AROUND TOWN | Museums & Attractions
■ DEEP SEA WORLD Battery Quarry, North Queensferry, 01383 411880, deepseaworld.com. Mon– Fri 10am–5pm; Sat & Sun 10am–6pm (last entry one hour before closing). £13 (£11; under 13s £9; under 3s free; family £38–£42). From seals to piranhas, this marine life centre has a petting area and underwater tunnel so you can get to grips with the deep. Approximately a 20-minute drive from Edinburgh.
■ EDINBURGH CASTLE AND NATIONAL WAR MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND Castlehill, 225 9846 (info)/ 668 8081 (bookings), edinburghcastle.gov.uk/nms. ac.uk/war. Daily 9.30am–6pm until Mon 30 Sept; from Tue 1 Oct 9.30am–5pm. £16 (£12.80; children £9.60; under 5s free). Perhaps Edinburgh’s most visible landmark, the castle perches on top of a rocky outcrop at the head of the Royal Mile, and includes ceremonial rooms, fortifications, dungeons and Scotland’s Honours or crown jewels. Inside, the National War Museum delves into the past 400 years of the country’s military history. Arctic Convoys Until Mar 2014. A look at the merchant and military ships that sailed the Arctic during WWII and the thousands of seamen who endured life on board.
■ THE EDINBURGH DUNGEON 31 Market Street, 240 1001 (info) / 0871 423 2250 (bookings), thedungeons. com. Daily 10am–5pm. £10.95–£16.20 (£10.50–£15; under 16s £9.50–£12). A grizzly look into historical Edinburgh, with actor-led tours and rides, just above Waverley Station. With special opening hours around Halloween. ■ EDINBURGH ZOO Corstorphine Road, 334 9171, edinburghzoo.org. Daily 9am–6pm until Mon 30 Sep; from Tue 1 Oct 9am–5pm. £16 (£13.50; under 16s £11.50; under 3s free). Visitors can see the headline- grabbing giant pandas, the famous Penguin Parade and over 1000 other rare and interesting animals and birds at this site three miles west of the city centre.
FREE HOLYROOD PARK Holyrood Park Road, 652 8150, historic-scotland.gov.uk. Open at all times; Holyrood Lodge Information Centre daily 9.30am–3pm. The main entrance to this large royal park, east of the city centre, is flanked by the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament Building. Its main feature is Arthur’s Seat, an 823-foot hill which has a number of smaller peaks and ponds surrounding it.
FREE MUSEUM OF CHILDHOOD 42 High Street, 529 4142, edinburghmuseums.org.uk. Mon–Sat 10am–5pm; Sun noon–5pm. Kids can learn about the toys, clothes and lifestyles of children from the past in this Royal Mile museum. Nostalgia for grown-ups guaranteed.
FREE MUSEUM ON THE MOUND The Mound, 243 5464, museumonthemound.com. Tue–Fri 10am–5pm; Sat & Sun 1–5pm; closed Mon. Hosted inside the Bank of Scotland’s head office, this museum is all about money. Learn how cash has evolved over the past 4000 years or try cracking a safe. ■ NATIONAL MINING MUSEUM SCOTLAND Lady Victoria Colliery, Newtongrange, 663 7519, scottishminingmuseum.com. Daily 10am–4pm. £7.50 (£5.50; children free). Nine miles south of Edinburgh, this museum is one of the best-preserved Victorian collieries in Europe. Learn about a miner’s life by taking a tour. Facing the Past: Telling Scotland’s Story Until Sat 19 Oct. Scotland’s history told through images
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AN EVENING WITH RAY MEARS 1 He’s bringing the outdoors indoors Titled An Evening with Ray Mears: The Outdoor Life, this theatre show / opportunity to flog a few copies of his book, My Outdoor Life, sees this bushcraft and survival technique expert discussing his life in the world’s wildernesses, surviving off the land with only an ITV camera crew to eat if things get really hairy. 2 Your chance to see him in the flesh Mears has cropped up on telly in a procession of hit shows including World of Survival, Extreme Survival, alongside Ewan McGregor in Adventure Special, Northern Wilderness, Wild Britain and the recent Close Encounters. Away from the small screen, Ray’s challenging hobbies have included helping Northumbria Police hunt down gunman Raoul Moat. 3 You’ll find out how to become a bushcraft expert Or how Ray did it, anyway. Raised in the North Downs, he spent his childhood tracking foxes into the forest and improvising his own tents for camping trips because he couldn’t afford a proper one. The lessons of his judo teacher, a man who fought in Burma in World War II, did the rest, passing on to Ray the value of ‘maximum efficiency from minimum effort’. A lesson we can all learn from. 4 He’s a success despite his name Nothing wrong with plain but dependable Ray Mears, you might think. Not when your arch rival’s a guy called Bear Grylls. 5 You’ll learn how to stock an airtight basement room with tinned goods and high calibre firearms You won’t. A survivalist is something else entirely. (David Pollock) ■ King’s Theatre, Edinburgh, Sun 29 Sep.
40 THE LIST 19 Sep–17 Oct 2013
from a graphic novel mixed with real photographs of the objects and people featured in the book.
