The Skinny Issue 248 September 2026

THE SKINNY

September 2026 Issue 248

June 2022

Graduate Showcase 2022

FREE

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E D IN B U R G H / G L A S G OW OP E N 7 DAYS A W E E K

THE SKINNY

The Skinny's songs that were number 1 on our 18th birthdays Eminem feat. Dido - Stan Lou Bega - Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit of...) Whitney Houston - One Moment in Time Five and Queen - We Will Rock You

🙄🔫

Craig David - 7 Days LMFAO - Party Rock Anthem Florence + the Machine - You’ve Got the Love Meghan Trainor - All About That Bass Tinchy Stryder feat. N Dubz - Number 1 Calvin Harris feat. Dua Lipa - One Kiss 5 Seconds of Summer - She Looks So Perfect Calvin Harris feat. Dua Lipa - One Kiss Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud OMI - Cheerleader (Felix Jaehn Remix) Calvin Harris feat. Dua Lipa - One Kiss Jess Glynne - I'll Be There Listen to this playlist on Spotify — search for

'The Skinny Office Playlist' or scan the below code

Issue 248, September 2026 © Radge Media C.I.C. September 2026 - Chat

Get in touch: E: hello@theskinny.co.uk The Skinny is Scotland's largest independent entertainment & listings magazine, and offers a wide range of advertising packages and affordable ways to promote your business. Get in touch to find out more. E: sales@theskinny.co.uk All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part without the explicit permission of the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within this publication do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the printer or the publisher. Printed by DC Thomson & Co. Ltd, Dundee

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regularmusicuk printed on 100% recycled paper

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Championing creativity in Scotland Meet the team This month we asked: What advice do you wish someone had given you when you were 18? Senior Editorial

Rosamund West Editor-in-Chief "Dump him. And burn that skirt that looks like a sleeping bag."

Peter Simpson Deputy Editor, Food & Drink Editor "Do a bit of exercise at some point between now and your mid-to-late 30s."

Anahit Behrooz Events Editor, Books Editor "I give advice, I don't listen to it."

Jamie Dunn Film Editor, Online Journalist "Just because you can down a Smirnoff Ice strawpedo in less than two seconds, it doesn’t mean you have to show off that skill every time you’re in a nightclub."

Tallah Brash Music Editor "Don't kiss your flatmate's brother, it is not worth it."

Myrtle Boot Clubs Editor "Stop hanging out with people who bring you down!!!!"

Eilidh Akilade Intersections Editor "You won't find your sense of style at 18 and you also won't have found it at 26. You'll get over it."

Rachel Ashenden Art Editor "Get tested for ADHD."

Phoebe Crawford Comedy Editor "Use your scientific genius and prowess to research extensively how to stall the rapid growth of generative AI before it's too late :P orrr invest in bitcoin!"

Mika Morava Theatre Editor "Get a haircut before that passport photo, girl."

Business

Production

Laurie Presswood General Manager "I got a lot of good advice at 18 and sadly ignored all of it."

Dalila D'Amico Art Director, Production Manager "Floss."

Phoebe Willison Designer "In the words of my patron saint, 'It’s hard to be a diamond in a rhinestone world.' Rest in power Queen."

Ellie Robertson Editorial Assistant "I've left this to the last possible minute and still can't come up with anything. If only someone had given me the advice to start thinking of an answer ten years in advance."

Joanna Hare Business Development Executive "Practise being bored. Get really really good at it – your future brain will thank you."

Ema Smekalová Media Sales Executive "Buckle up, king."

Emilie Roberts Media Sales Executive "I wish people told me to go out more and say yes to more things, as otherwise you end up with exactly one (1) uni friend. Hi Orlaith!"

Commissioning Editors

Sales

Sandy Park Commercial Director "Avoid red Aftershock like the plague."

THE SKINNY

Editorial

A CROSSTOWN CONCERTS PRESENTATION

LUKE HAINES POWER TRIO

Words: Rosamund West

September 2026 – Chat

“W

hen they talk about the September issue in The Devil Wears Prada, do you think this is what they mean” asks Anahit on the morning of print day as it turns out everyone has missed their deadlines to such a degree that we are all still writing features or indeed editorials and contents pages when we should, theoretically, already be sending pages to the printers. This issue finds us a team depleted by a month living in the midst of the world’s biggest arts festival™, reviewing, making Fest magazines, doling out Besties awards every Saturday, generally living life to the fullest while surviving on overpriced chips and pints. But! Thoughts turn to September, and the realities of life in an autumnal Scotland once the literal and metaphorical circus has left town. In the heart of this here magazine you will find our annual Student Guide, a 32-page special supplement commissioned by Clubs editor and actual student Myrtle, which aims to provide an introduction to life in our cities as well as a few pointers on how to survive as a newly independent adult. Turn to p33 for an insight into open mic nights, reasons not to feel guilty for dodging the societies, a guide to intimacy, advice on navigating friendship fallouts, institutional horoscopes, chef budget recipes and more besides. Our lead feature is an examination of the situation at Dundee’s Cooper Gallery, the latest Scottish cultural venue threatened with closure due to bureaucratic failure to understand that humanity cannot survive on the bottom line alone. Find out more about the campaign to save it, and its vital role as a space of experimental, thought-provoking programming. Space is tight, but in brief – we have words with corto.alto, celebrate a decade of Freakender Festival, meet Nicolas Winding Refn to find out about his extremely divisive (one star – The Skinny) new film Her Private Hell. We look forward to Aussie queer horror Leviticus, celebrate the return of IberoDocs, talk to Highland poet Colin Bramwell about trying to make fetch happen, consider proposals for a universal basic income for artists in Scotland, herald the arrival of the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt at Tramway and discuss Willem Dafoe with director Kent Jones. We close with The Skinny on… Eva Peroni, who has some wise words for the students of 2026 as well as inspiring dreams of life as a Japanese macaque.

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Cover Artist Daniel Gómez Vega was born in Cali, Colombia. He currently splits his time between Porto and Palermo, doing most of his work in a room with a window overlooking the river. He specialises in editorial illustration for newspapers and magazines, posters, infographics and more. danielgomezvega.com IG: @daniel.gomez.vega

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Love Bites: First Round On Me Love Bites

This month’s columnist reflects on the selfish wonders of a selfless act Words: Joanna Hare

I

July 2026

encountered the term ‘altru-hedonism’ for the first time in the pub, when it was used by a friend in reference to their purchasing the first five-pint round. In simple terms, it is the practice of maximising your own self-satisfaction by helping others. Buying the first round appears generously altruistic, but it actually carries a more hedonistic undertone; the first buyer instantly builds camaraderie while quietly binding the rest of the group to an extended cycle of superficial pleasure. Certainly not the most charitable example, but I happily filed the term away in my mental glossary of therapeutic-sounding buzzwords. Then, a few weeks ago, a stranger on public transport complimented my hair. I couldn’t help but think – what a simple, perfect, modern-day example of altru-hedonism. That person on the train made my day, and I can bet they slept like a baby that night, basking in the positive aftereffects of their joy-spreading. Obviously, doing nice things for other people makes us feel better, so much so that altruhedonism is recommended as a therapeutic tool to help improve mood. I learned this nine years ago, when a therapist suggested that I complete more selfless acts of service. I probably should have considered the obvious benefits much earlier in life, but the psyche of a 19-year-old university student often leans more towards hedonism than altruism. The world has felt like a scary place for quite some time. If the weight of this is making you feel helpless, I implore you all to engage in altruhedonism in any way you can. Buy the first fivepint round in the pub and expect zero pints in return. Drive your neighbour to the tip. For god’s sake, give the street fundraisers outside Boots the ten minutes of your day that they ask for. You could even tell the girl on the street you like her outfit. Hopefully, she’ll tell you that she likes your shoes.

Crossword Solutions Across 1. SANGRIA 5. FRACTAL 9. URBAN 10. SPIN-OFF 11. FLASHBACK 12. SIN 13. ENNUI 15. NOCTURNAL 18. MARTYRDOM 19. TENET 21. NURSE 23. BLATHERED 25. WRONG-DOER 26. LMFAO 27. RETREAT 28. STARTLE Down 1. SCUFFLE 2. NO-BRAINER 3. RANCH 4. ABSTAINED 5. FLICK 6. AGONY AUNT 7. TUFTS 8. LIMINAL 14. IVY LEAGUE 16. COMPADRES 17. NON-PROFIT 18. MAN O’ WAR 20. TADPOLE 22. ROOST 23. BOOST 24. HALVA

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THE SKINNY

Heads Up

The Fringe is over – culture isn’t. Festivals? Experimental gigs? Landmark exhibitions? Things happening Not In Edinburgh? We’ve got ‘em here. Compiled by Anahit Behrooz Image: courtesy Paramount pictures

Filmhouse x The Skinny: Clueless

Clueless

Sonica Glasgow 2026 Various venues, Glasgow, 24 Sep-4 Oct Over 170 artists are appearing at Sonica, Glasgow’s biennial music festival dedicated to audiovisual performance, across a series of experimental gigs, installations and immersive experiences dotted around the city. New this year is The Listening House at Pollok House, a festival-within-the-festival taking place at the newly restored 18th-century mansion, as well as Sonica’s first ever commissioned works by Rachel Maclean and Martin Green.

Edinburgh Psych Fest Various venues, Edinburgh, 6 Sep What is psych, exactly? No one quite knows, and that’s the beauty of it. Edinburgh Psych Fest returns this month with a rich programme of music in the psych genre, which seems to encompass rock, punk, experimental, and really anything that will make us feel deeply. Taking place across multiple Edinburgh venues, you can find the likes of Billy Nomates, Acolyte and Adult DVD on the roster.

Photo: Sandy Butler

Photo: Jack Dallas-Chapman

Heads Up

Filmhouse, Edinburgh, 29 Sep, 6:15pm We’re teaming up with Filmhouse to put on this special screening of Clueless as part of their Jane Austen season (oh, sorry, did you not know Clueless is an adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma? Allow us to educate you). The classic 90s teen rom-com is bookended by an intro from our film editor Jamie Dunn and followed by a social in the Filmhouse bar, where you can discuss how very extremely young Paul Rudd still looks.

Folding Songs, Martin Green & Svetlana Spajić at Sonica

Billy Nomates for Edinburgh Psych Fest

Art Walk Weekends Various venues, Edinburgh, 5-6 + 12-13 Sep Celebrating Portobello’s creative community through a town-wide exhibition taking place across artists’ homes, studios and shops, and community spaces, Art Walk Weekends features work by 70 artists – including the programme’s two awarded artists Minnie Scott and Sally Price – exploring ideas of transience, fluidity and flux. The work is arranged around six different walking routes, from shorter paths to longer trails. Image: courtesy of artist and Art Walk Weekends

Photo: Studio Snap

Image: courtesy of the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt Partnership

Minnie Scott, Lady of Situations UK AIDS Memorial Quilt

Wolf Pack

Tramway, Glasgow, 12 Sep-4 Oct A literal tapestry of various lives affected by the AIDS epidemic and the structural neglect that determined so many of their deaths, the AIDS Memorial Quilt comprises of 42 quilts that memorialise both those who died and survived. Following an exhibition in the Tate Modern, the quilt comes to Scotland for the first time, accompanied by a public programme of screenings, club nights and more.

