davepickering

Edinburgh International Festival to breaks boundaries in a year exploring ‘The Truth We Seek’

1–24 AUGUST 2025

Edinburgh International Festival’s 2025 programme offers opportunities to experience world-class artists in thought-provoking and unconventional ways – including an eight-hour choral extravaganza, a distinctive outdoor promedande dance piece and a circus infused opera. Audiences can also get involved in many Festival performances, from an outdoor mass-singlaong to interactive concerts where the audience chooses the repertoire.
The Truth We Seek is the timely theme underpinning the 2025 International Festival, as contemporary reflections on the world are presented alongside time-honoured tales, a place where fact meets faith and fiction.
The International Festival is the ultimate destination to experience world-class performances, with an exciting lineup of 133 performances, bringing 7 world premieres, 8 UK and Scottish premieres and 2 European premieres to Edinburgh this year. Programme highlights include the world premiere of a gripping new play by James Graham starring Brian Cox, a new narrative ballet from Scottish Ballet, and Festival debuts from rising classical stars – violinist Maria Dueñas, mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo, and 2024 BBC Young Musician of the Year Ryan Wang.

From 1-24 August 2025, Edinburgh International Festival presents a hand-picked selection of leading international and local artists in the world’s Festival City, with 24 days of world-class opera, dance, music and theatre.

The 2025 programme is defined by world-class artists bringing audiences and artists closer together in creative and unexpected ways. Audiences can experience an opera incorporating circus performers for a breathtaking fusion of music and acrobatics in Orpheus and Eurydice, a site-specific promenade dance work that transforms Edinburgh’s Old College Quad into a stage for Dance People, and enjoy Bach through a new lens in Breaking Bach, where hip-hop meets 18th-century period instruments.

Audiences can also actively participate in performances—whether by shaping the repertoire in a real-time Classical Jam or sharing their dreams to inspire Hanni Liang’s piano recital, Dreams. For those seeking deep immersion, eight-hour choral epic The Veil of the Temple invites audiences to sit on beanbags and lose themselves in waves of harmonies, and a choral workshop welcomes amateur singers that will preview a powerful performance at the Festival’s Closing Concert, Mendelssohn’s Elijah.

Now in its third year under Festival Director and celebrated Scottish violinist Nicola Benedetti, the 2025 programme welcomes over 1,700 artists from 42 nations to Edinburgh —including 600 from Scotland—across 133 performances. The Truth We Seek is the theme underpinning the 2025 Edinburgh International Festival, inviting audiences to explore their relationship with truth – within themselves, between one another and in understanding our place in the world.

Ensuring that cost is not a barrier to live performance, over 50,000 tickets (more than half of all tickets available for the 2025 International Festival) are priced at £30 or under. Thousands of free tickets are available for young musicians, NHS staff and community groups, and £10 Affordable Tickets are available for all performances for anyone who needs them.

Programme highlights include:

Two major world premiere productions in UK theatre and dance: Make It Happen, an eye-opening take on the 2008 financial crisis set in Edinburgh, starring Brian Cox (Adam Smith) and Sandy Grierson (Fred Goodwin), written by one of Britain’s most in-demand playwrights, James Graham; and Mary, Queen of Scots, an iconic story of one of Scotland’s most famous women, unconventionally told with choreography by Sophie Laplane that blends classicism with modernity, and costuming that nods to haute couture and punk.

In a landmark year for choral music, marking the 60^th Anniversary of the Edinburgh Festival Chorus, this renowned chorus of singers from around Scotland performs at the monumental Opening Concert, as well as Vaughan Williams’s Sea Symphony, Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, and Mendelssohn’s Elijah (this year’s grand Closing Concert). The programme also includes the Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists performing works by Handel and Bach.

This year’s Opening Concert features the aforementioned Edinburgh Festival Chorus, Monteverdi Choir and the National Youth Choir of Scotland, offering a rare chance to hear John Tavener’s The Veil of the Temple in all its eight-hour glory, a colossal universal prayer performed in full for the second time ever in the UK.

The International Festival’s opening weekend welcomes all to Princes Street Gardens’ Ross Bandstand for The Big Singalong, a free event led by Stephen Deazley, artistic director of Edinburgh’s Love Music Community Choir. The following day, Norwegian folk ensemble Barokksolistene returns to lead The Ceilidh Sessions, an afternoon of music and storytelling inspired by the Gaelic ceilidh tradition.

