hand to get back into the swing of
things, then our new Movement
for Good challenge is for them.
“It’s designed to give
participants a period of focus
when they start to make small
consistent changes by being
active every day. This is the start of
forming healthy habits so that
regular activity becomes part of
their daily routine, and they build
the motivation to stay active
because they feel good.”
Participants signing up to the
month-long Movement for Good
Challenge, will receive a pack full
of useful resources, along with
hints and tips on how to get the
most out of your challenge. This
will help ensure participants have
fun, keep motivated and
experience the health and
wellbeing benefits of becoming
more physically active.
Sign up today to join the May
Movement for Good Challenge
and reap the benefits of an active
life - www.edinburghleisure.co.
uk/movement-for-good
Join together for refugees
AS WE LOOK at events unfolding in
Eastern Europe, it becomes
increasingly clear that we are
watching a massive humanitarian
crisis take place. And in the face of
such a crisis, those of us who are
fortunate enough not to be directly
affected by the conflict should do all
we can to help those who are losing
their homes, families, and
livelihoods. At time of writing, over
8,600 Scots have offered to host
refugees from Ukraine alongside The
Scottish Government’s commitment
to sponsor an additional 3,000. This
is an amazing example of the public
working alongside Scotland’s two
governments for the good of those
who need help and I look forward to
supporting this constructive
relationship.
It should be remembered though
that the process is not over yet and
welcoming in refugees is only the
first phase. Questions must now be
answered by The Scottish
Government as to how they plan to
house, feed, and educate those
whom they have welcomed.
In Edinburgh alone, we are already
experiencing a shortage of housing
and many schools are already at
capacity. This is going to have to be a
concerted, joint effort between the
Scottish Government and local
authorities to make sure that we are
not only allowing refugees in, but we
are also ensuring that they are
looked after and cared for.
Jeremy Balfour MSP
6 NEWS
Hotspot for
holidays
Dirleton
holiday home
Charity
acquires
prime
Dirleton
holiday
home
DENIS DUNCAN HOUSE, a fully accessible
holiday cottage in Dirleton, East Lothian, is
now under the ownership of North Berwickbased
charity, Leuchie House.
The self-catering cottage sleeps six including
two fully accessible beds, and will offer people
living with disabilities and their families or
carers to spend quality time together.
The holiday home is based only four miles
away from Leuchie, Scotland’s National Respite
Centre, which provides short holiday breaks of
between 4 and 11 nights to people living with
neurological conditions such as multiple
sclerosis, stroke and MND.
Taking over the holiday home – previously
owned and operated for more than 20 years by
the Lin Berwick Trust - is particularly exciting
for the charity. The cottage was named after
the late Rev Dr Denis Duncan - a devoted
member of the Church of Scotland who served
in Edinburgh, as well as London and Glasgow.
Leuchie CEO, Mark Bevan, said: “We are
determined to do more for more people, not
only within Leuchie, but beyond our walls and
CEO Mark Bevan
Denis Duncan House gives us that opportunity
to allow families to enjoy some quality time
and independence.
“We are especially pleased to have received
the incredibly generous donation from the Lin
Berwick Trust of Denis Duncan House. This
purpose-built house is accessible and equipped
to the highest standards. It will enable disabled
people to have a break with family and friends
and provide a gentle introduction to Leuchie
House, just a few miles down the road.
“It is a new venture for Leuchie and we are
so pleased to be storming out of the pandemic
with new ideas to deliver more care and
support, in more ways, for more people in
need. We can thank our supporters enough for
all that they have done to help our ambitions to
come true.”
Holiday breaks at Denis Duncan House are
available from £582-a-week, and can be
booked at www.denisducanhouse.co.uk or
by calling the Leuchie bookings team on
01620 892 864
Giraffes About Town
THE ROYAL ZOOLOGICAL Society has
shared pictures of artist David Fleck
painting the first sculpture in preparation
for Edinburgh Zoo’s upcoming Giraffe
About Town trail.
Sponsored by the trail’s official media
partner, JPI Media, David’s design is
inspired by his own experience discovering
new inspirations for his illustrations from
iconic landmarks throughout Scotland. He
previously designed the artwork for The
Scotsman 200 years anniversary
celebration.
In partnership with Wild in Art, Giraffe
About Town will see more than 40
eight-foot-tall giraffe sculptures go on
display across Edinburgh in summer 2022.
Each model will be designed and decorated
by local artists and community groups,
later being auctioned to raise vital funds to
support RZSS wildlife conservation work in
Scotland and around the world.
Sculptures are due to hit streets from 1 July.
For more information, please visit
www.giraffeabouttown.org.uk
7
Sweet smell of success
Bakers to get a slice of the action
Rise to the challenge
THE ROYAL Highland Show is calling upon
producers from across Scotland to apply for the
2022 Scottish Handcrafts, Bread, Honey, and
Dairy Championships.
Entries are open now. The Championships
are judged across an extensive range of
categories and recognise excellence in Scottish
produce. They are judged in advance by a panel
of experienced industry experts and displayed
at the Royal Highland Show, taking place from
the 23-26 June 2022.
The Scottish Championships attract
producers and crafters of the highest
quality and are recognised as respected
industry accolades, and are of great value
to successful entrants.
The Dairy Championships comprise
competitions for cheese, ice cream, yoghurt
and butter, with classes including those for
specialty cheese, frozen yoghurt and flavoured
butter. The Dairy Championships will be
showcased in a new and improved area on the
Showground this year.
A showcase of creativity, the Handcrafts
Championships include a variety of art forms,
from porcelain and beadwork to baskets and
walking sticks, with the theme for entries being
“Celebration of the Countryside”. This year,
Handcrafts will be moving to a brand-new
marquee in the Craft Zone.
Each year the Bread Championships, held in
association with Scotland the Bread, attract a
high calibre of entries.
Celebrating “real” bread made without
additives or preservatives, there are classes for
everything from sourdough to loaves made
especially by small producers.
The Honey Championships, feature several
classes for all things honey related - including
raw honey, honey cocktails, artwork related to
beekeeping and photography featuring bees.
www.royalhighlandshow.org
Helping hand
Edinburgh group sending aid to Ukraine
VOLUNTEERS at Sunflower Scotland have
sent 100 tonnes of aid from Edinburgh direct
to Ukraine. Many have families in the country,
and are sons and daughters helping
cousins, mothers, grandparents, nieces and
nephews. Local communities from all
over Scotland have responded to their
call very generously. Many families donated
food and essentials, and loaded up the
lorries with items to go to those in need
in Ukraine.
Sunflower is unique as they send lorries
with aid to Lviv in Ukraine, rather than to
Poland just over the border. Roads further east
are unsafe for lorries, so the aid is reloaded
onto smaller vans and then distributed to the
cities that need it most. Since Sunflower is a
volunteer association, there are no
administration fees. All donations are used
either to fuel the lorries, or to buy food.
A spokesperson for Sunflower said:
“The humanitarian crisis is escalating at
an unprecedented pace, and shops have
either been emptied or obliterated. People
who are stranded in Ukraine’s cities urgently
need food.
"While Ukraine is fighting for its survival, it is
our moral duty to support innocent people.
Sunflower collects food in bulk to meet the
increased demand. We have sent a call to
British food businesses to donate (or sell at a
generous discount) various types of food and
ask any companies to get in touch with us."
The foods which are needed are:
• Dry food: pasta, rice, flour,
cereals, dry soup, etc.
• Canned food
• Dehydrated food
• Camping food
• Baby formula, infant and kids food
• Gluten free and lactose free food.
Get in touch with Sunflower if you can
donate or sell a pallet or more of any goods to
them.
You can buy a t-shirt at Tesco Musselburgh
where you can also leave donations.
Though they prefer physical aid, you can send
money to: www.gofund.me/7bcf6dda
15% discount on all shipping and packing materials when quoting code PS101
8 CAMPAIGNS
SOS Cockburn St
Old town residents signal for help to help tackle traffic chaos
ANYONE WATCHING Twitter and this
particularly local campaign @sos_street will
know that much work keeps the social media
feed alive with photos and videos of heavy goods
vehicles and cars travelling up and down the
pedestrianised street, and parking on pavements.
“Pedestrianised” Cockburn Street
WHO ARE YOU?
We are a group of Cockburn Street residents
(mainly) and businesses.
WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO ACHIEVE?
We want Cockburn Street returned to a street
worthy of World Heritage status. When Covid
arrived, the street was “pedestrianised” apart
from a small window in the morning to allow for
deliveries to local businesses. Residents with a
parking permit lost the ability to park, the
disabled spaces disappeared, but
pedestrianisation made up for the inconvenience.
Then the Council allowed ugly huts to be built
– seven in all – and all without planning consent.
This was a Covid measure allowing businesses to
trade and maintain social distancing. They were
also allowed to set up pavement cafés. These
sheds and cafés created bottlenecks on the
pavement and made social distancing impossible
for pedestrians. The traffic, which is allowed in
during pedestrian hours now parks on the
pavement so as not to block the road. Most
recently followers brought to our attention that
planning, licensing and other rules are being
flouted. The Council website is not user-friendly
so it is hard to understand what the status is for
various applications, but it would appear that
there are no consents in place for the tables and
chairs in Cockburn Street.
So it would appear either that the Council
website is incorrect, or that these businesses are
Caring for city’s heritage
Number of buildings on At Risk Register has decreased in a decade
ACCORDING TO figures released
by The City of Edinburgh Council,
only two Category ‘A’ listed
buildings will remain ‘at risk’ in the
World Heritage Site once current
or planned restoration work is
complete which they say is down
14 from a decade ago.
In 2012, there were 16 Category
‘A’ listed buildings on the Buildings
at Risk Register (BARR), which has
been maintained by Historic
Environment Scotland (HES)
since 1990.
The buildings, which are deemed
to be of ‘international significance’
and include Riddle’s Court,
Acheson House and the former
Donaldson’s School for the Deaf,
operating many more covers without any
consent. Many are using barriers to define their
seating areas but have advertising banners which
is in contravention of the rules). All advertising is
for alcohol. Some businesses opposite the City
Chambers are doing this too.
