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Edinburgh Live
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Live
The eccentric Edinburgh character 'Monkey Mary' who had a story to tell
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Edinburgh is no stranger to an odd character or two, and a firm local favourite over the years was Mary Dunlop and her animals. Mary lived in the Grassmarket, and entertained children in the city with mechanical barrel organ - pulled by her beloved pony, Smokey. If that doesn't sell you, she was also known to be accompanied by a real capuchin monkey who was along for the ride. The trio wowed locals with their musical interludes, and were often seen outside the St Giles' Cathedral. In post-war Edinburgh, Mary and her pals were a common sight in the '40s, '50s and '60s. READ MORE - The Edinburgh Wetherspoon pub ranked one of the best in the UK - with glowing reviews READ MORE - Vegan family issue 'last warning' to neighbours after BBQ request is ignored Mary became such an iconic figure in the city that a memorial plaque was laid for her in Rutland Square. While she was still alive, the barrel organ needed to be fixed - with a local club fundraising for the repairs so that her tunes could continue to entertain. After Mary passed away in 1966, Smokey was taken in by the SSPCA to a centre in Balerno. Their barrel organ can be seen today in the Museum of Childhood on the Royal Mile. Edinburgh World Heritage said: "Throughout the 1940s, 50s and 60s Mary Dunlop was a well-known West End character, along with her white pony 'Smoky' pulling her barrel organ on a small cart. "She brought music to the doorstep of many residents in the streets, and was especially loved by local children who nicknamed her 'Monkey Mary'. In 1958 a major overhaul of the barrel organ was needed, and a group of West Enders clubbed together to fund its repair. "When Mary died in 1966 Smokey went into retirement in an SSPCA centre in Balerno. Mary's barrel organ can still be seen today in the Museum of Childhood." After sharing her story on social media, Edinburgh World Heritage saw dozens of comments with locals remembering Mary. Bill Harris commented: "I remember her well into the early '50s, around where we used to stay." Join Edinburgh Live's Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages. Mairghread Ellis added: "I remember when she was an old lady. She used to be outside my old school in Queen Street, with a white pony." Morag Small said: "She used to play in Queen Street, outside my school. Teachers would get raging." Lizzie McDougall commented: "Oh the barrel organ lady! I loved her. "She used to come round with her pony, who I adored." The image of Mary Dunlop was provided by the Living Memory Association. They are a free, drop-in museum with sessions open to visitors fortnightly on Tuesdays at 1pm and weekly on Thursdays at 11am.
Telegraph
12-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Making Egypt, Young V&A: an exhibition for children that they will actually want to see
How do you create an exhibition geared specifically for children? This is the question that preoccupies curators at east London's Young V&A, where the second temporary exhibition since the 2023 revamp of the former Museum of Childhood opens this week, on the theme of ancient Egypt. Since the show's target audience is eight- to 12-year-olds, and I have a couple of those at home, I decided to bring along my children for a preview. 'If only,' messaged a friend, upon hearing of my plan, as I doled out notebooks and biros, and briefed the girls to deliver a verdict fit for a national newspaper, 'you could always get them to do your work.' With more than 200 exhibits – some thousands of years old (and mostly amulet-sized), but many modern (including a Lego set of the Great Pyramid and a chic 1920s beaded lamé evening jacket) – Making Egypt is about 'creativity' as much as ancient history. You might expect an exhibition on this subject for kids to go big on, say, the grisly processes of mummification (brain tissue was removed via the nostrils – ew!). But, while it does contain a sarcophagus, as well as beautifully painted fragments of cartonnage (plaster-covered linen wrappings from coffins), this show – the mise-en-scène of which, in the opening section, ingeniously summons an atmosphere of sunny ease beside the Nile – shifts the emphasis from death and the afterlife to ancient Egyptian art and design, which, it argues, still inspires artists, couturiers, and filmmakers. That inner sarcophagus of Princess Sopdet-em-haawt is used to tell a story about writing. There's no timeline or historical overview, and only one overarching genealogy of the gods (in cartoon form); instead, the curators provide fun, themed displays about, say, the animals of the Nile (including hippos and crocodiles, which the Egyptians worshipped), or the significance of various deities' bestial attributes. Interactive games encourage children to learn about hieroglyphs (although it's brave to include a grammar lesson on 'determinatives', which scrambled my adult brain). My nine-year-old's response when invited to guess what the hieroglyph for a tree could represent? 'Um, is it a willy?' Sigh. The curators, though, understand what tone best appeals to children, and accordingly pepper the labels with punning subheadings and jokey asides; while, for me, these quips induced much groaning, my eldest approved. Both girls were struck by an astonishingly 'pretty' and contemporary-looking ancient bracelet of faience daisies, and a stunning blue silk-and-satin gown from 2022, by Maison Farah Wali, with a resplendent beaded bodice inspired by Horus, the falcon-headed god. With an area for reading storybooks, and a couple of zones where children can draw, there's plenty to keep young visitors occupied. Although my five-year-old son seemed to be most taken by a big screen playing clips from the video game Minecraft (which, I fear, may reflect badly on his parents), and soon got a little antsy, the girls, I'm happy to report, were engrossed for the best part of an hour. Making history palatable for schoolchildren isn't easy – but all the work that's gone into this imaginative, effective show pays off. From Feb 15; information:
