🪩 Edinburgh Culture Minute: 2 - 8 July 2025
Renée Zellweger at Film Fest, Leith Theatre revamp update, Irvine Welsh hat-trick, Rambert on stage + Buffy's book club comes to town
Welcome to the 95th weekly Culture Minute: a round-up of Edinburgh’s local creative news, events, jobs and opportunities.
If I’ve missed anything please get in touch. Thanks to everyone who contributes!
👀 The most-viewed links from last week’s Edinburgh Culture Minute:
- 🎬 The Filmhouse re-opens after nearly three years.
- 🎷 Saxophonist Tommy Smith dismissed by Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
- 🛍️ New ‘IKEA: Magical Patterns’ exhibition at Dovecot Studios.
News:
🍿 The programme for this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival was launched this afternoon. - See the full listings here and find an overview of the programme here.
- The festival runs from from 14 to 20 August at venues across town, showcasing 43 new films and 18 world premieres, including the first showing of a new animated film directed by Renée Zellweger.
- ‘In Conversation’ events include filmmakers Andrew & Kevin Macdonald, Andrea Arnold, Ben Wheatley & Andy Starke and Nia DaCosta.
- The Herald Arts Correspondent Brian Ferguson picks ten highlights from the programme.
- The List’s Kevin Fullerton was at the launch earlier today and reports back here.
- Tickets go on sale at midday on Thursday 3 July at edfilmfest.org and on the EdFringe app.
📙 Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh is planning a couple of events in town on 24 July for the launch of his new book and album, both titled Men In Love. - There’s a Q&A at P&Gs church (tickets via Toppings here), followed by an afterparty at Leith Arches. - Luvin Leith have all the details here.
⮑ The following afternoon (2pm, 25 July) Welsh is due to be at Thorne Records in Bruntsfield to chat about his new album and book. - It’s free and more details are here.
⮑ And just announced: the world premiere of a documentary about Welsh’s life, ‘Reality Is Not Enough’ by Paul Sng, will be shown at the Cameo on 20 August.
🎭 The long-awaited revamp of Leith Theatre could cost at least £10 million, reports Brian Ferguson in The Herald.
🎤 At The Voodoo Rooms this week: Misty Blues Band on Friday + Dawn Landes on Saturday.
🔊 The Bongo Club hosts the Botanica Summer Closing Party on Friday night from 11pm.
😎 There’s a daytime rave with Relive at the Mash House on Saturday from 3pm to 8pm.
👀 If this edition is too long and gets cut off in your inbox, read it online here.
📚 One of the world’s most-followed book clubs, Buffy’s, hosted by Lizzy Hadfield, is coming to Edinburgh. It’s at Elliots in Sciennes on 21 August as part of the Edinburgh International Book Festival. - Tickets go on sale at midday on Tuesday 8 July and will sell out so be quick if you fancy going.
📆 For more local events, read Naomi Head’s Good Egg Project newsletter. This week there’s a look ahead to July’s writing-related events around town.
🏖️ If you’re a writer seeking motivation, accountability, focus and friendly faces, this might help. The By the Beach Writing Retreat at Tribe Porty in Portobello is hosted by Women Who Write Edinburgh.
🎭 What's on Edinburgh's stages this week?
Here is All Edinburgh Theatre’s Thom Dibdin:
There's a world premiere performance from Rambert for dance fans, the last stop in a big touring musical and a couple of top tips from the local amateurs.
The big news is at the Festival Theatre, where dance company Rambert stage the opening night of their UK tour of double bill KISMET (Thurs - Sat: tickets) including the world premiere performance of Gallery of Consequence, choreographed by emerging artist Emma Evelein.
The big show on the last stop of its UK tour is Dear Evan Hansen, at the Playhouse (Tue - Sat: tickets). With several "best musical" awards under its belt, this has some of the big musical tunes of recent years, and a bit of Scottish interest as Ryan Kopel from Kirriemuir, Angus, plays Evan Hansen and Glenrothes-born Lauren Conroy is Zoe Murphy.
The big bit of amateur theatre is at Augustine United Church, where Half Trick have a new play Waiting for Wonka (Wed - Sat: Tickets). An interesting premise, this, following the four ‘naughty’ children from Willy Wonka’s fabled chocolate factory tour - now all grown up and confronting their demons.
And then there is The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals, from Happy Sad productions out at the Cre8 Theatre in Edinburgh College (Wed - Sat: Tickets). This is the Starkid Productions 2018 horror comedy parody of Invasion of the Bodysnatchers, mostly seen on YouTube. Done right, this will be hilarious.
There is a bit of a lull, now, ahead of the Fringe, but do check Æ's various listings pages, all linked here, which have more details as well as shows dropping before next week's Culture Minute.
📌 Edinburgh Culture Minute Community Noticeboard
📌 “This week, the team at The Skinny release not one but two new magazines – our July issue is out now, as is the 2025 edition of our Guide to Edinburgh. The Guide is 116 pages of some of the stuff we love most about the city, and designed to be useful and fun for locals *and* folk who are new to town. Both mags are free, grab a copy from venues around the city.” - Thanks to Peter, The Skinny, for sharing this.
📌 “Edinburgh Screenwriting Sessions bring together writers of all levels for structured writing time and friendly support, whether you’re plotting a thriller, polishing a romcom or just trying to start a new project. Next meet-up: Saturday 12 July, 11am, Filmhouse Bar - free to attend, please just buy a drink/snack to support the venue. Find us on Facebook.” - Thanks to Jonathan Melville for sharing this.
📌 "Edinburgh-based comedian Daniel Sloss has just announced that another 30 tickets have been added to each of his 16 Fringe performances as his run was already pretty much sold out. He posted "If you missed out before, here's your chance to watch me iron out creases in my new show...." 1 - 21 August, 6pm at the Just the Tonic Nucleus venue hub. Official tickets links are all at his website." - Thanks to the organisers for sharing this.
📌 “'Words and Music' at the Stockbridge Music Hub. Poets Liz Lochead, Diana Hendry and Hamish Whyte share their poems interspersed with music from Gail Turpin, Kerry Houston and Clea Friend. Come and enjoy a glass of wine and bring a poem to read! 6pm EH3 5BN” - Thanks to Clea Friend (Creative Director - Stockbridge Music Hub) for sharing this.