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
The sheds attract vermin and night time revellers
who keep residents awake. They have created a
pavement parking problem, which damages
pavements. We love how the street used to look,
but these unsightly huts have ruined a once
beautiful street. Most are not even in use, and
while all have been denied planning consent, the
Council has no plans to take enforcement action.
This street is a public space and the council has
given it away free of charge to private business –
have been repaired, refurbished
and brought back into public use,
following long periods lying vacant.
The Virgin Hotel development in
the Old Town, which is due for
completion in the spring, will
remove four buildings from the
register, including the landmark
India Buildings and the 160 year
old Cowgatehead Free Church,
while the globally renowned Old
Royal High School on Regent
Terrace has planning permission in
place to bring it back into use as a
music school, saving five buildings
in the process.
Planning Convener Neil Gardiner
said: “We work extremely hard with
our partners, including Edinburgh
World Heritage and Historic
Environment Scotland to protect
our historic built environment,
and with owners to support them
to find the best outcome for
their properties.
“Over the last ten years, we’ve
helped developers make the best
and most sympathetic use of many
of our globally significant and
architecturally stunning buildings
so they can be enjoyed now and
for future generations to come.
“You only have to walk around
the centre of our beautiful Capital
city to see the progress being
made and restoration works
completed on the ground to
breathe new life into these
and lost parking revenue that would have been
spent on vital public services. Bins have been left
unemptied and seagulls have started to get
aggressive. The stress is a mess and it breaks
our hearts.
WHAT FORM DOES YOUR CAMPAIGN HAVE?
We are a group of people who love the street,
coalescing around the Twitter account sharing
photos and concerns. We support each other
in trying to get things improved for the
greater good.
HOW CAN PEOPLE HELP?
Follow us on Twitter, write to those in power,
take photos and record your concerns on social
media. Tag us please. This is the only way we can
bring about change.
historic and iconic buildings.
“The plan for the Old Royal High
School is a fantastic example of
this, restoring it to its original glory
as a place of learning for our young
people. And, I’ve been very
impressed by work on the upper
floors of 30 Princes Street as a hotel
with restoration of the gilded globe
roof sculpture on the corner of the
former Forsyth’s department store.
“It’s also good to see several
properties in central Edinburgh
restored to residential use and that
Scottish Historic Buildings Trust is
using the picturesque Category ‘A’
listed merchant’s tenement,
Riddle’s Court, in the Lawnmarket
as their headquarters.”
Treasure on the
Quiet Route
By KIRSTY LEWIN
THE CITY OF EDINBURGH COUNCIL
established a new Quiet Route from
Greenbank to the Meadows. Quiet Routes
are developed by councils to make it easier
to walk, wheel and cycle by reducing
traffic, usually with the use of “modal
filters” (planters and the like).
The Greenbank Meadows route includes
several parks, as well as schools, nurseries,
and residential areas. The route is popular
with families walking and cycling to
school, as well as those accessing green
spaces, shopping areas, and the city
centre, by bike.
While the route is now an important
active travel corridor, it also has an
interesting past. It loosely follows the first
piped public water supply to Edinburgh’s
Old Town. At the end of the 17th century,
fresh spring water was supplied via lead
and wooden pipes northwards from
Comiston to Edinburgh Castle with the
help of gravity and the high altitude of the
springs. You will find evidence of the water
supply on marker stones along the route
which have the numbers 5 and 7 engraved
on them. These numbers indicated the
diameter of the pipes as they crossed
property boundaries.
To celebrate the opening of the Quiet
Route, and to encourage people to try it
out, the Friends of the Quiet Route have
organised a spring Treasure Hunt. If you
complete it by 20 April, you can enter the
prize draw for vouchers to spend at the
Edinburgh Bike Co-op.
I cycled the route to try my hand,
following the golden hares (with their QR
codes) and pondering the clues. Where
was the thoroughfare for the crème de la
crème? How old is Comiston Spring
House? What did Ben Wade draw a picture
of? Would anyone laugh if I played Pooh
sticks on my own?
I got off my bike several times to admire
the spring daffodils, to examine historic
buildings and walls I hadn’t noticed before,
and to enjoy the views. It was a peaceful,
informative, and fun cycle. And that’s what
makes the Quiet Route so special. You can
relax and enjoy the ride or the walk.
9
Low Traffic
Corstorphine
Safer streets, less vehicle pollution and better
access to shops is campaign ambition
By OLIVIA THOMAS
WHO ARE YOU?
Low Traffic Corstorphine is a group of
Corstorphine residents and local businesses
who share a vision for an improved,
healthier and more inclusive environment:
a neighbourhood with quiet streets for
playing, for socialising, thriving local shops
and businesses, traffic-free zones around all
schools, less polluted, cleaner air for everyone,
and many more routes for safe walking
and cycling.
We are a diverse group with lots of ideas that
we want to collaborate on to improve the
places we live, work, travel through and enjoy
for leisure in our community. Importantly, we
believe that working together, sharing our
ideas and using our different strengths to
campaign can help speed along changes to
benefit everyone who lives and works in
Corstorphine.
Low Traffic Corstorphine is a constituted
voluntary association. Our co-chairs are Janis
Ross-Williamson and Chris Young.
WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO ACHIEVE?
We have identified a number of key aims that
we support by:
• Promoting facts and evidence-based benefits
of a more equitable balance between the
needs of pedestrians, wheelers, cyclists and
drivers.
• Responding to The City of Edinburgh
Council consultations to help ensure walking,
wheeling and cycling are given priority in our
community.
• Encouraging local residents/businesses to
respond to consultations to make their
concerns known to The City of Edinburgh
councillors, MSPs and Corstorphine
Community Council.
We aim to provide a focus and support
for residents, school children, parents
and carers, business owners, people who
work in the area and regular visitors who
want safer, healthier, less congested
streets. We want to see traffic free
streets around all local schools,
safer and connected walking
cycling and wheeling friendly
streets, much improved air
quality, a 20mph default
speed limit throughout
Corstorphine and low
traffic neighbourhoods
for all residential streets.
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
More people walking and wheeling around
Corstorphine would have great physical and
mental health benefits through exercise and
reduced pollution from vehicles. It would also
mean that people are more likely to use local
businesses and have improved connection with
each other through incidental meetings and
more opportunities for social engagement.
Poor air quality has been proven to have
many detrimental health impacts and
disproportionately impacts the very young, the
elderly and those with pre-existing medical
conditions and disabilities. We want
Corstorphine to be a neighbourhood that
ensures a healthy environment, especially for
our more vulnerable people.
We would like to see the streets surrounding
all schools open for walking, cycling, wheeling
and residents vehicles only to allow safe and
healthy journeys to schools for all pupils,
parents, carers and staff.
Quiet residential streets filtered to allow only
people walking, wheeling and cycling along
with good cycling infrastructure on arterial
routes would encourage many more people to
choose to walk or cycle the many short
journeys that are currently taken by car. This is
important not only for everyone’s’ health but
also for the environment when we know we are
in a climate crisis.
Arterial routes such as Glasgow Road,
Corstorphine Road, Drum Brae with fast and
busy traffic, create a disjointed neighbourhood
and make it difficult for those walking,
wheeling and cycling to visit friends, amenities
and workplaces. Reducing the speed limit to
20mph on all Corstorphine streets would
create safer, calmer and more pleasant
environments for people using the pavements
as well as those using the roads.
WHAT FORM DOES YOUR
CAMPAIGN HAVE?
We choose to be a positive voice for
change in Corstorphine.
Corstorphine has a great community
spirit and we want to nourish that
community and help to challenge
the vehicle domination that
fractures our area.
As with many, due to
the pandemic our
meetings have been
Co-chair
Chris Young
predominantly online
but we have more
recently met with
Co-chair
Janis Ross-Williamson
our local MSP as well as other groups who
share some of our aims face to face. As
restrictions ease we intend to do more in
person community meetings and activities.
One project we are we are currently working
on is with the Cargo Bike Movement to create
an event where people can try out different
types of cargo bikes, trailers and other
equipment so that they can see how they might
be able to undertake different types of journeys
like the school run or shopping trips without
having to use a car. That will be held on
We also help to promote ‘Playing Out’ and
similar intergenerational community events
where people can see the benefit of having
informal outdoor spaces to meet and connect
with neighbours and friends.
HOW CAN PEOPLE READING
THIS ARTICLE HELP?
Join us in whatever way you can. Share your
ideas, however big or small, if you are
interested in reducing motor traffic in
Corstorphine to improve the area for our
health, our community and the adverse effects
of climate change.
We are a friendly bunch and always very
keen to hear new ideas and positive
contributions. Look out for our latest news
updates or sign up for our newsletter for
prompts on how you can help.
You can get in touch at
www.lowtrafficcorstorphine.org.uk/contact
Mast plans
taken down
TWO REPRESENTATIVES from
Morningside Community Council and Cllr
Mandy Watt attended a site meeting with
Cornerstone and Galliford Try, agents for
Vodafone to discuss the proposal to put
up a 20 metre high mast.
Two possible alternative sites were
discussed and the agents said that they
were minded to withdraw their application
whilst they investigated the viability of any
other suitable locations.
The planning status of 22/00407/FUL is
therefore Withdrawn, not Refused,
meaning that Vodafone would be able to
make another application for the same
site, if the alternatives are not viable.
Local councillor Mandy Watt said: “It’s
excellent news that Vodafone have
withdrawn their application to put a huge
mast and telecoms equipment right
beside the iconic Morningside Clock. Their
decision to consider alternative sites is
very welcome; however they have not
ruled out the possibility of reapplying. I
made it clear to the agents that a further
application would not be well received by
local residents and urged them to find a
way to make one of the alternatives work.”
Lothians MSP Miles Briggs said he was
pleased to hear that plans for the 5G mast
next to the clock had been scrapped.
Demand for
path pledge
EAST LOTHIAN campaigners are calling
on political parties contesting May’s
council elections to include a manifesto
pledge to build a cycle and walking path
between Drem and Gullane.