FREE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND Chambers Street, 0300 123 6789, nms. ac.uk. Daily 10am–5pm. Renovated in 2011, this national beacon of culture has exhibitions on natural history, science and technology, Scottish history, art and design and world cultures in galleries surrounding a beautiful naturally lit atrium space. FREE Mary, Queen of Scots Until Sun 17 Nov. A fresh look at the enigmatic monarch, looking at the drama of her story through personal items, documents and portraits. See caption, page 39. ■ NATIONAL MUSEUMS COLLECTION CENTRE 242 West Granton Road, 247 4770, nms.ac.uk. Visits by appointment only or with occasional tours. Following the redevelopment of the National Museum, two new collection buildings have also been added to the storage and conservation centre at Granton. From vintage motorbikes to whale and dinosaur bones: it’s all there.
royalyachtbritannia.co.uk. Daily 9.30am– 4.30pm until Mon 30 Sep; from Tue 1 Oct 9.30am–4pm. £12 (£10.50; under 18s £7.50; under 5s free; family £35). Take a guided tour of the ornate floating royal residence (and quarters below) and learn about life aboard the yacht, which served the royal family for almost 50 years. ■ SCOTCH WHISKY EXPERIENCE 354 Castlehill, 220 0441, scotchwhiskyexperience.co.uk. Daily 10am–6pm; entry is as part of a tour. Tours £12.75–£52 (£10.25–£26; under 18s £6.50). Learn more about Scotland’s tastiest export with a tour and tasting session. There is also a bar and restaurant if you need a few more drams to help decide which is your favourite.
FREE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT Horse Wynd, 0800 092 7500, scottish. parliament.uk. Opening hours vary according to whether Parliament is in session, see website for details. See Spanish architect Enric Miralles’ magnificent (and controversial) Holyrood building, take a tour of the interior, sit in on a debate or look at the artwork on display. FREE Andrew Carnegie: The Legacy that Changed the
■ OUR DYNAMIC EARTH Holyrood Road, 550 7800, dynamicearth.co.uk. Daily 10am–5.30pm (last entry 4pm). £11.50 (£9.75; under 16s £7.50; under 3s free). Take an interactive journey through the earth’s history. Go to the tundra or bottom of the ocean, never being more than a stone’s throw from the Scottish Parliament and Arthur’s Seat.
World Until Jan 2014. Learn about the extraordinary
legacy of the steel tycoon and philanthropist.
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DAYS OUT IDEAS
■ SCOTT MONUMENT Princes Street Gardens East, 529 4068, edinburghmuseums.org.uk.
■ PALACE OF HOLYROODHOUSE Royal Mile, 556 5100, royalcollection. org.uk. Daily 9.30am–6pm (last entry 5pm). £11 (£10; under 17s £6.65; under 5s free). The official Scottish residence of the Queen, this baroque palace was once home to Mary, Queen of Scots, and now houses the great artworks and tapestries of its regal residents.
■ REAL MARY KING’S CLOSE 2 Warriston’s Close, High St, 0845 070 6244, realmarykingsclose.com. Daily 10am–9pm. £12.95 (£11.45; children £7.45). Beneath the Royal Mile lies a warren of hidden closes where citizens of Edinburgh lived and died in the 16th and 17th centuries. The underground tours are led by guides in the character of real people who lived in the close. ■ ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN EDINBURGH Inverleith Row, 552 7171, rbge.org.uk. Daily 10am–6pm until Mon 30 Sep; from Tue 1 Oct 10am–5pm. Free; glasshouse entry £4.50 (£3.50; children £1; family £9). These gardens, founded in the 17th century, cover over 70 acres and are just one mile from the city centre. There are glasshouses and cafés within the grounds, as well as high-profile art exhibitions at Inverleith House. Scotland’s Lost Gardens Until Sun 29 Sep. Outdoor exhibition of images of the lost gardens of Scotland and the people who created them. Patchwork Meadow Until Thu 26 Sep. Wildflower Europe celebrates all things wild and flowery with this giant patchwork.
■ ROYAL OBSERVATORY VISITOR CENTRE Blackford Hill, 668 8404, roe.ac.uk/ vc. Entry by arrangement or at Public Astronomy evenings (weekly, Fri 7.30–9pm). Public Astronomy evenings £4 (£3). See the stars through the research centre’s magnificent copper domes at weekly astronomy evenings.
■ ROYAL YACHT BRITANNIA Ocean Terminal, Leith, 555 5566,
Mon–Sat 10am–7pm; Sun 10am–6pm until Mon 30 Sep; from Tue 1 Oct Mon–Sat 9am–4pm; Sun 10am–6pm. £4. Commemorating Sir Walter Scott, this is the largest monument of any writer in the world. Take all 287 steps to the top for a great view of the city, plus occasional exhibitions.
■ SCOTTISH STORYTELLING CENTRE AND JOHN KNOX HOUSE 43–45 High Street, 556 9579, scottishstorytellingcentre.co.uk. Daily 10am–6pm; closed Sun. Free entry to SSC; John Knox House £4.25 (£3.75; children £1; under 7s free). A stylish contemporary building appended to the 15th-century home of Protestant reformer John Knox, housing materials relating to Scotland’s rich oral culture.
■ SURGEONS’ HALL MUSEUM Nicolson Street, 527 1649, museum. rcsed.ac.uk. Daily 10am–5pm (last entry 4.15pm). £5 (£3). Home to permanent collections on pathological anatomy, the history of surgery and dentistry, as well as temporary exhibitions, talks and occasionally gruesome hands-on events.
EVENTS Events are listed by city, then type. Submit listings at least 14 days before publication to sport@list.co.uk for sport or aroundtown@list.co.uk for all other events. Listings compiled by Jaclyn Arndt. ✽ Indicates Hitlist entry
GLASGOW Activities & Events FREE Glasgow Doors Open Day Thu 19–Sun 22 Sep, times vary. Various venues, 554 4411. Free admission to see inside some of Glasgow’s finest buildings, old and new. See preview, right. FREE Scotcampus Freshers’ Festival Thu 19 & Fri 20 Sep, 10am–4pm. SECC, Finnieston Quay, 221