The most substantial programme of Polish artists in the International Festival’s 78-year history is featured in celebration of the UK/Poland season 2025. Performances include two concerts from one of the Festival’s resident orchestras in 2025, NFM Leopoldinum Orchestra, and a showcase of Polish artists and repertoire from the Wrocław Baroque Ensemble, VOŁOSI, Piotr Anderszewski, Bomsori Kim to 2024’s BBC Young Musician of the Year, Ryan Wang.

Operatic works include a fully staged Australian reimagining of Gluck’s Orpheus and Eurydice featuring acrobatics; the UK premiere of Book of Mountains and Seas from Chinese composer Huang Ruo, puppeteer Basil Twist and Ars Nova Copenhagen, and two operas in concert: Mozart’s La clemenza di Tito with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Chorus and Puccini’s Suor Angelica with the London Symphony Orchestra, with a line-up of international soloists.

Residencies bringing leading orchestras to the International Festival for an extended, more sustainable stay that features multiple performances and community engagement. This year, three outstanding orchestras provide distinctive insights into their collective sound and ambitions: Carnegie Hall’s National Youth Orchestra 2, Poland’s NFM Leopoldinum, and the London Symphony Orchestra under the direction of new Chief Conductor Sir Antonio Pappano.

Intimate morning recitals at The Queen’s Hall feature International Festival debuts from on-the-rise young virtuoso María Dueñas and Canadian mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo, as well as a cohort of exceptional Scottish artists including the Dunedin Consort with John Butt and Scottish percussionist Colin Currie with peerless vocal group The King’s Singers.

A wider orchestral programme that stretches the globe to welcome the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, the Budapest Festival Orchestra, and the NCPA Orchestra from Beijing, with conductor Myung Whun Chung and Bruce Liu as piano soloist. The London Philharmonic Orchestra returns to the International Festival for the first time in a decade under the baton of Edward Gardner with a stunning programme that features pianist Beatrice Rana performing Rachmaninoff’s inspired Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, and Holst’s The Planets, a seven-movement orchestral suite journeying through the cosmos to explore our true place in the universe.

Aurora Orchestra makes its International Festival debut with Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony, in the 50th anniversary of the composer’s death. A work that grapples with the pursuit of truth under oppression, audiences are seated on beanbags as Aurora delve into the symphony from the inside out with a conversational presentation in the round, and then in full later that evening, performed entirely from memory.

The Scottish premiere of Figures in Extinction from the internationally acclaimed Nederlands Dans Theater, visionary choreographer Crystal Pite and ground-breaking theatre-maker Simon McBurney (Complicité), which confronts powerful truths about humanity’s impact on the world and art’s meaning in the face of mass destruction.

A stellar dance offering continues with works that expand the experience for audiences: Maqamat and Omar Rajeh take performance outdoors to Edinburgh University’s College Quad in promenade with Dance People; the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment combine hip hop with Bach in Breaking Bach with choreographer Kim Brandstrup, and an International Festival debut from Australian disabled dancer Dan Daw about identity and kink.

Leading theatre-makers exploring truth via the climate emergency, colonialism and politics, with Cliff Cardinal’s take on Shakespeare in As You Like It A Radical Retelling, a spectacular nonverbal work from Belgian theatre collective FC Bergman in Works and Days and a remount of acclaimed play Faustus in Africa!, 30 years after its original premiere, from Handspring Puppet Company and William Kentridge.

The Hub, the International Festival’s headquarters on the Royal Mile, brings together a hand-picked variety of global musical styles and traditions, experienced up close in an intimate performance space, including Up Late gigs from artists such as Kathryn Joseph and Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith. In a truly international programme, musicians from 16 countries including Australia, China, Poland, Norway and across East to West Africa come to the home of the Festival.

READ THE BROCHURE HERE

Crack teams get patients off waiting lists at twice the speed

Sending top doctors into areas of highest economic inactivity in England is ‘busting through the backlog’

Targeted approach is cutting waiting lists twice as fast as rest of the country
Plans to roll scheme out further as government delivers on its Plan for Change

A new Labour government initiative to send top doctors to support hospital trusts in areas where more people are out of work and waiting for treatment is cutting waiting lists faster, new data shows.

