Presented by new Festival Director Adjjima Na Patalung, this year’s 36th edition brings together 15 productions from 9 countries, spanning circus, dance, music, puppetry and theatre, with themes ranging from identity and friendship to grief, the environment and the sheer joy of finding your place in the world.
Highlights include:
Boys Don’t Dance – a poignant new dance theatre show from award-winning disabled choreographer Marc Brew of the Marc Brew Company, reflecting on his journey as a boy who defied expectations to embrace his love of dance
Cringe – a brilliantly funny new play from disabled writer and theatre maker Ross MacKay about surviving the minefield of growing up
The Fabulous Tale of BasarKus – a joyful circus show for little ones exploring identity, cooperation and the wonder of growing up
Island – an intimate performance from Starcatchers celebrating the precious bond between babies and their grown-ups
Toto Kerblammo! – Tim Crouch’s powerful new play, experienced through binaural audio technology, about listening, friendship and finding hope
The Festival opens with a Free Family Day of pop-up performances at the National Museums Scotland on Saturday 30 May, before the full programme runs across Edinburgh until Sunday 7 June
The Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival 2025 programme is now live!
Taking place across Scotland from 20 October to 9 November, this year’s festival explores the theme Comfort & Disturb.
Join us for events spanning film, theatre, music, visual art, writing, workshops and more. Events have been curated by the festival team, local communities, artists and activists, creating a wide-ranging and ambitious programme that will offer comfort to people while also disturbing the status quo.
Edinburgh International Book Festival returns in 2025 with a vibrant and relevant programme that showcases world literature and tacklestopics including geopolitics, disinformation, and the climate emergency, putting robust and dynamic discussion on a global stage
Repair is the Book Festival’s core theme for 2025, seeking to explore the many things around us which feel broken, and how we might seek to fix them – from the physical to the political, the emotional to the environmental, and beyond
At a time when UK literacy rates are decreasing, the Book Festival continues to support year-round access to reading through its Communities Programme, and by livestreaming over 100 events to libraries across twelve Scottish local authorities this August.
Literary icons ranging from Maggie O’Farrell to Irvine Welsh, international stars R F Kuang and Asako Yuzuki, political stalwarts Nicola Sturgeon and Diane Abbott, and prominent commentators Naga Munchetty and Ash Sarkar join this year’s lineup, as well as stars of the stage and screen, including Brian Cox, Ruth Jones, Adam Buxton, Viggo Mortensen, and Vanessa Redgrave
Words and music unite in a series of special events supported by the Scottish Government Expo Fund, including a brand-new commission from local indie music legend Hamish Hawk reinterpreting the eccentric work of Ivor Cutler, and performances from Mallachy Tallack, Simone Seales, and Mele Broomes
Brand-newYoung Adults programme curates events especially for those aged 30 and under, inspired by digital publishing and cultural trends, and spanning romantasy, sci-fi, horror, health, food and wellness, and more, responding to a generation increasingly interested in social, cultural and political conversations and exploration
New and dedicatedKids Zone brings much-needed hub for families amongst the hustle and bustle of Edinburgh’s festival landscape – making it a unique oasis this August – alongside more than 100 dedicated events, including a retrospective from Jacqueline Wilson
The Book Festival’s Spiegeltent will return with exciting poetry, spoken word, and music offerings, giving audiences a chance to discover the magic of live performance
New ticket pricing for Under 30s, and many events priced at £5 for those receiving low-income benefits, to tackle economic barriers to attendance
The Festival returns to Edinburgh Futures Institute, right at the heart of the festival footprint, with 641 writers from 35 countries, across 6 continents
Edinburgh International Book Festivalannounces its 2025 programme with close to 700 events featuring writers from all over the globe, taking place from 09-24 August, as it returns to Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI) for the second year, inspiring vital discussion and dissection of the cultural zeitgeist on a global stage.
With a lineup ranging from Yellowface author R F Kuang, who appears as part of the festival’s newly programmed Young Adults strand, which directly responds to topics of social and cultural importance often driven by the digital landscape, to firm festival favourites Denise Mina, Chris Brookmyre, V E Schwab, and Ali Smith, there is something for every audience to enjoy. In a first for the August Festivals, the Book Festival also unveils plans for a dedicated children’s zone, offering families an oasis away from the bustle of the city this summer.
The key theme this year is Repair, with the Festival seeking to explore the many things around us which feel broken, and how we might seek to fix them. Using informed insights from a range of experts, lessons learned from our ancestors, the richness and connection offered by the natural world, hands-on activities, and our own inherent humanity, the Festival offers a wide range of active opportunities to rebalance the mind, reinvigorate the spirit, reconcile with others, and restore a sense of calm and hope in the face of a world in chaos.
The theme will be explored from every angle including by Robert Macfarlane, Louise Welsh, and ‘barrister for the earth’ Monica Feria-Tinta discussing the beinghood of nature with debate around whether rivers should be granted personhood, and political repair and conflict resolution will be in the spotlight as human rights lawyer Philippe Sands and journalist Steve Crawshaw ask whether ‘justice’ can really be restored. Elsewhere historian Olesya Khromeychuk and journalist Jen Stout honour the legacy of Ukrainian novelist and war crimes researcher Victoria Amelina, who died from injuries caused by a Russian missile attack, and Omar El Akkad, Katie Kitamura and Yiyun Li extol the role that literacy and reading have in maintaining a democracy.
Indigenous Australian writer Melissa Lucashenko,and Anishinaabe journalist and author Tanya Talaga illuminate First Nations perspectives on truth, legacy, and repair, while artist, musician, performer, and writer Siôn Parkinson and mycologist Nicholas P Money champion the infinite potential of mushrooms, and journalist Ash Sarkar will wade right into the middle of the culture wars.
There will also be interactive events such as trying the Japanese art of kintsugi with Halle O’Neal, and exploring ‘multisolving’ with Alex Pearson.
Jenny Niven, Director of Edinburgh International Book Festival, said: “This year’s key theme of Repair starts from the belief that the brilliant ideas of writers and thinkers can help us repair a host of seemingly ‘broken’ things in our society, from the cycle of fast fashion and our relationship with the environment, to cultural reparations and the state of our politics. It’s a statement of hope and resilience, and an invitation for our audiences to think about what repair might mean for them.
“At a time when important conversations can feel impossible to have without igniting conflict and anger, we want the Edinburgh International Book Festival to provide a safe place for challenging but considered discussions.
“This year our programme features over 600 writers and artists from 35 countries, who have a wide range of perspectives on topics of personal, social and global importance. We invite you to come and learn something new, feed your curiosity and to broaden your horizons.
“The Book Festival is also a space for play and creativity, and we have an imaginative feast in store for audiences too – from stories from all around the world, to commissions of brand-new music and theatre, a Frankenstein themed cabaret, and a brand-new Kids Zone for our youngest audiences and their families, as well as a dedicated Young Adults programme for the very first time. So we hope people can have a fully rounded experience, all under one roof. We can’t wait to see you there!”
