The Edinburgh Minute ⏰ Weekend edition 31 Jan - 2 Feb 2025
Creatives celebrate funding boost, hope for South Suburban train line, Porty light parade, Indie Venue Week + last remaining Six Nations tickets
🌤️ Good morning Edinburgh. Here’s Friday’s Edinburgh Minute, followed by the local weekend guide for paying subscribers.
🎭 Summerhall, the Filmhouse, Lyceum and North Edinburgh Arts are among Edinburgh-based organisations awarded significant funding boosts from national arts agency Creative Scotland. - Brian Ferguson, The Scotsman.
- The Edinburgh International Festival secured the biggest amount, up from £2.3m to £3.2m in the first year of the new programme and £4.2m in the following year. - There’s more on the Scotland-wide picture from Kevin Fullerton in The List.
- Other local creative organisations celebrating Multi-Year Funding wins include spoken-word poetry champions I Am Loud Productions, who posted more about their news here.
- Creative Scotland also announced who’s up for its Development Fund, which spreads £3.2m across 13 additional organisations, including the Edinburgh-based Scottish Poetry Library and Traverse Theatre. The aim is to help them step up to the Multi-Year Funding group in 2026/27. - Peter Simpson, The Skinny.
- Find the full list on the Creative Scotland website.
🏢 Residents of Leith’s famous ‘banana flats’ claim the council is ‘breaching their human rights’ due to persistent issues with toxic black mould, faulty lifts, drug dealing, and problems with rats and mice. The council insisted it’s ‘investing £69m in Cables Wynd House to address the concerns of our tenants’. - Karin Goodwin, The Ferret.
🚦 Opinion is ‘extremely divided’ on Leith’s low traffic neighbourhood scheme, according to the local community council. It could be axed or made permanent at a council meeting next month. - Ian Swanson, Evening News.
🛤️ ‘When will Edinburgh have a South Suburban line?’ asks Donald Turvill in The Herald. Network Rail say it’s “happy to support initiatives that look at how the South Suburban line can contribute to public transport goals for Edinburgh”.
⛴️ Costs are mounting for the owners of the Spirit of Tasmania ferry, which has been sitting in Leith Docks since December due to a problem at its home port. Operator TT-Line says it’s been charged $47,534 per week to keep it in Leith. - Lucy MacDonald, ABC News.
💰 The 15th-century Newliston House and Estate, near Kirkliston, is up for sale at £15m. - Fergus Matheson, STV News.
⚽️ A man has pleaded guilty to racially abusing a Hibs player during the Edinburgh derby as five others were handed football banning orders. - Matthew Fulton, STV News.
🇵🇸 On Sunday the Traverse Theatre will host a fundraising concert for Medical Aid for Palestinians. Jazzy soul trio Triptic will perform from 8pm on Sunday night. - Tickets are here. Cheers to the organisers for getting in touch.
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📌 “Porty Community Energy is holding a winter light parade along Fishwives Causeway on the way to Portobello on Saturday 1 February. Meet outside Amber hair and Beauty on Mountcastle Drive North and we'll parade down the causeway with our lanterns and lights to call for safer routes for cycling and walking, better signage of the causeway path and safer night routes, finishing at the Portobello end for hot chocolate and music from a community choir. This is a family friendly event - all welcome.” - Thanks to Jane Herbstritt of Porty Community Energy for sharing this.
📌 “History lecture at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, 6pm to 7pm. £3 or free for students and under 18s. Join Dr Sarah Cockram to explore the lives of animals and humans at the Italian Renaissance court. ” - Thanks to the organisers for sharing this.
📌 “Come along to our Travel Agents of Change exhibition launch at Water of Leith Visitors Centre. Stories of flight-free holidays from Edinburgh by local people - pictures, holiday ideas, top tips and quotes from people who've had the best time holidaying by public transport right across Europe. The launch will include free tea and cakes and talk from Anna Hughes from Flight Free UK.” - Thanks to Jane Herbstritt, Porty Community Energy, for sharing this.
📌 “CLAY: Edinburgh's Inaugural Amphora wine fair takes place at Sotto in Stockbridge on Sunday, 16 February 2025 from 12-5pm (Trade tasting runs 11-12pm). With over 100 Amphora wines from all over the world, exciting masterclasses and a delicious snack menu, visitors can meet producers like Italy's legendary Gravner and chat with knowledgeable importers on why these wines are special. Each attendee receives a keepsake clay cup to drink from during the fair. Tickets are £24 (+ booking fee) at claywines.com.” - Thanks to Isobel Salamon, Founder, CLAY and the Director of Slonk, the company producing the Wine Fair, for sharing this.
📌 Monday: “To ensure a fair shift to zero-carbon energy, citizens and civil society organisations need to be engaged in the decision-making. Members of Edinburgh Communities Climate Action Network (ECCAN) are exploring Community Heat: Community-led organisations exploring how clean heat and building energy efficiency can promote Community Wealth Building. Join the conversation 9.30am for 10.00am - 12noon, Monday 3 February at Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge EH1 1EL and online via Zoom.” - Thanks to the organisers for sharing this.
📌 “An authentic Argentine tango band! This Sunday at the Stockbridge Music Hub. Tickets can be bought via the website.” - Thanks to Clea Friend for sharing this.