Ha Ha Ha by Barrowland Ballet

Exit, Glasgow, 4-5 Sep

Studio Theatre, Edinburgh, 12 Sep, 7:30pm Celebrating ten years of Wolf Pack, Barrowland Ballet’s seminal intergenerational dance company for dancers aged between seven and over 80, this anniversary celebration puts together a triple bill of past performances – Ha Ha Ha, Like Blood and See Me – alongside a selection of their dance films. Together, the pieces explore ideas of community, resilience and joy, and the ways that dance can enable these things.

Ando Glaso Roma Fest

Image: courtesy of Festival

Image: courtesy of artist

Various venues, Glasgow, 4-5 Sep

The Education of Jane Cumming

Christopher Macarthur-Boyd

Sea Change Film Festival 2026 Salam Kitty

Photo: Curse These Eyes

EXIT 3→RD BIRTHDAY

Image: courtesy of Sea Change Film Festival

September 2026 — Chat

UK AIDS Memorial Quilt

Paisley Comedy Festival

Various venues, Tiree, 18-20 Sep

Ando Glaso Roma Festival

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Various venues, Paisley, 10-13 Sep

THE SKINNY

Photo: Kesiak

Justyna Jablonska: Unforeseen – Improvising Life and Music The Glad Cafe, Glasgow, 17 Sep, 7:30pm Drawing on memories and conversations with Ukrainian, Polish and Roma migrants living in Scotland, this performance by Scotlandbased cellist Justyna Jablonska uses improvisation, electronics and field recordings to explore the fluidity and unpredictability of both migration and music and how we can navigate uncertainty together. The work is accompanied by a film by Anna Leszczynska.

Joshua Burnside The Pleasance, Edinburgh, 26 Sep, 7pm His latest album might be titled It’s Not Going To Be Okay, but Northern Irish folk singer Joshua Burnside’s music is anything but a downer. Incorporating Celtic folk traditions, electronica, and sound collages, it’s a stunning example of how folk can adapt and innovate all while sticking to its intimate and political traditions. Tickets are currently sold out but beg, borrow, steal or stalk the resale websites. Photo: Tom Johnson

Everything for Everybody

Justyna Jablonska

Joshua Burnside Photo: Eilidh O'Brien

Photo: Nik Mackey

Photo: © Franki Raffles Estate, all rights reserved. Courtesy of University of St Andrews Libraries and Museums and Edinburgh Napier University

Heads Up

Generator Projects, Dundee, 10-25 Sep Bringing together work by various contemporary artists alongside two archives from the UK and Ukraine (the Franki Raffles Photography Collection at the University of St Andrews and the Mykola Bilokon photographic archives at the Pokrovsk Historical Museum), this exhibition explores the politics of archiving in times of change and crisis. What are the stories we preserve, and how and why are we preserving them?

Carmen Baia for FLY Festival

Fly Festival Franki Raffles, Self-portrait, Trip to Eastern Europe and Asia, 1984-1985

Tightrope at Gathered Together

Tramway, Glasgow, 2-5 Sep There’s a lot of dance happening this month! Over in Glasgow, Scotland’s leading inclusive dance company Indepen-dance brings Gathered Together, a four-day festival of performances and workshops by various international dance organisations whose work focuses on inclusivity. Highlights include the world premiere of Shadowlands by acclaimed disabled and queer choreographer Marc Brew and Horizons by youth company YDance.

Photo:Shade Cumini

RSA: Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, 12 Sep-11 Oct

Various venues, Scotland, 16-26 Sep This year’s IberoDocs – Scotland’s film festival dedicated to documentary filmmaking from the Iberian peninsula – is themed around Tides of Resistance: The Families We Make, exploring how the families we both come into and create can carry ideas of hope, memory and belonging across generations.

Nappy Nina The Old Hairdresser’s, Glasgow, 4 Sep, 7:30pm

Image: courtesy of artist and RSA

Image: courtesy of artist

Photo: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan

This 26: Contemporary Scottish Art and the Academy

Ritas

IberoDocs

Francis of Delirium

The Singer

Francis of Delirium

The Singer Tayo Adekunle, Misunderstood Healer Adekunle

Dundee Rep, Dundee, 23-26 Sep, various times — 9 —

Nappy Nina

The Mash House, Edinburgh, 19 Sep, 7pm

September 2026 — Chat

Image: ourtesy of IberoDocs

Gathered Together

Various venues, Edinburgh, 12-13 Sep Taking over Princes Street Gardens for the weekend, FLY Festival returns with a banging lineup of electronic DJs spanning everything from techno to house to dub, including Carmen Baia, Interplanetary Criminal, Kerri Chandler, L.P. RHYTHM and more.

THE SKINNY

UTTERLY ADDICTIVE

DARKLAND TALES ‘One of the most interesting developments in Scottish publishing’ The Scotsman

‘This is Caledonia as a blood-soaked gothic edgeland’

Times Literary Supplement

NEW

September 2026

www.birlinn.co.uk

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THE SKINNY

What's

On Photo: Prince Gama LOLA!

The Tubs

September 2026 — Events Guide

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Angine de Poitrine

Photo: Robin Christian

Photo: Izzy Leach Sin Clair

Music Festival season, um, continues! Kicking things off in Glasgow this month is PITCH Scotland (2-4 Sep), a conference and showcase festival celebrating hip-hop and underground culture. While panels and discussions fill the days, its evenings are packed with local and international artist showcases – be sure to catch Sonedo and LOLA! at McChuills on the 2nd, with loads more to discover as the event unfolds. Raising funds for Refuweegee, No a Mean City: Sounds of Solidarity (The Art School, 5 Sep) features Walt Disco, GAÏA, Declan Welsh and James Emmanuel, while Freakender Festival (18-20 Sep) celebrates its tenth anniversary at The Old Hairdresser’s with Radhika, Bikini Body, Shredd, Hound and more. Biennial festival SONICA (24 Sep-4 Oct) is back with an impressive programme of experimental and audiovisual art and music this month too. At The Listening House in Pollok House, highlights include the shared bill show from Isa Gordon and SHHE (26 Sep), as well as experimental artist Alliyah Enyo, who specialises in reel-to-reel tape loops (27 Sep). At the same venue for the festival’s full run, you’ll also find installations from Lomond Campbell (MUO), Konx-Om-Pax (Colour Sound) and Radiophrenia, while Brian d’Souza brings Plants Can Dance to Tramway, where you’ll also find Robbie Thomson performing his incredible Tesla coil piece XFRMR (26 Sep). In the capital, Edinburgh Psych Fest (6 Sep) returns with an impressive lineup featuring Stereolab, Ty Segall and buzz band Angine de Poitrine topping the bill alongside Billy Nomates, Gwenno, Adult DVD, Mandy, Indiana and loads more. In Dunfermline, Outwith Fest returns with its all-dayer (5 Sep) featuring Man of Moon, Glass Cheques, Roller Disco Death Party and more, while the Substance all-dayer welcomes the likes of Declan Welsh and the Decadent West, Bottle Rockets, San Jose and Martha May and the Mondays to Dundee Music Hall and Hidden (12 Sep). In East Lothian, King Creosote, Kathryn Joseph, Lomond Campbell and the Countess of Fife play the Dunbar Music Festival (25-27 Sep), and if you fancy an island getaway accompanied by some top-tier music, head to the Caol Ila Islay Jazz Festival (11-13 Sep), with Fergus McCreadie, Tao and Laura Osa all playing on the 12th. Festivals aside, tour schedules are picking up, with three stalwarts of the Scottish scene – Adam Stafford, Meursault (solo) and M. John Henry – playing Stirling (2 Sep), Edinburgh (5 Sep) and Glasgow (17 Sep). Declan Welsh and the Decadent West plays shows in Glasgow (24 Sep), Aberdeen (25 Sep) and Edinburgh (26 Sep), and Alice Faye plays Stirling (12 Sep), Irvine (13 Sep), Edinburgh (17 Sep) and Aberdeen (18 Sep). In Glasgow, Sin Clair celebrates the release of her debut double A-side Affirmations #2 / Exhale at La Cheetah (3 Sep), A Parfait Luz Experience promises a unique evening of live liquid light projections from Sophie Babcock set to a soundtrack of music from Charlotte Devlin, Molly Sellors, Ichi's Ghost and Tom MacFadyen at McChuills (9 Sep), The Joy Hotel play Nice N Sleazy (10 Sep), Helicon play King Tut’s (12 Sep), Adam Ross plays The Glad Cafe (19 Sep), The Tubs (featuring Romeo Taylor) play Stereo (25 Sep) and The Yummy Fur celebrate their album launch at The Poetry Club (25 Sep). In Edinburgh, Nick Dow and Solar Exterior play the Leith FAB Cricket

Photo: Constantin Monfilliette

All details correct at the time of writing

y

THE SKINNY

Image: courtesy of BIF In The Mouth Of Madness

Clubs Starting at Glasgow’s Stereo, Cortisa Star headlines Scandal.gla’s funfairthemed return (4 Sep). After seven long weeks, Edinburgh’s The Bongo Club reopens on 4 Sep with Overground – expect techno, jungle and a packed

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Man/Woman/Chainsaw

Image: courtesy Channel 4

Image: courtesy New Line Cinema

September 2026 — Events Guide

Bel

Film Anyone jonesing for more cinema madness after last month’s Edinburgh International Film Festival can look forward to the rush of film events that come thick and fast in the autumn, beginning with IberoDocs (16-26 Sep) in Edinburgh, Sea Change (18-20 Sep) in Tiree and Glasgow Youth Film Festival (25-27 Sep). More details on the former on p69. We lost Sam Neill a few months ago, but his movies will always be with us. Leith Kino celebrates this mighty Kiwi actor with the Sam Neill weekender. They’ve gone for a pair of great performances in horror films: In the Mouth of Madness (26 Sep, Argonaut Books) and Possession (27 Sep, Leith Depot). Best season name of the year has to go to Offline for OUR TOILETS ARE SHIT, an ongoing fundraising programme to improve the DIY Govanhill arts space’s loos. Funeral Parade of Roses (17 Sep) is this month’s film. Shoutout to the great Reclaim the Frame, who’re presenting two screenings of Hettie Macdonald’s beloved 90s gay teen love story Beautiful Thing this month to mark its 30th anniversary. On 2 September it’s screening at GFT from a 35mm print, with Reclaim the Frame’s Eilidh Akilade (who’s also The Skinny’s excellent Intersections editor) providing an introduction, and then on 14 September it’s at Filmhouse. GFT also have a cracking season of Rogue Hollywood films in September. We’re talking the uncompromising and troubling visions of contemporary America that were being made at the fag end of the New Hollywood era. Films like Richard Brooks’ Looking for Mr Goodbar (7 Sep), Paul Schrader’s Hardcore (15 Sep) and William Friedkin’s Cruising (29 Sep). One of the most moving cinema experiences this month will surely be Bel, Louise Lockwood’s documentary on the late singer-songwriter Beldina Odenyo who performed under the moniker Heir of the Cursed. Lockwood and Odenyo’s sister Leah McAleer, who we see in the film attempting to put together a posthumous Heir of the Cursed album, will be taking part in Q&A screenings at Filmhouse (4 Sep) and GFT (10 Sep) this month, with both screenings hosted by journalist Arusa Qureshi. Auteurists should look out for a full Andrei Tarkovsky retrospective at GFT (2-28 Sep); a trio of Claude Chabrol films at Filmhouse (11-14 Sep); and a quartet of Howard Hawks films at Grosvenor Picture Theatre (7-28 Sep). Silent movie fans, meanwhile, should run to the Hippodrome in Bo’ness for a presentation of Erich von Stroheim’s rapturous Queen Kelly, which will have an intro from Pamela Hutchinson, live music from Neil Brand and a Q&A with both following the screening (26 Sep). And finally, Filmhouse are celebrating Jane Austen on screen. The season includes Georgia Oakley’s new take on Sense and Sensibility, Ang Lee’s 1995 version, Joe Wright’s Pride & Prejudice and the greatest Austen adaptation of all: Amy Heckerling’s loose Emma reworking, Clueless. We love Heckerling’s film so much, in fact, that The Skinny is hosting the screening of Clueless on 29 September, which will be followed by a Skinny Social, where we’ll be encouraging everyone in the screening to join The Skinny’s team down in Filmhouse’s bar to discuss the movie. We hope to see you there! [Jamie Dunn]

Photo: Charlie & Charlie.