The 2025 programme will hinge around a range of new themes. Hundreds of the world’s best fiction writers, including many of Scotland’s most exciting voices, and dozens of debut authors, will share their new and most notable works in the Brilliant Fiction strand. Leith legend Irvine Welsh continues the antics of the Trainspotting crew through the 1980s and 90s, A L Kennedy exploresthe nature of justice and mercy, and the power of Andrey Kurkov hope and kindness; Judy Murray plays a match of mystery and murder; Bella Mackie brings us a comical mystery of fatal family dynamics; and Girl on the Train author Paula Hawkins introduces her new thriller.
The Festival also gathers some of the most exciting fiction writers working internationally, including Korea’s Hwang Sok-yong, Ukraine’s Andrey Kurkov, Spain’s Javier Cercas, China’s Liu Zhenyun, Brail’s Cacica Juma Xipaia, France’s Laurent Binet, Aotearoa-New Zealand’s Becky Manawatu, and Germany’s Daniel Kehlman.
The recently announced Front List series will return for the second year at McEwan Hall, in partnership with Underbelly, to present an expanded series of exciting events representing the breadth of the Book Festival’s offering, with a star-studded host of authors which includes Maggie O’Farrell, Ta-Nehisi Coates , Nicola Sturgeon,Yulia Navalnaya, Ian McEwan, R F Kuang,Ally McCoist,Ruth Jones, Butter author Asako Yuzuki, Mark Kermode and guest Brian Cox.
Fascinating Non-Fiction will explore everything from moving memoirs to scientific excavations, family odysseys to travelogues. Highlights include Naga Munchetty exposing the misogyny she discovered to be rife throughout the British healthcare system, smash-hit podcaster Adam Buxton rambling on in his inimitable manner with his new memoir, I Love You, Byeee, indefatigable comedian Ivo Graham extolling the benefits of failure, and Labour politician Diane Abbott discusses her inspirational new memoir, A Woman Like Me.
Good Information, brings together a host of trustworthy experts well versed in sifting out hard fact and cutting through murky algorithms to give you an honest account of a diverse range of topics.
Highlights include technology adviser to the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales Richard Susskind explaining the impacts of AI, Gabriel Gatehouse, Deborah Baker, and Leor Zmigrod exploring why conspiracy theories can be so seductive, and Deborah Frances-White tackling how to have difficult conversations.
New World Orders gathers the most authoritative voices across international and domestic politics, conflict, economics, and law to engage with and dissect current affairs. Vince Cable explores the emergence of new superstates and a host of voices including Avi Shlaim, Ilan Pappé, Pankaj Mishra, Penny Johnson, Raja Shehadeh, Anne Applebaum, Omar El Akkad, and Fady Judah unravel the long and catastrophic history between Israel and Palestine, including the most recent and devastating series of attacks.
Brainwaves holds up a magnifying glass to all things cranial, including mental health, neuroscience, and psychology. A host of scientists, psychologists, technologists, and authors offer their insights into the wonders, and limitations, of what lies between our ears (and beyond), including mathematician Marcus du Sautoy’s exploration of the creativity of numbers, Joseph Jebelli’s treatise for the transformative power of rest, and Lucy Easthope’s framework on how to cope with crisis.
The 2025 Festival will also see the return of some of 2024’s most popular programme themes, including How to Live a Meaningful Life, guiding audiences new and deeper ways of creating connection, resilience and hope, amongst the chaos, and the expanded Table Talks series, with top chefs and food writers taking to the stage – or rather around the table – in intimate gatherings with audiences to enjoy delicious food and make memories together.
Music, Poetry and Performance showcases the very best of the poetry and spoken word sphere at the Festival’s Spiegletent, which will return for the second year, including indie songwriter Hamish Hawk with an original and exclusive homage to Scotland’s pre-eminent poet-eccentric Ivor Cutler, andfresh poetic talent alongside well-established voices like Poet Laureate Simon Armitage, Makar Peter Mackay, Karen McCarthy Woolf, Len Pennie and Michael Mullen.
Elsewhere, Olivier Award-winning Harriet Walter gives an overdue voice to the women of Shakespeare, a starry cast including Vanessa Redgrave and Viggo Mortensen perform powerful messages of protest from around the world in The People Speak, and Radiohead bassist Colin Greenwood shares the band’s intimate inside story.
Special Editions also brings a selection of quirky and upbeat events including cabaret, live podcasts, and exclusive talks. Val McDermid unveils the world premiere reading of her brand-new play, And Midnight Never Come, Outlander’s Sam Heughan raises a glass to the art of the cocktail and the moments they’ve marked on his incredible journey, Caroline O’Donoghue’s wildly popular Sentimental Garbage podcast returns with another live Book Festival edition, and comedian Tim Key tells of high tales and low moments in Hollywood.
Audiences will have the chance to take an in-depth look at the little details that make a writer’s work really sing or expand on their own creative skills with an exciting range of Workshops. From How to Become a Bookbinder with Rachel Hazell, to exploring the archives of Muriel Spark and Jackie Kay at the National Library of Scotland (the latter with the author herself) and engaging with some of the most knowledgeable minds around, not least Booker Prize-winning novelist and screenwriter Eleanor Catton.
And our wide-ranging Thought Exerciseseriesoffers the chance to engage in deep discussion with figures including Pulitzer Prize finalist Deborah Baker, author and psychoanalyst Josh Cohen, diplomat and former Ambassador to Afghanistan, Azerbaijan and Russia, Laurie Bristow, and economist John Kay.
The Festival will also debut a brand-new Young Adults programme with events tailored to audiences aged 30 and under (but open to anyone young at heart!). Highlights include Alice Oseman, creator of the smash-hit Heartstopper series, returning to the Festival, model and activist Munroe Bergdorf discussing everything from beauty standards to cancel culture, and Caroline O’Donoghue showcasing her new YA sci-fi fantasy romance.
The strand will also harness the power of the online literary sphere, byincluding a collaboration with the brilliant House of YA, Sad Ghost Club’s Lize Meddings, a special Festival edition of the Bookshop Crawl UK, and the first Scottish edition of the Insta-popular Buffy’s Book Club with Lizzy Hadfield.
Our youngest audience members can enjoy a brand-new Kids Zone, providing a much-needed hub for families amongst the hustle and bustle of Edinburgh’s festival landscape.
This year’s children’s programme will also include more than 100 exciting events for young readers, including from legendary children’s authors such as Michael Rosen, Jacqueline Wilson, and How to Train Your Dragon’s Cressida Cowell.
There are also dozens of free, drop-in events, including the return of the popular Are You Sitting Comfortably? and Bookbug storytimes, a chance to go wild with National Museums Scotland, and the opportunity to meet beloved characters including Pikachu, the Gruffalo, and Supertato.
Community-driven events are also aplenty, with Stories and Scran celebrating the dynamic and thought-provoking work created by communities across Edinburgh and beyond, and Together We Repair challenging local writers and poets to respond to the Festival’s core theme.
During August, the Festival’s Communities team will also facilitate off-site learning events with leading writers in 9 prisons across the city, 3 workshops with patients at Edinburgh’s Royal Hospital for Children & Young People, and 2 interactive sessions with users of Streetreads, the library for the homeless community of Edinburgh.
For the second year, the Book Festival will also present its flagship industry event, Global Ink: Discover the Power of International Collaboration– uniting publishing professionals from around the world for thought-provoking discussion, followed by a vibrant drinks reception to spark new connections.
In addition to the Festival’s main base at EFI, there will be events at McEwan Hall and Elliott’s Studio, as well as special offerings at the National Library of Scotland and Dynamic Earth.
