Category: Old Town

Festival of Politics: Are We At War?

Russia is reported to be proactively engaging in sabotage and military provocations across Europe, while Europe retaliates with its ‘Readiness 2030 plan’ and increased spending on re-arming.

Will these measures lead to a more united Europe?

And how will the USA fit into this?

Join panellists from @univofstandrews, @StirUni, the University of Edinburgh, and @ohiou at Festival of Politics event ‘Are we at war?’ to be part of the discussion.

Friday 28 August – 6.30pm

https://ow.ly/Pc8R50Zshe1

In partnership with the Scottish Council on Global Affairs

Russia is reported to be waging a proactive campaign of sabotage, airspace incursions, cyber intrusions and military provocations right across Europe. In retaliation, Europe is re-arming with an estimated budget rise of 100 billion euros and war preparedness set out in the ‘Readiness 2030 Plan’.

Will these existing threats and challenges forge a more united Europe as it sits in the grey zone of WWIII, or will Europe splinter under pressure? And what about its NATO ally America, and President Trump’s claim on Greenland? Can, and will, Europe fight on two fronts and how ready is it for war?

Professor Kristen Harkness is the Director of the Institute for the Study of War and Strategy and teaches in the School of International Relations at the University of St. Andrews. In 2023-24, she served as the Thematic Research Lead for International Affairs and National Security with the UK Parliament.

Professor Holger Nehring is Professor of Contemporary European History at the University of Stirling. He specialises in the history of post-1945 Western Europe, in particular the history of the Cold War, the history of social movements and sub-national diplomacy. He has held visiting positions at Stanford, EHESS in Paris and the Mershon Center at Ohio State University. He co-authored the book Cold War Scotland.

Emile Chabal is Professor of Contemporary History at the University of Edinburgh, with a particular interest in the political and intellectual life of post-war Europe. His latest book is The Age of Hobsbawm: The Life of a Revolutionary Historian.

Scott Milburn is an Executive-in-Residence at Ohio University in the Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs where he focuses on leadership development for state and local public sectors.

Previously he held senior positions at the White House, a presidential campaign, the U.S. House and Senate, and for two Ohio governors.

Tattoo performers answer the call

From Doha to Washington D.C., performers from across the world have answered the call and arrived in Edinburgh ready for the start of The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo 2026.

From Friday 7 August, more than 800 performers from the Germany, New Zealand, Qatar, United Kingdom, USA and beyond will take to the iconic Edinburgh Castle Esplanade for a month-long celebration of music, military tradition, and the power of connection.

Performers from the German Army Band (Heeresmusikkorps) Koblenz, King’s Colour Squadron Royal Air Force, New Zealand Army Band, Qatar Police Academy Band and Drill Team, United States Army Field Band, and The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo performers join forces on Edinburgh’s iconic Royal Mile ahead of the 2026 show, A Call To Gather, map in hand, and ready for the adventure ahead.

For more information and tickets please visit the website here.

One month remaining of Summer Savings at Camera Obscura

Families have just a few weeks left to enjoy discounted tickets at Which? UK’s third best tourist attraction, with five floors of interactive illusions, family-friendly experiences and panoramic rooftop views waiting to be discovered.

With the school summer holidays in full swing and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival bringing the city to life in August, Camera Obscura & World of Illusions is inviting visitors to make the most of their Edinburgh adventure with all tickets reduced as part of the Government’s Great British Summer Savings Initiative.

Families, friends and curious explorers can save on admission while stepping into a world where nothing is quite as it seems from shrinking rooms and gravity-defying illusions to mesmerising light displays and spectacular views across the capital.

After exploring more than one hundred interactive exhibits, visitors can unwind away from the festival crowds with panoramic views of Edinburgh from the attraction’s latest rooftop bar, with refreshments available to purchase including cold soft drinks, snacks and ice cream.

With extended summer opening hours and a location on Edinburgh’s historic Royal Mile, Camera Obscura offers the perfect addition to a summer day in the city.

Camera Obscura & World of Illusions welcomes families of all needs. To support visitors with sensory needs, they can borrow Sensory Backpacks containing items such as ear defenders, sunglasses, a torch, an activities sheet and sensory toys, alongside a sensory map of the building to help families plan and enjoy their visit.

Discounted tickets are now available via the Camera Obscura’s website and available for walk-up admissions and will continue to be until September 1. A family of four visiting during the summer holidays could save more than £10 compared to standard admission prices.

