Book festival appoints school writer in residence

The Edinburgh International Book Festival has appointed its new schools writer in residence. Leyla Josephine takes the post for Citizen, as part of the next phase of its year-round programme taking the Book Festival On The Road. Citizen is a long-term creative programme working in partnership with organisations in and around Edinburgh, listening to people’s…

Read More

Celebrate the New Year – on the water

You can celebrate the New Year in luxury, on board The Royal Yacht Britannia and her sister ship Fingal, Scotland’s first luxury floating hotel. Permanently berthed in the historic port of Leith in Edinburgh, Britannia and Fingal offer a truly unique way to spend Hogmanay in utmost luxury. This two-night Hogmanay package includes: Monday 30…

Read More

Bakery’s five festive logs packed with flavour

Contemporary independent Edinburgh bakery The Pastry Section, has launched a range of five yuletide logs to help customers get into the festive spirit. The five yule logs which are all made using chocolate Swiss roll, are available in different flavours including Mocha, Hazelnut Praline, Black Forest, Chestnut and Toasted Meringue. All swiss rolls are available…

Read More

Scotland’s ten greatest wildlife trips

Scotland is home to a dazzling array of wildlife so, for your pleasure, we’ve selected ten fantastic ways in which you can get close to these amazing animals. 1. Orca The orca or killer whale can grow to eight metres long and weigh five tonnes. These sociable animals live in large groups known as pods,…

Read More

Skerryvore to mark 15th birthday at Inveraray Castle

Scottish supergroup Skerryvore will celebrate their 15th anniversary next year with a special one-day festival branded ‘XV’ in the grounds of Inveraray Castle, Argyll. Taking place on Saturday 6 June, this day of celebrations will see Skerryvore welcome to the stage 15 special guests and acts who they have worked with over their 15 years…

Read More

The happiest place to live in Scotland is Galashiels

Estate agency Rightmove has named Galashiels as Scotland’s happiest place to live. More than 22,000 people across Great Britain took part in Rightmove’s Happy at Home survey, which asks residents how happy they are where they live, as well as asking them to rank 12 happiness factors. The 12 factors range from how safe residents…

Read More

Free entry to under-18s at Scottish racecourses

Scotland’s racecourses are to bring festive cheer to the country during the Christmas holidays this year, with a number of special festive days out – and under-18s are admitted completely free of charge. Participating racecourses include Kelso, which races on 29 December; Musselburgh, which opens its gates on 1 and 3 January; and Ayr on…

Read More

Opinions Welcome as Laphroaig choir goes on tour

Laphroaig whisky is sending its choir on a tour of the UK this month. They will have their own take on traditional Christmas carols, spreading festive cheer. On Tuesday 10 December, the six-strong Scottish choir will be singing classic Christmas carols with a difference, with lyrics taken from the mixed reactions captured by the distillery’s…

Read More

Doddie Weir shares his story in TV documentary

In 2016, rugby legend Doddie Weir was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND). Told he would be in a wheelchair within a year, two years later he is still fighting for a cure. Over that time, John Beattie followed the former Scotland international on his journey of coming to terms with MND. Doddie and his…

Read More

70 years of the military tattoo – tickets on sale now

Tickets for the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo 2020 show are on sale now. Tickets for The Platinum Edition went on sale from 10am today, Monday, 2 December, as celebrations for the momentous 70-year anniversary year begin. Following military contributions to the Edinburgh International Festival of Music and Drama in 1948 and 1949, the Tattoo has…

Read More