For those who cannot attend in person, 100+ events will be livestreamed and available on demand to audiences across the world to watch wherever and whenever they prefer, including to libraries in twelve Scottish local authorities. And for the first time, in addition to dozens of events being live captioned, the Festival will use AI to bring the number of captioned events to 500, meaning that an additional 400 events will be more accessible than ever before.
As well as reduced ticket prices for students, anyone over 60 and guests with access requirements, the Festival also introduces a special new ticket pricing for Under 30s, and £5 tickets for many events for those receiving low-income benefits, to tackle economic barriers to engagement.
The Edinburgh International Book Festival is made possible thanks to the support of a range of funders and supporters including Creative Scotland, Edinburgh City Council, Players of People’s Postcode Lottery among others.
Edinburgh Tradfest is delighted to announce full details of its 2025 programme of traditional music, storytelling, film, workshops, talks, ceilidhs, and special events taking place at various venues across the city, thanks to continued support from The National Lottery through Creative Scotland and the William Grant Foundation.
The festival’s music programme kicks off on Friday 2 May at the Queen’s Hall with Scotland’s most sought-after piper and composer Ross Ainslie performing with the Sanctuary Band, and special guest Terra Kin.
Then, over the 11 days of the festival, there will be live music every night at the Traverse Theatre, Folk Film screenings predominately at the Cameo, and storytelling, music and special events taking place at the Scottish Storytelling Centre.
Some of the musicians headlining include folk song sensation and multi award-winner Siobhan Miller; Scots singer of the Year 2024 Beth Malcolm; Aberdeenshire’s crowning light, folk singer and Young Musician of the Year 2025 Ellie Beaton; national treasure Kathleen MacInnes; and cutting-edge piper Finlay MacDonald performing with his band which includes award-winning piper Ailis Sutherland (Hecla), guitarist/piper Ali Hutton (Ross & Ali, Old Blind Dogs, Treacherous Orchestra, Tryst), and drummer Paul Jennings (Croft No 5, Treacherous Orchestra). Plus, there will be a special event on Sunday 4 May featuring the music and enduring legacy of piper Martyn Bennett.
Also headlining are virtuoso English folk trio Leveret; leading Scots fiddler Lauren MacColl who will be playing tunes from her most recent album Haar; and Mary Macmaster (The Poozies) who will curate and perform as part of this year’s festival commission For the Love of Trees with some of Scotland’s finest musicians: Amy Macdougall (vocals), Donald Hay (percussion), Mairearad Green (accordion, pipes), Pete Harvey (cello) and Ciarán Ryan (banjo/fiddle).
Other Scottish highlights include Morag Brown and Lewis Powell-Reid who perform pacy traditional tunes from Scotland and as far afield as the Balkans; Divergence (Freya Rae, Siannie Moodie and Tim Lane) so named because of their passion for playing non-traditional instruments in traditionally inspired music; cinematic alt-folk duo Rhona Stevens and Joseph Peach; and the unmissable annual #WorldPlayAStrathspey Day presented by Hands Up for Trad and featuring Rory Matheson (piano), and Anna Robertson, Catriona Price and Adam Sutherland (fiddle) who will take audiences through some of the world’s best known strathspeys, reels and marches.
International musicians headlining at this year’s festival include Pelkkä Poutanen whose music weaves together Scandinavian and Finno-Ugric folk singing with electronic, roots and traditional world folk influences; Canadian singer Catherine MacLellan, and English folk musician Lucy Farrell, also based in Canada, who’ll be presenting a selection of self-penned songs; legendary Kora virtuoso Seckou Keita who has been dubbed the ‘Hendrix of the Kora’; Finnish power-fiddle duo Teho; and the Hartwin Trio from Belgium.
Plus, TheTravelling Janes led by Ali Affleck bring their unique mix of Americana, jazz and blues; and The Hot Seatsfrom Virginia whose combination of old-time, bluegrass and country make them the hot ticket of the festival.
At the Scottish Storytelling Centre there will be stories and music from the Highlands and Islands of Scotland (A Necklace of Stories) with Bea Ferguson and Heather Yule; and tales and tunes from in the North East Bothy Traditionwith ballad singer Allan Taylor, fiddler Karin Paterson and storytellers Phyll McBain and Jackie Ross; storyteller Rachel Pugh and harpist Lucy Nolan present Bog Standard the gripping true story of a tip off which led a rookie journalist to one of the most important archaeological finds of the 20th century; and MAIK (folksingers Jamie Cook and Kirsty Law) present folks songs in Scots and Cumbrian dialects; whilst cinematic-folk duo Dowally and innovative French drummer Philippe Boudot celebrate the release of their album Ici et Là-Bas.
Plus, TuFlamenco celebrates the rich cultural heritage of Spain with a tribute to poet Garcia Lorca, with Inma Montero (dance & vocals), Danielo Olivera (guitar & vocals), and Inés Álvarez Villa (storyteller); the Sangstream Scots Folk Choir led by renowned musician Corrina Hewat perform a cappella in Let Them Be Heard; and author Stuart McHardy launches his new book Scotland’s Ancient Goddess: Hidden in Plain Sight exploring the mythology of creation and the pre-Christian beliefs of the Scottish people, published by Luath Press.The popular Hearth Fire Sessions return with storytellers Dougie Mackay and Niall Moorjani, Moroccan filmmakers/storytellers Tizintizwa and musician Evie Waddell.
The Folk Film Gathering returns to Edinburgh Tradfest this year with a selection of films from the world’s archives including a screening of Ukranian film The Enchanted Desna (1964) directed by Alexander Dovzhenko’s widow Yuliya Solntseva; Fertile Memory (1981) the first full length film to be shot within the occupied Palestinian West Bank ‘Green Line’ introduced by Scottish-Palestinian poet Nada Shawa; George Nasser’s Ila Ayn (1957) the first ever Lebanese film to screen at Cannes; The Nouba of the Women of Mount Chenoua (1977) which explores the intergenerational experiences and histories of women in Algeria and of speech and silence; and Icelandic film The Juniper Tree (1990) which stars Björk in an early performance of this adaptation of a Brothers Grimm fairy tale.
Staying with horror, O’r Ddaear Hen (1981) the first horror film to be made in the Welsh language and set in a council house in Bangor about a mysterious stone head, will be screening; along with the Scottish premiere of the new restoration of cult classic of Irish independent cinema The Outcasts (1982); and a series of short dark Gaelic tales from 1996-1999 introduced by Edinburgh-based Gaelic storyteller Martin McIntyre who is also doing a separate session introducing Gaelic storytelling culture and history at the Storytelling Centre.
Also from Scotland there will be a screening of Paper Portraits (2025) a new documentary from Gerda Stevensoncelebrating the history and working people of Penicuik’s paper mills; and a rare chance to see Emma Davie’s Flight(1997) exploring how Scottish traditions continue to be expressed in Canada by the diaspora.
Finally on Sunday 11 May, to close the Folk Film Festival, in collaboration with the Storytelling Centre, there will be a full day of screenings celebrating independent film in Scotland through the lens of filmmaker Douglas Eadie hosted by poet Jim Mackintosh and author James Robertson who will be joined in conversation by former colleagues of Eadie including Robbie Fraser, Fiona MacDonald and Christeen Winford.