The resident led campaign is now in
its 17th year making it the longest
running of its kind in Scotland for an
active travel route.
In the run up to the election,
candidates are being asked to commit to
funding and building the path so as to
provide a safe and green route for all
ages between the two villages.
Drem-Gullane Path Campaign
spokesperson Iain V Monk said:
“We challenge all political parties to
include a manifesto commitment to fund
building of the Drem-Gullane path.
“In midst of a climate emergency, and
as East Lothian recovers from the impact
of a Covid pandemic, it is important that
politicians lead a cycling and walking
revolution in the county.
“Residents in our coastal communities,
and visitors to the area, deserve a safe
cycling and walking path that will
connect not only these villages but also
link a rail station to the coast and
enhance the existing network of green
routes across the county.”
10 NEWS
Eric Liddell
legacy still
running
New name promotes community hub
THE ERIC LIDDELL Centre, the
Edinburgh-based charity and
community hub, has changed its
name.
The organisation will now be called
the Eric Liddell Community, but the
work it does as a specialist dementia
day care provider, services helping
carers and the wide range of activities
which take place in their building at
Holy Corner will not change.
The rebrand and name change is an
ongoing tribute to Eric Liddell, an
inspirational Scotsman whose short
life is remembered and renowned
nationally and internationally for his
accomplishments in many different
ways.
Eric is well known for his abilities
as a sporting champion and was
capped for the Scotland international
rugby team seven times. He is one of
a rare few who has had his “lost”
international cap reissued and was
inducted into the Scottish Rugby Hall
of Fame in January 2022, on the
centenary of his first international
cap.
John MacMillan, CEO of the Eric
Liddell Community, said: “The
former Eric Liddell Centre was set up
in Edinburgh in 1980 to support the
L to R, Julie Carter (Building Operations Manager), John MacMillan (CEO),
Bernadette Morrison (Café Volunteer), Lynda Hay (Volunteer)
local community and vulnerable
individuals. Soon after its
establishment, Eric’s daughters gave
permission to use their father’s name,
to honour Eric’s belief in community
service whilst he lived and studied in
Edinburgh and dedicated it to
inspiring, empowering, and
supporting people of all ages, cultures
and abilities.”
“Eric is remembered in many ways
to different people – as a sportsman, a
husband and father, a devout soul
who lived his life according to his
beliefs, a graduate of Edinburgh
University and a missionary in China
who refused to leave those he looked
after during the Second World War. If
he had lived longer than his fortythree
years, who knows what more he
could have achieved.
“The Eric Liddell Community
reflects Eric’s values and principles to
help and support those who need it
and the people who look after them
in a spirit of community, inclusivity,
diversity and generosity. His legacy is
strong and we are now connected to a
number of international communities
which celebrate Eric and we wanted
to recognise and embrace their
worldwide connectivity to our own
community.
“It is in celebration of Eric’s
centenary of winning his 440 yards
gold medal at the Paris Olympics in
1924 that the Eric Liddell Community
is planning a series of developments
and events to commemorate Eric’s life
and how he lived it, launching in the
lead up to 2024 and with the
intention of establishing a continuing
and international celebration of his
legacy thereafter.
“The change of name and the
rebrand will be exciting and new but
the caring services we provide will
not be affected at all.”
11
CANDERSONS SWEET SHOP
HERIOT GALLERY
LEITH WALK POLICE BOX
LOVE YOUR BUSINESS
BIRTHLINK THRIFT SHOP
Debbie Anderson invites you to take
yourself back to your childhood with
all the traditional jars of sweets in her
shop. Chewits and fudge will take you
back a decade or two. Open from
10am except Mondays.
102 Leith Walk EH16 5DT
0131 554 1401
Newly established gallery in the New
Town art district which will feature
curated group shows and solo shows.
The owners promise it will be
”challenging and compelling art”.
Innovative new works and a collection
of art books to buy.
www.heriotgallery.com
Very reasonable rates allow start-ups
to use this small pop-up space as the
first rung on the ladder. From food to
political parties and all manner of
organisations in between. Have a look
at their pop-up garden when you visit.
Croall Place EH7 4LT
hello@leithwalkpolicebox.com
Love Your Business networking club is
relaxed, informal and good fun, and is
currently online on the last Thursday
of the month with a host of inspiring
speakers sharing their entrepreneurial
journeys and invaluable business tips.
www.lybnetworking.com
Facebook/howtolyb
Donate unwanted items to the shop
on Gilmore Place knowing that they
will find a new home. Very little ever
goes to landfill. Visit the shop to pick
up a copy of our latest paper and also
to admire their innovative and
ever-changing window displays.
birthlink.org.uk
NEWSPAPER SUBSCRIPTION
DI GIORGIO’S CAFFE & BAR
EDINBURGH DOG & CAT HOME
CRAIG BANKS TAILORING
SALENTO
Subscribe today and have your own
copy of The Edinburgh Reporter
delivered to your front door from next
month. - in a compostable envelope. A
payment of £30 a year will help to
support local independent news.
ter.ooo.subscribe
Di Giorgio’s have lots of cakes and
slices, coffee with a smile and pasta
and lasagne to go. Morning rolls and
ciabattas are also available, but this is
brownie heaven and do ask about
their birthday cakes.
Open 7 days 10-4pm
1 Brandon Terrace EH3 5EA
The charity rescues reunites and
rehomes any animal in need, and
works tirelessly to secure happy and
loving forever homes. New trustees
include David Field CEO of Edinburgh
Zoo and Matt Smith of THINK.
0131 669 5331
edch.org.uk
Bespoke tailoring for men. Craig’s
focus is on making the highest quality
personally tailored attire that others
will aspire to. His pyjamas and dressing
gowns will make your video calls or
working from home very stylish.
0131 226 7775 • 45 Thistle Street
EH2 1DY • craigbankstailoring.com
Beautiful wee shop on Dundas Street
packed to the gunwales with lovely
Italian goods all handmade. Lynne
parcels them with great care in the
shop’s trademark turquoise tissue and
ribbons. New must see website is
online now.
www.salentoshop.co.uk
THE COBBLED ROASTERY
INDEPENDENT WINE COMPANY
BIRCH TREE GALLERY
ART & CRAFT COLLECTIVE
ERIC LIDDELL COMMUNITY
Vlad and Scott have a unique style at
48 Thistle Street with great coffee and
above average chat. The pair have now
celebrated a year in business at their
city centre micro roastery. Coffee also
available to order online if you are
working from home.
cobbledroasters.co.uk
A specialist importer of boutique fine
wines from Italy. Carefully hand-picked
award-winning wines of premium
quality sourced direct from the
winemakers. Oleg and Elvira visit every
vineyard personally. Free UK delivery
- same day delivery to Edinburgh
available. www.independent.wine
The gallery focuses on original
paintings, prints and fine crafts
inspired by nature. Wide price range to
accommodate various budgets.
Jurgita warmly welcomes you to
Dundas Street. Open Tuesday to
Saturday 11am-4pm.
birchtreegallery.co.uk
A unique gallery and gift shop in
Edinburgh’s Southside - a cornucopia
of all forms of art. Buy handmade art
and craft from independent artists.
Linsay says: “If we don’t have it, we can
probably find it for you.”
artcraftcollective.co.uk
0131 629 9123
Same location. Same facilities.
Great new name. The Eric Liddell
Community welcomes you.
Rooms for hire and office space for
registered charities.
0131 447 4520
15 Morningside Road EH10 4DP
frontdesk@ericliddell.org
ARDGOWAN DISTILLERY
BROUGHTON PLACE HAIR
THE WATERSHED
STOCKBRIDGE MARKET
TORRANCE GALLERY
For the whisky lovers among you, buy
award-winning Ardgowan Shipwright
online - described by whiskymaker
,Max McFarlane, as “a sumptuous
dram”. Special offer includes free
shipping and a slate coaster while
stocks last .
shop.ardgowandistillery.com
A luxurious, elegant salon with a very
happy and friendly atmosphere where
the aim is to make your experience
relaxing, enjoyable and glamorous.
Appointments essential.
Tel 0131 556 4478
2a Broughton Place EH1 3RX
www.broughtonplacehair.com
The floating café with outdoor seating
is owned and run by Lindsay and sits
just next to the Leamington Lift Bridge
on the canal. With their range of
smoothies and coffees accompanied
by macarons and a host of other treats,
it is not to be missed.
EH3 9PD
You may know about Leith (Saturdays)
and Stockbridge (Sundays) Markets
but did you know that you can order
online and pick up all of your shopping
at once? Using the NeighbourFood
site you simply choose what you want,
pay and then collect your shopping.
www.neighbourfood.co.uk/markets
The Torrance Gallery on Dundas Street
will be offering a varied programme as
ever. There will be an Andy Cross Solo
Exhibition until 16 April and the new
Spring Exhibition from 23 April. Join
the gallery’s mailing list to be kept up
to date with details of each show.
torrancegallery.co.uk
12
ADVERTORIAL FEATURE
Roll on
down to...
Roseburnone of
Phyllis Stephen meets some of the
independent businesses in Roseburn –
Edinburgh’s little town centres
1
4
2
I
know this area of town quite well. It’s where I
went to school playing hockey at Roseburn
Park, buying sweets at the corner shop,
waiting for a bus to get to Haymarket. There
is a wide variety of independent shops. We
highlight them here to tempt you into
Roseburn next time you venture along the
walking and cycle path from the north, or the
Water of Leith from the Modern Art Gallery or by
jumping on a bus or a tram to explore the area.
NIALL MENZIES
Roseburn Shoe Repairs
36 Roseburn Terrace EH12 6AW • 0131 337 2147
NIALL MENZIES has an interesting shop where
he will cut your new set of keys, make your shoes look
like new while you wait allowing you to admire his
sporting memorabilia.
The business has been a cobblers for twenty years, and
when Neill took it over five years ago, he added extra
services like watch repairs and engraving. He now
supplies local sports clubs with their trophies.