Club for Other Other Music (12 Sep), Sarah/Shaun, Hans Klammer and So So: If So play Voodoo Rooms (16 Sep) and The Micro Band celebrate their new album with an in-store at Good Vibes, followed by an after-party at The Bowler’s Rest (26 Sep). Elsewhere, Jeffrey Lewis & The Voltage play Aberdeen (The Tunnels, 10 Sep) and Dundee (Beat Generator Live!, 11 Sep), while in Edinburgh, catch David Thomas Broughton (Pianodrome, 15 Sep) and Death Cab For Cutie (Corn Exchange, 20 Sep). In Glasgow, catch A$AP Rocky (OVO Hydro, 4 Sep), Baby Keem (O2 Academy, 14 Sep), Rosa Walton (The Hug & Pint, 14 Sep), Holy Fuck (Stereo, 21 Sep), Man/Woman/Chainsaw (King Tut’s, 25 Sep), Lauren Auder (The Hug & Pint, 26 Sep), Carla dal Forno (The Glad Cafe, 29 Sep) and Nadia Reid (Cottiers, 30 Sep). [Tallah Brash]

Beautiful Thing

THE SKINNY

SCANDAL

Overground

Image: courtesy of the artist, MASSIMODECARLO, London and The Modern Institute, Glasgow..jpg France-Lise McGurn, What Every Woman Wants (2026)

September 2026 — Events Guide

Photo: courtesy and copyright of Bold Tendencies Harold Offeh, Hail the New Prophets, Bold Tendencies (2021)

Photo: courtesy Pokrovsk Historical Museum, Urban Media Archive - Center for Urban History

Art Dundee Contemporary Arts (DCA) is awash with France-Lise McGurn’s intuitive painting. In The Charm Offensive, the Scottish artist’s site-specific paintings-turned-installations carry a darkly comical edge, as she juxtaposes images of contemporary urban life with female figures through collage. The large exhibition – which runs until 15 November – marks a nostalgic return to the city for McGurn, as she studied for her BA at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art. From 10 to 25 September, Everything for Everybody brings into dialogue two significant social documentary photographers from Ukraine and Scotland: Mykola Bilokon and Franki Raffles. The artists shared an interest in capturing working-class life and gendered labour, despite working in different social and geographical contexts. Hosted by Generator Projects in Dundee and on tour from Ukraine, the exhibition boldly asks ‘whose stories are we archiving now, and for whom?’ Everything for Everybody contrasts Bilokon’s and Raffles’ works with those of several contemporary artists who explore the politics of the archive, including Tako Taal and Selma Selman. Over in Glasgow, Harold Offeh’s Mothership 2.0 Collective lands in Tramway on 5 September. The artist – who is greatly inspired by Afrofuturism – invites multi-generational visitors to engage in an interactive sci-fi playscape. Using sound, text and objects, Offeh prompts us to wonder what the future might look like if we unburden ourselves from the rules of planet Earth. The Mothership 2.0 Collective will zip away on 7 February 2027. Running from 17 until 20 September, Glasgow Art Weekend is a new city-wide initiative that builds on the success of last year’s pilot Southside Weekend. Led by Glasgow Art Map, the programme encompasses exhibitions, open studios, performances and publication launches. Key moments include Megan Rudden’s pamphlet launch with Rosie’s Disobedient Press, a 40th birthday party for the indomitable Transmission and a Radical Southside Tour.

Photo: courtesy of Overground community

Photo: Rebecca Ramsay

dancefloor (4 Sep). Glasgow’s EXIT turns three, marking the occasion with a stacked weekend of sets from Hiro Kone, Saeko Killy and Erotechre (4 Sep & 5 Sep). On Saturday 5 September, VANISH Festival arrives at Jupiter Artland with a host of local talent including Big Miz, Eclair Fifi and LWS B2B Smiff – explore the sculpture park grounds or get lost in the music. Femmergy host sex worker pride at The Biscuit Factory, Edinburgh – all proceeds go towards Scotland for Decrim (10 Sep). More FLINTA-led clubbing comes to The Berkeley Suite, Glasgow, as FemmeDM host Fliss Mayo until 4am (11 Sep). German duo FJAAK are set to pack the Sub Club basement, with Glasgow’s own Slam and Nightwave joining the lineup – expect dub techno, breakbeats and high-energy selections (11 Sep). At Glasgow’s Stereo, SOUND celebrate 20 years of dubstep with James Hometown, DJ Greenman and MC Onyx Stone joining the party (11 Sep). At Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh, Neffa-T returns to Palindone – expect mind-blowing mixes spanning grime, dubstep and footwork (11 Sep). Freshers’ week kicks off by Temperate Sounds at Edinburgh’s Cabaret Voltaire with a 90s-inspired rave – enjoy jungle, house and the no phones policy (14 Sep). For the fashion-forward, the Glasgow Charity Fashion Show joins forces with the Glasgow Electronic Music Society at The Berkeley Suite – proceeds go to charity (15 Sep). At The Bongo Club, Edinburgh, EPiKA launch the Edinburgh Charity Fashion Show – expect techno and electro all for a good cause (16 Sep). RARE welcomes DJ Seinfeld to Glasgow’s Sub Club – expect house, 2-step and emotive electronic tunes (17 Sep). Charlie P arrives at DUB CLUB at The Art School in Glasgow, to deliver his iconic vocals over the Hometown Sound System (17 Sep). Skalah makes her Glasgow debut alongside G33 and Loose E for a night of grime, bass and UK garage at The Berkeley Suite, Glasgow (17 Sep). Dundee Electronic Music Society take over Church Dundee to kickstart the semester, Boiler Roomstyle (18 Sep). Irish DJ, producer and label head Or:la arrives at La Cheetah Club on Saturday 19 September – bringing her leftfield, drum-heavy selections along for the ride. [Myrtle Boot]

Mykola Bilokon, Departure for the army, Myrnohrad (Dymytrov) (2000)

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THE SKINNY

Photo: Marc Brenner

Meanwhile, in Edinburgh, Embassy Gallery will host the launch of Edinburgh Art Map on 6 September. Created in collaboration with Glasgow Art Map, the Edinburgh version will champion exhibitions and events happening across the city. [Rachel Ashenden]

Photo: Tommy Ga Ken Wan

Celya AB

The Tailor of Inverness

Image: courtesy of Monkey Barrel Comedy Club

Comedy The Fringe is over! If you’re as blue as we are and in need of replenishing your comedy thirst, here’s some top picks for the month which might help to soothe your woes. Fresh out the festival and on to UK tours with early doors in Glasgow we have Aoife Dunne (Òran Mór, Glasgow, 11 Sep), Aidan Jones (The Stand, Glasgow, 19 Sep), Celya AB (The Stand, Glasgow, 23 Sep), Vittorio Angelone (King’s Theatre, Glasgow, 24 Sep), Morgan Rees (The Stand, Glasgow, 30 Sep) and Jack Rooke (Òran Mór, Glasgow, 30 Sep). Alasdair Beckett-King also tours his excellent show King of Crumbs which first debuted at last year’s Fringe (The Stand, Edinburgh, 22 Sep) while Maisie Adam graces the stage over in Glasgow (Pavilion Theatre, 23 Sep). Sergi Polo returns to Glasgow for the second time to host a night of comedy fully performed in Spanish after a previously sold out show (Glee Club, Glasgow, 20 Sep). Paisley Comedy Festival runs 10-13 September with a fantastic line-up of Scottish comedians including (but not limited to) Matthew Gallagher, Susan Calman, Christopher Macarthur-Boyd and Connor Burns. Or if you’re new to the city and fancy giving stand-up a go, the festival is also hosting an open-mic over at Paisley Arts Centre on its opening night. Email oneren_arts@renfrewshire.gov.uk to secure your place! Stephen Halkett and Chris Thorburn also host the festival’s highly acclaimed Comedy Club 4 Kids. With further acts still to be announced, it’s certain to be thoroughly enjoyable whether you’re 6 or 66 years old. [Phoebe Crawford]

Photo: Tim Morozzo

Photo: Rachel Sherlock

September 2026 — Events Guide

The Singer

Theatre September brings a mix of dark drama, musicals and stories shaped by memory, displacement and survival, with offerings moving between classic retellings and contemporary work. At Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre, things get sinister with The Silence of the Lambs (8-12 Sep), bringing the infamous Hannibal Lecter to the stage in an adaptation of the psychological thriller. For something more colourful, SIX the Musical returns (15-26 Sep), giving Henry VIII’s six wives the microphone in its all-singing reimagining of Tudor history. Meanwhile, the Lyceum welcomes The Tailor of Inverness (7-8 Sep), Matthew Zajac’s acclaimed one-man show tracing his Polish-Ukrainian father’s journey through war and displacement. First premiered at the Fringe back in 2008, the production returns with a personal history still at its centre. Meanwhile, Glasgow gets a dose of movement at Theatre Royal with Scottish Ballet’s Emergence (10-12 Sep), Crystal Pite’s swirling work in which dancers move as a shifting collective. Afterwards, the Tron Theatre shows Antigone (18 Sep-10 Oct), in which Sophocles’ tragedy gets a messy modern treatment in the aftermath of civil war. Fresh from its Fringe run at the Traverse, The Singer comes to The Citz (15-19 Sep) and Dundee Rep (23-26 Sep). A gig-theatre piece with music by Scottish legend KT Tunstall, the show follows a deaf artist who sings in sign and a washed-up musician chasing a comeback. Also at Dundee Rep, A History of Paper (16-19 Sep) stars Alan Cumming and Shirley Henderson in a warm reflection on the fragments of paper that accumulate into a life. [Mika Morava]

The Silence of the Lambs

Vittorio Angelone

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THE SKINNY

5 Meet the Team — 6 Editorial — 7 Love Bites — 8 Heads Up — 11 What’s On 18 Crossword — 19 Ask Anahit & Gut Feelings — 48 Poster by George Douglas 65 Intersections — 73 Music — 79 Film & TV — 84 Food & Drink — 85 Art 86 Books — 87 Comedy — 89 Listings — 94 The Skinny on… Eva Peroni

Features 22 We report from the campaign to save Dundee’s boundarypushing Cooper Gallery. 25 One writer in Venice considers the fraying illusion of neutral globalism at La Biennale. 26 We catch up with two-thirds of the team behind Freakender Festival as they prepare to celebrate their tenth birthday.

