Breaking news

The Danish Cultural Institute (DCI) are running free cycle lessons for 6–10-year olds this Saturday.

Bicycle instructor Darren Mirfield will lead 40-minute sessions between 1:00pm and 4:00pm in the playground of the Edinburgh Academy on Henderson Row.

The initiative builds on the DCI's 'Dreams on Wheels' exhibition at the Botanics last winter which showcased the Danish cycling tradition, bicycle design, and urban planning in the run-up to the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen.

For the second year running, Nelson's signal has not been displayed at the Royal Navy and Royal Marine Club on Broughton Road.

The running-up of flags was for many years a distinctive Trafalgar Day tradition in Broughton, but despite Spurtle's calls to revive the practice nothing has yet been done.

The bare flagpole stands forlorn, reminiscent of an aircraft carrier with no aircraft.

Emailing from an owl-filled wood somewhere in Lochaber, land issues writer and researcher Andy Wightman has responded to recent events in Multrees Walk (Breaking news).

'I think the public have a right of access under the Land Reform Act,' he told Spurtle, 'and thus it is a "public place" even though technically it is private.

'So, there should be no problem taking photos.

A charity auction raising money for The British Heart Foundation Scotland, Marie Curie Cancer Care, and BLISS-caring for babies born too soon will take place at the Out of the Blue Drill Hall on Saturday 23 October.

For sale will be 12 unique pieces created by established Scottish jewellers alongside some of the finest up-and-coming new graduates as part of a project by the Precious Metals Workshop. Materials – metals and jewels – were donated by Hamilton & Inches, where the completed works have been on display this month. Clare Blatherwick of Bonham's will host the sale.

Residents in McDonald Place and McDonald Rd must be feeling under siege at the moment as two potential local developments demand their attention.

Carrick Motorcycles, currently of Queen Charlotte Street in Leith, are applying for permission to open a sales (200 square metres) and service centre (390 square metres) at 21 McDonald Place (Ref. 10/02918/FUL).

Elizabeth Fraser (née Simpson) has contacted Spurtle from Sydney, Australia. She was born at 7 New Broughton in 1931, then 'a slum', and now seeks a photograph of her birthplace at around that time.

A 'flashmob' of around 16 photographers assembled in Multrees Walk today at 12:30pm to protest against an alleged heavy-handed response by security staff to unauthorised photography there on Thursday.

Minutes of the New Town and Broughton Community Council's September meeting are now available in Extras.

A new exhibition of animal pictures – 'Into the Wild' – will show at Art Amatoria in Bellevue Crescent from 12-24 November.
All the works are by Flora Blackett, who has focused on African creatures as well as a few more familiar British ones for her first solo exhibition in the capital.

'Flora's skill lies in capturing at first hand animals and their surroundings, studying their movement and mannerisms to create an intimate portrait,' writes gallery owner Caroline Hay. 'She strives to capture both the immediacy and the serenity in every scene ...'.

Following September's Community Jazz Festival, Broughton St Mary's Parish Church is beginning to establish itself as a key music venue in the city.

On 23 October, Jazz Vehicle – a touring band from Lincoln – will play for free, hoping to enjoy the great acoustics in Bellevue Crescent and tap into an appreciative and knowledgable local audience.