Replacing zips on boots and shoes, carrying out small
leather repairs and fixing any hand stitching - no
challenge is too great. Niall said: “If you ever have a pair
of shoes that you love and you don’t want to throw them
out then bring them to me. I can breathe life into your
old shoes.”
He learned the skills “a long time ago”, after working as
an apprentice in the oil industry. He said: “I set up on my
own in Aboyne outside Aberdeen. It is a beautiful place
but my wife is a professionally trained ballet dancer who
also teaches tango, and there was more scope for her to
work here in the capital. I found out that Ernie, the
previous owner, was thinking about retiring. We did the
deal, and now we love living in this part of Edinburgh.
CLAIRE DOIG-POLLOCK
Claire Doig Hairdressing
15 Roseburn Terrace EH12 5NG • 0131 337 7788
CLAIRE DOIG-POLLOCK has been in business in
Roseburn for about five years, and qualified as a
hairdresser some 23 years ago. She loves dressing up
the shop window to reflect the seasons, birthdays and
1. Claire Doig Hairdressing
2. Roseburn Shoe Repairs
3. NEYO’s men’s fine grooming
4. Thallon Soulis Hairdressing
5. Karina and Mandy at Ikina
of course created a beautiful rainbow in the window
during the lockdown.
The small bright salon offers appointments for
colours and cuts with popular services including
ladies haircut and blow dry for £39. Their opening
hours from Wednesday to Saturday include a late
night on Wednesday.
A Treatwell review said that one customer “always
leaves Claire’s with a smile and a skip in my step”.
The salon has a Facebook page where we found out
that Claire forgot to tell us about the most exciting event
of this past year - Ronnie James Doig-Pollock who was
born in August last year.
Claire took a short time off work before heading
straight back to the salon to keep her customers happy.
KARINA CAMERON AND MANDY WONG
Ikina Hair Studio
35 Roseburn Terrace EH12 5NQ • 0131 313 3337
KARINA CAMERON and Mandy Wong of Ikina Hair
Studio are both experienced hairdressers who, according
to one online review “know what they are doing” and
that what matters is good old fashioned service.
Mandy has been in business in Roseburn for more
than three decades and now has an established clientele.
The salon offers appointments for gents, ladies and
children’s hairstyling. This business is all about the
personal touch, and Karina thinks the clients really like
Our business is very much all
about the personal touch. I really
enjoy forging close relationships
with our clients over time
3
KARINA CAMERON
“their” hairdressers, forging a personal relationship with
them over time.
She particularly likes to do restyles and would very
happily chop your long hair off and style it into a chic
shorter face-framing style, possibly with a new colour, in
a total makeover.
CIHAN CAN
Neyo’s Mens Fine Grooming
22 Roseburn Terrace EH12 6AW • 07528963209
CIHAN CAN who has been a barber since he was
14-years-old learned his trade from his parents.
He now helps his uncle run the Turkish barber’s shop
which promises men’s fine grooming with some
traditional twists.
He said that many customers like the way that the
barbers spend time on the different treatments that are
on offer: “People come here before they go to their
weddings or birthday parties and many come here for
the banter of course.”
The business specialises in washing and cutting hair,
carrying out that tricky and delicate process of burning
the hairs off men’s ears, nose waxing and all kinds of slick
hair styles, with hot shaves a speciality.
Can offers styles such as a “skin fade” which is a
dramatic look which he sports himself. It is a way of
blending the hair on the back and sides of the head with
the longer hair on top. It begins with really short hair
around the back of the neck graduating to a longer style.
If the customer prefers they can use the cut throat
razor and can also design zig zag or other patterns as
part of the hairstyle.
DARREN DONALDSON
House of Hound
43 Roseburn Terrace EH12 5NQ • 0131 467 6834
DARREN DONALDSON is sole proprietor of House of
Hound which is of course all about dogs. One black lab
dragged its owner off the street and into the shop, while I
visited, clearly knowing the treat it was looking for.
Darren is a dog lover and has just adopted another
wee pet. He said: “Very recently we lost a member of our
community, Bett. She was a lovely woman, and she was
survived by her little dog a Schnauzer. I have known him
5
13
If you ever have a pair of shoes
that you love and you don’t want
to throw them out then bring
them to me. I can breathe life into
your old shoes!
since he was eight weeks old and since there was no
family to take him he is coming to live with me.”
Darren has 25 years retail experience mostly in the
luxury world. He said: “I worked for Cruise, Harvey
Nichols and wanted to translate that into having my own
shop. For my 30th birthday I went to New York where I
saw amazing dog boutiques and I opened my shop in 2014.
“It is about ensuring owners give their pets the best. It
is about a full care package and so we recommend good
vets, groomers, and our biggest focus is about ensuring
that we sell the best food. Our shop is for personal
shoppers only, although we invite email inquiries.”
CATHIE PURVES
Ruby Rose
28 Rosebrun Terrace EH12 6AW • 0131 305 2188
CATHIE PURVES is so passionate about her shop that
she is going to give up her day job.
She opened Ruby Rose two and a half years ago in the
former bank building selling UK brand Frenchic paints,
and up cycling furniture, with the mantra that she wants
“to give second hand furniture a second chance”.
She runs workshops for those who want to upcycle
their own items, with only two people spending a whole
day with her learning the process from prepping to
painting. And free advice is all a part of Cathie’s very
personal service.
She also undertakes commissions. Asked to renovate
a 100-year-old mahogany piano for a client, which
had been painted bottle green in the fifties and white
in the seventies with acrylic paint which had turned
yellow, she used the water-based paints she sells which
are safe for both animals and children. She advised the
client on the best shade of white to repaint it in a
sympathetic restoration.
Cathie particularly likes decoupage, saying: “It adds a
bit of character to the piece and gives it a third
dimension. But apart from that we save people -
including the council - money as we reduce the amount
NIALL MENZIES
6. Darren Donaldson of House
of Hound
7. Vigo Deli
8. Ruby Rose for upcycling
9. The Murrayfield
10. Eva and Umit of
Roseburn Café
6
of second hand goods which go to landfill. During
lockdown we were allowed to deliver paint so people
could undertake projects at home helping their self
esteem and their mental health.”
The crafty Cathie currently works in a law firm as a
law accountant, but will be finishing up soon to make her
hobby into a full-time business.
NAZIM TEK
Vigo Delicatessen
2a Roseburn Terrace EH12 • 6AW Tel 0131 467 5589
NAZIM TEK AND his son Ali run the established
business of Vigo Delicatessen in Roseburn. Ali told us
this is really an old place with about a decade of business
but they are putting their own stamp on it.
The café’s reputation for a good value lunch has
continued making it a great lunch stop on the way from
Water of Leith Visitors Centre to Stockbridge. The Spicy
Mexican Chicken Wrap with Cheese Salsa Chicken
Bacon Pesto Wrap with Tomato & Mozarella is a
favourite order.
Vigo are famed for their wraps, baked potatoes and
freshly home made soups as well as “one of Edinburgh’s
finest coffees”. Everything is fresh and the welcome from
the Tek family and their three members of staff is always
a friendly one.
The Chatter ‘n Natter table is Table 2 where people
who are dining alone, but who might like to have a chat
can sit down and enjoy a conversation with whoever is
sitting there or anyone who joins them afterwards.
DAMIAN OKRAGLY
The Murrayfield Bar & Kitchen
57-59 Roseburn Terrace EH12 5NQ • 0131 281 2639
DAMIAN OKRAGLY, manager of The Murrayfield Bar &
Kitchen says the best thing about the bar and restaurant
is their location which is handy for locals and also all the
sport fans going to BT Murrayfield.
This is the main spot for people on match days when
customers come from all over to enjoy their “relaxed
menu of sharing plates” which change according to the
seasons. The restaurant is beginning to notice a marked
increase in customer numbers now that the weather is
better and Covid restrictions have relaxed.
During December 2020 owner Chris Doherty took
over and then spent about seven months revamping the
premises. The Murrayfield then opened in the summer of
2021 to welcome their first customers.
Damian who has managed the restaurant for a year
just loves the Chicken Balmoral with Whisky sauce
which is a firm favourite on the menu, but many
customers order their signature fish and chips. But for
the meat lover the 21-day Dry-hung Beef Cheek &
Stilton Pie with creamy mash sounds delicious.
There will be a separate menu offering deals for local
residents and some further renovations with new tables
and chairs are planned.
10
EVA PAPADAKI
Roseburn Café
8 Roseburn Terrace EH12 6AW • 0131 313 0331
EVA PAPADAKI who is Greek has run the Roseburn
Café along with her business partner Umit Celik who is
from Turkey since December last year. Eva laughed as
she told me about their nationalities but it is clearly a
partnership that works from the number of customers
enjoying brunch during our visit. Although their venture
is new, they both previously worked at the Roseburn and
the café has been a fixture for three decades.
Their clientele is one where people who began as
customers now bring their children and grandchildren.
The menu has remained largely unchanged maintaining
their high quality of food and service.
Asked what the best thing on the menu is, Eva has no
doubt - it is the Roseburn special Scottish breakfast,with
two fried eggs, sausages, beans and chips.
The café is known for its generously sized portions all
served on platters. Eva said their fish and chips is
popular at other times of the day and they have a
children’s menu. Their takeaways are very popular and
orders can be phoned ahead.
THALLON SOULIS
Thallon Soulis Hairdressing
21 Roseburn Terrace, EH12 5NG • 0131 337 1760
Thallon Soulis has owned and run his shop on Roseburn
Terrace for 49 years, and moved to live locally a few
years ago.
After completing his apprenticeship at André Bernard
on Rose Street during its heyday, Thallon left there at
18 reckoning that he had learned enough to open his
own shop.
He explained that hairdressing was the perfect
profession for him as he could hardly read and write
when he left school. His friend who worked part time at
Salon Henry had a scooter with all the mirrors that
Thallon admired very much. So it was as a result of that
friendship that he took his first steps in the business.
He found the ideal spot on Roseburn Terrace, and still
trades there decades later. He said: “It was a slow start,
but halfway through my career I had seven people
working for me for about twenty years. I love cutting and
perming hair. I do have the skills to colour hair but it is
just not my thing.”