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28 We meet Glasgow multi-instrumentalist corto.alto ahead of the release of his new album SOME SMALL FORTUNE. 32 Cult filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn talks Her Private Hell, his new sci-fi slasher that’s split critical opinion. 33 A very special 32-page special supplement – our Student Guide 2026. 42 Edinburgh bluegrass outfit Sociograss talk community building with their Sunday sessions.

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60 Mystic Myrtle has read the stars to share a very special educational institution-specific set of Horoscopes. 68 Highland-born poet Colin Bramwell discusses his debut collection Fetch and the unexpected influence of folklore in his work.

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70 Dominic Hill on Citizens Theatre’s new take on Orwell’s 1984 that claims the story for Scotland. 71 Late Fame director Kent Jones discusses Willem Dafoe, New York and smartphones. On the website...

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Image Credits: (Left to right, top to bottom) Ross Fraser McLean; Luca Zambelli Bais; Neelam Khan Vela; James Pearson Howes; Her Private Hell; Tintin; Jessica Marshall; public.works; courtesy of the author; Flowers for Antonio; Alasdair Watson; Late Fame

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Reflections on this year’s Edinburgh Art Festival from our EAF Emerging Writers; a podcast version of that corto.alto interview mentioned above; news on this year’s Scottish Album of the Year Award longlist – when we know, you’ll know…

September 2026 — Contents

69 We look forward to another edition of IberoDocs, returning with a festival celebrating creativity, connection and community.

THE SKINNY

Shot of the month The Cure @ Royal Highland Centre, Edinburgh, 23 August by Marilena Vlachopoulou

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1. Fisticuff (7)

5. A shape that repeats its own structure at all scales, like Romesco broccoli (7)

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9. Opposite of rural (5) September 2026 — Chat

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10. Minions to Despicable Me or Logan to X-Men (4-3)

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5. A quick hand movement, or A Movie (5) 6. Ask Anahit on the opposite page (5, 4)

12. A wicked deed (3)

8. O ften used to describe an inbetween or uncanny space (7)

15. Of the night (9)

14. Group of elite American universities (3, 6)

18. S acrifice for a higher cause – my dorm rat (anag) (9)

16. Close friends (spanish) (9)

19. Palindromic Nolan film (5)

17. O rganisation serving public rather than commercial interests (3-6)

21. H ealth care professional, or to look after (5)

18. ‘Portuguese’ ‘jellyfish’ (3, 1’, 3)

23. Rambled on (9)

26. They’re sexy and they know it (5) 27. To fall back, or a restful place (7)

Compiled by Ema Smekalová

4. Chose not to partake (9)

7. Clumps (of hair or grass) (5)

25. Someone who commits 12 across (5-4) 27

3. Salad dressing, farm to table? (5)

11. Blast from the past (9)

13. Chic word for boredom? (5) 18

2. It’s an easy one! (2-7)

28. Rattles (anag) – to shock (7)

20. Baby frog (7) 22. W here birds sleep, rhymes with 23 down (5) 23. Lift/assist, rhymes with 22 down (5) 24. Sweet and fragrant confectionary originating from Persia (5) Feedback? Email crossword@theskinny.co.uk Turn to page 7 for the solutions

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THE SKINNY

GOT A QUESTION?

On her own artistic journey, one writer finds connections between women painters who pursued abstraction in wild landscapes

In this month’s advice column, one reader spirals when they see an ex

Words: Alessandra Thom

Recently I had to see my ex at an event and even though it’s been a good amount of time since we broke up and I was sure I was over them, seeing them (especially with their new partner) brought up a lot of emotions. I started to miss them and was really upset with myself as I had worked hard to push through the feelings from the start of the break up. How do I get over feeling like I’ve just fallen off the wagon and start finally being able to move on from my ex? Firstly, allow me to present my commiserations on a real bummer of a situation. I can fully believe this is not how you wanted that moment to go. Every single one of us, however well-regulated we are, has that fantasy. You know the one. You casually run into your ex at a party and they are blown away, wow-ed, flabbergasted, at how very much you are over them. You’re surrounded by a group of sexy people laughing at a joke you just made. Your ex approaches. You accidentally call them by the wrong name. One of the hot people sticks their tongue in your mouth. A shadow flickers over your ex’s face. Confusion? Yearning? Lifelong regret? End scene. Of course it’s soothing to be that delulu, but put the fantasy aside for a moment and hear me out. I have this theory that none of us are ever really over our exes, in that we never really get over loving the person they were and the person we were when we were with them. I mean, who gets over that kind of happiness? I wholeheartedly believe you are over the person who was in front of you that night, but you are not over the ghost that they remind you of. Maybe you never will be. Is that so bad? I don’t think it’s clinging onto the past so much as acknowledging that the past is the past – that there is a rupture between what they meant to you then and what they mean to you now, but what they meant to you then will always be a part of you. I really understand this need to prove to yourself that you’ve moved on. But a person isn’t an addiction. You didn’t fall off the wagon. You haven’t gone back on progress. You’re exactly where you always were, both attached to and severed from the past. That’s OK, you know. Maybe instead of fighting that feeling or beating yourself up for it, try to let it in. What do you miss? Is it the person? Is it the feeling? Is there any way to build something similar back in your life? If not right now, how can you comfort yourself through its absence? The only time when feelings about an ex are bad are when they make us turn on ourselves. I promise you, really and truly, that this is nothing to do with them.

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Do you have a problem Anahit could help with? Get in touch by email on pettyshit@theskinny.co.uk, send us your quandaries with an almost-unhelpful level of anonymity via NGL, or look out for Ask Anahit callouts on our Instagram stories

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September 2026 — Chat

became obsessed with Georgia O’ Keeffe. It started when I lived in Lewisham and was homesick and bored. I took a class in Abstracting Nature at Lewisham Adult Learning Centre. My concept of Abstraction was limited to Joan Eardley, whom I loved, and to a more ‘uptight’ version: cubes, circles and Georgia O’Keeffe. I grew up with Joan, five miles from the salt-sprayed Catterline where she and her lover worked and became themselves. I thought of her as a real artist, carefree (her precision imperceptible to me among the dried flowers and the thumbed yellow moon). In Lewisham, I was instructed in how to paint like Georgia and ended up with a massive oily red womb which my teacher was very kind about. Georgia was a teacher who brought a live horse into her classroom for her students to paint. Who became a 1900s sex object, body cut into jigsaw pieces. Who cut her vision into a jigsaw of lilies, doors, the soft folds of mountains. Who strode through the desert with a tall stick, fixed up cars, lived occasionally with women. Who painted skulls and driftwood when there were no flowers. And led me to Agnes Martin. Agnes subsumed the uptight precision I so disparaged and expelled it in a manic intensity, lines upon lines, little grids of fragile colour, pencil lines wobbling. Who was out and out and out when it was still illegal for men. Who had psychosis on the streets of New York, was tortured and ran to live in the desert, painting and painting and painting, under the eyes of nobody. My friend Jack tells me Agnes’ paintings are at Modern One. My girlfriend drives me to see them one day after work. Wide, self-conscious swathes of peach and white. When I take off my glasses they appear to be a blank canvas, just one colour. Up close, you can see how they make themselves: lead pencil and brushstrokes. Careful, careful. In a desert, where there are no flowers, we are skulls and driftwood and we find each other.

THE SKINNY

Make it a hat-trick Ride on down to your Indy-pendent cinema

Great film deserves a great home

September 2026

filmhouse.org.uk

A festival for everyone, co-curated by young people

2026

Sense and Sensibility (CTBC) Falcon Lake (15) Take 2: Barbie (12A) Derek vs Derek (15) Do the Right Thing (15) Extra Geography (N/C 12+) Second Nature: Gender and Sexuality in the Animal World (N/C 12+) Breakfast On Pluto (15) Dead Poets Society (N/C 12+)

For tickets and more info visit glasgowfilm.org

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THE SKINNY

Poster Artist (p48-49) George Douglas is an illustrator and magpie based in Glasgow. His work finds its home across editorial illustration, book jacket illustration and poster design, and is concerned with scavenging, gleaning, chancing, cheating and serendipity. George lives in a small flat on his own where he dreams mostly about mushrooms. georgebenjamindouglas.com

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September 2026 – Theme

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t’s a mini theme this month; less a theme, more a reminder that the decimation of the cultural sector is ongoing and you can resist it in a multitude of ways. We look to Dundee’s Cooper Gallery, currently at risk of closure alongside all the human offerings of the University of Dundee’s administration (‘non-essential’ services according to their bureaucrats, things like Botanic Gardens, Student Services, childcare). The second of two features in the ‘theme’ reports back from the Venice Biennale, where the Israeli and Russian pavilions have fractured the notion of neutral internationalism the festival seeks to project. We’re light on theme because the middle of the magazine hosts our annual Student Guide – read on for a 32-page special edition aimed at providing a primer to life in our cities. Welcome, young people. Please ignore the fact that everything is on fire.

Save Cooper Gallery As Dundee’s Cooper Gallery faces the threat of closure, a campaign to defend its value as a boundary-pushing hub of critical inquiry gains momentum

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undee’s Cooper Gallery is internationally recognised as one of the UK’s most radical contemporary art spaces for critical and discursive practice. However, in June 2026, the University of Dundee revealed proposals which threaten to close Cooper Gallery by July 2027 as part of a major cost-cutting effort to reduce University spending by £20 million. “This is nothing short of cultural vandalism,” writes Dr James Bell, a Lecturer in Contemporary Art Theory at Edinburgh College of Art and former Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design (DJCAD) student, in an open letter in support of the campaign. Shortly following the University’s announcement, DJCAD students and members of Dundee’s wider arts community launched the Save Cooper Gallery campaign and an open letter in solidarity with the gallery. The open letter gathered over 1,400 signatures in just a few days and calls for “immediate action to secure its future as one of Scotland’s most vital spaces for contemporary art and critical discourse, directed by a woman of colour.” “This cannot be allowed to happen,” Jenny Brownrigg, Exhibitions Director at The Glasgow School of Art, wrote in support of the campaign. “I fail to see how the university can meet with any public engagement expectations with funders

such as the Scottish Funding Council, when Cooper Gallery and Botanic Gardens are on the list for closure. Cooper Gallery engages with a sphere that the university cannot do otherwise through quality and reputation.” Opened in 1953 and designed by the architect James Wallace, Cooper Gallery is a research-intensive site for critical inquiry, the display of contemporary art and wide-reaching public engagement. It hosts a highly regarded programme of exhibitions which engage in critical politics across a multitude of media including video installation, photography, performance, archival material and critical texts. Key exhibitions include Suzanne Lacey’s Between the Door and the Street (2025) which displayed material drawn from her performative public action project of the same name. In 2022 the gallery hosted Chimera (2022) a display of three collaborative films by the Turner Prize nominated artists Rosalind Nashashibi and Lucy Skaer who combine photographic images with musical compositions, drawing and painting, to offer moments of serene contemplation and transformation. Director of Cooper Gallery, Sophia Yadong Hao has said that the programme is “not just a space for the display of artworks but is a site for discursive praxis.” Hao cites the influence of intersectional feminist and decolonial methods of

September 2026 – Feature

Cultural Meltdown Issue

THE SKINNY

The Hornsey Sit-in, exhibition installation view, The Ignorant Art School Sit-in #2: To Be Potential, touring at the Hatton Gallery (2022)

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Words: Lucy Howie

collectivity and alternative pedagogy on the programme’s ethos, exemplified by Sit-in #4 Outside the Circle (currently on tour at Golden Thread Gallery in Belfast until 28 August), part of The Ignorant Art School: Five Sit-ins Towards Creative Emancipation initiated by Cooper Gallery. This series of exhibitions, performances, actions, workshops and gatherings facilitated by artists, designers, activists and cultural workers transformed Cooper Gallery into a cultural site of institutional critique from within, and the emancipation of art education. As the Save Cooper Gallery open letter states, in the face of a political and social climate “marked by growing division, intolerance, and the rise of far-right ideologies across the UK and beyond” spaces like Cooper are essential for sustaining “critical inquiry, social engagement, and cultural dialogue.” The Save Cooper Gallery campaign highlights the profound impact the proposed closure would have on Dundee residents, “stripping the community of its cultural heart and removing a crucial voice in international art.” While the Cooper Gallery programme is internationally recognised for its quality, it is also an essential part of the infrastructure of DJCAD. The gallery’s closure would withdraw the invaluable opportunities it offers to DJCAD students to directly engage with contemporary artistic practice, curatorial work, research, and professional networks through its Student Curatorial Team. “Cooper Gallery offers practical curatorial and professional training not otherwise present at undergraduate level,” a member of the Save Cooper Gallery campaign explained. “This experience bridges the gap between academic study and real-world practice.” Professor Natalie Adamson from the School of Art History at the University of St Andrews has also voiced her support for the campaign with regards to Cooper’s educational impact: “the outstanding curatorial team led by Sophia Yadong Hao integrates contemporary art practice, archival material, social practices, pedagogical thinking and community building into its exhibition and event design in a way that is truly astonishing.” Cooper Gallery’s vitalness in Dundee’s locale and cultural ecosystem cannot be overstated. According to Hao, the Gallery’s programme supports up to 100 people every year who make an income through event facilitation, admin support,

THE SKINNY

Photo: Ross Fraser McLean

Cultural Meltdown Issue

Linder, Love Imposes Impossible Tasks, performance at 12-Hour Action Group, Of Other Spaces: Where Does Gesture Become Event? Cooper Gallery (2016)

“When spaces for cultural and intellectual experimentation are diminished, society becomes less pluralistic, less democratic and less humane” Sophia Yadong Hao The University of Dundee’s proposal has come during a period of severe precarity in the Scottish arts scene. The CCA in Glasgow closed earlier this year and seven cultural organisations based at the Glasgow city-centre arts hub Trongate 103 have been threatened with a rent increase four times its current level. Closer to home in Dundee, the V&A Dundee has been forced to reduce its programme to one exhibition per year to cut costs, and Dundee Contemporary Arts (DCA) have had their annual budget from Dundee City Council tabled for cuts two years in a row in 2024’s and 2025’s council consultations. The University’s proposals from June follow on from 675 cuts to jobs in 2025 and a £40 million injection of emergency funding provided by the Scottish Government. Members of the Dundee branch of the University and College Union (DUCU) have already staged 28 days of strike action in the last year, but the University’s new wave of redundancy proposals from June have pushed Union members to vote in favour of another five weeks of strike action when the new term begins in September this year. In a member’s email update from July 2026, the DUCU have expressed concerns over the University’s approach to their Equality Impact Assessment, which forms part of the business case for the proposed cuts. The DUCU have identified that the assessment lacks a mitigation plan following from its findings, which raises concerns about who will be disproportionately impacted by the University’s proposals to cut — 23 —

dundee.ac.uk

September 2026 – Feature

gallery invigilation and exhibition installation, paid through Creative Scotland and external funding. “Cooper Gallery provides young people in Dundee with the career development opportunities that help them to find their feet in the arts,” Hao said. “Working at Cooper Gallery is often the first experience of working in the cultural industry for many young people in this city.” The University’s proposal, which targets the salaries of Cooper Gallery’s two staff members, is part of a broader cultural devaluation of contemporary arts practice within higher education. DJCAD has already faced major restructuring and foreclosure in the past year, as reported by the student newspaper Jute Journal in October 2025, when it was folded into the much larger Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. The University has also announced plans to cease offering Philosophy as a named degree by 2027, and the closure of the Botanic Gardens. Brownrigg has outlined in a blog post on her website that the University’s proposals define Cooper Gallery as a ‘non-essential’ service, a corporate definition which seeks to justify the closure of Cooper Gallery alongside the Dundee Botanic Gardens, the Chaplaincy, the University’s children’s nursery, and Students Services. The definition “is essentially a non sequitor,” Brownrigg wrote. “The Cooper Gallery has a research remit. Student Services are essential to supporting access to education.” The University’s definition of ‘non-essential’ instead represents the diminishing value that the Higher Education sector places on people, community and critical thinking.

costs. The DUCU have also said that the Equality Impact Assessment has not been submitted to the Director of Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) for review, despite previous assurances that this had already happened. The Save Cooper Gallery Campaign has reached out to Creative Scotland’s Senior Leadership team and Visual Arts team regarding the planned closure, urging Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government to take immediate action to prevent the closure. In June, the Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic, Mairi McAllen, urged the Interim Principal and Vice-Chancellor Professor Nigel Seaton not to push ahead with the planned cuts, but her pleas were ignored. When asked for comment in response to the Save Cooper Gallery campaign, a Dundee University spokesperson said: “There is a proposal to cease operating the Cooper Gallery from July 2027, on the current model, as part of widespread change across the University as we look to make the necessary savings to achieve a position of long-term sustainability. These are proposals at this stage, subject to a collective consultation process that is now underway. Alternative funding pathways and ways of working will be considered during this consultation.” Hao has written separately in a recent blog post about the assault on creative disciplines across UK Universities more generally: “when spaces for cultural and intellectual experimentation are diminished, society becomes less pluralistic, less democratic and less humane.” The proposals for closure of Cooper Gallery represents a dangerous narrowing of cultural education and critical thought within higher education across the UK. The retreat from culture and community must be fought against. Save Cooper Gallery.

VARIOUS DATES

BONGO’S BINGO VARIOUS DATES

BELFAST BRUNCH CO

SATURDAY 3 OCTOBER

THE UNDERTONES 50TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW TUESDAY 13 OCTOBER

FRIDAY 4 SEPTEMBER

THE MARY WALLOPERS

FRIDAY 6 NOVEMBER

SUNDAY 29 NOVEMBER

SATURDAY 7 NOVEMBER

WEDNESDAY 9 DECEMBER

ELVIS FRONTED NIRVANA

FEATURING FRANK CARTER

SKERRYVORE ELVANA

AVATAR

SEX PISTOLS

PROGRESS WRESTLING

FRIDAY 16 OCTOBER

HEAVEN 17

SUNDAY 8 NOVEMBER§

THE ODYSSEY TOUR

SATURDAY 5 SEPTEMBER

SATURDAY 17 OCTOBER

MONDAY 9 NOVEMBER

SUNDAY 6 SEPTEMBER

SATURDAY 24 OCTOBER

FRIDAY 13 NOVEMBER

LUKE COMBS UK

SUNDAY 20 SEPTEMBER

WEDNESDAY 28 OCTOBER

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ARMAND VAN HELDEN ROAD TO NASHVILLE DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE THURSDAY 1 OCTOBER

DON BROCO FRIDAY 2 OCTOBER

THE REYTONS

THE BIG SWALLY JAY PARK FT. LNGSHOT SERENADES AND BODY ROLLS SUNDAY 1 NOVEMBER

PRTY-HALLOWEEN

A NIGHT AT THE DARTS SKYE NEWMAN PICTURE THIS

THURSDAY 10 DECEMBER

ARTEMAS

GETTING UP TO NO GOOD SUNDAY 13 DECEMBER SAT 06 FEBRUARY

THE SNUTS

THE CELEBRATE TOUR

FRIDAY 27 NOVEMBER

THE LOVE TOUR

BBC RADIO 2 DANCE

SOUNDS OF THE 90S WITH VERNON KAY

AGNIESZKA CHYLINSKA

MONDAY 8 FEBRUARY

AN ALL-NEW COUNTESS CABARET STARRING LUANN DE LESSEPS

EDINBURGHCORNEXCHANGE.CO.UK

Thursday 3 September

Tuesday 15 September

featuring Woody Woodmansey + Tony Visconti + Glenn Gregory: The Final Tour

Sunday 20 September

Holy Holy

Friday 4 September

PRTY X HSSH Present HRDR: KLOFAMA Saturday 5 September

The Beast UK I Prevail

The Violent Nature Tour UK & Europe 2026

Friday 11 September

The Cloud 9 Tour

Baby Keem: The Ca�ino Tour

Tuesday 15 September

Tuesday22 September

Friday 2 October

Saturday 10 October

Jamie Webster Sunday 27 September Monday 28 September

Monday 14 September

METRIC, BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE, AND STARS

Tues 22 September

The Bomb Squad Pod Live! All The Feelings Tour with METRIC, BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE AND STARS

Friday 11 September

The Bomb Squad Pod Live!

Saturday 5 September

Megan Moroney:

Tuesday 29 September

The Beast UK

Jamie Webster

The HU

Warrior Chant Tour

Wednesday 30 September

Amble

The Undertones

Cody Pennington

THE SKINNY

Internationalism Strains One Scotland + Venice Emerging Writer considers the pitfalls of the Venice Biennale’s logic of global impartiality through the controversies surrounding the Russian and Israeli pavilions

“Viewed alongside today’s geopolitics, neutrality itself becomes less neutral”

Photo: Luca Zambelli Bais, courtesy La Biennale di Venezia

external atmosphere of controversy. Agricultural pipes drip inky liquid over a pool, and nearby a black rose sits frozen in ice. Artist Belu-Simion Fainaru is inspired by Kabbalistic symbology and the poetry of Paul Celan, specifically Todesfuge, a haunting piece informed by the loss of Celan’s parents in the Holocaust. However, there is little of Celan’s harrowing historical immediacy in these sculptures beyond a straightforward material translation into conventional forms. Celan’s line regarding the “Black milk of daybreak”, for instance, is manifested as rippling and dripping black liquid devoid of context beyond its curatorial text. Within the pavilion, Todesfuge’s specificity is broadened into indirect objects of aesthetic contemplation. While there is nothing inherently wrong with formalist sculpture, it also carries unique implications in the pavilion’s context. Where many expansionist governments foreground grandiose narratives (see the colonialera architecture of Britain’s pavilion), Israel has instead presented sculptural forms which appear almost devoid of narrative, and far more interested in sculptural form. Whether the artist’s intention or not, such work seems to evade critical attention through its polite and depoliticised aesthetic, elegantly fitting the Biennale’s wider language of impartiality. What remains is the uncanny tension of apparently neutral sculptures quietly affirming the rhetoric that surrounds them. Viewed alongside today’s geopolitics, neutrality itself becomes less neutral. Simultaneously, the Biennale continues to inhabit that aforementioned more optimistic world order. The chaotic results of this nostalgia are readily apparent: the Biennale jury have collectively resigned over Israel and Russia’s inclusion, protests have erupted outside those pavilions, and one is left asking why the institution is so entangled in an embattled paradigm of liberal orthodoxy. As internationalism is challenged by global conflict, the Biennale continues as a relic of its political commitments. For its audiences, Venice attempts not only an aesthetic escape from 2026, but also a political one. Scotland + Venice, Bugarin + Castle: Shame Parade, Olivolo, Castello 65a 30122, Venice as part of La Biennale di Venezia, until 22 Nov 2026 This article was supported by the Scotland + Venice X The Skinny Emerging Writers partnership. Throughout 2026, four Scotland + Venice Exhibition Associates are writing about their experiences and observations of the Venice Biennale.

Pavilion of Israel, Rose of Nothingness. 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, In Minor Keys

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September 2026 – Feature

habit of diplomatic neutrality. This tension might have held in the Biennale’s past, but now provokes a myriad of walkouts and demonstrations. Regardless of whether one agrees with Buttafuoco, his perspective has been made volatile by the fallout of a tumultuous outside world. Nowhere is this volatility more apparent than in the Israeli Pavilion and the controversy surrounding it. The Biennale’s logic of global impartiality enables Israel’s inclusion, contradicting the politics of many of its employees. In my first week as an exhibition associate for Scotland + Venice, Venetian culture workers went on strike to protest Israel’s inclusion, the second such strike to affect the Biennale so far. The institution has excluded nations before, notably apartheid South Africa until 1993. This indicates that its current, optimistic framework is historically contingent, most recently emboldened by the 1990s in which Israel had signed the Oslo Accords, beginning a nowstalled peace process with the Palestinian leadership. The confluence of Oslo, the end of apartheid South Africa, and the collapse of the USSR marked the period more widely as one of international optimism. It was also an era in which the Biennale was less affected by the pavilion protests, strikes, and resignations that have defined 2026’s edition. The contested view of Israel as an ordinary participant in global dialogue is echoed further in its pavilion. For a state whose prime minister is facing an ICC arrest warrant, Israel’s pavilion is remarkably normative, composed of serene water-based sculptures which sidestep the

Art

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n the Giardini della Biennale, the Russian Pavilion sits, its exhibition barely visible, unattended by invigilators and obscured behind locked doors. Faint videos of dancing figures can be seen when peering inside, which some visitors try to film on their phones. The exhibition is titled The tree is rooted in the sky; also discernible is the outline of its namesake arboreal sculpture, encircled by empty wooden seats. Russia’s containment is not an independent choice by the Biennale, but a decision taken as the EU moved to withdraw €2 million in future funding. Far from being a triumphant return to the international stage after a four-year absence, the pavilion was only permitted to open for the Biennale’s three-day preview window. If you wanted an artistic symbol for the demise of a liberal, democratic, outwardfacing Russia, this accidental image seems as illustrative as any deliberate artwork. One can detect the reverberations of the Biennales of 1978 and 1980, when the pavilion was left closed during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Across the wider Biennale, a language of neutrality and inclusion struggles to assert itself. In its international structure, the Biennale has historically been termed the ‘Geneva of the Arts’. Just as Geneva was supposedly a neutral ground for global dialogue, Venice positions culture as an impartial realm of international healing and growth. As Biennale president Pietrangelo Buttafuoco said: “If the Biennale were to start selecting not works but affiliations, not visions but passports, it would cease to be what it has always been: the place where the world meets.” Where the Biennale’s international exhibition might be mystical, postcolonial, and even embody some form of leftism, its rhetoric instead signifies a centrist disdain for dogma and an intertwined

Words: Samuel Riddy

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Tastemakers Music

Ahead of celebrating their tenth anniversary this month, we catch up with two thirds of the team behind Freakender Festival

F

reakender’s origin story is, by this point, relatively well documented. Three heads walk into a bar, there to see The Black Tambourines (later Holiday Ghosts). There’s nobody else there. They drunkenly knock their three heads together, birthing Freakender, where they will bring bands like The Black Tambourines back to Glasgow to play a weekender festival, in

Photo: Neelam Khan Vela

Photo: Neelam Khan Vela

Photo: Laura Meek

Photo: Laura Meek

Photo: Laura Meek

Photo: Neelam Khan Vela

Photo: Neelam Khan Vela

September 2026 – Feature

Words: Alexander Ralston

“We don’t do this for profit [...] When you’re focused too much on growth, what makes something special is lost” Holly Calder, Freakender the hopes of giving them the audience they deserve. A decade on, the Freakender Festival has weathered pestilence, plague and promoter profiteering; bridged the gap between the old garage and punk scenes killed off by the pandemic, and the new DIY infrastructure spawned in its image. The Black Tambourines came back as Holiday Ghosts and played the third Freakender in 2018. The room was packed. They got the audience they deserved. Freakender’s Holly Calder and Ross Keppie are sitting across from me in a deserted Old Hairdresser’s. In six weeks time, it’ll be rammed with bands and punters alike, here to celebrate ten years of the Freakender Festival. “I’ve always been really into garage bands,” says Calder, Freakender’s resident 60s psych obsessive, with a blonde Jane Birkin haircut to match. Around 2016, “there was a big explosion of really amazing stuff happening in the States, and… they just never came up here… [so] we brought them up to play. It went well, and we were like, alright okay, there’s an audience for it here – let’s do it. We kind of got into a really fortunate position that, ‘cause the festival had gone well and we had local bands as well as out-of-town bands, people sort of began to trust our taste. So even if they didn’t know a band, if it was a Freakender show, people would be like ‘Alright, okay, that sounds like it’s gonna be interesting – we’ll come and see them.’” For Keppie, inclined towards the punkier side of electronic music, taste is at the heart of everything they do. “It’s impossible to promote a band if you don’t like it. With Freakender, we’ve lucked out that everything that we’ve booked, we like.” “It’s a rock’n’roll festival in the broadest terms,” asserts Calder, although their lineups invariably read like a contemporised version of James Murphy’s record collection from Losing My Edge. “Our music’s become a bit more varied, but in a good way. The audience has changed, the way people process music and come to shows, expenses, [all] changes the people that are able to attend, but I think that the festival itself feels pretty similar now to how it started out.” Freakender is an anchor point that has stayed mercifully constant while Glasgow, and the alternative scene, has warped, burned, been reborn and died again around it. Following the success of the festival and its year-round counterpart Freakender Presents, a lively ecosystem has sprung up: alternative promotion/management co-ops like — 26 —

Crowded Flat and SMC Presents (who themselves combine to run Houseguest Festival) are thriving, alongside Pop Mutations, itself run by Keppie. Over the past year, The Cabbage has been finding its footing as a new indie promoter for kids brought up on milk, rusks and Teenage Fanclub records, centred on bands like Fatale and Supersun. One of the three heads is absent from our conversation. Ian Crawford has moved down south, becoming Freakender’s Man In London, inverting the cultural creative relationship by spiriting London bands away to Renfield Lane under the cover of darkness. Crawford has turned Calder on to “so much good music over the years… Ian has always had amazing taste. I’m always excited to be like, ‘Oh, have you heard this yet? You’re gonna love it!’ and that’s essentially what we’re doing as a festival. Instead of sending you a YouTube link, we’re putting them down in front of you, being like, ‘Come and see this!’” Taking place across two floors at The Old Hairdresser’s, this year’s Freakender Festival promises a curated blend of genres, allowing entry points between styles for those maybe interested in other people’s worlds, but hesitant to set foot into them. “You can see every single band,” Calder informs me. “There’s a 15-minute gap between each band where people have time to move rooms, go for a smoke, get some air outside, see everything. It’s a really special space. One of the things I like most about it is people spilling out onto the lane, and that feels quite private and part of the festival, when everyone’s outside chatting.” The intimacy of the festival is part of its appeal, something Calder readily acknowledges. “We don’t do this for profit. We’re not thinking about that – we want to keep it special and small. I think that when you’re focused too much on growth, what makes something special is lost.” For a decade, the Freakender Festival has reforged the relationship between Glasgow and the international underground, piercing the Britpop veil that entraps and surrounds the city, forcing us to look outwards. It feels like for a weekend, Freakender makes Glasgow the capital of alternative music on this septic isle. There is no tastemaker of greater import in this city. Ten Years of Freakender, The Old Hairdresser’s, Glasgow, 18-20 Sep instagram.com/freakenderglasgow

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AUTUMN 2026 “changed the landscape of Scottish theatre” The Guardian

Tuck into a brand-new play every week at Òran Mór Glasgow playpiepint

playpiepint.com

September 2026

Deep Dive | Friday 18 September glasgowsciencecentre.org

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Music

On the day of his EIF show, Liam Shortall, aka corto.alto, joins us in the artist’s studios above The Skinny office to talk about the spirit of friendship and collaboration that runs through his new album, SOME SMALL FORTUNE

September 2026 – Feature

Words: Laurie Presswood

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Photo: James Pearson Howes

maximalist. minimalist

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As in other places in the album, the trick here was to fight those maximalist tendencies: “[On] this album I’ve had to be very reductive – normally I’d be thinking how do I cram every little bit of cool melody in,” he says. “This time I’ve been thinking, ‘what doesn’t need to be there, what can I take away?’” The journey to NOBLEHILL was years in the making. Shortall first saw Alon play at South by Southwest (“it was like we were in Texas watching David Bowie, or young Jeff Buckley”), and knew immediately he wanted them to work on music together. He’s spent the three years since then working out just what that would sound like. Even from the point the collaboration was confirmed, the song took months to get right. The process from start to finish would look like “a big ball of spaghetti”. There were countless times when it seemed like the track would have to be held back from the album, or even be left unfinished. There were re-done string parts and a cut piano solo; sometimes it felt that they just weren’t getting there with the lyrics and friend and frequent collaborator Terra Kin had to step in to help facilitate the writing sessions. The story of this song is one of chaos and spontaneity you could only achieve with people you really trust – there were mad-dash last-minute writing sessions from half past midnight til four in the morning that only ended because Shortall had to travel to Edinburgh Airport to begin a tour of the US, and times when Alon had to leave sessions to travel home to Dunfermline to pick up contact lenses for a gig. The vocals were eventually laid down in Shortall’s Govanhill flat, only to have to be re-recorded at Solas Sound on Berkeley Street because you could make out the sound of people fighting on the street outside. “Jacob is so intentional with the way they write and the way they approach music, nothing can be throwaway. Everything has to really have meaning and relate to everything else that’s going on in the track, and that was such an amazing

thing to watch happen to a piece of music that’s a bit of mine as well.” In contrast to NOBLEHILL, SOMETHING (feat. BINA.), which immediately precedes it on the record, took just three hours to make – write the melody, record the drums, the backing vocals, the lot. Shortall is delighted and astonished in equal measure at seeing so many contrasting creative processes up close. Every collaborator effectively got the same starting point – a folder of 30-second demos and a briefing PDF explaining his thoughts on the album. It served as a prompt, not a million miles away from the sort of thing you might find in the pages of The Artist’s Way, and just as in any writing circle, each collaborator responded to it in their own way. Some tracks started from the same demos, but we’ll never be able to tell. And isn’t that the beauty of the creative process. “I think it’s amazing how creatively different we are and how you can learn from each other. I think it’s good to do both things – be really intentional, like make a song where you spend six months writing it, or you analyse every chord, every note, every rhythm, every sound that you use, and then the next day try and write something in half an hour and see how different they feel.” Shortall continues: “I just feel so grateful that I’ve had that opportunity to work with all these people on this record and learn so much about creativity in general – it’s really helped inform everything I do.” SOME SMALL FORTUNE is released on 4 Sep via Ninja Tune; corto.alto plays in-stores at Assai Records, Edinburgh, 3 Sep and at Some Great Reward, Glasgow, 4 Sep; catch corto.alto at Barrowlands, Glasgow, 29 Jan 2027 To hear the full conversation with corto.alto’s Liam Shortall, subscribe and listen to the latest episode of our Music Now Podcast in all the usual places cortoalto.com

