THE Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh is preparing to immerse visitors in a glittering winter spectacle.Tickets are now on sale for this year’s Christmas at the Botanics trail.
Running from 21 November to 30 December, the outdoor trail will once again transform the Garden with an array of new and fantastical installations that have been custom-designed especially for the Botanics by a selection of international and UK-based artists.
The latest new installations confirmed for the trail include:
Candles will drift over visitors as theyflicker and cast their undulating light to create a warm and festive atmosphere. This installation will transport Potterheads to the world of witchcraft and wizardry as it evokes the magic of Hogwarts’ Great Hall. Designed by Pitaya, a French creative studio.
One Small Thing projects a combination of wildlife imagery and winter foliage with impactful environmental messaging onto a pathway for visitors to interact with as they walk past. This innovative installation will incorporate the Garden’s mission to protect the planet’s biodiversity by encouraging visitors to do one small thing and make space for nature. Created by Novak.
Firework Trees will shower shoots of light through tree branches, bringing them to life with vibrant bursts of colour that bounce from branch to branch. Created by Ithaca Studio.
All the new and returning installations along the one-mile illuminated trail are low in energy and have been selected to complement the Botanics’ environment.
Regius Keeper of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh Simon Milne said: “I’m looking forward to seeing the new installations on the trail, which is promising to be innovative, imaginative and entertaining.
“Visiting the Garden after dark is a special experience and Christmas at the Botanics offers the chance for visitors to see our botanical collection of plants from a very different perspective.
“The trail brings significant benefits to us. We are a Scottish charity, and ticket sales from Christmas at the Botanics help to fund our international plant research, conservation work and education programmes. So please come along to the trail, bring your friends and family, have some festive fun and help to support our vital work.”
Tickets for this year’s show are on sale now. Visitors are encouraged to book in advance to guarantee their preferred timeslot.
For further ticket information, pricing, and timings, please click here.
Christmas at the Botanics is one of 14 illuminated trails staged across the UK by leading events promoter RG Live, a division of Sony Music. Christmas at the Botanics is presented in partnership with the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and creative producer Culture Creative.
For more details visit www.rbge.org.uk/christmas and follow @mychristmastrails on Facebook and Instagram.
PATH of MIRACLES: Tenebrae at the National Museum of Flight’s Concorde Hangar
In Lammermuir Festival’s history, the 2024 programme marks the first time it will offer a rare returning event. And with the comeback of Path of Miracles and Tenebrae proving hugely popular with audiences, organisers have added a second performance on the night giving festivalgoers a second chance to grab a ticket this year.
Joby Talbot’s Path of Miracles, performed in the Concorde Hangar at the National Museum of Flight, is at the heart of the 2024 programme. Sung by one of the finest choral groups in the world, Tenebrae, for which it was written 20 years ago, the work is both ravishingly beautiful and hugely dramatic.
Last performed at Lammermuir back in 2017, the sold-out audience stood cheering when it finished. The tour de force is inspired by the famous pilgrim route to Santiago de Compostela and performed alongside one of the technological marvels of modern travel in the Concorde Hangar.
A man has been jailed for more than nine years for violent and sexual offences against women in the Edinburgh and Midlothian areas.
Jamie Wilson, 34, was convicted at the High Court in Edinburgh on Thursday, 27 June, 2024 of the offences between 2015 and 2022.
He was sentenced on Friday (30 August), at the same court, to nine and a half years in prison and placed on the sex offenders register indefinitely.
Detective Inspector Keith Taylor said: “Wilson now faces the consequences of a campaign of violent and sexual attacks on women spanning a significant period of time.
“I commend the strength of the women involved in coming forward to report his offending and throughout the legal proceedings. I hope the conviction and sentencing will bring them justice as they continue to move forward with their lives.
“Anyone who has been a victim of violent or sexual abuse is urged to report it to us, regardless of when it happened. We’re committed to fully investigating all reports and victims are supported throughout by our specially trained officers and partner agencies.”
The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo’s new Creative Director says bringing the music to ‘life’ and putting the ‘skip’ into the performances are the key aims of his new role as he works towards the 2025 Show – The Heroes Who Made Us.
Taking over the role following the completion of Michael Braithwaite’s three-Show run as the Tattoo’s Creative Director, Alan Lane will be at the helm as the brand celebrates its 75th anniversary next year.
Having spent 20 years working across a variety of outdoor spectaculars and running his own theatre company, Slung Low, Alan has been working closely with the Tattoo team since June in preparation for next year’s performances and wider celebrations.
