Events in Edinburgh: April 2023

Looking to *sample* (pardon the pun) something a little bit different this month? If you are booked onto our standard 1-hour tour, why not add on our 30-minute Sampling Sensation experience with Dr Arnott?

He was once Mary King’s next-door neighbour and the wealthiest physician on the close!

In his workshop, you will discover the PEE-culiar secrets of 17^th century medicine. With Dr Arnott as your tutor, you will be challenged to harness the power of your senses as you make your way through a typical 17^th century medical diagnosis. Available every Saturday.

The Edinburgh International Science Festival will also be running until the 16^th April. 

First up, we recommend the Art Centre Day Pass. Get full access to the Science Festival’s flagship family venue, the City Art Centre. All five floors of the building are filled with a mixture of bookable and drop-in shows, workshops and interactive activities.

Secondly, Discover Edinburgh’s Mathematical History. This 1.5-hour walking tour is led by mathematicians from the University of Edinburgh. Uncover the secret history of logic, geometry and cryptography in the city. Expect puzzles along the way!

Click here to take a look at the range of the other Science Festival events on offer.

Robert Louis Stevenson’s swashbuckling story, Kidnapped, arrives in Edinburgh this month! Head over to the Royal Lyceum Theatre to watch this riotous retelling of his much-loved adventure novella by Isobel McArthur, the playwright who brought the Olivier award-winning Pride and Prejudice *Sort Of to the stage.

Prepare yourself as the hapless Davie navigates first-love, murder, Jacobite outlaws and one of the ineptest crews of pirates in literary history. What’s more, the story comes alive with the help of an ensemble of actor-musicians through hilarity, fisticuffs and 20^th century pop music.

We mentioned this fantastic exhibition about Britain’s beloved “wibbly wobbly, timey wimey” Time Lord back in January.  Consider this your heads up that this is the last month you can catch the Worlds of Wonder installation at the National Museum of Scotland. 

Head to the museum to experience a hands-on and scientific approach to the long-running hit TV series. Dare you enter the Time Vortex Corridor or toggle with a Sonic Screwdriver? Visit the exhibition to step through time and find out how you’d fare… Buy tickets now before the Doctor packs up for space on the 1^st May.

Looking for something dementia friendly to do this month? Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre has been hosting a range of activities to accommodate for individuals and families living with dementia. Notably, Songwriting Script on the 10^th April.

Also, participants will have the chance to share stories and ideas with in-house musician, Gus Harrower, who will organise them into a set of original songs in just 45 minutes. These are performed by Edinburgh’s dementia inclusive Forget Me Notes choir at their monthly Together in Song concert.

Our Guest Services and Guiding teams are made up of so many people who share passions for reading, history and storytelling. Therefore, it perhaps comes as no surprise that the Literary Events and Reading Groups at Topping & Company Booksellers are on our list of recommendations! In fact, they’re well worth a visit. 

Firstly, for Young Adult Fiction readers, we recommend that you drop in to Trang Thanh Tran and Sarah Underwood’s discussion about their debut novels on Friday 14^th April. However, history lovers might enjoy Robert Philip’s presentation about the origins and development of music around the world in his new guide, A Little History of Music.