In September, Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting sent in crack teams spearheaded by top clinicians to NHS hospitals serving communities with high levels of economic inactivity. The teams support NHS trusts to go further and faster to improve care in these areas, where more people are neither employed nor actively seeking work, for reasons including ill health.

Latest data from October 2024 to January 2025 shows waiting lists in these areas have, on average, been reduced at more than double the rate of the rest of the country, falling 130% faster in areas where the government scheme is in action than the national average.

A total of 37,000 cases have been removed from the waiting lists in those 20 areas, averaging almost 2,000 patients per local trust.

The teams of leading clinicians introducing more productive ways of working to deliver more procedures, including running operating theatres like Formula One pit stops to cut down on wasted time between operations.

The scheme has delivered huge improvements in areas of high economic inactivity. They include:

The Northern Care Alliance & Manchester Foundation Trust – where a series of ‘super clinics’ with up to 100 patients being seen a day in one-stop appointments where patients can be assessed, diagnosed and put on the treatment pathway in one appointment. These include Employment Advisors on site to support patients with any barriers to returning to work. Those that require surgery are then booked to ‘high flow theatre’ lists such as those at the Trafford Elective Surgery Hub.
Warrington & Halton – which has run Super Clinics for Gynaecology delivered at weekends, with one-stop models reducing the need for follow up appointments.
East Lancs Hospitals Trust – which has focused on streamlining diagnostic pathways and increasing capacity for Echocardiography, or heart scans, reducing the waiting list for these from around 2700 patients to around 700 – with all of patients having their scan within 6 weeks.

Data shows the number of people unable to work due to long term sickness is at its highest since the 1990s. The number of adults economically inactive due to ill-health rose from 2.1m in July 2019 to a peak of 2.9m in October 2023. The decision to send the crack teams to these 20 trusts first was based on the government’s aim to get people back to health and back to work, helping to cut the welfare bill.

Following the success of the programme, the government has confirmed similar crack teams will be rolled out to additional providers this year to boost NHS productivity and cut waiting times further.

Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said: “The investment and reform this government has introduced has already cut NHS waiting lists by 193,000, but there is much more to do.

“By sending top doctors to provide targeted support to hospitals in the areas of highest economic inactivity, we are getting sick Brits back to health and back to work.

“I am determined to transform health and social care so it works better for patients – but also because I know that transformation can help drag our economy out of the sluggish productivity and poor growth of recent years.

“We have to get more out of the NHS for what we put in. By taking the best of the NHS to the rest of the NHS, reforming the way surgeries are running, we are cutting waiting lists twice as fast at no extra cost to the taxpayer.

“As we boost NHS productivity and deliver fundamental reform through our Plan for Change, you will see improvements across the service in the coming weeks and months.”

The new data comes after the Westminster government confirmed the abolition of NHS England, centralising the way that health care is delivered, cutting bureaucracy and improving care outcomes for patients up and down the country.

The government inherited waiting lists of over 7.6 million last July, and rising numbers of patients waiting months and years to get the treatment they need to get back to their jobs.

Thanks to immediate action taken by the government- including ending the strikes and investing more in the NHS – overall waiting lists have fallen for the last five months in a row, dropping by 193,000.

The targeted teams are the latest success delivered by the government as it continues its fundamental reform of the NHS through the Plan for Change.

Soon after taking office, it confirmed an extra £1.8 billion to deliver extra elective activity across the country.

This helped create an extra 2 million elective care appointments between July and November last year – delivering on the government’s manifesto pledge seven months early.

Other plans to increase elective care productivity and cut waiting lists include opening community diagnostic centres 12 hours a day, seven days a week, revolutionising the NHS app so patients can receive test results and book appointments, and increasing use of the independent sector to improve patient choice.

Swinney: Time to capitalise on a potential £100 billion offshore wind market

Showcasing Scotland’s investment proposition

The Scottish Government will host a major investment event in Edinburgh tomorrow (Monday 17^th March) aimed at unlocking new private investment in the country’s rapidly growing offshore wind industry.

More than 100 stakeholders, including investors and developers, will attend the Global Offshore Wind Investment Forum, to be hosted by First Minister John Swinney.