Speaking of his role and plans for the creative direction of the Tattoo on the latest episode of the Tattoo’s podcast Piping Up, Alan said: “We’re an unbelievable machine, with people doing amazing logistical organisation with real craft and skill. But you can’t make art like that. If you put art into a spreadsheet, you’ll drive yourself mad.
“Picking the song for the bagpipes is not the hard part of the job, it’s more about creating the right environment to do things creatively. Thinking about the folk musicians I’ve been speaking to, they were talking about how a lot of the music we perform was generated by the waulking and the working, so these songs really lived.
“And, like nearly all folk music, they were all passed on by people singing to each other, leading to many beautiful variations. And by knowing this, we have an incredible understanding of what our Show is based on. And the Army codified that music, those bagpipes. Securing it. Forever. But in codifying you lose the skip, so that’s the Show’s job, my job, return the skip. Bring it to life while honouring the tradition.”
Alan grew up with both his father and grandfather in the military and inspired by them became an Army Reservist in 2015. Alan’s experience in the Army Reserve and as creative consultant for the Army Expo 2022 and 2023, will help take Tattoo performances to new dynamic and immersive levels.
He was also co-director of The Awakening in 2023, the opening ceremony of LEEDS 2023 – a year of culture, with the show performed in Headingley Stadium featuring an eclectic mix of dancers, music, and a variety of performances to celebrate the city’s culture.
On plans for next year’s 75th and the Show The Heroes Who Made Us, Alan said: “I got lucky, taking over and having the 75th anniversary. I’ve inherited a really good idea for the performance which is a celebration of all the heroes who made those 75 years possible. That’s not just the performers but also the audience.
“If you take on something as established and loved as the Tattoo, if the first thing you do is honour its roots, I think that will be quite a popular thing to do.
“In this role, you honour and stand on the shoulders of the people who’ve done it before. I didn’t get here because I’m special, I got here because for 75 years beforehand, those people have been brilliant.
“We’re a living, breathing piece of art and of course there’s things a Tattoo performance has to do, but it’s different every year and needs to speak to the moment. It feels like the 75th anniversary is a great point to look at how we got here and reframe our greatest hits.
“People come to see certain things but how do we reframe them? So we have one foot completely understanding its roots and another looking at what it does next, which is when things are at their most thrilling. If you just ask people what they want, you will just have fish and chips every day because you do not know that fajitas exist. Exploring and coming up with things the audience didn’t even know to ask for is why this job exists.”
Alan Lane was speaking on the Tattoo’s Piping Up Podcast, which provides an ‘access all areas’ pass into the creativity and dedication that powers the brand. Listen here.
Tickets for The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo’s 75th anniversary Show, The Heroes Who Made Us are now on sale and can be purchased at edintattoo.co.uk/tickets or on the phone, 0131 225 1188.
Researchers across the UK to use latest tech and major data bank to better predict where devastating floods and droughts will strike
innovators will also pioneer new ways of tackling the worst of extreme weather to halt damage and cut eye-watering cost to the economy
sensors in UK rivers and real time monitoring will gather priceless data that goes towards modelling the potential impact and likely flashpoints
Predicting where future flooding and droughts will strike next in the UK will be made easier under a new project for scientists using the latest tech and real-time data, Science and Technology Secretary Peter Kyle has announced.
It will help key bodies, like local authorities and the Environment Agency, to stem the worst of extreme weather’s impact on communities, saving lives, homes, and businesses, and helping to cut the devastating cost of such events to the UK economy, estimated at £740 million a year.
The Floods and Droughts Research Infrastructure, led by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) and backed by £40 million, will be the first UK-wide network focused on understanding the impact of extreme weather conditions across the country, pinpointing where incidents are likely to occur and planning to limit their impact.
The complexity of Earth’s climate makes forecasting floods and droughts a major challenge, with climate change only further complicating the picture.
Researchers will use the latest technologies including sensors and real time computer monitoring, plus a huge bank of data including river profiles and near real-time monitoring of information including on atmospherics, ground saturation, water movement, abstraction and storage – taken together, this will form a clearer impression of where and when extreme weather will strike.
Floods wreak havoc on communities by destroying homes, public infrastructure, and livelihoods like farming which in turn costs consumers. Similarly, droughts have a major impact on the water supply and UK eco-system, harming wildlife and their natural habitats which rely on regular rainfall.
Researchers will be based at UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology’s offices throughout Great Britain, with further input from researchers in the British Geological Survey, University of Bristol and Imperial College London.
