The Edinburgh Minute ⏰ Tuesday 30 December 2025

🌤️ Good morning Edinburgh. We're nearly there, it's Hogmanay tomorrow. As usual at this time of year, Community Noticeboard is a bit shorter. If you've got anything to share with 27,000 local readers, you can get in touch here. I've got some exciting improvements with the noticeboard on the way soon. And some big stories brewing too... Meanwhile here’s today's Edinburgh Minute.

🎆 Producers of Edinburgh's Hogmanay events say the city’s 40,000-capacity street party is 'on track to sell out'. - Brian Ferguson, The Herald.

• ⮑ Around 15,000 people marched through the city last night carrying flaming torches to launch the city's Hogmanay celebrations. Hearts and Scotland men's footballer Craig Gordon was among those leading procession from the Meadows. - There are photos from BBC Scotland and The Edinburgh Reporter, while the council published a video here.
• ⮑ Tomorrow's 'Night Afore Hoolie' event in Princes Street Gardens has been rebranded to the 'Night Afore Concert' after the founder of Glasgow's 'Hoolie in the Hydro' intervened to protect his trademark. - Brian Ferguson, The Herald.

🚁 Drones are now banned from flying over the city centre until after Hogmanay. - Matthew Fulton, STV News.

• ⮑ The no-fly zone warning applies until 1 January. It was announced yesterday by Police Scotland and National Air Traffic Services in this press release.

✈️ Edinburgh Airport is expecting around 60,000 people to jet in to the city before Hogmanay. Around 64,000 people are expected to be heading in the other direction, leaving Scotland from Edinburgh Airport this week. - Danyel VanReenen, STV News.

☕️ "After four and a half years it feels absolutely amazing to get the doors open again." - Elephant House cafe owner David Taylor speaking to The Edinburgh Reporter while opening his shop yesterday, refurbished after a major fire in 2021. The BBC's Angie Brown also reports here.

• ⮑ A painting of writer JK Rowling in the cafe was shared on Reddit.

🚧 The steps between the Water of Leith and the Modern One art gallery on Belford Road are closed. The National Galleries of Scotland told the Minute it was 'due to a broken tree branch hanging loose over the steps, making it an unsafe entry point for visitors'. A reader contacted the Minute last week saying it was 'causing significant inconvenience to visitors'. The NGS apologised, saying there is currently no reopening timeframe but that the gate closure is highlighted on its website, and will be updated when it's open. The reader responded: "It is very disappointing to learn that there is no timeframe for work to be carried out".

🌳 Simon Milne, Regius Keeper of the Royal Edinburgh Botanic Garden for the past 12 years, will be awarded a knighthood in the 2026 New Year’s Honours for his services to botany, conservation and horticulture. - Read Sir Simon's statement here.

• ⮑ 30 people across Edinburgh and the Lothians have been named in the King's New Year Honours List. OBEs go to: former Hearts football boss Ann Budge, for services to sport and the community, Marie Owen, Founder of LS Productions, for services to the Creative Industries and to Economic Development, and Celine Sinclair, Chief Executive of the The Yard, for services to Children and Families. - The list is in this Edinburgh Live report by Isla Storie and this Evening News report by Callum McCormack.

🖼️ Sandy Wood, the head of collections at the Royal Scottish Academy on the Mound, writes in The Scotsman about the venue's 200th anniversary celebrations planned for the year ahead.

🚉 A £32m upgrade of 40-year-old signalling equipment at Portobello railway junction has been completed. - Network Rail.

💰 Edinburgh-based firm Archangels says it has 'leveraged more than £41 million of investment in some of Scotland’s most promising tech and life science scale-ups during 2025.' That's double the amount it invested last year. - Scott Reid, The Scotsman.

🏡 A curved brick extension on a house in Trinity is showcased by Alyn Griffiths in architecture magazine Dezeen.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 The new Browns of Leith venue will host a recruitment pop-up event for a new luxury wilderness retreat in Sutherland, owned by Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen. - Mike Merritt, The Northern Times.

🛍️ Bruntsfield cafe 'Matcha Sando' is using its wheelie bins to urge people to shop local. They said: "We are here flying our wee flag in Bruntsfield to stand against Costalots, Pret-a-faux-frenches and Sheep Coffees after yet another opening significantly damaging sales for smaller businesses. Enough sending profits to billionaire CEOs, tax havens and shareholders." - More here.

💊 NHS Lothian is reminding people to plan ahead and get prescriptions early ahead of upcoming public holidays. - Dave Pickering, North Edinburgh News.

❄️ Finally we've got some weather forecast hyperbole this winter. It's much later than usual.

• 'New Year snow 'just the start' as weather maps show exact date Glasgow and Edinburgh are buried and nowhere is spared', screams a headline in The Express. Douglas Dickie writes: "Over 50cm will accumulate in parts of Scotland when a vicious 650-mile wall of snow arrives on out [sic] shores as winter bites with a vengeance". The report, citing 'experts at Exacta Weather', also claims the snow will reach 12cm in Edinburgh city centre between 7 and 12 January. (I'll give credit to The Express if any of this actually happens and do the usual if it doesn't). - The more reliable Met Office forecast is here.

📌 Edinburgh Minute Community Noticeboard

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📌 “Tuesday 30 December - The world's rockiest Ceilidh band, The Big Shoogle, lead the second night of the 2025 Countdown to Hogmanay at Assembly Roxy. Join for a Laldie Ceilidh countdown special, where traditional Scottish jigs and reels get a rocky edge.” - Thanks to the venue for sharing this.

📌 “Tuesday 30 December, 7pm. Join Leith-based coach Caitlin McDonald for the final Courage Pie of the year! If you'd like to shake off the cheese-coma or need a little escape from relentless festivity, join us for a free online session on the Learning Cycle - look back at the year behind and get ready for the year ahead.” - Thanks to Caitlin for sharing this.

📌 “1st January 2-4pm - Myofasical Release, Yoga & Journaling. Join Emma for this special New Year's Day Yoga workshop that includes breath work, self massage, restorative yoga, and time for journaling. The perfect way to reflect upon 2025 and set intentions for 2026 in a calm environment near Leith Walk.” - Thanks to Emma McCready for sharing this.

📌 “Creative Studios & Desks Available at Coven Studios, Leith. Coven is a creative co-working space located in the heart of Leith. We have a limited number of exclusive use desks and studios available with breakout areas + fast wifi included in the membership.” - Thanks to Coven Studios for sharing this.

📮 Anything missing? Please share your local news and events here.

👀 The most-visited links from the last newsletter:

1. 🔔 Attack on baby Jesus statue in Cowgate church.
2. 🎄 Council's Christmas tree collection dates.
3. 🚑 'Unoccupied van collides with two bicycles'.
4. 🍽️ Bloomberg's top-5 Edinburgh eateries.
5. ☕️ The Elephant House cafe reopens.

⏰ Thank you for reading edition number 801.
📬 Free subscribers: 27,000+.
📲 Visits generated for local news sources: 1,000,000+.

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