Your seat by seat election guide to Edinburgh
Plus: Your Capital cultural highlights for the week ahead
Welcome to your midweek edition of The Inquirer.
For today’s long read, we return to the subject of the Scottish election.
Sarah McArthur’s in-depth look at the intriguing, three-way battle for Edinburgh Central was so popular that we asked her to crunch the numbers fo the city’s other constituencies.
The city’s electoral map already looks very different from last time around in 2021 due to a major redrawing of their boundaries. That has had a significant impact on the prospects for the political parties in parts of the Capital.
We all know that you shouldn’t trust any of the pre-election polls, they can fluctuate wildly, but following the trends across a series of the most reliable polls offers a well-informed insight into what we might expect after the final votes are cast next Thursday. Of course, a week is a long time in politics.
More on that below, but first your regular midweek news roundup and your cultural highlights for the week ahead.
Your Edinburgh Briefing
TWO OF THE BEST: Two Edinburgh tourist attractions have been named among the ten best in the world in the TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards. The Royal Yacht Britannia beat Barcelona’s Sagradia Familia to the top spot, while The Real Mary King’s Close came above the Eiffel Tower. The awards are considered particularly prestigious as they are based on the highest average ratings from thousands of visitors.
THEATRE TO HOTEL: Plans to convert the former Baptist church which was more recently used as the Rose Street Theatre into a hotel have been approved by the city council at the second time of asking. The B-listed building at the west end of Rose Street will be turned into a 43-bedroom hotel with a rooftop cafe/bar. The plans were amended to preserve the central atrium of the building, which is two storeys high and includes the original pulpit, and reduce the number of bedrooms by four.
SMOKED OUT: Police have seized cannabis with an estimated street value of about £900,000, after raiding three properties, in Breadalbane Street, Bonnington; Salamander Street, Leith; and Western Harbour Way, Newhaven. A man has been charged with drug offences following Tuesday’s raids. was recovered along with an unspecified amount of cash.
CLOCKING BACK ON: An Edwardian clock removed from Tollcross Crossroads is to be restored and returned to a spot close to where it previously stood. The city council has agreed to spend just over £70,000 restoring the clock four years after its enforced removal.
BOOK LIST: Booker Prize-winning author of Shuggie Bain Douglas Stuart, artist and musician Kae Tempest, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales and ‘queen of crime writing’ Val McDermid are among the big name line-up announced for the Book Festival’s Front List series. The spin-off series of talks takes place in the McEwan Hall, near the Festival’s new home at the Edinburgh Futures Institute, during August.
CHURCH SALE: The Catholic Church is to put its Edinburgh headquarters, the Gillis Centre, on Strathearn Road, Marchmont, up for sale. The growing cost of maintaining the complex of A-listed buildings persuaded the church to sell.
Your Pick of the (Cultural) Pops
Greetings, Pop Pickers!
The weather has definitely taken a turn for the warmer and sunnier (at least for now), meaning Edinburgh is finally shrugging off those taps! While it is always tempting to abandon all plans and simply bask in the Meadows the second the sun makes an appearance, our city’s brilliant venues are putting up a ferocious fight for your evenings. We have an absolutely stacked chart this week, filled with iconic film scores, legendary folk music, and 1960s rock ‘n’ roll nostalgia, writes Will Quinn.
Let’s count them down...
Honourable Mentions: A Play, A Pie and a Pint, Fandemonium & Island Town
It’s a packed week for our near-misses! Scotland’s premier hotbed of new writing expands beyond its usual Traverse home: from the 29th, A Play, A Pie and a Pint: Off The Rails will have arrived at the Assembly Roxy. PPP always promises hot food, a cold drink, and a cracking new play, though as always, we will have to wait and see if these new works fully deliver on all three counts!
Also hitting the Roxy soon is Island Town (May 9th – 10th). This is a revival of Simon Longman’s acclaimed 2018 Paines Plough hit, offering a gritty, darkly comic look at three young friends desperate to escape a forgotten, dead-end community. It arrives in Edinburgh fresh from a Glasgow run and is helmed by fast-rising director Anna Whealing, who is building an impressive CV following recent assistant-directing work at the Tron.
Finally, if you thought obsessive “stan” culture was invented by the internet, Fandemonium (The Gilded Saloon, May 7th – 8th) is here to correct the record. Exploring the hilarious toils of a 19th-century teenage girl obsessed with Lord Byron, this historical comedy is a collaboration between Glasgow’s Martyr Theatre Company and Edinburgh’s Half Trick Theatre Company. Expect real Fringe theatre energy at the year-round home of one of the OG’s of the annual August madness.