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September 2026

Photo: Michal Augustini

here’s a bit of a mantra around careers in the arts that you shouldn’t go into them unless you can’t imagine doing anything else; you wouldn’t encourage your child to walk that long and uncertain path unless they were obsessed to the occlusion of all other options. Speaking to corto.alto’s Liam Shortall in the artist’s studios above The Skinny’s office, you come to realise that he is the living embodiment of this lifestyle, this devotion to the craft. He wants to make music from the minute he wakes up until it’s bedtime, and sometimes for several hours after that (luckily he has some patient flatmates). He loves making music even if no-one else wants to listen, and he loves making music even if it’s terrible. He actually seems to love it especially then – he says he’s learning to enjoy that, to understand that it’s part of the process. In Shortall’s own words, he can be “a bit of a control freak”, and he has learned to fight those instincts in the recording process. He knows, for example, that if he presents band member, SAY Award winner and fellow Mercury Prize nominee Fergus McCreadie with a specifically scored piano part, it will never be as good as if he gives McCreadie an overview and lets him interpret it through his own lens. Afterall, what’s the point of hiring your insanely talented musical friends if they can’t bring a bit of themselves onto the track. corto.alto’s latest album, SOME SMALL FORTUNE, is almost an antidote to this – at first glance it’s an album about memory and nostalgia but there’s another, unspoken, theme on the record, which is collaboration. Seven of its 15 tracks feature other artists from around the world, and that’s not even taking into account all the friends from the Glasgow jazz scene who contribute to the corto.alto sound. The process has been a learning curve, but also massively enriching, giving him new ways of working and a lot of new friends. GO, featuring Nigerian-based rapper Vector, was recorded entirely remotely – and yet Shortall says it was the easiest thing he’d ever done. He wanted any excuse to get out there, to hang out, to make more music, and so eventually he flew to Lagos to record a music video and do just that. He says so much of the momentum he felt came from how keen and responsive Vector was. “I do feel like it’s a 50-50,” Shortall says. “You’re asking someone to contribute something, which is inevitably going to be more my thing than theirs, and [...] some people are up for committing more time or less time,” he explains. “But when you work with someone remotely, like Vector, where it’s like any idea, any request from me was taken with, ‘that’s great, let’s at least try it’... then it doesn’t really make a difference if you’re in the room or not.” Perhaps the most surprising collaboration is one of those closest to home – closing track NOBLEHILL, written with Jacob Alon. Until you’ve listened to it, it’s hard to imagine how Alon’s delicate acoustics could ever make sense against corto.alto’s often maximalist, polyrhythmic, future jazz sound. But the final result is astonishing, Alon’s vocals spread out atop Graham Costello’s drumming like fine lace, the distance between the two textures creating the tension needed to resolve the album emotionally.

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Access All Areas Leading accessibility travel writer Carrie-Ann Lightley talks to us about a recent trip to Scotland's Tay County, where she encountered woodland accommodation, Highland coos and a wonderful exhibition of art and design by disabled people Words: Jamie Dunn

September 2026

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ix months back we spoke to Carrie-Ann Lightley, one of the UK’s leading disabled travel writers and accessibility consultants, about her trip to Dundee to attend the firstever Scotland's Tay County Tourism Conference. At the event, she spoke about her lived experience as a wheelchair user and presented ways in which tourist destinations could improve inclusivity for disabled travellers. As well as taking part in the conference, Lightley also took some time to squeeze in a visit to Dundee’s most popular visitor attraction: the V&A Dundee. She had a fine time at the Kengo Kuma-designed museum. Her one regret, however, is that her trip was too early to take in V&A Dundee’s major new Design and Disability exhibition, which wasn’t opening till June. “I timed my trip slightly wrong,” she said back in March, “but I’m already wondering if I can arrange a return visit.” It turns out she got her wish. Lightley recently had the oppertunity to return for a longer visit to Scotland’s Tay Country to experience some attractions across the wider region, and she made sure to include a return to V&A Dundee. First though, Lightley made her way up from her home in the Lake District to her main base for the trip: Forbes of Kingennie, a country resort in Angus, seven miles from Dundee. Lightley had never visited Forbes of Kingennie before, but she says she immediately got “Centre Parcs vibes”. She was staying in one of the site’s Escape Pods, individual cabins situated within woodland. “It’s shaped like a caravan with grassed turf on the roof, and it’s wooden all around," says Lightley. The particular Escape Pod she stayed in is named Sòlas Retreat. It’s Forbes of Kingennie’s only cabin dedicated to accessibility. “My first impression on entering the unit was that they’d clearly done a lot to try and make it inclusive to different needs,” says Lightley. “The thing that stood out the most is that they had a ceiling track hoist.” The hoist’s purpose is to help people who aren’t able to transfer out of their wheelchair into a chair, bed or shower, and what made this hoist unique is that the track runs through the entire unit. “It goes from the bedroom through the hallway into the living and kitchen area and into the bathroom. So it’s very easy to move around and use independently.” — 30 —

This isn’t a facility that Lightley requires herself, but she knows how important it is for people who do need it, and how rare it is to find it in holiday accommodation. There isn’t a single hotel in Scotland with one, she tells me, and to find one like this in a self-catering accommodation is also incredibly uncommon. A lot of thought has clearly been put into Sòlas Retreat’s setup. Lightley used her manual wheelchair on this trip and managed to manoeuvre around the snug pod, but she reckons there might not be enough space for some powered wheelchair users because of the lack of turning circle space. The first stop on Lightley’s trip was Dundee Science Centre. “It’s definitely more aimed at children,” she says of the venue, but she was impressed by their access provisions. “Considering they’re a small charity, they’re working really hard to make it inclusive.” Lightley was particularly impressed that they had a Changing Places toilet facility. “It’s basically a more high-spec accessible toilet. It’s a very large space, it has a ceiling track hoist and it has an adult-size changing bench. So again, for somebody who can’t independently transfer out their chair and needs support with toileting, it’s so important.” Despite being so essential, this is another amenity she doesn’t see in enough public spaces. “Many towns and cities don’t have them at all. Like where I live, in Kendall, there’s one, but it’s on the outskirts. So if you’re in the centre of town and you need that facility to go to the toilet, you’re kind of

Newton Farm

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says everything about this exhibition,” says Lightley. “Seeing those two pieces of design together, the Pride Flag and that slogan in this V&A Dundee, Design mainstream, prestigious and Disability exhibition space. There’s a real power to that.” Another piece that moved Lightley deeply was Yasmeen Fathima Thantrey’s u taken ur tablets? It’s a conceptual piece that takes the form of a long banner that loops and hangs across the gallery ceiling, on which Thantrey has printed her year’s worth of medications prescribed from the NHS app. “It’s reams and reams and reams and reams,” says Lightley. “The idea is to show people who are outside of this world of chronic illness that this is the reality. This is a part of disability that doesn’t often get seen or spoken about. I’ve had some really challenging health times over the last 12 months, so I just really identified with that piece.” The exhibition lets people with disabilities feel seen and engage with artists with similar lived experiences. But it’s also a show that should be essential viewing for non-disabled people too. “I repeated this to my friend several times,” says Lightley. “I said, ‘I love that non-disabled people are coming in here and spending time in this space and learning about the richness and the broadness and the celebrations and the challenges of disability. That this show is on in this mainstream space where adults and children, everybody of all varieties, are coming and learning more. I absolutely love that.”

Dundee Science Centre, 14 Greenmarket, Dundee DD1 4QB Newton Farm Holidays & Tours, Newton of Fothringham Farm, Inverarity, Forfar DD8 2JU Forbes of Kingennie Country Resort, Forbes of Kingennie Dr, Dundee DD5 3RD V&A Dundee, 1 Riverside Esplanade, Dundee DD1 4EZ Find out more about accessible holidays in Scotland at visitscotland.com/accessible and at AccessAble accessable.co.uk/scotland-s-tay-country

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Read Lightley's travel writing at carrieannlightley.com

September 2026

stuck.” The Science Centre, by contrast, is close to the centre of Dundee, and crucially, entry is free. “You don’t have to have a ticket to go into the Science Centre. So anybody who needs that kind of facility in Dundee, whether they’re visiting from somewhere else or whether they’re local, they can go and use it.” Lightley’s trip also took her further afield into Scotland's Tay County, up towards Newton Farm, near Forfar. The farm is very much a visitor destination – they offer guided visits and have a four-star bed-and-breakfast on site – but tourism isn’t the guiding principle behind the project. Everything is led by what is happening on the farm, what the animals need, and the animals’ natural environment. “I was so impressed when Lou [Nicoll], the owner and operator of the farm, said to me, ‘I will never tether an animal so that somebody can come along and pet it. We are not a petting zoo.’” Despite being a fully authentic farm experience, there was still plenty of animal interaction involved. “We got to groom Highland cows. We got to feed alpaca and goats and sheep and say hello to all of these animals. And we had one of the farm dogs, a Labrador called Oban, who literally followed us around all day, which was also wonderful.” Working farms, by their very nature, aren’t particularly accessible, though, what with their gates, machinery, uneven fields, and, especially when it has been raining for a few days, as it had been on Lightley’s trip, lots of mud. It’s not exactly the kind of environment that’s easy to manoeuvre for wheelchair users, but Nicoll and her team have a novel solution: they’ve adapted a trailer. “I’ve never experienced anything like that before,” explains Lightley. “Basically, the trailer hooks onto the back of a Land Rover. It has a ramp that folds down that I was able to go up onto, and then there are tie-down restraints for a wheelchair.” Lightley explains that the trailer came to be because of a visitor request. “The farm had someone contact them who was a wheelchair user who really wanted to come and experience the farm, but they didn’t have any kind of powered mobility device or any way that they could physically get around on the tours that would be compatible with the terrain. So Lou and her family decided to look into it and see what they could do, and this is the result. And it’s opened up these wonderful experiences to so many people.” Newton Farm was clearly one of Lightley’s trip highlights, as was the chance to finally see V&A Dundee’s Design and Disability exhibition. The first thing she was confronted with when she entered the exhibition was a piece of design she recognised: The Disability Pride Flag. “Instantly that made me feel, OK, this is where our community is,” she recalls. Right next to the flag were some T-shirts with various slogans from the disability movement over the years. “One of them was a 90s disability rights activist slogan that ultimately led to the development of the Disability Discrimination Act in 1995, and us all getting our rights.” That slogan was the punchy ‘Piss on pity.’ “I think that

