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Scotsman
an hour ago
- Politics
- Scotsman
Edinburgh councillor raises Granton travellers site concerns in letter to Scottish Government minister
An Edinburgh councillor has written to a Scottish Government Minister regarding the illegal travellers site in the north of the city, after reading about the issue in the Evening News. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Conservative councillor Christopher Cowdy wrote a letter on Wednesday, August 6, to Ivan McKee MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Public Finance and Local Government, highlighting the ongoing illegal travellers' site on Scottish Government land in Granton. Locals living near the site between West Granton Road and Waterfront Avenue have expressed anger at littering, fly-tipping and fires there. Councillor Christopher Cowdy outside the illegal travellers site in Granton. Although he represents the Fountainbridge/ Craiglockhart council ward, Cllr Cowdy is the Scottish Conservative Candidate for Edinburgh Northern. | Submitted Cllr Cowdy questioned why travellers are often quickly removed by the council from other illegal sites in the city, while this large group of travellers remains on land which is earmarked for a state-of-the-art home for Scotland's national collection of 130,000 artworks, The Art Works, as part of the wider Granton Waterfront development. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad He questioned Scottish Ministers 'who appear to be complicit in allowing the unauthorised encampment'. In his letter, Cllr Cowdy added: 'If a potential sanction against anti-social behaviour is not realistic, it is likely to continue so please can you confirm what steps Scottish Ministers have taken to secure the site and remove the trespassers? 'If none, what immediate steps will you take so all the occupiers know eviction is a realistic outcome and serious reason for them to behave in a social and responsible manner?' The Scottish Government has said it is working with the City of Edinburgh Council to 'resolve the situation as quickly as possible'. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad A wider shot of the illegal travellers site at Granton, with travellers sited there since 2019 joined by a larger group around a year and a half ago. | Submitted Although he represents the Fountainbridge/ Craiglockhart council ward, Cllr Cowdy is the Scottish Conservative candidate in next year's Scottish Parliament elections for Edinburgh Northern, which includes this illegal travellers site in Granton, and he has been speaking to locals about this issue. Speaking to the Evening News, he said: 'I wrote the letter because I read your articles, which really highlighted the issue. And I've seen other Evening News articles about travellers being moved on from other sites in the city. 'Locals got in touch with me about the site at Granton so I went down and had a look, there was a lot of littering and fly-tipping, and I was approached by pre-teen kids on quad bikes. 'I also spoke to more locals in the area who told me their concerns about the travellers remaining there. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'I then started doing some research and emailed council officers asking about what the policy is and what they are doing about it. I then discovered that as it is on Scottish Government land, it limits what the police and council can do. 'I have had a lot of support from residents on Facebook for writing to the Minister about this issue. I want to find out if the Scottish Government are doing anything, and I hope to focus their minds on the issue.' Two photos of recent fires at the travellers site in Granton, taken by locals. | Submitted Cllr Cowdy said he has also written to City of Edinburgh Council officers about a possible permanent legal travellers camp in Edinburgh, and he hopes to raise it at the next full council meeting on August 28. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad He added: 'I want to spark a debate about the future of council-managed travellers sites in Edinburgh. That will obviously take years to make a difference, in the meantime we have this constant annual problem with travellers in Edinburgh and we need to do something about it.' A Scottish Government spokesperson said: 'The Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture met with the Chief Executive of the City of Edinburgh Council last week regarding the land. 'They agreed that the issue needs a suitable and sustainable solution and the Scottish Government is working closely with the council with the intention of resolving the situation as quickly as possible.'
