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Entertainment
Guide to Entertainment, Events and Nightlife in Edinburgh

Though a relatively small city, Edinburgh boasts a wide range of entertainment and cultural activities, from staged ceilidhs (traditional parties) to concerts featuring world-class performers. Check Edinburgh's listings magazine, The List for more information.

Music

Classical
Edinburgh's main venues for classical performances are the Usher Hall, Lothian Road, (Tel: +44 (0)131-228-1155) and St Cecilia's Hall (Tel: +44 (0)131-650-2805) on the corner of Cowgate and Niddry Street.

Contemporary
If you're looking for more modern sounds several clubs put on live music some nights of the week. These include Café Graffiti, Mansfield Place (Tel: +44 (0)131-557-8003), in the basement of a church, and The Queen's Hall, 37 Clerk Street (Tel: +44 (0)131-668-2019), where mid sized bands come to play. Studio 24 (24 Calton Rd) is a good place to drop in and see some local up and coming combos as well as more established acts.

There are also literally hundreds of venues squirreled away in the back of cafés, restaurants and bars - just look at a Festival programme for proof. At other times check the imaginatively titled The List, for listings of performances and venues - you'll never be short of something to see.

Theatre

The Festival Theatre in Nicolson Street is a rebuilt former music hall seating 200 (Box Office Tel: +44 (0)131-529-6000) and is a good place for everything from contemporary theatre to the classics. Not far away at 43 High Street is the Netherbow Arts Centre (Tel: +44 (0)131-556-9579) where performances range from contemporary drama to puppet shows.

The King's Theatre at 2 Leven Street (Box Office Tel: +44 (0)131-529-6000) offers mainstream plays while The Traverse Theatre is Edinburgh's leading venue for experimental drama (Tel: +44 (0)131-228-1404).

The Royal Lyceum on Grindlay Street (Tel: +44 (0)131-248-4848) is Scotland's premier production theatre and where you'll catch the most lavish (and expensive) productions in the city including Shakespeare and other classics.

Comedy

Edinburgh's Fringe is the UK's largest and most highly respected comedy festival. During the Fringe - most of August of each year - literally hundreds of venues spring up around the capital. At other times there are several clubs that keep the laughs coming all year round with both local and international comedians regular players:

The Gilded Balloon
25 Greenside Place
Tel: +44 (0)131-668-1633
Regular performances from the stars of the comedy circuit as well as open mike events make the Gilded Balloon a popular comedy venue in the heart of the city. The Gilded Balloon II festival venue can be found in the Teviot Row Students Union building near the university complex in old town.

The Stand
5 York Place
Tel: +44 (0)131-558-7272
Often cited as the venue that put Edinburgh comedy on the map, The Stand still attracts comedy lovers with its regular performances from the Edinburgh circuit.

Cinema

Multi-screen cinemas can be found all over Edinburgh. The largest ones are on Lothian Road and Clerk St. The Filmhouse at 88 Lothian Road (Tel: +44 (0)131-228-2688) and The Cameo at 38 Home Street (Tel: +44 (0)131-228-4141) show independent movies. The latter is a particularly popular place with students and film buffs, and it's worth mentioning that you can get a beer and take it into the auditorium here.

Nightclubs

There is an abundance of clubs in Edinburgh and they range from the downright dingy to international standard. The locals like to party late - the city has a more continental outlook on life than many of its English counterparts and this is reflected in the flexible opening hours. Partly spurred on by the large student population, clubbing is an every night activity in the city too, so you don't have to wait until the weekend to let your hair down. Check The List for details, or get yourself along to one of the following venues:

The Venue
15-21 Calton Road
Tel: +44 (0)131-557-3073
The biggest club nights in the city are still at The Venue, so expect to see some of the biggest-name DJs doing their thing. Friday night's Pure has become an Edinburgh institution.

Studio 24
24 Calton Road
Tel: +44 (0)131-558-3758
Popular Studio 24 hosts various different club nights playing mainly techno, house and drum'n'bass.

Honeycomb
15-17 Niddrie St
Tel: +44 (0)131-556-2442
Superb club often packed to the rafters with revellers enjoying drum'n'bass, dance and whatever else is spinning on the turntable.