Reduced ticket prices include:

  • Adult tickets reduced from £24.95 to £21.85
  • Senior/Student tickets reduced from £21.95 to £19.20
  • Child tickets reduced from £17.95 to £15.70
  • Children under 5 go FREE 

Andrew Johnson, General Manager of Camera Obscura said; “The response to the Summer Savings initiative has been fantastic so far, and we are delighted to be supporting an initiative that helps people discover and enjoy what UK attractions have to offer.

“The summer holidays can be a financially stressful time for many families, which is why we are pleased to be offering discounted rates and helping visitors make the most of the summer season, especially as the city comes alive with activity.

“Our latest addition to the rooftop offers the perfect place to take a break from the festival crowds, enjoy a soft drink or an ice cream and soak up some of the best views overlooking Edinburgh.”

Festival of Politics: Scotland’s Disability Summit – What Next?

The Scottish Parliament and the Cross-Party Group on Disability held the second summit for people with disabilities from right across Scotland earlier this year.

Join Festival of Politics event ‘Scotland’s Disability Summit – what next?’ to discuss what any new Cross-Party Group on Disability should raise during the new Parliamentary session.

Panellists include: @lkmulvagh, Meryl-Anne Williams, and Dr Richard Brunner of @UofGlasgow.

Fri 28 Aug – 4.30pm

https://ow.ly/BXY850Zsh7T

Chair: Carol Mochan MSP, Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Panellists:

Meryl-Anne Williams is a TV personality, content creator and winner of BBC’s The Traitors Series One. She uses her platform to raise awareness of dwarfism, champion disability inclusion and advocate for animal welfare, while sharing honest, family-centred content with her online community. Meryl was a keynote speaker at Scotland’s Disability Summit held at the Scottish Parliament in February 2026.

Lucy Mulvagh is the CEO of Disability Equality Scotland, a national member-led organisation for disabled people. Prior to this, Lucy was a Director at the Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland (the ALLIANCE). She previously worked for the Scottish Recovery Network and in international human rights. Lucy is also the Convener of Engender, Scotland’s feminist membership organisation, and a Royal Scottish Academy Fellow.

Dr Richard Brunner is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Disability Research, Department of Sociology, University of Glasgow. In this role, Richard leads a long-term research collaboration with Glasgow Disability Alliance to challenge barriers to disabled people’s’ equality in Scotland.

Police seek witnesses to two assaults on South Bridge

POLICE are appealing for information following two assaults in Edinburgh.

Around 2.10am this morning (Saturday, 1 August, 2026), a man was assaulted on South Bridge near the junction with High Street. Enquiries to trace the victim, a man, are ongoing.

A short time later, the suspect continued further along South Bridge and assaulted another man, before walking towards Chambers Street. The man was taken to hospital for treatment.

The suspect is described as male, white, and between 30 and 40-years-old. He was wearing a green top, a dark-coloured gilet, white trainers, and a light-coloured baseball cap.

Detective Sergeant Steven Dick said: “Enquiries are ongoing and we are appealing to anyone who witnessed either assault to contact us.

“We’d also ask the victim in the first assault to get in touch with us.

“Anyone with information, private CCTV or dash-cam footage which could assist our enquiries, is asked to come forward.

“Information can be given be calling Police Scotland on 101 quoting incident 0421 of 1 August, 2026. Alternatively, Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.”

More: https://orlo.uk/XPHRs

Get Ready for the Eclipse at Dynamic Earth

Get Ready for the Eclipse Event!

📣 A spectacular solar event is coming to Scotland’s skies this August – and Dynamic Earth is here to help you get eclipse-ready with FREE activities and a new Planetarium show!

Ahead of the partial solar eclipse this August, join us on Wednesday 5th August for Get Ready for the Eclipse: a lively day of space science and hands-on discovery. ☀

🌕 Drop in for free activities | Find out how solar telescopes work and learn the safest ways to enjoy the eclipse with volunteers from the Astronomical Society of Edinburgh, The Astronomical Society of Edinburgh

☀ What’s Up: The Solar Show | Step into our 360° Planetarium for a live presenter-led stargazing show with a special solar focus led by our in-house astronomers Dr Alastair Bruce and Toni Newell.

🌕 Meet Professor Catherine Heymans, Astronomer Royal for Scotland | Enjoy a talk and Q&A session with Scotland’s Astronomer Royal following the What’s Up: The Solar Show at 12pm and 2pm.

Bring your questions, discover hands-on activities, and get ready for this summer’s must-see moment in the sky!