Scotsman
2 days ago
- Scotsman
Edinburgh retro: 18 black and white photos old train stations and railway lines
The advent of the railways brought new opportunities to visit other places, be reunited with old friends, enjoy holidays and day trips. It encouraged tourism and boosted the economy. Sadly in the 1960s there was a decline in the railways and many stations closed - a trend which has been partially reversed in recent years with the opening of new lines and stations. Here are some evocative pictures selected from the Evening News archive which recall the past of the railways in an around the Capital. The photos include shots of stations on Edinburgh's South Suburban line as well as stops on the route from Edinburgh through the Borders. The exhibition, "Scots on the Move: Railways and Tourism in Victorian Scotland" is free to visit in the Adam Dome at General Register House on Princes Street, opposite Waverley station. It runs until September 26 and is open from 9am until 4pm on weekdays, with late opening until 6:30pm on August 21. 1 . Kingsknowe railway station A diesel train at Kingsknowe railway station in March 1970. Photo: Stan Warburton Photo Sales 2 . Portobello railway station Portobello railway station in August 1964 Photo: Crauford Tait Photo Sales 3 . Borders railway line A disused overbridge on the Roslin to Glencorse route, part of the Borders railway line in November 1970. Photo: TSPL Photo Sales 4 . North Berwick railway station A diesel train stops at North Berwick railway station in November 1970. Photo: Jack Crombie Photo Sales Related topics: EdinburghBordersTrains
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Scotsman
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Oasis fans at Murrayfield left furious after having to abandon bar queues after waiting for an hour
Oasis fans were forced to abandon bar queues at Murrayfield after waiting for up to an hour for drinks or risk missing their favourite hits. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Thousands of fans were stuck in slow-moving queues at bars in Murrayfield Stadium last night (August 8), as Edinburgh geared up for the first of three Oasis concerts in the city. Some were forced to wait more than an hour for a few pints, with many having had to walk away from the queues to make it back to their seats in time to see the Manchester band's big return to the stage. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad A video taken at the front of a queue showed bar staff having to take time to pour cans of Tennent's into pint glasses. Scott McGachan, who missed Richard Ashcroft's set while he was waiting for drinks, said: 'In Scotland, this is how we do bars at the biggest gig of the decade, at a national stadium, in the capital city, at a rock n roll show on a Friday night. It's a shambles. Oasis fans were left waiting for over an hour for drinks at the first Murrayfield gig on Friday | Scott McGachan 'Myself and everyone in the queues around me missed Richard Ashcroft's entire set. The organisers have clearly chose this model because it maximises what they can make at the bar charging £8 for a can of warm lager, instead of paying to bring in facilities that can pour multiple draft pints at a time, with zero consideration of the impact that has on the customer. Bar staff worked really hard in a challenging environment. Not their fault.' Speaking to the Evening News, another irate fan said: 'I arrived at Murrayfield well before Richard Ashcroft took to the stage and I joined one of the many queues for drinks thinking we had plenty of time. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'But 20 or so minutes passed and the queue had barely moved. To be honest it was at a standstill. It was clear that there was a serious problem with whatever system was in place. It was a maximum of four drinks per person but it seemed to be taking ages for each person to be served. 'I ended up abandoning the queue after 40 minutes because Bittersweet Symphony came on and I knew it wasn't worth missing.' And the queues didn't let up even when the Gallagher brothers were on the stage. One fan, who left during Oasis' set in an attempt to buy a drink, said: 'I went out to the bar thinking it'd be much quieter during the show but obviously a lot of people had had the same idea. It really was terrible. I ended up drinking water for the whole night because waiting in the bar queues just wasn't an option.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Last night saw Oasis take to the stage at Murrayfield Stadium for the first of three sold-out shows. Approximately 70,000 fans are set to return to the stadium tonight (August 9) and on August 12 for the Britpop legends' reunion gigs. Launching a scathing attack on Edinburgh council at the band's first gig in the city, Liam Gallagher said he was 'still waiting for an apology' from the authority after claims that fans of the band were old, overweight and 'rowdy'. Murrayfield has been approached for comment.