The Forum is taking part following a Green Industrial Strategy commitment to raise the profile of Scotland as a destination for capital investment. The Strategy identified offshore wind as one of five priority areas for Scottish Government resources and investment.

The Scottish Government is investing up to £500 million over five years in the Scottish offshore wind supply chain to leverage an expected £1.5 billion of private investment.

Speaking ahead of the Forum, the First Minister said: “The growth and success of Scotland’s offshore wind industry is not only an ambition of my Government, it is a priority for me personally. Delivering on its promise will not only deliver our global climate obligations, but create significant new jobs and economic opportunities.

“History has shown that success stems from choosing the right time and place to capitalise on the next innovation of the era. We have already gained a significant first-mover advantage and laid the groundwork for success.

“Now we are poised to move to the next stage of development and growth and reap the rewards of what we estimate could be a £100 billion market.

“The Global Offshore Wind investment Forum is about “Team Scotland” showcasing the offer that Scotland’s offshore wind sector offers to global investors. We have a compelling story and a clear message that Scotland is open for business.”

Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes, Acting Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy Gillian Martin and Employment and Investment Minister Tom Arthur will also take part in the Forum, which has been delivered by Scottish Enterprise.

The UK Government will be represented and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, South of Scotland Enterprise and Scottish National Investment Bank will also take part in the event.

Healthy Heart Tip: How does sleep impact your heart?

8 simple ways to get a more peaceful sleep

In today’s fast-paced, productivity-focused culture, it can be difficult to prioritise sleep, but what if sleep is the key to helping your overall health? Health and Wellbeing expert Amie Leckie shares how vital sleep is for your heart health.

Sleep is the foundation that underpins our health; if we aren’t well-rested, it is harder to make wise food choices or muster up the energy to exercise. The NHS recommends most adults need seven to nine hours of sleep per day. In the UK, over 37 million or 71% of people do not get this amount of sleep, with the average adult getting six hours and 24 minutes of sleep.

Amie Leckie, Health and Wellbeing Specialist at Heart Research UK, says: “While we sleep soundly, our brains and bodies remain active, at one point in the sleep cycle our brain fires more rapidly than when we are awake.

“Sleep allows our bodies to repair cells and clean out toxins that may have accumulated in the brain. During sleep, we consolidate memories by processing and storing information we gather during our wakeful time. Sleep also impacts our metabolism, mood, hormone balance, immune function and disease resistance.”

How does sleep impact overall health?

Research has shown that sleeping less than seven hours a night is associated with various adverse health outcomes.

Increases our risk of obesity

Studies have found that individuals who regularly sleep less than seven hours a night are more likely to have a higher BMI (body mass index) and develop obesity than those who sleep more.

“Sleep plays a role in body weight regulation due to its effect on our hunger hormones,” says Amie. “Sleep deprivation disrupts the hormones ghrelin and leptin, which work together to regulate hunger and satiety. Generally, if you have under-slept you will crave high-calorie and energy-dense foods, usually cakes, biscuits, crisps, pastries, burgers, pizza and chips, which contribute to weight gain.”

Raises the risk of diabetes

Insufficient sleep has been linked to insulin resistance, which is a sign of type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance occurs when cells do not respond effectively to insulin, leading to elevated blood glucose levels. Overtime, this can develop into diabetes. Studies have shown that even short-term sleep deprivation can impair glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity.

Sleep impacts our mental health

Sleep is closely linked to mental health, with sleep disturbances being both a symptom and a cause of mental health disorders.

“Chronic sleep deprivation can lead to increased stress, anxiety, and depression. Conversely, these conditions can further exacerbate sleep problems, creating a challenging cycle for affected individuals. Prioritising sleep can improve mood, cognitive function, and overall mental health,” Amie says.

How does sleep affect your heart?

The above health concerns are all risk factors for heart disease, meaning if you experience one or more of the above, you are more likely to develop coronary heart disease.

Lack of sleep can also directly impact the cardiovascular system. A study published in the Journal of Clinical Cardiology in 2023 found that less than five hours of sleep a night is highly associated with an increased risk of a heart attack.

Blood pressure

Sleep is essential for regulating blood pressure, impacting our hormones. During restful sleep, our blood pressure naturally lowers, giving the cardiovascular system a much-needed break. Studies have shown that people who sleep for less than six hours a night can have steeper increases in blood pressure, and if you already have high blood pressure, poor sleep can make your blood pressure worse.