‘Get Ready for the Eclipse’ is proudly supported by the Institute of Physics.

For more information about this event, and how you can get involved, visit our website: https://dynamicearth.org.uk/event/get-ready-for-the-eclipse/

Festival of Politics: Stopping Child Poverty

It’s estimated that 24% of Scottish children are living in poverty, despite the existence of benefits like the Scottish Child Payment.

How do we break the cycle of intergenerational poverty and make lasting, substantial change for the welfare of children?

Be part of the discussion at Festival of Politics event ‘Stopping child poverty’ alongside panellists from @jrf_uk, Includem, and @CaledonianNews

27 Aug – 6.30pm

https://ow.ly/Pli050Zsh1M

Panellists:

Chris Birt leads the Scotland team at Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) that works to find solutions to poverty in Scotland and amplify the voices of people experiencing poverty. Prior to joining JRF, Chris worked for the Scottish Government as Head of the First Minister’s Policy and Delivery Unit.

Louise Hunter is the CEO of Includem, a sector-leading organisation providing intensive support to children, young people and families across Scotland. Louise has worked across the third and public sectors for the past 25 years, supporting the most marginalised groups and lobbying for change. Louise is also a Commissioner as part of the Scottish Poverty and Inequality Commission.

Professor John McKendrick is Professor in Social Justice at Glasgow Caledonian University and was appointed Commissioner for Fair Access (to higher education) by the Scottish Government in 2023.

He is also Co-Director of the Scottish Poverty and Inequality Research Unit in the Glasgow School for Business and Society at Glasgow Caledonian University. He co-edited the book Poverty in Scotland 2021 that brought together almost thirty sector leaders to share their thoughts on what must be done to tackle poverty in Scotland.

Edinburgh hosts landmark exhibition confronting slavery’s enduring legacy

The first international exhibition from the world-renowned Legacy Museum arrives in Scotland for a limited run at Edinburgh International Festival from 8 to 30 August

This August, UK audiences will have a rare opportunity to experience one of the most powerful cultural exhibitions ever created about slavery, racial injustice and their continuing legacy.

Opening on 8 August, The Legacy of Slavery brings the work of the internationally acclaimed Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Alabama to Scotland – and marks the first occasion the Museum has created a major exhibition outside the United States. 

Presented by Edinburgh International Festival in the spectacular surroundings of the Playfair Library Hall in one of Scotland’s great civic institutions, the exhibition coordinated by the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) invites visitors to confront the history of slavery across the Atlantic world and consider how its consequences continue to shape modern society. 

The Legacy of Slavery is an immersive, hour-long experience. Visitors travel through centuries of history, from the transatlantic slave trade and the economics of enslavement to segregation, racial terror, mass incarceration and contemporary inequalities within systems of justice. 

Founded by the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), the Legacy Museum has become internationally recognised for transforming public understanding of slavery and racial injustice through rigorous historical research and powerful storytelling. 

The exhibition is guided by the work of Bryan Stevenson, founder of the EJI and one of the world’s most influential advocates for justice and human rights.

Through decades of legal advocacy, Stevenson has challenged wrongful convictions, overturned death sentences and sparked international conversations about how societies reckon with difficult histories. 

Bryan Stevenson said: “We are thrilled to bring a part of the Legacy Sites to Edinburgh for this exciting festival.

“The relationship between art, music, and justice is deep, profound, and ancient.  So much of the world’s most extraordinary creative works have been shaped by eras of inequality, bigotry, and injustice.

“The Legacy Museum documents and explores a painful part of America’s history, which should deepen visitors’ appreciation of the extraordinary music and creative expression this history has inspired.”

Festival Director, Nicola Benedetti said: “The Edinburgh International Festival was founded in 1947 as an act of reconciliation, built on the belief that art and dialogue together could help humanity reckon with its darkest chapters and find a way forward.

“That is what this work with The Legacy Museum offers: a chance to bring the International Festival’s tradition of ideas and conversation into direct contact with one of the most searching acts of historical reckoning being made anywhere today. Hosting the first ever international exhibition of The Legacy Museum is a profound expression of our founding purpose.

“With this year’s International Festival we are placing a particular spotlight on the United States, and this exhibition sits at its heart. Running from the 8th to the 30th of August, it will sit alongside performances and works that explore the same history from different artistic angles, from theatre works Angels in America and HANG TIME to Jazz at the Lincoln Center Orchestra performing Duke Ellington’s monumental symphony Black, Brown and Beige.