Ricky (pictured) enjoys colouring hair as well as
styling, and he is the one to ask for if you need an updo
for something special.
Thallon said: “Ricky and I have complementary skills,
but I guess my clients are now a little older. They were all
about 40 or so when we started out.. “We are a longestablished
reliable business with good service and good
value for money. We like to attract the client back again.”
It is clear that having worked here for so long he
knows most people passing by - many shouting hello as
we had a chat outside his salon.
7
9
8
14 BUSINESS
Food for thought
Ian Georgeson
Treasure awaits as Porty’s foodie heroes are mapped out
By STEPHEN RAFFERTY
PORTOBELLO’S GROWING number of
independent food outlets and suppliers have
been put on the map in a fund raising initiative
in support of the former Town Hall.
Porty Food Map features 21 traders who
tell their stories and provide recipes, and is
brought to life with illustrations by local artist
Barbara Hilliam and images by photographer
Jon Davey.
The project was cooked up by local resident
and foodie Jo Turbitt and Porty Central trustee
Jen Elliot, with proceeds going to support the
rebirth of Portobello Town Hall.
Jo Turbitt said: “It is a real community
endeavour celebrating the food community,
encouraging people to buy local produce, to
chat to traders and showcase what we have on
our doorstep.
“We can see other high streets devastated
by online shopping, but the pride and buzz
in Porty’s thriving high street and promenade
is so evident.
“It's a book that we hope will inspire people
to try new recipes, to shop local, support their
local traders, to visit Portobello and experience
the foodie haven we have here.”
Porty Food Map features long established
traders such as Findlay’s the Butcher,
Williamson Fishmonger, Spanish restaurant
Malvarosa and The Espy, alongside newcomers
like pasta specialists Aemilia, pizzeria Civerinos
and Promenade neighbours Shrimp Wreck.
Jo added: “Buying Porty Food Map is one
way of supporting the fundraising campaign to
Some of the 21 traders who are taking part (clockwise
from top left) Billy Hoy, Vidya Sarjoo, Paul Marsden and
Kirstin Bold, Kirstin Norrie, James Bonthrone, Harem and
Mohammed Murdochy, Louise Gladstone with Lucy
Gladstone-Wallace and Derek Wallace, Jennifer Elliot and
Jo Turbitt and (centre) Louise Reid
bring the Town Hall back into action for the
community and also having a beautiful and
useful book at the same time. It is also a ‘thank
you’ to the individuals who have kept us fed,
watered and supported over the years and most
importantly over the last two years.”
The full list of traders featured are: Root
Down, Findlay’s of Portobello, The Fine Wine
Company, The Mouse Hole Deli, Popeye's,
Williamson Fishmonger, Gogo Beets, Aemilia,
Deli 194, Harry's Gourmet Treats, Miro's
Pantry, Reds, Malvarosa, Passey's, The
Boathouse, Crumbs, Shrimp Wreck, Civerinos,
Miro’s, The Espy and The Little Green Van.
The Porty Food Map, priced £15, will be
available from 23 April. Order online
www.portobello-central.sumup.link
Two new directors at city surveyors
SAVILLS HAS expanded its
Edinburgh residential sales team
with the appointment of two new
Associate Directors. Laura
Mathieson joins Savills after five
years working in the prime city
market with Rettie & Co. Tom
Edwards has a strong track record
selling homes in the capital,
previously working with Coulters
and Strutt & Parker.
Ben Fox, Savills Head of
Residential said: “We’re delighted
to welcome these two property
professionals to the Edinburgh
team: between them they bring a
wealth of experience and are able
to hit the ground running. They
understand how to give the best
advice to buyers and sellers in this
fast-paced market, where high
levels of demand for city properties
are outpacing supply.”
As a result of competitive
bidding and strong premiums,
prime Edinburgh town values are
8.6% higher than a year ago, the
highest annual growth figure since
2007, according to Savills index.
Laura said: “I am delighted to
join Savills during such an active
time in the Edinburgh market,
working with buyers from all over
Scotland, as well as much further
afield. Currently, would-be sellers
are hesitant because they see a lack
of property options for their next
move. However the demand/
supply imbalance means there are
some good prices being achieved
for those who come to the market,
and they are in a better position
when bidding than buyers who
have not yet begun marketing their
existing property.”
Tom adds: “It is great to be part
of Savills, working with a fantastic
team and some of the finest
properties in Edinburgh, although
few are currently staying on the
market for very long. Having Savills
Lettings under the same roof is
really benefiting buyers: many are
deciding to rent until they find
exactly what they want, whereas in
other instances we can put clients
in touch with those selling
privately, or whose homes are not
yet on the open market.”
Ben Fox said: “Looking ahead,
activity in the city and its suburbs is
intensifying, as office workers
progressively return. Our survey
reveals more commitment to move
at some point during the next 18
months, and there will continue to
be a strong core of unsatisfied
demand. We’re seeing fierce
competition for properties of all
types but particularly larger homes
and those with access to
outdoor space. “
Edinburgh lawyer
takes on global
litigation role
EDINBURGH-BASED solicitor advocate
Jim Cormack, QC, has been appointed
Global Head of Pinsent Masons’
Litigation, Regulatory and Tax
(LRT) team.
The role involves leading the law firm’s
265-strong LRT offering, which covers
common law and civil law jurisdictions,
with staff based in seven UK offices and
in Dublin, Dubai, Madrid, Munich, Paris
and Singapore.
The core services provided by the
team are corporate and commercial
litigation, civil fraud litigation,
contentious tax, forensic accounting
services, health & safety, professional
and financial services litigation,
regulatory and investigations (including
a white collar crime practice), energy
disputes, international arbitration, and
administrative and public law.
Jim, who joined Pinsent Masons in
2001, is dual qualified to practice in
Scotland and England & Wales and was
appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2018, a
year after becoming a Fellow of the
Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.
He said: “I am privileged to have
the opportunity to be lead the firm’s
LRT team which boasts a fantastic
group of partners and legal directors
along with our senior finance, HR,
Practice Development Lawyers and
technology colleagues.
“Our LRT practice is successful and
thriving, which is ultimately down to the
skill, commitment, hard work and
enthusiasm of my colleagues, and
having a collegiate and supportive
environment within our team.
“I have been a dispute resolution
lawyer for close to 30 years now and it is
still a job I love doing. There is a thrill in
picking up a client’s problem and
analysing and deploying a position and
to ultimately deliver a solution.”
When not travelling in his global role,
Jim will be based at Pinsent Masons’ new
offices at Capital Square in the heart of
Edinburgh’s financial district.
15
Dine plates up
for charity
Restaurant serves £60,000 in good causes
By PHYLLIS STEPHEN
DINE Restaurant on Cambridge Street hosted
the Elsie Inglis campaign fundraising Gala
Dinner raising almost £1,000 for the charity.
As well as entertaining all the guests who
bought tickets to attend, the restaurant also
donated a dining experience for 10 guests at
their newest venue which will open this month
in Canonmills. In all £33,000 has been raised
for an Elsie Inglis statue planned for the
Royal Mile.
This is just the tip of the iceberg as far as the
restaurant's charitable giving is concerned. In
the last seven years the owners have provided
donations which have raised more than
£60,000 for local charities, causes and
community services.
Restaurateur Paul Brennan founded Dine
with chef Stuart Muir in 2015. Since then they
have branched out to Murrayfield, and are
about to open a third spot in Canonmills in a
newly created restaurant space for 50 covers by
the Water of Leith. There is also a cantilevered
terrace for pre dinner and post dinner drinks.
Recognising very well that their place on the
Edinburgh dining scene is as a local business,
they try very hard to get involved with the
community and pay back the loyalty of their
customers who are mainly locals.
The connection with the ladies who
organised the fundraising campaign for the
Elsie Inglis statue began with another
fundraiser for Alzheimer Scotland in January
2020 just before lockdown, and Dine will also
be contributing a prize for the Maggie's
Edinburgh Ladies Love Lunch at the Sheraton
Grand on 22 April 2022.
What Stuart and Paul have now decided is
that it is better for them to focus on two or
three charities such as Lynne McNicol’s ‘Its
Good 2 Give’ charity, the British Red Cross, the
Esk Valley Rotary Club, Beatson Cancer
Charity, and of course Elsie Inglis rather than
giving a little to many charities.
Paul said: "Stuart and I both come from fairly
humble backgrounds and the way we were
brought up was to help other people. My dad
Paul Brennan
was a butcher and my mum a dinner lady.
"When we first opened the business we
struggled a bit, but we made sure that we
supported local fundraisers. We are a
local restaurant relying on local people to
support us.
"We are now recovering after the pandemic,
finding our feet again, and feel it is only right to
keep up our charitable support for people who
are having a tough time. Esk Valley Rotary
Club told us they raised £6,066 most of which
is going to Ukraine. We donated two gift
vouchers for that, and we donated a table for
eight to the Rob Roy Foundation and that
raised £3,500 for the charity.
"We decided that we would concentrate on a
few charities and you know it is not a big ask
for us to give a table of four away as a fundraising
prize.
"When we first started we did not know
much about marketing and didn't know how to
reach our target audience, but now we have a
name so we can help much more as people are
prepared to pay for a meal here.”
Parabola: A forward
thinking place
to live and work
New business park is a milestone development
ONE OF THE first office buildings in
the Parabola development at
Edinburgh Park has been completed
by contractors Sir Robert McAlpine.
The building at 1 New Park Square is
a milestone in the development of
the new business park hailed as a
forward thinking place to live and
work. Sustainability is at the core of
the project with renewable energy
and exemplary transport links. The
building sits in a civic square with
adjoining garden, multi-use games
area, car park and Padel Tennis
courts. Designed by architects
AHMM it has a reception area with
terrazzo flooring and timber lining
as well as an oak desk. A tapestry
was created for the reception by
Dovecot Studios. The commission is
inspired by Leon Kossoff’s study of
the painting ‘Minerva Protects Pax
from Mars by Rubens’ and will
become Dovecot’s first public
artwork for Edinburgh in a decade.