Findings from the project will be shared with key bodies like the Environment Agency to steer the UK response to extreme weather.
It will also act as a hub for researchers to pursue new innovations with discoveries shared across the world and marking the UK as a leader in the field.
Science and Technology Secretary, Peter Kyle, said: “Flooding and droughts can devastate UK communities, from leaving people stranded, to destroying homes, gardens, roads and businesses, and even claiming lives.
“With climate change sadly making extreme weather events more common and adding an eye-watering cost to the economy, there is no time to waste in backing our researchers and innovators to ensure we are better prepared for floods and droughts striking.
“This project will help drive that progress, with dedicated teams using the most advanced tech to crunch data gathered from our rivers and paint a clear picture of its likely impact – using the power of science and tech to keep the public safe.”
The new measures build on £5.6 billion of government investment into flooding from 2021 and 2027, with over 100 and coastal risk management projects helping to better protect thousands of people and properties from flooding from the sea, rivers and reservoirs.
The Westminster government will also shortly launch a new Flood Resilience Taskforce to turbocharge the delivery of new flood defences, drainage systems and natural flood management schemes, which will ensure we’re prepared for the future and help grow our economy.
Floods Minister Emma Hardy said: “In the case of extreme flooding and drought, preparation and prediction are everything.
“Our new institute will bring together a team of world-leading researchers and the latest technology to ensure our communities, businesses and farms are protected from these devastating events.”
The funding also builds on wider UKRI projects tackling extreme weather in the UK and abroad, including support for businesses to ensure against its risks.
It includes a project sponsored by the NERC linking the frequency and intensity of storms over Northern Europe using mathematical models that enable more accurate pricing of storm-related risks. Meanwhile the Lisflood-FP computer model developed by the University of Bristol has helped over one million Zambian farmers to insure themselves against drought risk through daily rainfall estimates for the continent of Africa.
Another team at Bristol has pioneered the development of high-resolution flood prediction models, which has resulted in Fathom: a spin-out company with an annual turnover of more than £4 million. Its work includes protecting infrastructure valued at over $1 trillion, thanks to improved flood risk management in the UK and across the world.
Executive Chair of NERC, Professor Louise Heathwaite, said: “Earth’s changing climate means the number of extreme floods and droughts will increase in the UK, impacting homes, businesses and services.
!But predicting their location and measuring their intensity and impact needs the sort of scientific advances that this programme will bring to overcome the data and analytical constraints that are currently very challenging.
“The project will transform the way we understand the impact of these events by building a significant bank of data and improving our monitoring capability, and so helping to protect those affected.
“This is an example of how NERC is responding to climate challenges with research and innovation investments that will accelerate the green economy and deliver solutions to national priorities.”
All under 18s who were previously detained in YOI Polmont have now been moved into secure care settings.New regulations came into force on 28 August and as of that date, there will be no new admissions of children under 18 to Young Offender Institutions.
Funding of up to £7 million is being made available by the Scottish Government to cover the costs of placements this financial year. This is in addition to £500,000 funding which has been offered to secure accommodation providers to support their preparations for the movement of the children, ensuring their wellbeing and safety is the top priority.
As part of wider work to embed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and to Keep the Promise, the 2024 Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Act’s provisions aim to improve children’s experiences of the care and justice systems, whether victims, witnesses or children who have caused harm.
Minister for The Promise Natalie Don-Innes said: “We have been moving at pace since the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Bill received Royal Assent in June to implement this reform and ensure no under 18s will be detained in a Young Offenders Institution from now on, moving to suitable settings such as secure care.
“This move will ensure children in conflict with the law are placed in safe suitable accommodation which will ensure their wellbeing and rehabilitation is at the heart of their care, while also keeping communities safe.
“I value and appreciate the work the providers will undertake to make the young people feel settled. Implementing this reform has been an enormous collaborative effort.
“I am very grateful to the secure accommodation providers, the Scottish Prison Service, Social Work Scotland, Crown Office, Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service and the Care Inspectorate.
“The success of their combined effort demonstrates our commitment to ‘Keep the Promise’, further protect children’s rights and keep communities safe.”
If you’ve enjoyed learning about St Columba’s Compassionate Gardeners this month, and would like to get involved and make a real difference to someone through this service, download the volunteer pack, or apply today at:
New UK research reveals that nearly one in ten fireplace users leave it years before sweeping their chimneys putting their homes at risk of catching fire. One owner said, “I’m not sure how often I should have it done.”