Screenings include Haston-A Life in the MountainsAn Ceasnachadh – An Interrogation of a Highland Lass (with Kathleen MacInnes, Dolina MacLennan and Kenny MacRae) and Down Home (with Aly Bain).
Families, at the Scottish Storytelling Centre can enjoy a morning of face painting and crafting ahead of the traditional May Day Parade down the High Street to the Pleasance; storytelling with the Beltane Fire Society; a traditional street games, rhymes and songs session with Claire McNicol and Fergus McNicol; sensory stories and play with Ailie Finlay; and family ceilidhs.
In addition, the Edinburgh Youth Gaitherin (EYG) returns with a three-day workshop programme supported by the William Grant Foundation for 13-18 year olds and led by some of Scotland’s finest musicians; and Claire Hastings hosts an hour-long relaxed session for babies and upwards, playing songs to join in with, accompanied by Ali Hutton and Adam Sutherland.
Other workshops held during the festival include: a singing workshop with Chandra Mather where participants will learn a selection of traditional songs from around the world picked up by Chandra on musical travels; a strathspey fiddle workshop with Lauren MacColl; tune writing with one of Scotland’s finest composers Adam Sutherland; and a masterclass in Highland piping from master of the pibroch Allan Macdonald. Plus, the Traditional Music Forum will present an interactive and fun workshop for musicians who want to improve their patter and be better storytellers on stage.
Rebellious Truth,this year’s popular talk presented in collaboration with Celtic and Scottish Studies at the University of Edinburgh, features Joy Dunlop who will give an insight into her Gaelic journey; from learning Gaelic songs phonetically to being the face of multi-platform learning brand SpeakGaelic. Joy is in high demand as a singer, broadcaster and Scottish step-dancer and is a well-known face on BBC Scotland, BBC Alba and host of the BBC Radio Scotland Traditional Musician of the Year. The talk will also include a special performance by musician Fraser Fifield.
ETF Spotlight, this year’s showcase concert presenting some of the most exciting new performers in folk and traditional music today returns with artist and musician Miwa Nagato-Apthorp, Parsisonic led by Iranian duo Aref Ghorbani and Amir Hossein Feyzi, and trad fusion band Dlù.
And, finally Masks: An Exhibition by Lorraine Pritchard (5 April to 12 May)displaying hand-crafted Venetian masks will be on at the Storytelling Centre alongside a series of photographs and a new behind-the-scenes documentary by Franzis Sanchez shot in Edinburgh and during this year’s Venice Carnival. This exhibition is part of the Pomegranates Festival of world trad dance and presented by the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland.
Alan Morrison, Head of Music at Creative Scotland said: “Scotland’s traditions are vividly expressed and deeply felt in our words, our images and our music. As the beating heart of our national identity, they’re filtered through the 2025 Tradfest programme and across Edinburgh’s stages and screens, its walls and its streets.
“Supported by Creative Scotland through National Lottery funds, this important and inspiring event recognises not only the roots of Scotland’s revived folk culture in the city’s past but also the international ambition of our increasingly diverse country’s future.
“Thought-provoking, thrilling and straight-up fun in equal measure, Tradfest is a highlight on our cultural calendar.”
Douglas Robertson and Jane-Ann Purdy, co-producers of Edinburgh Tradfest said:
“Each year we give ourselves the challenge of building a festival packed with more superlative music than the preceding year. With more shows booked for 2025 than ever before, we think we have achieved that. It’s a wonderful mix of the exotic and the home grown. Virtuoso visitors from Senegal, Finland, Belgium, Canada, the US and England will grace Edinburgh’s stages joining an extremely strong Scottish contingent. Appearing are some of the best singers that Scotland has ever produced, the finest fiddle-players, harpists, strings-players, pianists, and, of course, pipers. We are also indebted to our partners at TRACS and the Folk Film Gathering who have provided a fabulous array of storytelling, family events and folk cinema that complement the musical offerings perfectly.”
Daniel Abercrombie, Head of Programming, Scottish Storytelling Centre said: “Edinburgh Tradfest is a great time of the year, with lighter nights and a chance for storytellers to celebrate with musicians, dancers and other creatives. We are offering a variety of traditional arts activities for all to enjoy, with several exciting new performances alongside workshops and family events. It is a highlight of our calendar at the Scottish Storytelling Centre and we’re delighted to be involved once again.”
Jamie Chambers, Folk Film Gathering said: “We are really excited to be collaborating with our sister festival Tradfest once again, to present a programme of films screenings, in parallel with their exciting music programming. Our 2025 programme features a number of very rare films from Scotland, alongside films from Algeria, Iceland, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Ukraine and Wales, and provides a chance to once again consider how we look outwards from Scotland towards the rest of the world. We hope to see you there.”
Edinburgh Tradfest 2025 will run from Friday 2 May – Monday 12 May. For tickets and more information visit edinburghtradfest.com
The Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland is delighted to announce full details of its fourth Pomegranates Festival which will run from Friday 25 to Wednesday 30 April 2025 at various venues across Edinburgh.
The Pomegranates Festival in partnership with TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland) and Moray House School of Education and Sport, at the University of Edinburgh celebrates Scottish traditional dance alongside world traditional dance practised by New Scots and cultural migrant communities across Scotland.
It is supported by Creative Scotland and includes exhibitions, ceilidhs, workshops, walking tours, and talks about traditional dance from Scotland and around the world. Every year the Pomegranates Festival explores the intrinsic links of traditional dance with live music, film, fashion, poetry, art and heritage craft.
This year’s festival theme is masks invitingfestival-goers to experience the power of masks used in different traditions; and reflect on the significance, beauty and mystery of masks and mask-making in traditional dance from antiquity to modern days.
The festival opens on Friday 25 April with a packed programme of short films of traditional dance followed by a Q&A with featured creatives, including the award-winning filmmakers Marlene Millar and Mare Tralla. Marlene’s films include To Begin the Dance Once More(2023) which tells the story of displacement and water crisis reimagined through the mythological world by three climate refugees from Scotland and Egypt; and Bhairava (2018) filmed on location in India which evokes Shiva, the Lord of Dance as both the destroyer of evil driving out terrible deeds, and the guardian of time.
Also screening is Mare Tralla’s new screen dance The Bright Fabric of Life (2024) which tenderly addresses the life-altering injuries sustained by women in labour, told using traditional African dance and music; Home (2023, Dir. Kes Tagney) which explores the deep connection people have for the place they call home featuring Scottish Step dancer Sophie Stephenson;Crowned by Flame (2024, Dir. Lyuxian Yu) about the Chinese Yi ethnic community’s Cigarette Box dance; Armea (2024. Dir. Letila Mitchell)which chronicles the homecoming of the dancers and musicians of the Pacific island of Rotuma; On Canada Day(2024, Dir. Gurdeep Pandher) reflecting on Canada’s past through a dance fusion of Punjabi and Celtic traditions; and Autocorrect (2022, Dir. Jonzi D) inspired by the COVID-19 face masks, set to the spoken word of Saul Williams and commissioned by Sadler’s Wells.
Hip-hop dance theatre artist, choreographer and dancer Jonzi D returns to the festival as this year’s choreographer-in-residence and will be working with traditional dance artists based in Scotland to create this year’s masked festival finaleHidden Faces which will premiere on the International Day of Dance (29 April 2025).