Founder and Chairman of
Parabola, Peter Millican said:
“Firstly, we should like to thank
the terrific team at Sir Robert
McAlpine who have delivered
exemplary space and a landmark
building to the optimum quality
with a finish and attention to detail
that we were seeking during a
significantly challenging time.
“Parabola is proud to be creating
a new sustainable urban quarter,
cultural destination and creative
campus with sustainability at its
heart. This new Edinburgh
neighbourhood brings stunning
architecture, inspirational
workplaces, affordable homes, a
civic square and its own arts
programme to a sublime setting.”
Parabola MD, Tony Hordon, said:
“1 New Park Square is the first of
seven net zero carbon new office
buildings at Edinburgh Park. The
location and connection of 1 New
Park Square is exceptional and its
facilities, such as the new bakery,
bar restaurant, sports and
performance space set it apart.
“1 New Park Square is a building
that makes you smile – and has
been designed with wellness at its
heart, representing some 85,000 sq.
ft. The pioneering building is
leading the way for a net-zero future
with all-electric infrastructure, PV
arrays on the roof, high ceilings,
openable windows, and double
height balconies providing
exceptional fresh-air circulation.
Views from 1 New Park Square to
the Pentlands are as stunning as the
public realm which is also peppered
with world-class sculpture, some of
which were specially commissioned
for the site.”
16 FOOD AND DRINK
Café review: TANIFIKI
By Charlie Ellis
CROSSWORD
Compiled by David Albury
Raising the standard
PORTOBELLO, long an attractive
location, is an increasingly fashionable
spot with a lively cultural scene.
Tanifiki, at the Figgate Burn end of the
town, is a great new addition to the
range of cafés and eateries in the town.
Along with the popular Greek Artisan
Pastries and the independent
Portobello Bookshop, this is clearly
an area of Portobello that is seeing
more and more footfall.
Tanifiki’s team of young baristas give
the place an energetic and welcoming
character. Typical of the independent
coffee scene more generally, the place
has a mildly industrial aesthetic but
with a warm and comfortable feel.
The place is wonderfully spacious,
with a mezzanine area at the back.
The soft back chairs are ideal for those
wanting to slowly savour their coffees
and conversation, or their literary
purchases from the bookshop
next door.
The place is dog friendly. There was
a good humoured notice for dog
owners asking them to be “mindful of
other customers” and, if the dogs are
“a bit wet, smelly, or sandy from the
beach”, they should try and clean
up before entering. In return, Tanifiki.
promise “water, good vibes, and
great aromas”.
These aromas are provided by what
is oozing from the coffee machines
and by the Air Motion roaster sitting
near the front of the café. This means
that their Rwandan coffee beans are
roasted on site, providing great
freshness. At present, they are
generally using the house roast in
their espresso-based drinks but intend
to increase their range in the near
future. They plan to offer four
carefully selected coffees from various
parts of Africa - and give customers a
range of flavours and coffee types.
We tasted their house roast and
decaf and were impressed by the ultra
smooth honey-like character of both.
The coffees were made with skill and
precision but without pretension.
The staff were clearly enthusiastic
and passionate about the coffee they
were roasting and serving. Tanifiki
also serve baking and savoury food,
as well as hosting art and and other
cultural events.
Late on a sunny Saturday, the place
was buzzing. Excited chatting and
chilled reading were both in evidence.
Opened in 2021, the place has clearly
already established itself in the area.
Tanifiki typifies the way in which
specialty coffee is becoming much
more mainstream and raising the
general standard of coffee available.
Pre or post beach walk, Tanifiki is
strongly recommended.
Tanifiki. 44 Portobello High Street,
Portobello, Edinburgh, EH15 1DA
ACROSS
1 Piece of land equal to 4840 square
yards (4)
3 Place selling drinks to take away
(3-7)
10 Flying insect with brightly coloured
wings, or a 1930s biplane (5-4)
11 Entertain (5)
12 Welcome somebody (5)
13 The act of one country entering
another in a hostile manner (8)
15 Knocking lightly (7)
17 Unpleasant sight (7)
19 Put into code (7)
21 Hunting cry (5-2)
22 Not moving (8)
24 Body of people, especially
military (5)
27 Compare (5)
28 Shop selling writing materials (9)
29 Filmed audition (6,4)
30 Lethargic (4)
DOWN
1 Completely (10)
2 Villain (5)
4 Moving like a river (7)
5 French port in Normandy (2,5)
6 Outer garments (5)
7 The study of the central
nervous system (9)
8 Female sheep (4)
9 A tip (8)
14 People lacking character, of little
substance (3,2,5)
16 Artificial aid to keep the heart
beating (9)
18 Varied collection from a wide range
of sources (8)
20 Matching sweater and cardigan
worn by some women (7)
21 Top parts of the front of shoes (7)
23 Small weight (5)
25 Relating to the kidneys (5)
26 Money given to the poor
as charity (4)
ANSWERS
Across: 1 Acre, 3 Off-licence, 10 Tiger-moth, 11 Amuse, 12 Greet, 13 Invasion, 15 Tapping, 17 Eyesore,
19 Encrypt, 21 Tally-ho, 22 Immobile, 24 Corps, 27 Liken, 28 Stationer, 29 Screen test, 30 Slow.
Down: 1 Altogether, 2 Rogue, 4 Flowing, 5 Le Havre, 6 Coats, 7 Neurology, 8 Ewes, 9 Gratuity, 14 Men
of straw, 16 Pacemaker, 18 Eclectic, 20 Twinset, 21 Toecaps, 23 Ounce, 25 Renal, 26 Alms.
Seeking charity partner
SCOTMID IS looking for an
organisation that shares its
values and passion for
supporting local communities
and would like to build a creative
and fun partnership to
encourage participation and
fundraising from staff, members
and customers alike.
John Brodie, Chief Executive of
Scotmid, said: “Our Charity
Partnerships are incredibly
important to us. Partners benefit
from both an exceptional level of
fundraising and extended
support in their cause from our
colleagues and communities. We
are excited to hear about
projects that can benefit our
communities from new potential
charity partners.”
Scotmid’s current Charity
Partner is Children’s Hospice
Association Scotland, better
known as CHAS. Funds raised
through the partnership have
supported the vital development
and expansion of CHAS’s
outreach service, CHAS at Home,
helping to reach every child and
family that needs their help in
communities across Scotland.
17
Food fit for
a King
Johnnie Walker lords it over city
I RECENTLY enjoyed the
company of a sharply
dressed man. Well nearly,
I actually spent a splendid
evening in the new home of
Johnnie Walker taking in the
fabulous Princes Street and
Edinburgh Castle views
from their rooftop bar, the
exquisite setting of the
Explorer’s Bothy and
sampling some astonishing
food and whisky pairings.
If you haven’t ventured in
there yet then, as they say,
“keep walking” until you get
there. The tour is innovative
and exciting but the
transformation of the drab
old House of Fraser store
into an utter jewel is a sight
to behold.
At their Flavours From
The Four Corners of
Scotland dinner hosted by
the charming Global Brand
Ambassador, Tim Philips-
Johansson, Diageo Head
Chef in Residence Mark
Moriarty’s attention to
detail was remarkable.
Although I don’t have a
sweet tooth, my favourite
pairing of the evening was a
Honey Vanilla Caramel
Custard with Redcurrant,
Hazelnut and Sorrel,
matched with Glenkinchie
12, Wild Elderberry,
Guinness Reduction topped
with a Lagavoulin Ice Cream.
Boozy heaven from Head
Bartender, Miran Chauhan.
The Man in the Top Hat
tells me that the views from
the spectacular rooftop bar
are enjoyed all day with
many retired locals
partaking of their morning
coffee and newspaper.
Meeting under the old Binns
Clock, this would make the
ultimate date night venue.
Juliet Lawrence Wilson
Proprietors Rachel and Graham Bucknall
Kiddywinks guide
THE BRIDGE INN at Ratho has deservedly
won many accolades over the years, including
Gastropub of the Year at this year’s STLN
awards. Situated on the bank of the Union
Canal, the setting is glorious in the summer
and reminiscent of a cosy hug in chillier
climes. I recently attended a dinner to
welcome Michelin trained chef Tyler King,
who at the tender age of 28 has already
worked as senior sous chef at German
Michelin starred restaurant Prism, after
honing his skills at Number One at the
Balmoral and Castle Terrace. Launching
Bridge 15, a new evening menu,
Tyler will be creating an
evolving array of dishes
inspired by his international
travels and the finest
Scottish ingredients. I can
attest that the menu was
utterly delectable, two
highlights for me
being the canapé of
Arbroath Smokie
Doughnut and the Venison Tartare, Buckwheat
Cracker, Furikake and Blackcurrant Gel. The
boy can cook. Tyler will also oversee the bar
menu including its daily changing pie and their
famous Sunday Roasts. However, Dionysus
himself could be cooking and it would mean
nowt to me without a warm and
welcoming atmosphere. Proprietors
Rachel and Graham Bucknall
certainly bring a joie de vivre to the
Bridge Inn and their other venues,
The Inns in Elie and Lower Largo.
They certainly understand that
whether they serve pub menus
or fine cuisine, enjoying
yourself is an essential
part of eating out.
Tyler King
Bridge 15 at
The Bridge Inn is
open Tuesday to
Saturday 6-9pm.
www.bridge
inn.com
THE SCOTTISH Government have
updated the the kiddywinks’ nutritional
requirement guidance and would like
to reduce the amount of sugar the little
tykes are consuming in school. Parent
Councils across the land are rather
concerned this may mean the end of
the Bake Sale. I haven’t encountered so
much horror since it was muted in our
school that alcohol could be banned
from parent and child social events.
My daughter recently baked for a
fundraiser at Stockbridge Primary
School that was incredibly successful,
raising £1302.30 for wearelumos.org
with all the money going to
Ukrainian children.
Note that bake sales in Edinburgh
generally happen when school closes at
Friday lunchtime so parents have to
deal with their children’s sugar rush
themselves. Schools can be benevolent
but they’re not stupid.
