The Edinburgh People's Festival is an arts festival and labour festival in Edinburgh, Scotland which is intended as a celebration of indigenous talent and cultural entertainment at venues across the city, especially in the outer schemes, at prices everyone can afford. It is inspired by the 1945 Labour Government which established the Edinburgh Festival to be a celebration of the arts 'for the people, by the people'.
The festival was re-established in 2002 by Colin Fox, who was later elected to parliament as a Lothian MSP, in reaction to high ticket prices at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the lack of events away from the city centre. [1] It was initially organised by the Scottish Socialist Party, trade unions and local artists. [2]
It carries on the tradition of the original Edinburgh People's Festival 1951–54 and acknowledges the cultural contribution made by Hamish Henderson, Ewan MacColl, Joan Littlewood, Norman Buchan and Joe Corrie.
Since 2002 the People's Festival has presented shows in Saughton Prison, [3] Edinburgh's Royal Infirmary, the Scottish Parliament, The Stand Comedy Club, Woodburn Miners Welfare, the BMC Club in Gorgie, Artspace in Craigmillar and the North Edinburgh Arts Centre as well as community centres in the North, South, East and West of the city.
The People's Festival's award-winning exhibition was constructed by the inmates of Saughton Prison, tells the story of the organisation from its origins in 1951 to the present day and was the centrepiece of last year's Radical Book Fair.[ when? ]
The 2009 August programme included the Hamish Henderson Memorial lecture, the launch of a book, What Robert Burns means to me to celebrate the poet's 250th anniversary, a walking tour of 'Radical Edinburgh', a concert Songs of the People, and a tour of Rebus's Edinburgh endorsed by Ian Rankin. [4]
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. The city is located in south-east Scotland, and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth estuary and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh had a population of 506,520 in mid-2020, making it the second-most populous city in Scotland and the seventh-most populous in the United Kingdom.
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjacent islands, principally in the archipelagos of the Hebrides and the Northern Isles. To the south-east, Scotland has its only land border, which is 96 miles (154 km) long and shared with England; the country is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, the North Sea to the north-east and east, and the Irish Sea to the south. The population in 2022 was 5,436,600 and accounts for 8% of the population of the UK. Edinburgh is the capital and Glasgow is the largest of the cities of Scotland.
Glasgow is the most populous city in Scotland, the third-most populous city in the United Kingdom, and the 27th-most populous city in Europe. In 2022, it had an estimated population as a defined locality of 632,350 and anchored an urban settlement of 1,028,220. Formed as a county of itself in 1893, the city had previously been in the historic county of Lanarkshire and has also grown to include settlements that were once part of Renfrewshire and Dunbartonshire. It now forms the Glasgow City Council area, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and is administered by Glasgow City Council.
(James) Hamish Scott Henderson was a Scottish poet, songwriter, communist, intellectual and soldier. He was a catalyst for the folk revival in Scotland. He was also an accomplished folk song collector and discovered such notable performers as Jeannie Robertson, Flora MacNeil and Calum Johnston. Born in Blairgowrie, Perthshire on the first Armistice Day 11 November 1919, to a single mother, Janet Henderson, a Queen's Nurse who had served in France, and was then working in the war hospital at Blair Castle. His name was recorded at registration as James but he preferred the Scots form Hamish.
Edinburgh Trams is a tramway in Edinburgh, Scotland, operated by Edinburgh Trams Ltd. It is an 18.5-kilometre (11.5 mi) line between Newhaven and Edinburgh Airport, with 23 stops.
The Edinburgh International Book Festival (EIBF) is a book festival that takes place in the last three weeks of August every year in Charlotte Square in the centre of Scotland's capital city, Edinburgh. Billed as The largest festival of its kind in the world, the festival hosts a concentrated flurry of cultural and political talks and debates, along with its well-established children's events programme.
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HMP Edinburgh is located in the west of Edinburgh on the main A71, in an area now known as Stenhouse, and, although never named as such, has commonly been known as Saughton Prison from the old name for the general area. The prison is situated on the edge of a predominantly residential area and has good transport and road links to the city centre, which provides good access both for local courts and prison visitors. The building of the prison began on 31 July 1914 with the first prisoner being received in 1919. The prison consists of four halls: Glenesk, Hermiston, Ingliston and Ratho.
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Flora MacNeil, MBE was a Scottish Gaelic Traditional singer. MacNeil gained prominence after meeting Alan Lomax and Hamish Henderson during the early 1950s, and continued to perform into her later years.
Events from the year 2002 in Scotland.
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