Council leader says ‘thank you’ for success of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Edinburgh
Council Leader Cammy Day said: “Edinburgh truly has given Taylor Swift and her hundreds of thousands of fans visiting the Capital from across the globe this weekend a spectacular welcome.
“From everything I have seen so far the atmosphere across the city has been one of fun and celebration as ‘Swifties’ travelled around having ‘The Best Day’ until it was ‘Time to Go’ home. And the event is expected to have injected tens of millions of pounds into our city’s economy.
“Whilst we’re rightly proud to attract the biggest and best events such as these concerts to the Capital I’m also conscious of the impact on our residents. And so I’d like to thank them as well as our partners including Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Trams and our staff for extending such a warm welcome to everyone who attended the concerts this weekend.
“Our staff have been working round the clock keeping their ‘Eyes Open’ making sure the area in and around the stadium is clean and our marshals have been on hand to help guide ‘Swifties’ to their destination and make sure everyone is safe and well.
“With our world famous summer of festivals just around the corner these highly successful concerts mark a fantastic start to an incredible summer of culture in the Capital.
“This is all another reason why I think Edinburgh is the best city in the world.”
HC-One Scotland’s Murrayfield House care homehosted their very own ‘Taylor Swift at Murrayfield’ event (and avoided the predicted road closures and lengthy queues) before the star arrives for her three consecutive concerts to kick-off the UK leg of The Eras Tour.
The home’s residents and colleagues held their very own Taylor Swift themed event where they sang and danced along to the 14-time Grammy winner’s greatest hits. Edinburgh will be bustling with eventgoers when the concerts take place – especially around the stadium area. The UK leg of Taylor Swift’s ‘The Eras Tour’ will begin at Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh tonight.
The Edinburgh care home held their own “Swiftie” concert on May 31, prior to the star’s arrival in the capital. The home even had a life-sized Taylor Swift cardboard cut-out to mark the American pop icon’s arrival.
There were also lanyards with passes attached, which were provided to the “Scottish Swiftie” residents to replicate the fans’ experience. Taylor Swift posters were also proudly displayed, and balloons added to the party atmosphere.
All “eventgoers” were also handed silver pompoms and Taylor Swift masks to immerse themselves in the celebrations at the ‘Taylor Swift at Murrayfield’ event. Murrayfield House colleagues dressed up in costumes to dance along to tracks such as ‘I Knew You Were Trouble’, ‘Shake It Off’ and ‘Love Story’ with a dance group who performed throughout the event.
Residents also enjoyed confectionary, as well as cocktails and mocktails. The American pop icon will play for three consecutive nights at Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium from Friday, June 7 to Sunday, June 9, 2024.
It will be the first time Taylor Swift has performed in Scotland since 2015 and Murrayfield House residents cannot wait to read the media coverage about her tour. The Eras setlist will take fans on a journey through the career of Taylor Swift, beginning with ‘Lover’ and ending with ‘Midnights’. During each performance, Taylor Swift will play two acoustic songs.
Fiona Truesdale, Murrayfield House’s Home Manager, said:“I was thrilled to host the ‘Taylor Swift at Murrayfield House’ event. Our residents really enjoyed the celebrations. We all sang along to Taylor’s biggest hits with costumes and bunting providing added sparkle – befitting of the superstar.
“We are excited to welcome Taylor Swift back to Scotland for the first time since 2015. All of us Scottish Swifties can’t wait to see her back to perform at Murrayfield Stadium, which is just over a mile away from us at Murrayfield House.”
Margaret Finch, Wellbeing Coordinator at Murrayfield House, said: “It’s all about having fun and our colleagues and residents had a great time singing and dancing along to Taylor Swift’s songs. All residents had lanyards on as they had been “invited” to the big event – it was brilliant.
“We chose to do this event as many of our residents enjoy entertainment. Everyone enjoys Taylor Swift, and this showed – with wide mouth smiles on our colleagues’ and residents’ faces. The younger generation (including many of our residents’ relatives) are huge Taylor fans and so we felt that our residents should join in on the fun.”