Other highlights include:
● The premiere sharing of not for glory – a skirling new dance-theatre performance of bodies and bagpipes, and rebellious unravelling of traditional dance and music by Jack Anderson, Charlotte Mclean and in collaboration with musician Malin Lewis.
● The premiere sharing of Sequins – a new hip hop dance theatre solo show by Kalubi Mukangela-Jacoby set to the Pomegranates Festival spoken word commission of Sequins of Poems to Dance To by Ian McMillan.
● An evening of poetry, dance and discussion focusing on Intangible Cultural Heritage and its relationship with Scottish traditional dance.
● A new exhibition of masks (3 Apr-12 May) by Pomegranates Festival artist-in-residence Lorraine Pritchard – anEdinburgh-based mask maker, costume-designer and fashion model, plus the only Scottish artist performing at the Venice Carnival 2025. Lorraine’s first solo exhibition, especially curated for the festival, zooms on the relationship between the heritage craft of mask-making and traditional dance and features masks, photographs, films and books, including Lorraine’s new Venetian Carnival masks which ahead of the exhibition will be premiered and modelled by the artist at this year’s Carnevale in Venice 21 February – 4 March.
● A day of walking tours led by dance historians Alena Shmakova and Agnes Ness about the role of women in traditional dance past and present, with focus on the role of Mary, Queen of Scots.
● A dance theatre matinee which is the culmination of Pomegranates dance artists-in-residence at Edinburgh’s Abbeyhill and Royal Mile Primary Schools. Over 20 resident dancers – all postgraduate students in Dance Science and Education at the University of Edinburgh will perform alongside the Scot Polish musician-in-residence Aga Idczak. The choreography of the Scot Cypriot artist Sotirios Panagoulias and the costume design by the New York born Scot Polish designer Gerry Gapinski are co-created with over fifty pupils aged 10-11 years. The matinee is the outcome of an unique co-devising method of Socratic Circles, weaving in the children’s ideas, drawings and poems about the wee objects selected by each pupil to represent their diverse heritage.
In the lead up to the start of the festival there will also be a podcast released on 8 March to celebrate International Women’s Day, previewing the story of Mary, Queen of Scots in Edinburgh and her passion for dance, with New Scot Alena Shmakova.
Plus, there will be a Ceilidh Plus mixing Scottish, Bulgarian and Irish traditional dancing on 21 March to celebrate 10 years of the Bulgarian traditional dance school in Edinburgh and St Patrick’s Day on 17 March.
This popular event is part of the festival’s year-round programme of Ceilidh Plus evenings held at the Kings Hall that combine Scottish dancing with traditional dances from the migrant and diaspora communities in Scotland.
During the festival the Ceilidh Plus event will showcase a mix of Scottish, Polish and Hungarian dance styles.
All festival events are presented on a free or affordable ‘pay what you can‘ basis.
Wendy Timmons and Iliyana Nedkova, Festival Co-curators said:“In 2025 when we celebrate Edinburgh’s 900 years journey from the 12th Century City of David to the 21st City of Diversity, we are very proud to present the fourth edition of Pomegranates – Edinburgh’s festival of diversity in traditional dance, the festival that has already made it to the #ListHot100 as one of the 100 most influential cultural events of the year.
“Expect a flair of mystery as this year our festival artists will don their dance masks and take on whole new personalities honouring their traditions and our global living heritage.”
John Ravenscroft, Head of the Centre for Research in Education, Inclusion and Diversity (CREID) at Moray House School of Education and Sport, University of Edinburgh said: “I am very pleased to continue to forge our strategic academic partnership with the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland which dates back to 2018. Great to see the return of the Pomegranates Festival choreographer-in-residence Jonzi D who delivered the seminal Decolonising the Curriculum keynote lecture at Moray House School of Education and Sport as part of last year’s festival.
“I am also excited about the opening matinee which is part of the wider campaign advocating for the diverse forms of world traditional dance becoming a primary ingredient of our children’s primary education.
“This campaign is run by the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland in conjunction with our Centre and our School while the matinee is funded by the University of Edinburgh through the Edinburgh Local Community Fund.”
MC, Jonzi D, hip hop dance theatre artist and choreographer-in-residence at this year’s Festival, said: “Following my Pomegranates festival debut last year, I am really honoured to be invited back as this year’s choreographer-in-residence, plus I am particularly partial to the new festival theme of masks.
“Traditional dance is important, including masked dance, because it represents living heritage while celebrating difference. I think we’ve reached a period in society where our differences are being used against us; our differences are being used to keep us separated; our differences are being used as judgmental tools. Manufactured polarisation. But our infinite differences define our identities, and still we have more in common than we have apart. Pomegranates festival celebrates our differences.”
Vanessa Boyd, Interim Head of Dance at Creative Scotland says: “Pomegranates Festival continues to be an important platform celebrating Scotland’s rich traditional dance heritage alongside the diverse influences that shape our communities today.
“This year’s focus on masks highlights a powerful symbol that has been used in dance for centuries, transforming performers and deepening storytelling across cultures.
“Audiences can look forward to experiencing new work and exploring the rich and diverse traditional dance forms that the Pomegranates Festival has to offer across a packed programme of live performance, screen, workshops and community gatherings.”
The Pomegranates Festival (25 – 30 Apr) is the annual platform for the diverse 250+ individual and organisational members of the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland to teach, learn and perform in new dance theatre and screen dance shows, as well as new productions and residencies.
This is the fourth edition of Scotland’s annual festival of international traditional dance, initiated, curated and produced by the Traditional DanceForum of Scotland.
It is presented in partnership with TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland), Moray House School of Education and Sport, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh Central Library, Dance Base and the Scottish Storytelling Centre.
In 2025 the Pomegranates Festival is funded by Creative Scotland Multi-Year Funding through TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland); the City of Edinburgh Council and University of Edinburgh through the Edinburgh Local Community Fund.
Scroll through our programme to find all the FREE workshops, performances & activities we have planned for you!
You will also be able to find a variety of stalls running their own activities as well as food vendors that will help fuel you through the day!
With the climate crisis worsening, we see how important it is to raise awareness and take climate action. That’s why the Edinburgh Climate Festival (ECF) is back!
The ECF will take place at the Meadows on Saturday 29th June 2024, from 12pm to 7pm. The festival will bring stallholders to cover topics related to the circular economy, mitigation, adaptation, climate education, transport, activism, conservation and more. Community members will also have an opportunity to raise their climate concerns to policymakers.
The festival, now in its 8th year, will offer a free, family friendly & community-led marketplace. It will serve as a platform for locals to discover the remarkable climate initiatives taking place in Edinburgh and enjoy a delightful day out with their families.
Franciele Sobierai, the ECF Event Coordinator said: “The climate crisis can be daunting, leaving us feeling powerless. However, when we unite, work together, and support one another, we can accomplish far more.
“This is the message the Edinburgh Climate Festival aims to spread — encouraging community-driven climate action and solidarity to tackle the climate emergency.”
The attractions and activities will involve an upcycled fashion show, dance performances, choirs, drumming group, eco workshops, wellbeing workshops, children’s activities and much more.
Don’t miss this opportunity to engage, learn, and celebrate our collective efforts towards a sustainable future!
