The Edinburgh Minute ⏰ Monday 27 July 2026

🌤️ Good morning Edinburgh. A busy start to the week. Here’s Monday's Edinburgh Minute.

🌦️ This week's weather: Looking like a mixed bag this week. Starting off dry this morning but there's a 70% chance of rain between 10am and 1pm. Rain overnight and for much of Tuesday. But only light rain. Cloudy with a chance of more drizzle throughout Wednesday too. Then brightening up for the rest of the week, with things looking a bit sunnier come the weekend. A top temp of 22C on Tuesday and Wednesday. A low of 11C on Friday morning. - The full Met Office local forecast for Edinburgh is here.

🌌 Thanks to Minute subscriber Eveline Traynor for sharing this view of last night's Noctilucent clouds about 50-miles above Edinburgh. - Read more about Noctilucent clouds here.

📆 Festival countdown: August starts on Saturday. While the festivals don't officially start for another 11 days, there are a lot of preview shows next week. The Edinburgh Festival Minute will return daily (and festival organisers are invited to send in their deals and discounts here) Meantime, I thought it might be helpful to list which festivals start when:

🎭  Fringe: 7 - 31 August. - Programme here.
🟨  Edinburgh International Festival: 7 - 30 August. - Programme here.
📚  Edinburgh International Book Festival: 15 - 30 August. - Programme here.
🎬  Edinburgh International Film Festival: 13 - 19 August. - Programme here.
🖼️  Edinburgh Art Festival: 14 - 30 August. - Programme here.
📚 Book Fringe: 14 - 30 August. Programme here.
🌊  Fringe by the Sea: 31 July - 9 August. - Programme here.
👍  PBH Free Fringe: 8 - 30 August. - Programme here.

🚎 The is on race to get North Bridge reopen to all traffic and pedestrians (on both sides) this week. Multiple reopening dates have been missed and it's over the original budget, but now due to fully open 'by the end of July' (according to council leader Jane Meagher), i.e., this week. Engineers and contractors have been working into the night on the final stages of the major eight-year restoration.

• While I'm still waiting for evidence from the council on how the decision to remove bus stops was taken, I'm told there was no new accessibility impact assessment on removing bus stops because there was already an arrangement in place for the duration of the North Bridge project, supported by Lothian Buses. The council is said to be reviewing the situation and willing to make any necessary adjustments once the bridge reopens. Hoping to get a comment from the council on this this week. - Thanks to all the readers who have asked about this.
• A new exhibition has launched at the City Art Centre detailing the full history of the 129-year-old North Bridge through film, historic artworks and objects uncovered during the restoration. - More details here, plus a video review by Jj Fadaka on Instagram here.

🚔 Lee Greenan, the man accused of killing his ex-partner Vikki Soloman last Monday at her home in East Craigs, was found dead in prison yesterday. - Matthew Fulton, STV News.

🏥 An 85-year-old woman has died in hospital after being hit by a car outside the Royal Infirmary on Monday last week. - Police Scotland.

🎓 More than 950 workers at the University of Edinburgh have been made redundant since the latest cuts drive began early last year. That's 'significantly higher than the roughly 450 staff that the university had previously stated', reports Garrett Baylor Stell in The Scotsman. The university said it was 'part of the University's normal business processes'.

Hundreds more university staff made redundant than previously disclosed

More than 950 staff members have been made redundant since the University of Edinburgh announced a major savings drive in early 2025.

The HeraldGarrett Baylor Stell

🏨 The Scottish Government has granted planning approval for a 544-bed hostel in Atholl Crescent. - Craig Williams, BBC Scotland News.

• ⮑ More than 280 objections were lodged, with campaigners raising concerns about 'overtourism' and 'a roadmap for other heavily financed developers to pursue similarly intensive schemes while bypassing meaningful local democratic scrutiny', reports Olivia Thomas, The Edinburgh Reporter.

🚲 There's criticism of a new two-stage right-turn in the road for cyclists at the Summerhall junction. - edi.bike has the details.

🚲 edi.bike | issue 155 | 27th July ’26

your weekly edinburgh cycling digest

edi.bike

🏗️ In case you missed it at the weekend: Princes Street update: Every 'slight gust' of wind is delaying everything.

Princes Street update: Every ‘slight gust’ of wind is delaying everything

Who will pay? The council says it will try to bill the former Debenhams building owners. But transport leader wishes they could: ‘Just knock the building down’.

The Edinburgh MinuteMichael MacLeod

🎟️ A new ticket lottery system for sold out Fringe shows has been launched. It's called Sold Out Board and helps people track the sold out or nearly sold out shows, as well join wait lists or enter ticket lotteries for additional ticket releases. - Check out Sold Out Board here.

• Sold Out Board is the brainchild of theatre entrepreneur Celia Dugua, who spoke exclusively to Jane Bradley in The Scotsman.
• “In a world where AI algorithms and the biggest PR budgets are increasingly shaping what people are booking, Sold Out Board is a recommendation signal that is a pure reflection of human demand.” - Celia Dugua of Sold Out Board.