“Bryan Stevenson and the Equal Justice Initiative have created something that demands our attention, our honesty and our willingness to sit with discomfort in the service of truth. This exhibition is free and open to everyone, and we hope as many people as possible will come and see it.”

The exhibition, which is focused on the Legacy of Slavery in the US, also includes some context on Scotland’s connections to transatlantic slavery. The exhibit explores the evolution of slavery in America using multiple forms of immersive content and material documenting the past all the way to the present.

Presented within the Edinburgh International Festival’s 2026 programme, which marks the 250th anniversary of American independence, The Legacy of Slavery sits at the heart of the Festival’s wider examination of freedom, hypocrisy and the contradictions that have shaped the modern world.

Tickets are free, book online www.eif.co.uk

The Legacy of Slavery runs from 8–30 August 2026.

Festival of Politics: Scotland’s economy, why can’t we own more?

COMMUNITY WEALTH BUILDING

The new Community Wealth Building Act aims to give more control to local communities, redirecting wealth back to the same neighbourhoods.

At Festival of Politics event ‘Scotland’s economy, why can’t we own more?’ panellists will be examining how economic models can uplift communities and individuals.

Panellists include experts from @DemocracyCollab, @FutureEconScot, and Prosper.

Friday 28 Aug – 2:45pm

https://ow.ly/o4ZT50ZqIH8

In partnership with Social Enterprise Scotland

There is now a new Community Wealth Building Act, with the goals of placing more control in the hands of local communities and redirecting wealth back into those same neighbourhoods.

By prioritising local enterprises and the natural environment and preventing wealth extraction by big business, is it also time to re-think how the larger Scottish economy operates for everyday working people?

Rapid changes across technology and energy are taking place, from doughnut economics to foundational and well-being economies. How could new economic models uplift communities as well as individuals?

Panellists:

Neil McInroy is Global Lead for Community Wealth Building at the Democracy Collaborative, an American-based think/do tank. Neil is chair of the the Economic Development Association Scotland (EDAS). At the heart of his work is a belief in the need for deep democratic shifts in how we organise our economies and communities.

Laurie Macfarlane is a Co-Director of Future Economy Scotland and a Fellow at the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose.

Eleonora Vanello is at the helm of the Peer Works programme at Prosper, where she supports small and medium-sized enterprises across the private and third sectors to work smarter. She facilitates networking and peer-to-peer learning opportunities across Scotland. Previously, Eleonora worked at the Italian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for the UK, where she actively facilitated projects, businesses and services between Italy and Scotland.

Amorino opens on North Bridge

Luxury Italian gelato brand Amorino has opened in the heart of Edinburgh’s Old Town. After much anticipation, the new venue opened its doors on 17 July at 27 North Bridge, just steps away from the city’s iconic Royal Mile.

The launch marks a significant milestone for the brand’s continued UK expansion, bringing its internationally renowned gelato experience to Scotland for the first time.

The Edinburgh opening is expected to attract a high level of interest, reflecting the brand’s growing popularity as it continues its expansion across major regional destinations including London, Birmingham, Bristol and Newcastle.

The Edinburgh launch marks Amorino’s 360th site worldwide  and its 45th in the UK since entering the market in 2009.

Renowned for its iconic, handcrafted flower-shaped ‘petal gelato’, the Edinburgh venue will serve the brand’s full menu, featuring popular flavours including tiramisú, cremino, stracciatella and amarena, alongside a wider rotating selection of seasonal offerings. The store will operate seven days a week, offering both takeaway and on-the-go gelato hand-crafted to order.

Leandro Crolla, Director of Vittoria Hospitality Group said: “Bringing Amorino to Scotland marks a really exciting new chapter for us as a family.

“We’re really looking forward to introducing the people of Edinburgh to authentic Italian gelato this summer, and creating a space that locals and visitors alike can enjoy.”

The Edinburgh opening forms part of the Vittoria Hospitality Group’s wider portfolio, led by the Crolla family, which includes Divino, Vittoria on the Walk, Vittoria on the Bridge, Taste of Italy, Brunswick Book Club, Bertie’s Proper Fish & Chips, and Landy’s, reinforcing its long-standing presence in Scotland’s hospitality sector.

Amorino will be open 7 days a week from 11am until midnight Sunday to Thursday, and until 2am Fridays and Saturdays.

To find out more, please visit www.amorino.com/en/ or follow the brand on Instagram at @amorino.uk  and TikTok at @amorinogelatouk