Toast Gaia with
clever cocktails
IF YOU WERE a schoolchild like me who
tended to take your afternoon nap in
science class you may be intrigued to hear
that The Edinburgh Science Festival is
featuring cocktails this year. Pass the
Periodic Table, Miss! Simply download the
Toast To Gaia trail map and you’ll find a
community of independent bars and
restaurants offering climate friendly and
sustainable drinkypoos, including a couple
of my favourite haunts Nauticus on Duke
Street and Smoke and Mirrors on
Constitution Street. Your bartender will be
able to tell you the story and provenance
of their concoctions. Top marks all round.
Sciencefestival.co.uk
18 WHAT’S ON
CULTURE • LITERATURE • EVENTS • MUSIC • MUSEUMS...
Bringing the
world’s cultures
back together
Edinburgh International Festival returns in its full glory
THE WIDE and varied programme of the
Edinburgh International Festival (EIF) is not
grouped according to a theme this year,
rather it reflects the way that EIF has
brought many world cultures together over
the decades. But, the festival will celebrate
a relationship with Australia in the biggest
programme of artists from Oz in the UK/
Australia season.
There will be 160 performances by 2,300
artists, and 87 events at 14 venues
including opera, dance, music and theatre
in the last of Fergus Linehan’s festivals
before he steps down as Festival Director.
Linehan is rightly praised with the
rejuvenation of the festival in his seven year
term, introducing large scale events with
light projections and contemporary
musicians never before included, making it
more accessible to all.
EIF will open with a free performance at
BT Murrayfield featuring Australian
contemporary circus company, Gravity &
Other Myths, First Nations dance company
Djuki Male, the National Youth Choir of
Scotland and Scottish musicians including
Aidan O’Rourke, Brighde Chambeul and
Kathleen Macinnes.
More detail of what to expect at the event
will be released on 27 June, but it looks like
a spectacular to rival the opening event at
Tynecastle with the LA Philharmonic at the
last festival held in 2019.
The programme highlights will of course
depend on individual taste but here are just
a few which might catch your eye...
• The Philharmonia Orchestra in a concert
performance of Fidelio conducted by Sir
Donald Runnicles
• World premiere of Scottish Ballet’s
Coppélia with a blend of location and real
time filming as well as projection and
live performance.
• Herbie Hancock appearing at the festival
for the first time
• Jungle Book Reimagined by Akram Khan
reinventing Mowgli’s journey through the
eyes of a climate refugee
• Morning recitals at The Queen’s Hall
will be broadcast on Radio 3 and will
include chamber music from Chineke!
Chamber Ensemble.
• New York born Afro-Puerto Rican rapper
Princess Nokia
• The Philadelphia Orchestra is in residence
with four concerts along with Karen
Cargill, Angel Blue and the Festival Chorus.
• The first screening of The Ballad of a
Great Disordered Heart investigating
Edinburgh’s Little Ireland by fiddler
Aidan O’Rourke
• If you cannot get to Edinburgh then
the Festival’s digital programme At Home
will keep you entertained with behind
the scenes interviews and exclusive
music sessions
General booking for the EIF opens on
8 April. For more information, please visit:
www.eif.co.uk
Cadenza adds flourish to centenary concert
Tam O’Shanter,
Tales & Whisky
set to run for
three dates
TAM O’SHANTER, Tales & Whisky is
the hottest ticket in town this spring.
Premiering at Assembly Roxy in
Edinburgh on Friday 15 April this is a
contemporary take on the gothic
Edinburgh of Rabbie Burns combining
Scottish folklore, iconic poetry, and live
music, all washed down with a wee
dram of the good stuff.
Running for three dates - Friday 15,
22 and 29 April - Tam O’Shanter, Tales
& Whisky is a Stolen Elephant Theatre
production created by Artistic Director
19
John Preece
Left, Douglas Robertson of
Soundhouse Organisation
producers of Tradfest introduced
musicians at festival launch
Tune up for Tradfest
Big names line up for culture festival of music, dance and storytelling
Gravity & Other
Myths
TRADFEST IS back from 23 April to 9 May
with a selection of traditional live music,
talks, podcasts, storytelling, ceilidhs, dance,
workshops and new commissions taking
place at various venues across the city.
There are big names from the trad scene
with Phil Alexander of Moishe’s Bagel
performing his new commission Come All
Ye celebrating the impact that many
immigrants have made in Scotland.
Mercury Music Prize nominee and
multiple-award winner at the BBC Radio
Two Folk awards Eliza Carthy will be
performing with her legendary father
Martin Carthy.
In partnership with the University of
Edinburgh Celtic and Scottish Studies, the
festival will present their second Rebellious
Truth talk which will address gender
inequality in traditional music with
Úna Monaghan (harper, composer,
researcher and sound artist from Belfast);
and, in partnership with the Scottish
Storytelling Centre various live
storytelling events.
Ros Rigby, Chair of The Soundhouse
Organisation, producers of Edinburgh
Tradfest said: “We’re thrilled to be
announcing this year’s line-up and full
programme for the festival thanks to
continued support from Creative Scotland
and our many funders and supporters.
The Soundhouse Trustees have been
highly impressed with the way Douglas and
Jane-Ann have managed to adapt to
presenting some events online over the past
two years, but we have all really missed being
able to watch live performances in venues
and can’t wait to welcome back audiences
from all over the UK and overseas to this
year’s festival.”
“Siobhan Anderson, Music Officer at
Creative Scotland said: “This year’s
programme is a real celebration of the best of
Scotland’s traditional talent, the rising stars
of the future and the incredible musicians
and storytellers that we are thrilled to see
returning to Edinburgh.”
Daniel Abercrombie, Programme &
Events Manager at Scottish Storytelling
Centre said:
“We are delighted to be presenting a rich
programme of in person storytelling, music
and dance events and workshops as part of
this year’s Edinburgh Tradfest. Spring is in
the air and there is many a tale to tell."
edinburghtradfest.com
Andy Dickinson, featuring three of the
bards most famous gothic poems, two
reworked traditional Scottish folk
tales, some Burns ballads, and of
course, a dram of one of Scotland’s
finest single malts.
Featuring ‘Death and Dr Hornbook’,
‘Address to the Deil’ and of course,
‘Tam O’ Shanter’, Tam O’Shanter, Tales
& Whisky is performed by Fiona
Herbert, an award-winning storyteller
widely accepted as one of Scotland’s
finest, Shian Denovan, an awardwinning
actress who has worked
across film, TV and theatre (nominated
for Best Actress by The Stage for her
Theatre work) and writer and
performer Andy Dickinson.
Audiences will also enjoy some
toe-tapping tunes courtesy The Court
Of Equity, an ensemble formed to
celebrate Burns’ songs and comprising
musicians Douglas McQueen Hunter
and Douglas Caird who are perhaps
better known as members of Scotland’s
leading folk rock band, The Picts.
Andy Dickinson, Artistic Director at
Stolen Elephant Theatre Company,
said: “After a slight delay with dates due
to you know what, we are over the
moon to be bringing Tam O’Shanter,
Tales & Whisky to Edinburgh this
spring! Featuring arguably Scotland’s
most famous ‘lad’, the one and only
Rabbie Burns, with 2 Lassies Replies in
the Tales audiences can expect lots of
laughs and a little bit of the scary stuff,
with a wee nip of the water of life to
help take the edge off.”
20 BOOKS
The first modern murder
Ruxton true crime thriller could be heading for television screens
By STEPHEN RAFFERTY
Jim Mackintosh
AUTHOR AND retired police chief Tom Wood’s
book on a barbaric murder which shocked the
nation is to made into a podcast and could he
heading for a limited television series.
Ruxton: The First Modern Murder is said to
be the case which laid down the foundations for
forensic science which to this day still influence
police investigations around the world.
The book, published by Ringwood
Publishing, has been snapped up by US
multimedia production company Paperclip who
are to produce an unscripted podcast and
limited scripted (television) series.
Paperclip was founded by actress Yeardley
Smith – the voice of The Simpsons middle
daughter Lisa – and film producer Ben
Cornwall, and whose flagship true-crime
podcast Small Town Dicks, about big time crime
in small town America, nets 1 million
downloads per month.
Smith and Cornwall will executive-produce
the podcast with the former Depute Chief
Constable of Lothian and Borders Police,
whose other books include the infamous
World’s End Murders.
Yeardley Smith said: “Tom is a master
Dr Buck
Ruxton
Isabella
Ruxton
storyteller and with Ruxton he’s deftly made the
history of modern forensics read like a
true-crime thriller. I can’t wait for audiences to
hear the podcast.”
Tom Wood added: “I am delighted to be
working with Yeardley, Ben and the team at
Paperclip in the development of Ruxton. This is
an important story which it has been my
privilege to tell. It deserves the widest audience,
and a podcast with the team that brought the
world Small Town Dicks is a great place to start.”
Ruxton charts the brutal 1935 murder of
Isabella Buxton and her maid Mary Rogerson by
Bella’s GP husband Dr Buck Ruxton, who used
his medical knowledge to dismember his
victims and later discarded the body parts 100
miles away from the crime scene in a tranquil
part of the Scottish Borders.
Only the brilliance of Scottish scientists and
determined police officers brought Ruxton to
trial and led him to the gallows in a case which
established many ground-breaking forensic
techniques which are still in common use today
in criminal investigations.
Ruxton: The First Modern Murder by
Tom Wood is available from Ringwood
Publishing and Amazon
Mary
Rogerson
Tom Wood
21
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22 SPORT
We’re up for the Cup
Derby rivals
lock horns in
Hampden semi
final thriller, but
all to play for to
bag capital
bragging rights
By JOHN HISLOP
HIBS AND HEARTS fans will flock to
Hampden this month for Scottish Cup
semi-final.
This will be the fourth meeting of the clubs
at the National Stadium this century and
no-one at Easter Road needs reminded that
Hearts have taken the honours on the last
three occasions.