Join us in your Scottish Parliament to have your say on the issues that matter to you
The Scottish Parliament’s Festival of Politics returns this August with a five-day programme of over 30 events, taking place in the home of Scottish politics at Holyrood.
Our 20th Festival will take place between Monday 19 to Friday 23 August and will provide festivalgoers with informed debate and inspiring topics on a range of social, political, and environmental issues facing the world today.
This year we mark two significant milestones in Scotland’s political history, the 25th anniversary of the Scottish Parliament and the 20th anniversary of the Holyrood building. With several events focusing on the future of the institution in Scotland.
Benedetta Tagliabue, architect, partner and widow of the visionary creative Enric Miralles, who designed the Scottish Parliament building will join the Presiding Officer in conversation on the opening day of the Festival.
This event will also feature excerpts from the opera ‘Mai per Atzar’ (Never by Chance) originally staged in 1997 for the opening of the Miralles Tagliabue EMBT studio in Barcelona, with lyrics by Valerio Ferrari and music by Roberto Cacciapaglia.
The excerpts from the original Opera, together with new music in honour of Enric Miralles, will be performed live by world leading composer and pianist Roberto Cacciapaglia in the Parliament’s Debating Chamber.
There will also be leading experts from the worlds of politics, the arts, business, the media, academia and the third sector who will join us for a deep dive into issues dominating the news agenda. Join in and have you say on everything from the impact of artificial intelligence to Scotland’s ambitions in the space sector, to young people and mental health.
The Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament, Rt Hon Alison Johnstone MSP said: “Every year, the Festival of Politics aims to explore some of the big issues that feature in day-to-day politics, in the media and in wider civic Scotland.
“The Festival offers an opportunity to take up a seat in your Parliament, to hear from a range of experts, aiming to inspire debate and inform our thinking.
“This year as we celebrate our 25th anniversary, we present an exciting and varied programme of events, music and exhibitions.”
In association with the Edinburgh International Festival, the first day of the Festival will also feature the impressive outdoor opening celebration of Healing Arts Scotland featuring a Scottish Ballet community cast accompanied by 200 musicians including performers from Oi Musica, Samba Y Bamba, The National Youth Pipe Band of Scotland and the piping super group TRYST.
The specially curated dance piece will be performed to ‘Mackay’s Memoirs’ by the late Scottish Celtic fusion artist Martyn Bennett. Healing Arts Scotland is a country-wide week-long activation, celebrating and advocating for improved physical, mental and social health through the arts.
In addition, there is a lively free programme of music, choirs, dance and exhibitions in the Festival Café Bar.
This year’s music programme for Edinburgh Tradfest is now on sale.
More festival events including film, storytelling, book launches and workshops will be announced at the Edinburgh Tradfest 2024 full programme launch on Wed 13 March at 10am at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh. (save the date – full details to follow)
VALTOS | NORDIC FIDDLERS BLOC | THE FRETLESS | BIRDVOX | TRIPTIC | DAIMH | JULIE FOWLIS | LENA JONSSON & BRITTANY HAAS | MARTIN SIMPSON
This year’s festival programme includes a fantastic line-up of live music at the Traverse and various venues across Edinburgh, thanks to continued support from The National Lottery through Creative Scotland, and the William Grant Foundation.
Opening the Festival on Friday 3 April at the Queen’s Hall is VALTOS which has taken the trad and electronic music world by storm. The band led by Daniel Docherty and Martyn MacDonald will be joined by award-winning singer/songwriter Josie Duncan and more special guests to be announced.
Birdvox (Inge Thomson, Charlotte Printer, Jenny Sturgeon, Sarah Hayes) headline Traverse 1 on Thu 9 May.
Over the 11 days of the Festival there will be live music and workshops involving more than 100 musicians, including velvet harmonies from fresh new electro-trad band Birdvox (Inge Thomson, Charlotte Printer, Jenny Sturgeon, Sarah Hayes); Triptic formed from three members of Moishe’s Bagel (Greg Lawson, Phil Alexander and Mario Caribe), Canada’s finest fiddle quartet The Fretless joined by award-winning folk singer-songwriter Madeleine Roger; Scandi-fiddlers Nordic Fiddlers Bloc (Olav Luksengård Mjelva, Kevin Henderson and Anders Hall);Gaelic supergroup Dàimh; multi-award winning acoustic and slide guitar master Martin Simpson; raucous fiddle folk duo Lena Jonsson from Northern Sweden and Brittany Haas from Northern California; and, one of Scotland’s best loved traditional music stars Julie Fowlis who will play at the festival’s closing concert in the Assembly Rooms with special guests Laura Wilkie and Ian Carr.
There will also be soloists and new emerging musicians performing every night in Traverse 2 including LA-based singer-songwriter Alice Howe (appearing with Freebo), multi-award-winning singer/harpist/composer Rachel Newton; electrofolk fiddle player Frankie Archer who won the 2023 Christian Raphael Prize and has featured on Later…With Jools Holland; piper Malin Lewis; jazz-crossover folk duo Norman&Corrie; Simon Bradley Trio (Simon Bradley, Anna-Wendy Stevenson, Michael Bryan); virtuoso musicians Simon Thoumire and Dave Milligan; Irish fiddler and bilingual singer ClareSands; and BBC Radio Scotland’s Young Traditional Musician of the Year finalist 2024 Evie Waddell.
This year’s special commission is Everyone’s Welcome to Edinburgh curated and arranged by award-winning fiddler Robbie Greig, with new and old tunes, and songs hailing from the capital city.
Robbie will be joined for the gig by some of the most talented musicians in Scotland – Ciaran Ryan, Duncan Lyall, Hannah Rarity, Jenn Butterworth, and Signy Jakobsdottir.
Returning in 2024 is the festival’s popular Rebellious Truth lecture presented in collaboration with Celtic and Scottish Studies at the University of Edinburgh.
This year it will feature a talk and performance by legendary folk musician and broadcaster Archie Fisher which will be in-person andlive-streamed.
Also returning is the ETF Spotlight showcasing four of the most exciting new artists emerging in folk and traditional music today – Scots song and tunes trio ELIR , clarinet and accordion duo AnnaScott and Ciorstaidh Chaimbeul from the Isle of Skye, the freshly formed folk trio Beatha (Iona Reid, Cam Lawson and Kenneth MacFarlane), and virtuoso solo guitarist Miguel Girão.
And, finally Hands Up For Trad’s very own #WorldPlayAStrathspeyDay annual concert is back on Saturday 4May, the day when people all around the world are invited to record, video and upload themselves playing a strathspey to social media.
Douglas Robertson and Jane-Ann Purdy, co-producers of Edinburgh Tradfest said: “Every year we spend the run up to Edinburgh Tradfest searching for the very best traditional musicians from across Scotland, across the world and across the generations.
“There is such a wealth of talent out there. We hope you will find some of your favourite artists represented and some future favourites to try. We can’t wait to share this year’s festival with you.”
The full programme for this year’s Edinburgh Tradfest including events at the Scottish Storytelling Centre, the Folk Film Festival, and the Edinburgh Folk Club will be launched on Wednesday 13 March and will include an unmissable line-up of talks, adult and children’s music workshops, ceilidhs, films, and storytelling thanks to continued support from The National Lottery through Creative Scotland, and the William Grant Foundation.