Ego
14 Picardy Place
Tel: +44 (0)131-478-7434
One of the top gay venues in town attracting a trendy crowd. Plays a mix of mainstream and house music to enthusiastic partygoers.

Sport

Edinburgh has two Scottish Premier League football teams - Hearts, who play at Tynecastle Stadium, Georgie Road, and Hibernian, who play at Easter Road. Rivalry is fierce although Hibs have had the edge in recent years.

If you're around the city in the winter you might be lucky enough to catch some Rugby Union as well. The Scottish national team play at the Murrayfield Stadium in the city, and a programme of friendlies and competitive matches fills the winter months. Best of all is the annual Six Nations competition, which starts in February. The national sides of Scotland, England, Wales, Ireland, France and Italy all compete, with the Grand Slam, when a team defeats every other nation, the ultimate (and rarest) prize. Tickets are hard to come by, and, if Scotland are playing the old enemy England, it is nigh on impossible to get one. Telephone the stadium on Tel: +44 (0)131-346-5000 for details on obtaining tickets for any Scottish international match. National ticket networks also provide tickets.

The city has a number of golf courses, including those at the Braid Hills (Tel: +44 (0)131-447-6666) and at Silverknowes (Tel: +44 (0)131-336-5359). The area surrounding the city is also popular with anglers in season.

Special Events

December/January
The time when Scots really let their hair down is at New Year - known as Hogmanay. Celebrations usually begin at home and progress to the house of a friend or relative in a ceremony called "First-footing". Traditionally you enter by the backdoor carrying gifts of coal (to ensure the house will always be safe and warm) and shortbread (to ensure the hosts will never go hungry). Hogmanay celebrations in Edinburgh are renowned and attract over 100,000 partygoers. The four-day programme includes fireworks, street theatre, a fire festival and torchlight procession.

February
The Six Nations Rugby Union competition kicks off, and Edinburgh comes to life as supporters of the Scottish national team descend on the city. A home match is played every two weeks or so, but even if the team is playing away the pubs are packed out with flagwaving fans wearing the national shirt and singing "Flower of Scotland". If you know a bit about the game it's a fabulous occasion, but even the uninitiated can enjoy the atmosphere. Edinburgh hosts each nation biannually and it is interesting to see the contrasting relationships, particularly the sociable welcome afforded the Irish against the white-hot rivalry between the English and the Scots.

April
Don't miss the Edinburgh International Science Festival. Take part in activities, science workshops and visit exhibitions and shows across the city. Held every year on April 30 Beltane is a pagan festival designed to welcome the coming of the new summer. Edinburgh's Beltane ceremony includes a torchlight procession and display of drums and fireworks on Calton Hill overlooking the city. Since being first held in the 1980s the event is steadily becoming more established on Edinburgh's calendar of events and attracts an ever-increasing amount of spectators. The Beltane Fire Society will provide details. Tel: +44 (0)131-228-5353.

August
If you are coming to Edinburgh during the summer, then August is certainly the month to visit. Edinburgh's International Jazz and Blues Festival, kicks off the season, with some of the biggest names in Jazz and Blues performing at venues across the city. The Edinburgh Festival Cavalcade signals the start of the festival season proper. Enjoy a day of celebrations, including street parades and live music from over 30 bands.

The highlight of Edinburgh's thriving cultural and entertainment scene is the Edinburgh Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe, which bring swarms of visitors to the city. The Festival, usually held over the last three weeks in August, includes international theatre, dance, opera and classical music. The all-encompassing Fringe, which begins and ends a week earlier than the Festival, is a quite different concept, spread out over more than 200 venues throughout the city and ranging from avant-garde comedy to anarchic circus. Performances go on round the clock, and there's no vetting of acts so anything goes. The streets are packed out with revellers and performers alike, all having a ball. To get a Festival programme, contact The Edinburgh International Festival, 21 Market Street, Edinburgh EH1 1BW. Tel: +44 (0)131-473-2001. The Fringe office is at 180 High Street, Edinburgh EH1 1QS. Tel: +44 (0)131-226-0026.

Taking place at the same time is the Edinburgh Tattoo - with lots of bagpipe blowing and swirling kilts as various regiments of military personnel march around Edinburgh Castle Esplanade. Contact the Tattoo Office, 32 Market Street Edinburgh. Tel: +44 (0)870-755-5118.

 

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