With Robbie Neilson’s men all but
guaranteed third place they go into the game
as favourites but the Hibs players believe that
they are turning a corner under new boss
Shaun Maloney.
Influential defender Ryan Porteous has been
a stalwart at the heart of the Hibs defence in
the absence of Club captain Paul Hanlon and
the centre-half has relished shouldering more
responsibility both on and off the park.
He said: “We are in a good place defensively;
I feel the structure of the team is really good.
We are clearly trying to build something, and it
is coming together.
“You can see the rewards in the last month
with the clean sheets and our defensive
performances.
“When you aren’t on a good run of form
everyone needs to shoulder the responsibility.
I might not be the oldest in the squad, but I
have played in a lot of games, a lot of big games
for the Club.
“I feel like I’ve needed to take a bit more
responsibility on the park and especially
around the place as well. We have a good team
and a young team too, so if I can pass on any
experience to the younger boys and help lead
them on and off the park I will try and do that.
“These are the games you want to play in.
Two games against Hearts in a week – it is
brilliant for the fans, its brilliant for the players
and the city as well.
“At the moment, the mood is up, the spirit is
up and we are all focused on reaching another
final and finishing in fourth place.”
Team mate Joe Newell has returned from
injury and his record in both cup competitions
since signing for Hibs has been remarkable,
reaching at least the semi-finals of one of the
cups in each of his three seasons, making it
five in total so far.
He did however feature the last time the
teams met in front of an empty Hampden
Park.“I’ve been lucky since I’ve been here. I’ve
been to Hampden in every cup competition.
And with the fans there it should feel a bit
extra special.
“The place will hopefully be rocking. That
Hearts game feels a while ago now. The way
that panned out, that was a shame.
Hibs defender
Ryan Porteous
“When the draw was made I just knew we’d
get Hearts and to play them obviously the week
after Tynecastle, it’s hopefully going to be a
really good week.
“Do we owe Hearts one? Maybe. That was a
good cup tie. Most of the games we have played
against Hearts I have played in since I have
been here have been quite tight, cagey affairs.
“Hopefully, with a sell-out crowd, the
atmosphere will be good and it will go
our way.”
Ian Jacobs
Hampden
prize awaits
Jambos
By JAMIE MCINTOSH
WITH HEARTS now well clear of fourth
placed Dundee United in the cinch
Premiership, third place seems a
certainty for the Tynecastle side.
Therefore, attention - at least for the
supporters - has now turned to the
Scottish Cup Semi-Final with rivals
Hibernian on 16 April.
History was made in the semi-final
draw this year, as it was the first time
Hearts, Hibs, Celtic and Rangers had
made up the last four teams in the
competition.
The outcome of that draw means that
there will be no Edinburgh Derby final as
there was in 2012 and instead the sides
will meet in the semi-finals as they did in
a repetition of 2006 and 2020.
Hearts are expected to go into the
clash as favourites, and rightly so.
The likelihood is that Hearts will have
mathematically secured third spot by
the time the semi-final comes around.
This means n if the Jambos get the better
of Hibs on the 16th, it would guarantee
European football until at least
this December.
Due to the recent successes of the
Scottish sides competing in Europe and
the creation of the Europa Conference
League, Scotland’s co-efficient has
improved. This effectively means the
rewards for winning the Scottish Cup or
finishing third in the Premiership have
significantly increased.
The financial gains that European
football brings should not be
underestimated. If Hearts receive those
financial benefits, with shrewd
recruitment under sporting director,
Joe Savage, you would expect them to
go some way to bridging the gap on the
Old Firm, and establish themselves as
the third biggest club in the country in
the process.
The Hearts fans that are travelling
west for the 12:15 kick off on the 16th
will rightly be in good spirits - nervous,
but confident.
After all, Hearts do have a strong
record against their Easter Road rivals,
especially at Hampden Park, and unlike
in the 2020 semi-final when no
supporters were present to watch Liam
Boyce’s extra time penalty see off Hibs,
this time there will be fans inside
Hampden Park, and it promises to be a
fantastic atmosphere.
There have been squabbles over ticket
prices and kick off times, but with 20,000
draped in maroon and the other 20,000
turned out in green and white head ing
along the M8 to cheer on their teams in a
packed Hampden.
This is Scottish football at its best.
23
Anglers at
Jim McComb with a quality
trout landed at Harlaw
the ready
The new season begins at Harlaw
By NIGEL DUNCAN
FISHING AT HARLAW Reservoir opened on
1 April for the new season and it offers superb
fly fishing for trout, only a short distance from
Balerno, Currie, Juniper Green, Baberton
and Colinton.
Harlaw is accessible by car, bicycle and on
foot and the bank fishing extends to all of
Harlaw and a large section of the North and
East bank of Threipmuir, from the boathouse
to Black Springs.
Harlaw is a deep water with a depth of about
18 to 20 meters but Threipmuir is much
shallower with a depth of around seven meters.
Both waters are stocked on a regular basis
with hard-fighting rainbow, blue and brown
trout with Threipmuir housing mostly brown
trout whereas Harlaw is mostly rainbow trout
with some brown and blue trout.
Fishing is by permit only and day permits are
available online at https://mallenyangling.com
and day permit holders can fish from 7am until
one hour after sunset, normally about 10pm.
A day permit is £25 with a three fish kill
limit then catch and return with barbless
hooks only, a catch and release only permit
is £20 using barbless hooks only and an
evening permit (from 5pm to one hour after
dusk) is £20 with a two fish kill limit then catch
and release only with barbless hooks.
Season permits are also available to buy
online for £250 and this gives the angler
unlimited daily access from April 1 to October
30. Season ticket holders can kill three fish
per day.
Memberships are available but applicants
must be proposed by a member and receive
committee member approval. The normal
route to membership is from a season permit
holder or a regular day permit visitor or
volunteer bailiff.
Information about catches and patterns and
useful videos to help anglers catch more fish
are regularly posted on the Malleny Angling
Facebook page.
Robert Ross, company secretary for Malleny
Angling, who administer Harlaw and part of
Threipmuir, confirmed that fishing is fly only
and he stressed: "Spinning tackle of any type is
not permitted. There is no bait fishing."
The waters, he said, provide superb top-ofthe-water
angling on dry flies and nymphs and
equally successful fishing for the angler who
prefers wet flies, buzzers and lures.
Robert added: "Every year, specimen
rainbow and brown trout are caught, with fish
of 5Kg or more recorded.
"Although some larger fish are caught, the
average size of fish in Harlaw is 1 to 4kg with
Threipmuir fish around 1 kg."
More details are also available by calling at
the Bailiff Bothy next to Harlaw House or visit
the Malleny Angling web page.
Nigel Duncan
Peak ping-pong performance
By CHARLIE ELLIS
THE EDINBURGH & Lothians table
tennis team had a superb weekend at
the recent Inter-League competition
in Perth.
The tournament, run by Table
Tennis Scotland, pits representative
teams from the local leagues across
Scotland. It took place at the main
arena at Bell's Sports Centre with
action across 22 tables. Teams
competed in 14 different age-group
categories, hoping to win the overall
Stewart McGowan Trophy. It was the
first time that Edinburgh & Lothians
had won the event since 2016. Having
not taken place since 2019, it was
encouraging to see a well-attended
event, with well-contested matches
during the weekend. representatives,
including victories in four categories
and runner-up spots in a further five
events. There were 37 players in the
Edinburgh & Lothians squad, from ten
different clubs. The results they
achieved illustrated the strength in
depth, with all players contributing to
the overall victory. This was over a
number of strong sides including
West of Scotland (who dominated the
event between 2008 and 2018),
Dundee and Aberdeen, the defending
champions. These Edinburgh &
Lothians victories included impressive
wins for the Men's and Women's
A teams.
In the final of the men's event, Team
A (Chongzhi Wang, Danilo Celli,
Gordon Muir) overcame a strong West
of Scotland side featuring the talented
French player Malo Le Gall. Chongzhi
Wang led the way with two good
victories, and was especially
impressive against Le Gall. Wang was
1-0 down in quick succession with the
Frenchman hitting some blistering
counter topspins. Wang responded
well and came out fighting in the
second set and overpowered Le Gall
in a 3-1 victory. Despite Le Gall’s
equally impressive victory over Danilo
Celli, the Italian clinched the match
defeating North Ayrshire's Ryan Henry
3-1. This final match sealed the overall
trophy for Edinburgh & Lothians.
Edinburgh University pair Mae Ng
and recently crowned Scottish
women's champion Faye Leggett led
the way in the women's event, though
The Edinburgh & Lothians
table tennis team in Perth
were pushed all the way by the strong
Edinburgh & Lothians B team of
Emma Qu and Lydia Fu. A hardearned
3-2 victory for Faye Leggett
over Emma Qu was vital to the overall
result. Their singles match attracted a
big crowd as it reached a thrilling
finish with some ferocious and
fast rallies.
The Edinburgh & Lothians squad
also dominated the Veterans' event
with their A team (Charlie Ellis, Colin
Green, Peter Aird) winning all their
matches, including in a testing final
match versus their B team (Keith
Dingwall, Geoff Hunter, Greig
McDonnell). The Cadet Girls team
(Nichole Lee, Peony Cheng) also
finished top in their category,
continuing a run of excellent results
this season for Lee.
Other notable performances
included that of the Junior (under 18)
Boys A side (Charlie McGowan, Jamie
Toner, Haydn Jackson), who finished
runners up to a strong West of
Scotland side led by national junior
boys champion Jamie Johnson. Junior
Girls (Hannah McDonnell, Hannah
Smith) achieved a creditable 3rd place
finish. The Minor Boys A team (Fergus
Randall, Blair Randall, Rory Thomson)
were runners-up in their event with
impressive play from each member
of the team.
Key to the success were also the
non-playing captains (Dave Fairholm,
Shital Zaveri, Jeff Clark and Lindsay
Muir), plus Gordon Muir who led with
the organisation of the squads. The
final big Scottish table tennis event of
the season is the Topspin Sports
Edinburgh Open 2022, which takes
place on 7 and 8 May in Bathgate.