Inflammation

Chronic inflammation is a key player in the development of heart diseases and poor sleep has been shown to increase inflammatory markers in the body.

Amie explains: “Inflammation damages blood vessels, promotes plaque buildup, and contributes to atherosclerosis, a condition where the arteries become narrowed and hardened. This increases the risk of heart attack and stroke.”

Heart Rate Variability

Heart rate variability (HRV) is a measure of the variation in time between each heartbeat. A higher HRV indicates a healthy, responsive cardiovascular system, while a lower HRV is associated with stress and poor cardiovascular health. Sleep quality directly influences HRV, with poor sleep leading to decreased HRV and increased cardiovascular risk.

How do you get better sleep?

Understanding the impact poor sleep has on your health means it’s easier to make lifestyle changes to help ensure you have a good night’s sleep. Here are some easy tips that can change your quality of sleep.

Improving your sleep environment

We sleep better in a cool room, the ideal temperature is around 18 degrees Celsius and having a thermometer in your room can help you measure it. Our bedding also impacts how we sleep, by having bedding made from natural fibres, such as wool or cotton, can help regulate our body temperature to stay cool.

Having a dark room is also essential, you can invest in blackout blinds and remove standby lights that do not give out red light, as red light does not disrupt our sleep.

Limit your time spent on screens

The blue light emitted by phones, tablets, computers and televisions can interfere with the production of melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep. Limiting screen time before bed can improve sleep onset and quality, try reading a book instead.

Avoid caffeine, alcohol and smoking

Caffeine and nicotine are stimulants that can disrupt sleep. Avoiding these substances, especially in the afternoon and evening, can help promote better sleep. Caffeine stays in the body long after it has been consumed and can disrupt sleep, even after six hours after drinking a caffeinated beverage, half of the caffeine is still present in your body. Alcohol, while not a stimulant, also negatively impacts our sleep, lowers our HRV and decreases the amount of deep sleep we get.

Avoid eating before bed

Eating a large meal close to bedtime can delay the onset of melatonin release, meaning we don’t feel as sleepy before bed. Eating or snacking in the hours before bed can lead to poor-quality sleep. Try to avoid eating for at least two hours before bed, if you need a bedtime snack, opt for something light that will hopefully have minimal impact on your sleep such as a banana and some yoghurt.

Increase your physical activity

Regular physical activity has been shown to improve sleep quality. However, try to avoid vigorous exercise close to bedtime, as it can be stimulating.

Getting morning light and outdoor time

If you struggle to fall asleep, getting outside as soon as possible after you wake up may help. Getting natural daylight into our eyes can help to set our circadian rhythm by letting our bodies know it is time to wake up. Also, spending more time outdoors during the day positively affects our sleep that night.

Reducing stress and anxiety

Chronic stress and anxiety can significantly impact sleep quality and our ability to fall asleep. Incorporating stress management techniques, such as mindfulness, deep breathing, yoga, and even journaling before bedtime can improve sleep.

Keep a diary

If you are someone who struggles with sleep, download our Food & Movement Journal, where you can keep track of meals and physical activity. Here you can log your quality of sleep, and it can be useful to identify patterns affecting your sleep.

Sleep is a critical component of health and well-being, influencing body weight, chronic disease risk and cardiovascular health.

Download our Sleep Hygiene Checklist to help you get started on creating a perfect bedtime routine, you can stick it to your bedroom wall or bathroom mirror, somewhere you will see it regularly to remind you.

In a world that often values productivity over rest, it is crucial to recognise that good sleep is not a luxury – it is a necessity.

New residential rehabilitation service opens in Aberdeenshire

North-East project boosts capacity outside Central Belt

First Minister John Swinney has officially opened the first phase of a new residential rehabilitation service in Aberdeenshire, which will increase capacity in the North East of Scotland.

The 27-bed facility, named Rae House and run by Phoenix Futures, will be followed by a second phase which will consist of 53 units of housing and therapeutic community ‘Dayhab’ in Aberdeen City, which in total could provide up to 200 placements a year.

In the following phase, the therapeutic community ‘Dayhab’ model will see people living in separate accommodation coming together for day programmes at a central hub in Aberdeen to help them address their drug and alcohol use.