Edinburgh Tradfest 2024 will run from Friday 3 May – Monday 13 May. For tickets and more information visit edinburghtradfest.com
The 2023 programme for this year’s Scottish International Storytelling Festival (SISF) explores our Right To Be Human,and celebrates the 75th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Just as Scotland’s consultation on a new Human Rights Bill draws to a close, storytellers, musicians and artists will join together in venues across the country to embrace this milestone with tales of human courage and creativity, spoken with powerful words.
During this year’s festival (13-29 October) there will be stories told about the impacts of war, gender inequality, censorship; ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious prejudices; and other threats and challenges on our human rights as a global nation.
New this year is the Festival’s first podcast series Another Story –six weekly episodes themed around our right to be human starting from 12 September;andArt of the Storyteller – in-person, weekend workshops led by Festival Director Donald Smith with various professional storytellers, where budding storytellers can learn to improve their storytelling skills and better connect with their audience.
Opening this year’s Festival will be storyteller Gauri Raje with Tales of Exile and Sanctuary(Fri 13 Oct) sharing stories from Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, India and the horn of Africa, woven together to question the beauty and horrors of exile from across the world.
Other events exploring and celebrating our universal human rights include new commissions:
● Wave Riders (Sat 14 Oct) with storyteller Jan Bee Brown and musician Renzo Spiteri sharing the sagas of Viking pioneers who forged better ways to live in peace.
● Letters to Jackie (Sun 15 Oct) returns with agony aunts Bea Ferguson, Heather Yule and Maria Whatton on hand with old tales to answer the problems of today.
● Joyfully Grimm: Reimagining a Queer Adolescence (Mon 16 Oct) with James Stedman who takes a heartfelt and slightly irreverent look at Section 28, and the joy with which LGBTQIA+ people have always existed in both stories and real life.
● The Voice Shall Always Remain(Tue 17 Oct) told through the traditional ‘pardeh-khani’ technique (narration through curtains), Iranian storyteller Zahra Afsah and Syrian storyteller Khloud Ereksousi explore how Iranian women find their freedom in their own voices and talents.
● Don Quixote Rides Again (Wed 18 Oct) a spellbinding comical experience with Spanish storyteller Inés Álvarez Villa and flamenco musician Danielo Olivera challenging prejudice, showing compassion, and embracing our true selves.
● Stories of healing told through the Norse tales of Odin, Gullveig and Mimir in Odin’s Eye and The Art of Seeing with Alice Fernbank (Sat 21 Oct) followed by Shadow Walkingcovering dark tales of jealousy, destruction and vanity with Ruth Kirkpatrick and Peter Chand.
● The story of Orpheus and Eurydice gets a Scottish twist in Orpheus | Orfeo (Sun 22 Oct) told by Daniel Serridge, Heather Cartwright and Neil Wood (harp).
● Fire from the Woods(Thu 26 Oct) with storyteller Daiva Ivanauskaitė and musician Gaynor Barradell exploringthe silence between generations, how sometimes fathers are silent while children grow up without stories and our right to know about our ancestors.
● The Town Mouse and The Country Mouse (Sat 14 Oct) – a multisensory adventure suitable for children with additional needs with illustrator Kate Leiper and storyteller Ailie Finlay.
Also appearing in this year’s programme are some of the nation’s favourite storytellers in our Collective Treasures strand which gathers memories, experiences and values together in tales to celebrate our common humanity.
Highlights include:
● Scots Character (Thu 19 Oct) with James Spence which tours the range of Scots tale and tongue including some dour, thrawn, stoic, droll and outrageous personal memories.
● Gillian Paterson and Nicola Wright take a whirlwind trip through women’s history in The Girl’s Own Survival Guide to History (Sat 21 Oct) with female pirates, raucous rebels and top tips on learning how to avoid being called a witch.
● Shonaleigh Cumbers dips into her own Jewish and British storytelling traditions in A Garment for the Moon (Sun 22Oct).
● Berit Alette Mienna and musician Øistein Hanssen share the deep roots of the Sami culture and the threats it faces, inNorthern Treasures (Wed 25 & Sat 28 Oct).
● Prolific writer and political activist Italo Calvino’s centenary is celebrated with a Scots-Italian garland of stories from Anne Hunter, Donald Smith and Simone Caffari (Mon 16 Oct).
● Tradition bearer Allan MacDonald and musician Aidan O’Rourke present tales from the John Francis Campbell’scollection in Sgeul – Mighty and Magic ( Fri 20 & Wed 25 Oct).
● Dr Valentina Bold and storyteller Amanda Edmiston present excerpts from Mike Bolam’s film Up the Middle Roadwith live storytelling and a discussion around the stigma of mental health (Tue 17 Oct).
For younger audiences and families looking for some fantastic activities during their October school holidays there are craft and storytelling sessions, story walks in the Royal Botanic Garden Garden Edinburgh including Rewilding Cinderella: An Eco-Storytelling Concert (Sun 15 Oct) weaving together stories from all over the world about the ash-child told by the Storytelling Choir which includes storytellers Gauri Raje, Kestrel Morton, Laura Sampson, Wendy Shearer, Joanna Gilar and Fleur Hemmings.
Poetry from Tunde Balogun, music from Heulwen Williams and artistic enchantments by Hannah Battershell; and stories about trees, animals and bugs in Once There Was A Bug (Sun 15 Oct).
Walks through the cobbled streets of Edinburgh with Macastory (Sat 21 Oct) where the characters of Deacon Brodie and Aggie the Fish Wife come to life; the Egyptian tale of Isis and Osiris (Sat 14 Oct) is retold by Fergus McNicol with belly dancing from Moyra Banks; and a Kamishibai Workshop (Thu 19 Oct) with renowned storyteller, harpist and Urasenke Japanese Tea Master Mio Shudo.
At the end of the day, as darkness begins to fall, audiences can gather at the Netherbow Theatre for a relaxed evening of stories and music in our Open Hearth sessions featuring storytellers and musicians from around the world (Fri 13, Wed 24 & Sun 29 Oct).
Plus, there are special events including Anna Conomos-Wedlock’s The Promise, where stories inspired by the oral testimonies of Asia Minor refugees, draw on the meaning of homeland, displacement, memory and friendship, with music and song by Rebecca Vučetić (Fri 27 Oct); The Displaced Heart (Mon 23 Oct) an exquisite storytelling and music performance, combining English, Punjabi, and Irish songs accompanied by guitar and sitar; and Songs & Stories of the Fianna (Fri 20 Oct) supported by Bòrd na Gàidhlig’s Colmcille fund; and two events presented by Deaf Action and originally performed at Edinburgh Deaf Festival earlier this year: Visual Fun With Sports (Sat 21 Oct) by Petre Dobre & Craig McCulloch and Red Aphrodite (Thu 19 Oct) by Amy Murray.
Our popular online workshop strand Global Lab returns this year and during Week One (16-19 Oct) the festival will look at our planet’s eco-system and how ecological passion drives twenty-first century storytelling.
In association with Earth Charter International each day Festival Director Donald Smith will invite storytellers from all corners of our planet to perform stories of human messiness, healing, hope and connections with nature.
In Week Two the workshop theme is Shared Lives (23-26 Oct) and our focus returns to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the importance of valuing dignity, respect, equality and compassion in our lives.