With just over a week to go until global pop superstar Taylor Swift arrives in Edinburgh, the city council has released advice for residents, businesses and visitors.
The three sold out shows taking place at Scottish Gas Murrayfield on Friday 7, Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 June will go down as some of the most significant performances ever seen here in Scotland’s capital city.
To ensure our city maintains its vibrancy we will be ensuring the key areas surrounding Murrayfield will be tidied up all three nights after each show. We will also be dedicating extra litter collectors at Roseburn Park from 4pm – 1am daily.
We request that you only travel to Murrayfield and the surrounding area if you have a ticket.
There will be a number of Council Marshalls on hand to assist Swifities navigate the area.
Culture and Communities Convener, Councillor Val Walker said:“As we get ready to welcome hundreds of thousands of Swifties to our vibrant city, we are eager for everyone to have an enjoyable experience, not only at the show, but on their way before and after.
“Whilst we relish hosting the biggest and best events and want everyone attending to truly enjoy themselves, it’s important that we’re conscious of our residents.
“We ask that visitors are considerate and respectful of them whilst enjoying our fantastic capital city. These concerts are just the start of an amazing summer of events and culture here in Edinburgh.”
To find out more, and for helpful information in the lead-up to the concerts visit our dedicated Taylor Swift webpage.
Celebrating a new partnership between two of Scotland’s most famous landmarks and events, The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo performers “try” to impress the Scotland Rugby squad with their skills at the iconic Murrayfield stadium.
This summer the Tattoo Performers will swap Edinburgh Castle for Murrayfield; pipers will provide the rugby players with a very warm Scottish welcome ahead of each of the summer international rugby matches, as well as performing for crowds in the popular Fan Zone areas.
The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo and Scottish Rugby are also offering a week-long on-air and online competition with Heart Radio, including tickets to see the International France v Scotland Rugby match on Saturday 5 August, transport from Murrayfield to Edinburgh Castle and the Spirit of Scotland hospitality package including premium seating to enjoy the Tattoo.
For further information on how to win the ultimate day out, please visit:
Staged at the world-renowned Edinburgh Castle, this year’s Tattoo performance, entitled Stories, will run from 4-26 August 2023.
Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at edintattoo.co.uk/tickets or on the phone on 0131 225 1188. There are also still some tickets remaining for the half price Preview Night on 3 August.
Scotland will face Italy, France and Georgia this July and August in The Famous Grouse Nations Series.
Scottish Ambulance Service emergency responders are to be deployed on bikes for this weekend’s Six Nations match with Italy.
Off the back of Glasgow’s COP26 in 2021, where bikes were used at the climate change conference to attend to medical incidents at the event, a team of SAS emergency responders has been recruited and trained for deployment.
The East Region cycle Response Team can be deployed through the Service’s Ambulance Control Centre (ACC).
The squad, which has 11 members and although based in the East at present, can be used anywhere in Scotland if requested. Recently, they attended the Scotland vs Ireland match at Murrayfield, and will also be out at the Scotland vs Italy game on Saturday (March 18).
Last year, they were used at The Open at St Andrews and other sporting events, while they will also be used at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe later this year for the second year running alongside normal ambulance resources.
Andrew Cook, Paramedic Team Leader and lead on the unit, said: “This great initiative has been utilised successfully at various events.
“They can respond easier to busy footfall areas and can be deployed to a range of incidents such as cardiac arrests. If appropriate, they will be backed up with additional ambulance resources depending on the call.
“The idea being that paramedics can respond quicker to emergencies in busy areas that are difficult to travel through in a car or ambulance.
“The bikes have equipment that will enable them to respond to life-threatening emergencies and we hope that the cycle responder paramedics will be able to treat and triage patients appropriately on scene, which could potentially free up another resource for conveying patients to hospital.
“Another fundamental benefit of the cycle response unit is the reduction of carbon footprint.”
Police in Edinburgh are appealing for information after the theft of a campervan in the Murrayfield area.
The blue Volkswagen California van, registration VMS 321 was reported stolen from outside a property on Succoth Gardens around 2am on Thursday, 15 September.