Speaking at the official opening, First Minister John Swinney said: ““We want every person experiencing harm from drug use to be able access the support they need. Residential rehabilitation is central to that and we have made £100 million available to improve access over the course of the Parliament. 

“Following our support for Phoenix Futures’ family service in Saltcoats, this further investment of £11 million into the North East service will help address geographic barriers and provide a welcome increase in residential rehabilitation capacity in Scotland, particularly for areas outside the Central Belt.

“I am pleased that the way we have funded placements has allowed more people in the North East to access this type of treatment quickly.

“A recent report suggests we have achieved our aim of 1,000 people a year receiving public funding for their residential rehabilitation placement by March 2026, but we want to do more and our Additional Placement Fund will support even more people to access rehabilitation.

“Yesterday’s suspected drug death figures showed an 11% decrease for 2024 but they remain too high. There has been some encouraging progress, but we know there is much more to do and that is why, through our National Mission on drugs, we’ll continue to invest in a wide range of evidence-based measures to save lives and reduce harms.”

Phoenix Futures Chief Executive Karen Biggs said: “We are delighted to open Phoenix Futures Scotland’s new residential rehab in Aberdeenshire, bringing much-needed recovery support to the North East. This service ensures people can access life-changing treatment closer to home.

“Thanks to the Scottish Government’s innovative funding model, we’ve overcome financial and systemic barriers that previously limited access to residential rehab.

“By prioritising investment in recovery services, Scotland is setting a precedent for inclusive and effective addiction treatment. This facility will provide a safe, supportive space for people to rebuild their lives.

“We look forward to working with local communities and partners to make recovery accessible to all who need it.”

Rae House – Phoenix Futures

Witness appeal following hit and run on Colinton Road

ROAD Policing officers are appealing for information following a hit and run in Edinburgh yesterday – Saturday, 15 March, 2025.

The incident involving a cyclist and a black BMW happened on Colinton Road at the junction with Tipperlinn Road, Edinburgh, around 1.30pm on Saturday afternoon.

The BMW left the scene prior to officers attending and headed south along Tipperlinn Road and enquiries are ongoing to trace it.

The 55-year-old male cyclist was taken to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh for treatment.

Constable Neill Sage said: “Our enquiries into this incident are ongoing and I am appealing for anyone who witnessed the crash and who have not already spoken to officers to get in touch.

“I would also appeal to anyone who was in that area around the time and who may have dash-cam of private CCTV footage which would assist us to contact us.”

Anyone with any information is asked to contact 101 quoting reference 1644 of 15 March, 2025.

Corks pop as Wine Importers celebrates its own 50-year vintage

A leading Scottish wine merchant celebrates its 50th anniversary this month, unveiling a refreshed brand identity and a series of events to mark the milestone.

Wine Importers was founded in Edinburgh during March 1975 by three local businessmen: Nicholas Henderson, Johnny Noble, and Robin Morrison. The group dreamed up the business over a nightcap in Whigham’s Wine Cellars, which later opened as a wine bar and remains a cornerstone of the Edinburgh food and drink scene.

Since that day, the business has grown into a premier supplier of fine wines to Scotland’s hospitality industry, providing a personalised service to hotels, restaurants, bars, and cafes across the country.

In 2007, Wine Importers was acquired by the private investment office of Sir David Murray’s family, Murray Capital, which itself celebrated 50 years in business last year.

The family has a strong passion for wine, which is further reflected in its direct investment into a French vineyard – Chateau Routas – and its 2010 acquisition of Scotland’s oldest wine merchants, Cockburns of Leith, which was established in 1796.

Wine Importers’ 50th anniversary celebrations will feature a series of key events throughout the year, including a special portfolio tasting at Murrayfield in March and an exclusive customer event later in the year. The company has also introduced a new refreshed logo and brand identity.

With a 18,000 square-foot bonded warehouse in Livingston, Wine Importers ensures a seamless supply chain, allowing for efficient distribution and quick turnaround times. The company’s regionalised sales team remains one of Scotland’s most experienced, offering tailored support and expert advice to customers.

Keith Murray, Director of Wine Importers, said: “We are proud to celebrate the 50-year anniversary of Wine Importers.

“This milestone is testament to the loyalty of our customers and the strong relationships we have built our global suppliers. We look forward to continuing to provide exceptional wines and service for years to come.”