Sold Out Board · Edinburgh Fringe 2026

Which Edinburgh Fringe shows are sold out? A live, independent board tracking what’s sold out and almost sold out across venues.

Sold Out Board

🚔 The owner of Ali's chippy in Pennywell says local kids have given her racist abuse and have been seen 'attacking innocent people who are just walking down the street. - Angus Coleman & Jacob Farr, Edinburgh Live.

🕶️ The promoter behind Edinburgh's Comic-Con convention has banned people from wearing Meta's AI-powered video glasses from its events to prevent the secret filming of guests and attendees. - Jonathan Geddes, BBC Scotland News.

🚧 The Duddingston Low Road footpath (which runs around the south side of Arthur’s Seat) will be closed to pedestrians and cyclists until 7 August for 'urgent' electricity network repairs by Scottish Power. There's a diversion via the Innocent Railway Path. - Tom Wilson in The Edinburgh Reporter.

🎭 The newly revamped King's Theatre is due to officially reopen on Saturday. But dress rehearsals were held over the weekend and went down a storm with the audiences. - The Herald's Arts and Entertainment Journalist Brian Ferguson was among them and reports here: "It was as if the King’s had never been away. During an emotional finale of The Proclaimers’ anthem Streets of Edinburgh I was certain I was not the only one with something in my eye."

Curtain-raiser: The first night back at Edinburgh’s new-look King’s Theatre

The 100-year-old venue has undergone a full-scale refurbishment since closing nearly four years ago.

The HeraldBrian Ferguson

📌 Edinburgh Minute Community Noticeboard

⮑ Please get in touch using this form. < It’s the only way to get something featured in the newsletter.

🌳 Princes Street Gardens Action Group - 'Princes Street Gardens Action Group: if you are concerned about the gardens please join us! We propose to form a Friends of Princes Street Gardens to act as representative citizen stakeholder group. Contact <Edinburgh.PSG@gmail.com> for information.' - Shared by Princes Street Gardens Action Group.

🎨 Corstorphine Art group annual exhibition [Until Sat]
Today, Mon 27 July - 'Corstorphine Art Group's annual exhibition starts on Sat 25th July and runs until Sat 1st August in St Ninian's church, from 10.30 until 16.30. All paintings have been produced by local artists and are for sale. Please come along and check us out!'
10.30am to 4.30pm | St. Ninian’s Church Corstorphine · Corstorphine | FREE - More details here, shared by Corstorphine Art Group.

🐔 The Chicken Coop Writing Group Open Mic
Tomorrow, Tue 28 July - 'Join us to celebrate The Chicken Coop Writing Group writers with a curated open mic scratch night sharing new writing by members of the Good Egg Project community.'
6.30pm to 9.30pm | Lost in Leith · Leith | Pay-what-you-can - More details here, shared by Naomi Head, The Good Egg Project.

The Chicken Coop Writing Group Open Mic Special

Come celebrate The Chicken Coop Writing Group with this open mic scratch night featuring writers from the community

Eventbrite

🌱 The Rockstar Games Union Refuses to Die - 'People Makes Games have reported on video another update on the union busting at Rockstar Games in Edinburgh that led to the firing of over 30 employees last October.' - More details here, shared by a Minute reader.

🧘‍♀️ Sound & Salt Therapy [Every Tuesday]
Tomorrow, Tue 28 July - 'Relax and restore with a Sound Bath in the Salt Rooms. Experience the soothing sounds of singing bowls, drums and chimes to reduce stress, support better sleep, encourage easier breathing and leave feeling calm, balanced and refreshed.'
7pm to 8pm | Edinburgh Salt Rooms · Abbeyhill & Meadowbank | 25 - More details here, shared by Emma O Rorke, Sound Bath Edinburgh.

☕ Obadiah Coffee - Tasting Room Preview
Fri 31 July - 'We're opening the doors to our roastery for a preview of our tasting room on Friday morning, serving seasonal coffees to drink in or take away, with a special guest barista joining us behind the bar. We hope you'll join us for a coffee.'
9am to 1pm | Obadiah Coffee Roasters · Abbeyhill & Meadowbank | FREE - More details here, shared by Obadiah Coffee.

🧘‍♀️ The Big Yin: yoga for self-love
Fri 31 July - 'This month's Big Yin will focus on yoga for self-love. Expect comfortable props, floor-based stretches and guided meditation.'
6.30pm to 8pm | The Salisbury Centre · Southside | £12 - More details here, shared by a Minute reader.

🎨 Marangerie Art Show [Until 31 Aug]
Sat 01 August - 'Group show featuring artworks in print, paint, line and loom by the Maran family collective.'
9am to 4pm | Rising Tide Cafe · Portobello | FREE - More details here, shared by Rising Tide Cafe.

🎨 Relief Tiles Clay Workshop
Sat 01 August - 'Relief Tile clay workshop with Kiesha Rowe! Gather textures from the local area and impress them into clay to build 4 clay tiles to take home with you, and learn basic coil and slab hand-building techniques! Refreshments provided, for adults 18+.'
10.30am to 1pm | Duncan Place Community Hub · Leith | £20 - More details here, shared by Ot, Duncan Place Community Hub.