The findings from HETAS come during the not-for-profit organisation’s Chimney Fire Safety Week (CFSW), an annual, national campaign in partnership with Fire Kills, industry, and Fire and Rescue services to promote positive safety messages to consumers.
In 2023/2024 there were 2,126 chimney fires in England, accounting for 1.5% of the total fires in the country. While chimney fires are steadily decreasing, there are now more than 1.5 million wood burners in the UK, with around 200,000 sold each year. Last year a Midlands fire brigade reported a 240% increase in these types of fires mainly due to people ‘not bothering to have their chimneys swept.’
Industry advice is for chimneys to be swept at least twice a year if you burn wood, and at least once every 12 months if you use smokeless fuels, regardless of what type of chimney you have and even if it is lined. The right fuel should be used, with wood containing 20% or less moisture, and appliances should be installed and regularly maintained correctly.
The new data from HETAS, an independent organisation promoting a cleaner, safer and more sustainable environment, working with Government and industry experts, found that a shocking 41% of owners have never had their appliance serviced. Some owners are ‘doing it myself’ when needed, while others do not believe that their stove needs servicing.
Bruce Allen, CEO of HETAS said: “The best time to get your chimney swept and your appliance maintained is just before the start of the heating season in September, alternatively after your stove has not been used for a prolonged period.
“This is even more important after the long wet summer we have had, and to remember that stove and chimney maintenance is an essential and responsible part of ownership.”
People are also ‘doing it themselves’ when it comes to sourcing fuel for their wood burner, according to the HETAS findings. A high 63% of those who said that they source their fuel from places outside of retailers, garages, farm shops or social media sites, said they produce their own firewood by cutting down their trees or collecting it from woodland.
Bruce continues: “There are strict government regulations in place (in England) which dictate that wood sold in volumes under 2m³ is ‘Ready To Burn’ certified to ensure that it has a moisture content of 20% or less and that Manufactured Solid Fuels contain less than 2% sulphur content.
“We found that there is still a small percentage of consumers, over one in 10 who still don’t check if their fuel is certified or only check sometimes. This appeared to be the same when assessing what appliance to buy. Over 40% either don’t have or aren’t verifying that their wood burner is a ‘Cleaner Choice’ certified stove which means it burns clean and low carbon fuels and is therefore better for the public and the environment.
“If you’re obtaining fuel from a non-certified source, check that it adheres to the right moisture levels and that any appliance bought since 1st January 2022 complies to Ecodesign regulations.
“When used correctly and with the appropriate fuels and maintenance routine, a solid fuel stove can be an excellent source of heat for the home – one that reduces your risk of a fine, and prevents a build-up of creosote deposits in the flue which can lead to a chimney fire.”
On the 10th anniversary of its discovery, new research and conservation has revealed the West Asian origin of the lidded vessel which contained many of the unique treasures that comprise the Viking-age Galloway Hoard, and which will go on public display for the first time later this month.
On its discovery, the vessel was found wrapped in textiles which in themselves are an extremely rare survival from the burial of the Hoard, around AD900, in Galloway in the southwest of Scotland.
Those textiles have been carefully studied and retained for further analysis with as much as possible preserved in situ on the vessel. This delicate balance of careful conservation work and research has revealed the intricately decorated surface of the vessel for the first time since it was put in the ground over 1000 years ago.
Where the surface of the vessel had previously only been viewed through x-ray scans, laser cleaning has helped to reveal further details of the design, including crowns, fire altars, leopards and tigers.
This remarkable imagery is unusual in western Europe and suggested an association with the iconography of Zoroastrianism, the state religion of the Sasanian Empire, the last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th–8th centuries AD. New scientific analysis has confirmed that materials used to make the vessel originated in what is now central Iran.
Dr Martin Goldberg from National Museums Scotland said: “We had suspected from x-ray scanning the vessel that it may have originated somewhere in central or western Asia, but it’s only now that we’ve carefully conserved and analysed it that we can say this is definitively the case.
“It’s further evidence of the cosmopolitan make-up of the Galloway Hoard. We now know that the Viking-age silver that makes up most of the Hoard was melted down from coins and metalwork from early medieval England.
“Some objects, like the lidded vessel, stood out from the rest and the scientific analysis now confirms this. It is incredible to imagine how the vessel made its journey halfway round the known world, from Iran to this distant corner of southwest Scotland.”
Dr Jane Kershaw, an expert on Viking age silver from the University of Oxford, said: “Taking tiny samples from both the vessel body and the niello – the black silver-sulphide inlays that outline the decoration – we assessed the provenance of the silver.