Neil Renton, Managing Director, said: “The wine industry has changed dramatically over the past 50 years, and we are proud to have adapted and evolved while staying true to our values.

“As we celebrate this anniversary, we reaffirm our commitment to offering Scotland’s hospitality sector the best selection of wines, backed by unparalleled expertise and service.”

Edinburgh Remakery: RetroTech Fundraiser

AUCTION: FRIDAY 28th MARCH 6.15 – 11.30PM

at GRASSMARKET COMMUNITY PROJECT

Guess who made it to STV? That’s right — our Retro Tech Fundraiser is getting the spotlight it deserves!

Click here to watch the segment: https://player.stv.tv/episode/4pkc/stv-news-edinburgh

Tickets are still up for grabs; scan the QR code and don’t miss your chance to party like it’s the 1980s!

Aldi calls on children in Edinburgh and Lothians to design a poster for Food Waste Action Week

To mark Food Waste Action Week (17th – 23rd March), Aldi is calling on children in Edinburgh and the Lothians to design a poster that encourages people to reduce food waste.

Britain’s fourth-largest supermarket is inviting children to submit their creative designs for the chance to win a £250 Aldi voucher for their family.

The entries will be judged by a panel of Aldi’s sustainability experts, with the winning designs proudly displayed at Aldi’s UK Headquarters to inspire colleagues to cut down their food waste.

The competition is part of Aldi’s ongoing efforts to tackle food waste and support sustainable shopping habits, which has seen the supermarket recently reach the milestone of selling one million of its Surprise Bags through its partnership with Too Good To Go.

It also forms part of the supermarket’s Get Set to Eat Fresh programme, run in partnership with Team GB and ParalympicsGB, that aims to inspire young people to eat healthily.

Luke Emery, National Sustainability Director at Aldi, said: “At Aldi, we’re committed to reducing food waste and this competition is a great opportunity to show children how important of an issue food waste is.

“We can’t wait to see the creative designs that everyone comes up with, and we hope the competition can inspire the next generation to think more about how everyday changes can make a big difference.”

To enter the competition, parents and teachers can submit their children’s entries via email to foodwastecomp@aldi.co.uk.

Entries should be submitted alongside the name and county of each entrant.

Entries opened on Monday 10th March and close on Monday 24th March.

For more information and T&Cs, visit: https://www.aldipresscentre.co.uk/food-waste-action-week-poster-competition-terms-conditions/.

Holyrood committee seeks views on Scottish Natural Environment Bill

Holyrood’s Rural Affairs & Islands Committee is seeking views on legislative proposals which aim to help restore nature and protect biodiversity in Scotland.

The Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill would place a duty on Ministers to set the first legally binding nature restoration targets in Scotland, recognising that previous non-statutory approaches have failed to halt nature decline.

The Bill also provides Scottish Ministers with powers to amend environmental impact assessment legislation and habitats regulations; make changes to National Parks legislation to modernise how they are managed; and make detailed changes to wild deer legislation, to modernise how they are managed and respond to the twin climate and nature crises.

The Scottish Government says that “taken together, the provisions in this Bill aim to support the work already being undertaken by land managers, farmers, nature agencies, charities and the stewards of our land, to restore and protect the natural environment on which we all depend.”

Speaking as the inquiry was launched, Committee Convener, Finlay Carson MSP, said; “We depend on nature for the food we eat, the surroundings we live in, and to help mitigate the impacts of climate change. Improving biodiversity and regenerating the natural environment, should be important to us all.

“The focus of our inquiry will be to ensure that the measures proposed in the Bill are appropriate and firmly underpin Scotland’s goals of protecting biodiversity and reducing harmful carbon emissions.

“Casting our net wide, we would like to hear from those with environmental and wildlife interests, planners, national park authorities, regulators, deer management groups, to name only a few.

“Do you think that statutory nature targets are needed in Scotland? Do you agree with the proposed changes to the aims of National Parks or the way wild deer would be managed in Scotland?

“Please get in touch to share your views and help us ensure that this Bill does what it says it will do.”

https://twitter.com/i/status/1900516997030461845

The committee will take oral evidence over the coming months before submitting a report to the Scottish Parliament later in the year.

The call for views closes on Friday 9 May 2025 and be accessed here.