Entry was gained to the property and the keys removed before the vehicle was taken and driven away. The campervan remains outstanding.
Detective Sergeant Craig McMillan said: “Our enquiries into this incident are ongoing and I would urge anyone who saw any suspicious activity in the area or who believes they have seen the campervan is asked to get in touch.
“You can pass on information by calling 101, quoting reference 0225 of 15 September.”
On Wednesday (6 May 2020), road policing officers stopped a vehicle on Ellersly Road in Murrayfield. Officers searched the car and discovered a quantity of drugs and an offensive weapon.
Two men, aged 18, and one man aged 20, were arrested and charged in connection with the incident. All three men are subject of a report of the Procurator Fiscal.
A further operation at 10:30pm that night resulted in a 19-year-old man being arrested and charged in connection with road traffic offences in Duddingston Row, Bingham where officers responded to a white Vauxhall Van being driven dangerously.
Officers stopped the car and a 19-year-old man was arrested and charged.
Inspector Roger Park of Edinburgh City Road Policing said: “We will always target road users who are a hazard on our roads and put other road users at risk. Members of the public can be assured we will continue to patrol our roads night and day to ensure they are safe for us all to use.”
Police are appealing for witnesses following an assault and attempted robbery in Murrayfield on Monday night.
The incident happened around 11.35pm on Murrayfield Road and involved a 39-year-old woman.
She was grabbed from behind by a man who demanded she give him her handbag and purse before being disturbed by an approaching car which stopped to help. The woman did not sustain any injury.
The suspect is described as being 6ft tall, of a skinny build and speaking with a local Edinburgh accent. At the time of the incident he was wearing dark clothing, with his hood up and a scarf covering his face. He was also wearing blue, latex style gloves.
Detective Sergeant Tood Rutherford, of Corstorphone CID said: “This was a terrifying experience for the woman involved who was thankfully not hurt during the incident.
“Officers are reviewing CCTV footage in the area to help trace the person responsible for this and I would urge anyone with private of business systems to check their footage.
“We are also appealing to the driver of the car who came to the aid of the woman to get in touch with us to help us with our enquiries.
“Similarly, I would ask anyone who saw the suspect walking in the area prior to, or after the incident or has information which may be relevant to contact police as soon as possible.”
Anyone with information should contact police on 101, quoting incident number 4038 of Monday, 24 February or alternatively call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Edinburgh Rugby can confirm that The City of Edinburgh Council has now granted a Building Warrant to enable the club to begin construction on a purpose-built 7,800 capacity stadium on the back pitches of BT Murrayfield.
Edinburgh has worked closely with both Scottish Rugby and The City of Edinburgh Council over recent months on the detail of the plans. This outcome allows construction on the stadium to start in Autumn this year, with a view to it being ready for the club play in its new home from the beginning of the 2020/21 season.
Until then, the club will continue to play home fixtures on the main international pitch at BT Murrayfield for the entirety of the 2019/20 season whilst the stadium is constructed.
This is underpinned by the coming season’s Season Ticket Membership sales having already reached record levels, as supporters continue to back Richard Cockerill and his squad ahead of the new campaign in growing numbers.
Edinburgh Rugby Managing Director, Douglas Struth, said: “While this has clearly been a difficult process and more drawn-out than we had envisaged, we are delighted to have now been granted a Building Warrant by The City of Edinburgh Council.
“This now allows us to move forward with what is clearly a pivotal and game-changing project for the club.
“I’d like to thank all those who continue to work proactively within the project as we now move into a build-phase, as well as The City of Edinburgh Council for concluding the Building Warrant process with us.
“I’d also like to thank the club’s supporters for their continued patience throughout this period and for buying Season Ticket Memberships in such numbers.
“With Season Ticket Memberships having already hit a record high ahead of the 2019/20 season, coupled with today’s hugely positive news regarding the stadium, I believe this is a really exciting time to be an Edinburgh Rugby supporter and I would urge our fans to get behind the team over the coming season as we prepare to move into our new home.”