“It was immediately clear that the vessel was unlike any other silver contained in the hoard: instead, the results point to origins in the Sasanian Empire, what is today Iran. Elemental analysis using portable X-ray Fluorescence revealed that the vessel is an alloy of silver and relatively pure copper, which is typical of Sasanian silver, but not contemporary European silver.
” In addition, the isotopes of the lead contained within the silver metal and niello match ore from Iran. We can even go so far as to say that the niello derives from the famous mine of Nakhlak in central Iran. It’s fantastic to have scientific confirmation for the distant origins of this remarkable object.”
The original vessel will go on display for the first time later this month as part of the British Museum’s forthcoming exhibition, Silk Roads (26 Sep 2024 to 23 Feb 2025).
Dr Sue Brunning from the British Museum said: “We’re delighted that visitors to Silk Roads will be the first in the world to see this key object from the Galloway Hoard. Among its remarkable contents were Scotland’s earliest recorded silk, and so it is a highly appropriate inclusion in the exhibition.
“For the first time it will be displayed alongside a similar vessel found in northern Britain and also used as a Viking-age treasure container, but the Galloway vessel is the only one confirmed as originating beyond Europe, in lands far to the east. It was, itself, a long-distance traveller on the Silk Roads’ sprawling networks.”
The Galloway Hoard contains the richest collection of rare and unique Viking-age objects ever found in Britain or Ireland. Buried around the end of the 9th century, the Hoard brings together a stunning variety of objects and materials in one discovery. It was discovered on 1st September 2014 by metal detectorists and excavated by the Dumfries and Galloway Council archaeologist.
It was acquired by National Museums Scotland in 2017 with the support of the National Heritage Memorial Fund, Art Fund and the Scottish Government as well as a major public fundraising campaign.
Since then, it has been undergoing extensive conservation and research at the National Museums Collection Centre in Edinburgh under the auspices of an AHRC-funded research project, Unwrapping the Galloway Hoard, undertaken in partnership with the University of Glasgow.
While little can be said with certainty about who buried the Galloway Hoard and why, several discoveries from the conservation and research work have offered tantalising hints of the deeper history behind this collection, which probably accumulated over several centuries.
These include a Christian pectoral cross depicting symbols of the four evangelists, the runic inscription of the name ‘Egbert’ on a silver arm ring, and the revelation of a spectacular rock crystal jar decorated with gold filigree bearing the words ‘Bishop Hyguald had me made’. Along with the West Asian origin of the vessel, the many unusual objects in the Galloway Hoard take us well beyond the usual stereotype of Viking raiders.
This Hoard tells us a richer story about complex interactions with neighbours and newcomers, connections with previous generations and the rest of the known world.
An online event, Galloway Hoard: A Decade of Discovery, hosted by Sally Magnusson and featuring several members of the research team, will be held on 11 September, showcasing some of the remarkable discoveries made to date.
The Galloway Hoard will eventually go on long-term display at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh with a significant and representative portion of it also displayed long-term at Kirkcudbright Galleries.
85% said access to the countryside was ‘very important’ (53%) or ‘fairly important’ (32%)
Strong support for countryside access evident across every age group, gender, region and socioeconomic background
85% of Labour voters agree that access to the countryside is important
The vast majority of people in Great Britain believe it’s important to have access to the countryside close to where they live, according to new polling from countryside charity CPRE and YouGov.
85% of those asked responded that access to the countryside was either ‘very important’ (53%) or ‘fairly important’ (32%). Strong support for countryside access was evident across every age group, gender, region and socioeconomic background.
Strikingly, 85% of those who voted Labour in 2019 agreed that access to the countryside was important. The figure for Conservative voters was 91%.
The Westminster government has already begun making decisions that will shape our countryside for generations to come.
We are calling on them to listen to their supporters and make good on their promises to protect the countryside – including the Green Belt – and to take action in CPRE’s core priority areas: planning system reform; affordable housing; the transition to clean energy and the need for joined-up decision making on how we use our finite supply of land.
CPRE chief executive Roger Mortlock said: ‘The results prove the countryside is deeply important to people, whatever their political beliefs and backgrounds.
‘The countryside is working harder than ever to address the challenges our nation faces but we’ve got to start treating our land as the finite resource that it is.
“We need a strategic, cross-government approach to land use that will help the countryside provide food and energy security, nature restoration, climate change mitigation, health and wellbeing benefits, space for new homes – and space for beauty, too.’