New in at Number 5 is... Sunny Afternoon (Edinburgh Playhouse, May 5th – 9th)
This show has obvious commercial pulling power as a major touring production. While it might not have cracked the West End or made the leap across the pond to Broadway, there is no arguing with The Kinks’ sensational songbook. With hefty financial backing and undeniable talent both on and behind the stage, it’s hard to imagine anything less than a highly polished, incredibly solid bop-along evening at the Playhouse.
Staying at Number 4 is... The Ballad of Johnny and June (Festival Theatre, April 28th – May 2nd)
Holding its ground this week is the heartfelt homage to country music’s most iconic power couple. While the critical response might have been slightly cooler than the creative team - led by theatrical heavyweight Des McAnuff and developed alongside John Carter Cash - initially hoped, the box office tells a different story. My fellow critics might be lukewarm, but the audience reviews have been glowing. Which only goes to prove that a solid three-star show crafted with genuine passion, first-class talent, and reverence for its subject matter can still result in a super, smashing, great night out.
New in at Number 3 is... RSNO: The Music of John Williams (Usher Hall, May 1st)
Pairing a world-class unit like the Royal Scottish National Orchestra with John Williams’ legendary, sweeping score-book is a recipe for a highly satisfactory night out. Throw in the superb acoustics of the Usher Hall and the expert direction of film and TV specialist conductor Richard Kaufman, and you have an evening of guaranteed cinematic magic. Whether it’s the soaring majesty of Jurassic Park or the imperial march of Star Wars, feeling the sheer force of a massive live orchestra tackle these iconic themes will be a thrilling experience.
New in at Number 2 is... Edinburgh Tradfest (Various Venues, May 1st – 11th)
This sensational festival goes from strength to strength every single year. It essentially functions as a mini-Celtic Connections, though arguably with a bit more edge thanks to the wonderfully adventurous tastes of founding organisers Douglas Robertson and Jane-Ann Purdy. I’ve been reviewing Tradfest for years, and while no two festivals are ever the same, the ridiculous quality remains a constant. This year’s lineup offers yet another treasure trove: alongside Irish superstars Séamus & Caoimhe and Gaelic Singer of the Year Kim Carnie, you can catch international gems like Rajasthani sensation SAZ and Montreal’s banjo-playing singer-songwriter Kaïa Kater. Throw in storytelling deep-dives like The Corpse Road, and you have a brilliantly eclectic celebration of roots culture.
Moving up to Number 1 is... Karine Polwart: Windblown (Royal Lyceum Theatre, April 28th – 30th).
I told you this would be Number 1 if there wasn’t a legendary pianist occupying the top spot! Well, Sir Stephen Hough came, saw, and conquered the Usher Hall, gracefully vacating the throne just in time for Karine Polwart to take her rightful place at the summit. Windblown is a genuinely elemental, breathtaking piece of theatrical storytelling from one of Scotland’s most gifted artists. It is an absolute must-see before the run concludes tomorrow. (When you walk out of the doors inspired by the power of superlative storytelling and trad music, remember Tradfest and get booking.)
And that’s your Top 5!
Off you pop, snag those tickets, and make sure to name-drop us at the box office. Sound off in the comments with your own reviews - I am always delighted to have my impeccable taste validated, or to cheerfully debate your well-intentioned but misguided opinions!
Your seat by seat election guide to Edinburgh
What to expect in the dramatically redrawn constituencies across the Capital
by Sarah McArthur
It’s just one week until we go to the polls, and candidates are moving into their final push to get their supporters out. This year, parties face new challenges and opportunities as Edinburgh’s constituency boundaries have dramatically changed. The Scottish Greens and Scottish Labour, for example, now have decent chances of dethroning the SNP in Edinburgh Central, as we covered in a detail a few weeks ago. But the changes don’t only affect the city centre - the Capital now has a brand new constituency in the densely populated north, and many of Edinburgh’s new constituencies are left with only half of their original territory.
What does this mean for the contest in each constituency? Having already got deep into the weeds in Edinburgh Central, we examined the other six constituencies which include parts of Edinburgh, to see who the main contenders are, and who’s falling behind.
Edinburgh North Eastern and Leith
The most drastic boundary changes are in the North and East of the city; the former Edinburgh North and Leith constituency has been split right down the middle, losing anything west of Leith (including Newhaven, Granton, Trinity, Inverleith, and Bonnington) and gaining everything between Leith and Portobello (such as Lochend, Restalrig, Craigentinny, Meadowbank, and Duddingston).