Scotsman
28-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Hundreds of people gather on Edinburgh's Calton Hill to watch man fold bed sheet
Hundreds of people gathered on Calton Hill on Friday night to watch a comedian fold a fitted sheet beside the National Monument of Scotland. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The unusual event was a promo for New Zealand stand-up Dan Boerman ahead of his upcoming Fringe show – a move the 31-year-old said was the 'the craziest marketing stunt of my career' adding 'if you don't have rich parents or thousands of dollars for PR, sometimes you just have to think outside the box'. After advertising the unique spectacle with posters around the city, a considerable number of people visited the Edinburgh beauty spot on July 25, curious to see how the situation would unfold. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Dan Boerman captivated his audience at Calton Hill in Edinburgh on Friday night | NW Arriving at Calton Hill for 6pm, hundreds of visitors formed a circle at the top of the hill before the Kiwi comedian made his entrance to thunderous applause. It is the second time Boerman has drawn large crowds to witness the unique performance, with the sell-out comedian performing the same stunt in Wellington in early April. ` Speaking to the Evening News, Dan said: 'This was certainly a bigger crowd than Wellington, probably double the size. But I'm just really stoked that people were on board with what I was doing. 'It's a really beautiful spot, when I put out the flyers for this I hadn't actually been up Calton Hill, so when I got here I thought what a backdrop for a thousand people to sit around, have a laugh and cheer someone on for nothing.' Hundreds of people gathered to watch the unusual event on Calton Hill on Friday, July 25 | NW Dan, who moved to Edinburgh in December last year, will perform his show at the Apex Grassmarket Hotel (Venue 108) from August 1 to 25 following a sell-out 2024 Edinburgh debut. Titled, Dan Boerman Folds a Fitted Sheet on His Own, the hour-long stand-up routine is inspired by Dan's experience following the end of a long-term relationship and navigating life . Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Dan said: 'I dreamt up the idea for my solo hour about a year ago. Folding a fitted sheet is a quintessential millennial struggle - no one really knows how to do it but it's something that everyone struggles with. The show is an hour looking at the other side of a relationships and navigating life on your own I suppose. The New Zealand comic's show, Dan Boerman Folds a Fitted Sheet on His Own, will run at the Grassmarket during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe | NW 'I'm not the first straight man to do a Fringe show saying 'hey I had a partner, now I don't, and now I'm on the apps - that's been done before and I think people have grown tired of seeing that. 'I like to think my show is a refreshing take on navigating life as a single straight man. It's high energy, chaotic, relatable, observational, it's Kiwi, and I don't get too preachy. But I'm really pleased with the show and proud of the writing that's gone into it.' Dan Boerman Folds a Fitted Sheet on His Own, runs from August 1 to 25 at Hoot 3 at Hoots @ The Apex.
Scotsman
27-07-2025
- Automotive
- Scotsman
Edinburgh's roads and traffic in the 1950s and 1960s: 25 nostalgic pictures of how it looked in the days before 4x4s, SUVs and electric vehicles
It seems strange now to see Princes Street with cars on it rater than just buses, trams and taxis. Other roads have also changed since these black and white pictures were taken. There was less traffic around. And, of course, the cars are very different too - these were the days of the Mini, Ford Anglias and Morris Minors. Take a look at this selection of photographs from the Evening News archive and step back into the Edinburgh of the 1950s and 1960s. 1 . Princes Street A busy Princes Street on Easter Monday 1969 | TSPL Photo: Crauford Tait Photo Sales 2 . Canonmills Service Station Canonmills Service Station with a five minute car wash in 1964. | TSPL Photo: TSPL Photo Sales 3 . Shandwick Place Traffic in Shandwick Place, Edinburgh, on Easter Monday 1969. | TSPL Photo: Crauford Tait Photo Sales 4 . Needing a push A three-wheeler needs a push up Holyrood Road in Edinburgh during the snow showers of February 1969. | TSPL Photo: Crauford Tait Photo Sales Related topics: EdinburghCarsTraffic