Relief Tiles Clay Workshop

. Clay workshop for adultsSaturday 1st August10:30am - 1pmJoin artist Keisha Rowe in a 2.5-hour hand-building session exploring texture, pattern, and mark-making in clay &mdash; no experience necessary.Working with slab and coil techniques, you&rsquo;ll create a small series of relief tiles inspired by the surface patterns found in nature: bark, leaves, shells, ripples, whatever catches your eye.&nbsp;We&rsquo;ll also experiment with turning handwritten notes into relief coiled slab impressions, so your tiles carry a bit of your own hand alongside nature&rsquo;s.What you&rsquo;ll do:Explore your local area to gather images of textures and surfaces in nature.&nbsp;Make a viewfinder to select and frame a section of your reference imageLearn basic slab and coil hand-building methodsPress, carve, and impress textures to build relief tilesDevelop a series of 4 tiles to take away&nbsp;No experience needed &mdash; just bring curiosity (and a reference image or note, if you have one in mind).Please note that working with air dry clay is for decorative use only. However, it is an excellent material for practicing and learning foundational hand-building techniques. Unlike fired clay, air dry clay does not require a kiln for hardening, so it is not waterproof or food safe.No previous experience is necessary - this class is ideal for beginners and will encourage positivity and creativity in a laid-back atmosphere, whilst also being guided and supported by a tutor to explore your ideas.

Ticketlab

🎲 The RPG One-Shot Club
Wed 29 July - 'Come play one-shot tabletop role-play games. Find us by buzzing #4 on the Sandstone Building intercom (beside Kiki's Café). Ramp and/or elevator access available. Arrive from 18:00, games start 18:30. ​Beginners warmly welcomed!'
6pm to 10pm | Ancient Robot Workshop · Leith | FREE - More details here, shared by Tanya Floaker.

🎲 Family Game Jam
Sun 02 August - 'Have you always wanted to make your own game? Do you love telling big stories or solving a good mystery? Our Family Game Jam has got a great morning packed with collaborative storytelling, game designing and plenty of fun for all the family!'
10am to 12pm | Ancient Robot Workshop · Leith | FREE - More details here, shared by Ancient Robot Workshop.

🐏 From Sheep to Shop: Crafting Ethical Scottish Knitwear [Until 31 Aug]
Tue 04 August - 'Join award-winning Scottish designer Laurence Di Sotto on his colourful quest to create sustainable modern knitwear. Unravel the wonderful world of wool. Discover Woolkind's yarn, sourcing, and how fashion can put people and planet before profit.'
10.30am to 11.30am | Woolkind · Marchmont & Meadows | £6 - £12 - More details here, shared by Laurence, Woolkind.

🪩 Afternoon-Tay by Bonnie Skies
Sat 22 August - 'Come along for an afternoon of music, delicious treats, and plenty of Swiftie fun with your mini bestie! Afternoon tea for you and play for them. An event that both little ones AND parents can actually enjoy. Created by a mum, for mums.'
10am to 3pm | Virgin Hotels Edinburgh · Old Town - More details here, shared by Bonnie Skies Soft Play Hire.

🐶 Ravelrig RDA Dog Show
Sun 23 August - 'Ravelrig Riding for the Disabled are holding their first dog show to raise funds for RDA. There will be classes and showing, demonstrations, games and plenty of food and refreshments'
11am to 3pm | Ravelrig Riding for the Disabled · Currie & Balerno | £4 per class - More details here, shared by Emma Urquhart (RDA volunteer).

🐶 Edinburgh Community Day
Sun 06 September - 'We're inviting friends, old and new, to join us for an afternoon of family, dog-friendly fun to celebrate our Home! Enter your dog in a competition, learn expert animal-care tips, and put your pup's self-control to the test in 'Temptation Alley'.'
11am to 3pm | Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home · Portobello | FREE - More details here, shared by Hannah Williams, Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home.

Community Day 2026

Join Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home Community Day 2026 for a fun-filled dog-friendly event in Edinburgh, with family activities, competitions, expert tips and treats for pets.

Edinburgh Dog & Cat Home

📮 What's missing from the Minute? Got an event to share? Nothing's too local! Please share your local news and events here. Remember you can always see all 170+ upcoming local events on TownSpot calendars and maps. Thanks to everyone who shares their things!

👀 The most-visited links from the last newsletter:

1. 🗑️ One person in Marchmont complains about bin hubs and gets in the paper.
2. 🔥 'Up in Smoke: the thread about Princes Street’s fiery history'.
3. 🎭 Edinburgh Fringe 2026: Kerry's Curated Fringe Guide.
4. 🚔 Ex-partner of aesthetician Vikki Soloman charged with her murder.
5. ☕️ Cafe prices up due to 10x rise in rates and 'extremely noticeable effect the ongoing tram issues'.

⏰ Thanks for reading edition number 963.
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