Go Local also returns this year, with new voices from more regions in Scotland including North and South Lanarkshire coming together to share stories and songs. From Shetland to Dumfries and Galloway, there will be tales of battles, adventure, love and friendship shared by the fireside through October and November, with many of the festival’s commissions also going on tour.
Alongside these events, this year’s Festival Exhibition hosted at the Scottish Storytelling Centre will be TALK – a series of portraits taken by Edinburgh-based photographer Graham Williams, exploring the subject of men’s mental health as part of the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival .
Looking ahead to this year’s event, Scottish International Storytelling Festival Director, Donald Smith said: “All over the world human and environmental rights are under threat. But against that there is an activist and creative tide building towards a different future.
“The Storytelling Festival is part of that wave.”
Minister for Culture Christina McKelvie said:“Right to be Human is inspired by the 75th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and could not be more timely.
“During the coming parliamentary year, the Scottish Government will introduce an ambitious new Human Rights Bill for Scotland. This will be a significant milestone in Scotland’s human rights journey, building on past work to embed a human rights culture across Scotland.
“This year’s Scottish International Storytelling Festival, supported by £120,000 of Scottish Government Festivals Expo funding, celebrates and explores all aspects of our common humanity in a challenging world.”
Catriona Hawksworth, Traditional Arts Officer at Creative Scotland, said: “Telling stories is part of being human and why events like the Scottish International Storytelling Festival are so important.
“The ‘Right To Be Human’ project in particular, supported by the Scottish Government’s Festivals EXPO fund, provides opportunities for Scottish storytellers to present their work on an internationally recognised platform, reflecting human rights issues and the human experience across the world and increasing their national and international reach.
“Including podcasts, music, children’s stories, Scots language, global voices and Greek myth – the festival has something for everyone to recognise and enjoy.”
The Scottish International Storytelling Festival will take place Friday 13 – Sunday 29 October.
Tickets to each event cost a maximum of £10, with family events costing just £5 per ticket. For those planning on attending multiple events, the Festival Pass offers discounted tickets to many live festival events, online and at the Scottish Storytelling Centre, as well as a discount at the Scottish Storytelling Centre’s bookshop and Haggis Box Café.
To purchase tickets and browse the full programme, visit sisf.org.uk.
The programme for this year’s Hidden Door is now live, as we reveal the first details of an ambitious series of original, immersive performances specially designed for our unique venue, plus live music from Porridge Radio, Hot 8 Brass Band, Max Cooper, NiNE8 and Pillow Queens.
We’re transforming the former Scottish Widows office complex on Dalkeith Road for a five-day spectacular more immersive and atmospheric than any Hidden Door so far.
The Complex will host a diverse live music and spoken word programme alongside a collection of visual art from Scotland’s best emerging artists. Hidden Door 2023 runs from Wednesday 31 May to Sunday 4 June.
ENVIRONMENTS
Responding to the vast interior spaces, Hidden Door presents a series of Environments for the audience to explore as they venture deeper into the former office building. Featuring live music, dance, film projections, set design and even opera, each Environment brings together some of the most visionary emerging artists to talk about our natural world in a unique and imaginative way.The Environments will create an immersive journey – responding to the world around us and the impact we’ve had on it – and inviting the audiences to explore The Complex, with several surprises along the way.
An eclectic mix of bands will be filling three performance spaces this year, offering almost every genre of music you can imagine.Indie rock band Porridge Radio, Grammy-winning Hot 8 Brass Band, electronica and techno producer Max Cooper, radical pop collective NiNE8, and Irish rock band Pillow Queens will take to the Cabaret Stage.Also performing in the former canteen will be post-punk outfit Pozi, doom jazz trio AKU!, jazz collective Corto.alto, alt-pop singer Berta Kennedy, Edinburgh band Dinosaur 94, and post-punk electronica Sweaty Palms.The Cabaret Stage will culminate each night with a party featuring the likes of brass band Blue Giant Orkestar, sax and drums duo O., and utopian synth duo Free Love.Down in the Loading Bay stage, indie band DEADLETTER, rap artist Bemz and alt musician Rozi Plain will entertain audiences. Over the five days, they’ll be joined by indie band Wombo, American rock band Flasher, hip hop artist Billy Got Waves, rapper and singer Jelani Blackman and outsider pop outfit The Microband.In the Club Space, music label Paradise Palms, Afro-Latin club night Samedia Shebeen and women and non-binary DJ collectives Sisu and EPiKA will each host residencies showcasing their roster of talent and keeping the tunes coming until closing time.
On display inside The Complex will be visual art from a wide range of artists practising in Scotland, much of which will explore the same issues as the Environments.A series of interactive installation pieces from Becky Hunter, Chell Young, Elvey Stedman, Evie Rose Thornton, Kirsten Millar, Scott Hunter, and Soorin Shin will explore ideas of climate change and industry.Also on display will be photography from Emily Nicholl, abstract art from Iain H Williams, industrial art from James Sinfield, an installation from Jo Fleming Smith, object art from Joan Smith, textile art from Laura Lees, etchings from Madeline Mackay, found billboards from Martin Elden, ice-inspired hangings from Mary Walters, ink drawings from Natasha Russell, sculpture from Ross Andrew Spencer, paintings from Ryan Cairns, and sculpture from Tim Taylor.Work from recent art school graduates Aimee Finlay, Alice Sherlock, Amy Kim Grogan, Ben Caro and Kat Culter-MacKenzie, Ciaran Cannon, Coire Simpson, Dhira Chakraborty, Irene Aldazabal, Leah Wood, Sarah Phelan and Shae Myles will also be on display.
This year’s poetry and spoken word programme will showcase a diverse group of new and developing performers from across Scotland and beyond.On the first day of the festival, writer, poet and researcher Caitlin Stobie will share her writing, and Clare O’Brien will present her work inspired by the natural world and the creatures that wander through it. Queer writer and spoken word poet Gray Crosbie makes their return to Hidden Door, as does Sean Wai Keung presenting his reflections on identity and migration.Thursday 1 June sees poet and performance maker Bibi June present post-apocalyptic stories on climate change, while actor and poet Rupert Smith takes inspiration from Shakespeare into his work. Jay Whittaker will perform her irreverent, unsentimental poems looking at mortality, illness and loss.On Friday 2 June, Irish poet Éadaoín Lynch will perform from their debut poetry pamphlet, and Genevieve Carver will present her work in response to dolphins, porpoises and seals. British-Sudanese lyricist and performance poet Zaki El-Salahi will take to the stage to perform their work rooted in rap, dub poetry and the role of MC culture in grassroots black British consciousness. Sal will perform her work entangling trans and chronically ill experiences with organic processes of decay and birth.Saturday sees queer Latinx writer Andrés N Ordorica share his writing on the diasporic experience, and Ross McCleary performs his piece advocating for refilling of the Nor Loch. Edinburgh-based US poet Allie Kerper will also perform.The last day of Hidden Door will have performances from Scottish-Canadian poet Patrick James Errington, and Glasgow’s Oliver Robertson. Janette Ayachi will share her musings on searching landscapes and human connection, and Elspeth Wilson will celebrate joy from a marginalised perspective.
The Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival 2025 programme is now live!
Discover the full programme and book tickets at 