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Thrill Me, Kill Me Nicolas Winding Refn is back with Her Private Hell, a sci-fi slasher that’s split critical opinion. We catch up with this cult filmmaker to discuss daddy issues, the thrill of revenge and the power of opera

Think Hardcore, The Virgin Spring, The Last House on the Left. “It’s basically a [genre] where fathers are allowed to inflict extreme pain in the name of innocence,” says Refn of the dadsploitation canon. “And it usually revolves around their daughters being taken. It’s almost religious. Fathers are set free to basically use the most extreme, vicious side of the human psyche to inflict and cause pain.” I laugh at this, wondering if this is a wellknown feeling amongst men, remembering how my dad would recite the infamous Liam Neeson monologue from Taken to me when I moved out. Refn thinks so. “To men, these films have a pornographic texture. Because it’s such a desirable release, you know? We fantasise about it, and those fantasies become enormously popular in mass entertainment. So it obviously does appeal to a lot of men.” The theme of revenge is the lifeblood that pulses within Refn’s work, from the Pusher trilogy to Drive to Only God Forgives. “Revenge is one of the three most human factors of our existence,” he says when I ask about this preoccupation. “What you experience on social media is an avatar that can be in conflict with your human instincts. It’s like the brain is moving towards a digital existence, but your heart always remains in the primitive stage of survival and desire.” Familiar Refn territory it may be, but Her Private Hell happens to be the first time the director has worked with legendary composer Pino Donaggio. The Italian maestro, famous for his work on films like Carrie and Don’t Look Now, understood what Refn wanted to make: an opera. The resulting score is restrained, without needle drops, which lends it its hazy, otherworldly quality. “Operas are more stoic,” says Refn. “Words are very symbolic, themes are grandiose. So I needed to find a film composer who also knew opera, and

September 2026 – Feature

Film

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’m talking to Nicolas Winding Refn over Zoom, and I want to throw up. Not because of his film, I tell him. I’m genuinely unwell. “I love the headline,” he smiles. “Her Private Hell made me throw up. The internet would love that.” This is the kind of response I expected. Refn is, after all, the Danish enfant terrible of modern, neon-soaked, hyper-stylised, ultraviolent cinema, and during our interview he’s everything you might imagine: über-passionate, unapologetic, mischievous. His latest film, the aforementioned Her Private Hell, is a hypnotic grand guignol space opera with doses of fairytale magic and 1970s exploitation thrown in. It’s also concerned with an Electra Complex and Refn’s own urban legend in the shape of the Leatherman, and manages to be futuristic in a wholly unique way. More than a simple revenge tale, the film’s tone, visual language and dialogue are informed by the suffocating underwater feeling of grief. Elle’s (Sophie Thatcher) father, whom she idealises, is absent (and implied, not a good guy); Private K (Charles Melton) is a bloodthirsty monomaniac searching for his lost daughter; even the Leatherman, a terrifying boogeyman creature, is haunted by his daughter’s loss and pushed into violence in his doomed search. As someone who lost a parent in recent memory, I recognised the feeling – hopeless searching in an underworld – as a familiar one. “I think it’s a common trap to fall into where you look at your life as your personal hell and you can’t get out of it,” says Refn. “It also sets the stage for a form of dream logic where it’s based more on the subconscious because… what does it mean to be in your private hell?” The title actually came from a cheap, second-hand 60s pulp paperback Refn found in the US, which he never read. Refn says the film belongs to one of his favourite subgenres: the dadsploitation movie.

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Words: Katie Driscoll

“I’m not a politician. I’m not here to sell you something” Nicolas Winding Refn there’s not a lot like that except for Italians.” Refn took a voyage to Italy where he “realised that all the composers that I love, and I’m sure you love as well, are all dead.” Donaggio is the last man standing. Refn reached out to the composer, asking him if he wanted to work together on an opera for the film, then said, in his classic blunt style, “Great, let’s do one before you die,” which Donaggio apparently found amusing. The philosophy of opera – symbolic, grandiose, emotionally open-ended – seems to extend to Refn’s approach to filmmaking itself. He has no interest in making a film easy to decode, something refreshing in our age of definitions. As he puts it, “I’m not there to spoonfeed the audiences because I don’t have an agenda. I’m not a politician. I’m not here to sell you something. What I’m offering up is an experience. And I can say with hand on my heart that it’s an experience that comes from my heart to you. Now what you do with that is beyond my control. What you think about that is beyond my control. Whether you like it or not is beyond my control.” Her Private Hell is an exercise in concentration. For some audiences this is a thrill. To others it might feel, well, hellish. I’m curious how Refn would describe the film for those who may ask what it’s about. “Four words,” he says, with a devilish smile. “Nicolas. Winding. Refn. Movie.” Her Private Hell is released 25 Sep by MUBI

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Three riddles. Two hearts. A life at risk.

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Welcome Words: Myrtle Boot To help you along the way, we’ve consulted chefs, chaplains, clubbers – even the stars. Our Student Guide features advice from our very own guru, Ask Anahit. One writer speaks to Scotland’s student DJs about finding your way on the dancefloor. Music talks bluegrass jams and community building with Sociograss. We take a look at Gen Z’s rediscovery of spirituality in trying times and finish with guidance from above – albeit in the form of horoscopes. As for us, The Skinny is a monthly publication that doesn’t cost a penny. You’re already reading this, so you probably know where to find a copy for next month. If not, then head to art venues, bars, your uni campus or our website where you can find our full distribution list. The Skinny’s editors and contributors take great pains to cover the best of film, music, art, theatre, clubs, comedy, literature, food and opinions in Scotland. We hope this year’s Student Guide gives you a flavour of what we do as a publication, answers some burning questions and leaves you gearing up to get stuck into student life. Welcome, fàilte, happy reading.

Student Guide

As a Master’s student just shy of a decade older than the next wave of Freshers flooding into the halls of residence, sticky nightclubs and concrete lecture theatres this September, you may wonder, ‘What the hell could you possibly offer in the form of editorial content to students born in 2008!?!?’ Well, I haven’t bought a house, learned to drive or written a best-selling memoir, so my experience as a student is one of the few major milestones I can really speak on. After all, whichever decade you were born in, the broad themes of student life remain the same. Coming of age by means of sorting your own dental appointments. Realising that your landlord does not care about the phosphorescent mushroom growing in your bathroom. Discovering the joys and challenges that come with independence. Of course, there are many things I can’t answer about starting university in the year that is 2026. How will AI alter your academic experience? Go fish. Has the 2008 financial crash left you with trauma from the womb? Ask your mum. It’s up to you to wade through the quagmire that is being a Fresher. We believe in you!

September 2026 – Feature

Cover Artist Tintin is a Swedish illustrator based in Glasgow. Her works are often inspired by her surroundings, feelings, and colours. She’s drawn to experimenting with different printmaking techniques and the happy accidents that can occur, allowing spontaneous marks and textures. IG: tintinart tintinart.com

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THE SKINNY

STUDENT HEADS UP

Easing you into the cultural calendar of Scotland’s major cities – here’s a (very) brief round-up of some of the highlights to look forward to in the coming months Compiled by Rosamund West

Student Guide

Photo: David Wilkinson

FLY Festival Princes St Gardens, Edinburgh, 12-13 Sep. 1-10pm Pray for clear skies as Scottish clubbing mainstays FLY bring another alldayer to the unparalleled location of the Ross Band Stand, set in the gardens beneath Edinburgh Castle. This year’s lineup features Franky Rizardo, Kerri Chandler, Omar+ and many more.

The SAY Award Caird Hall, Dundee, 5 Nov The Scottish Album of the Year Award is an annual celebration of the best of the nation’s music. The ceremony is once again coming to Dundee this year – keep an eye on our socials for the longlist announcement.

FLY Festival

Clueless Filmhouse, Edinburgh, 29 Sep, 6.15pm

Glasgow International Comedy Festival Various venues, 10-28 Mar 2026

We’ve teamed up with beloved indie cinema Filmhouse for a special screening of classic 90s comedy Clueless. There’s a social afterwards in the cinema bar – join us to discuss film, 90s fashion and independent Scottish cultural journalism.

Scotland’s funniest city hosts a comedy festival with a bit of everything – previews, touring shows and worksin-progress from big names, as well as showcases of local comic talent. Clueless Photo: Elaine Livingstone

Photo: Grant Anderson

Photo: Cameron Brisbane

The SAY Award

Photo: Julie Howden

Glasgow International Comedy Festival

Tenement Trail Various venues, Glasgow, 10 Oct

RSA New Contemporaries Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, 2027 TBC

Take a tour of the city’s East End venues with a one-day programme taking in the Barrowlands, St Luke’s, BAaD and more besides. Billed as a festival of discovery, this year’s packed lineup includes The Orielles, Paulie Swan, Conscious Pilot and Ferguson Hi-Fi.

Selected by the RSA Academicians, a sort of Scottish art illuminati, this annual exhibition showcases the very best of the graduate work on display in the 2026 degree shows.

RSA New Contemporaries 2024

And four more events to look out for... Venues across Glasgow, 17-21 Mar 2027

Photo: Tiu Makkonen

Photo: Ingrid Mur

Various venues, Glasgow, 19-24 Oct

Glasgow Short Film Festival

Radical Book Fair

Kelburn Garden Party

Lighthouse Radical Book Fair SQUIFF 2023

Photo: ReCompose

Scottish Queer International Film Festival

Image: courtesy Lighthouse Books

September 2026 – Feature

Tenement Trail

Assembly Roxy, Edinburgh, 5-8 Nov

Kelburn Garden Party Glasgow Short Film Festival

— 38 —

Kelburn Castle, near Largs, 1-5 Jul 2027

THE SKINNY

Students get £6* tickets

for classical music concerts ...and half-price tickets to film concerts!

*Tickets bought after 5pm on the evening of the concert cost £8. You will need to bring proof of age or a full-time student ID with you. Seating area restrictions may apply to some performances.

rsno.org.uk

Discover what’s on

September 2026

— 39 —

OFF THE KERB PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS

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STIRLING

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28/08/2026 12:03

THE SKINNY

GOT A QUESTION?

N

O I T I D E P I H S D N E I R F T N E D STU

How can I make friends as a commuting student? OK! The good news is this one I have more solutions for! Concrete solutions! Get your to-do list out! The UK has such a strong moving to a new city and living in uni halls with your pals student culture that I can only imagine how daunting it must feel to be outside of that, and wonder how you might fit in. The good news is you will all spend the rest of your lives making friends not in uni halls, so it is definitely possible and probably a good skill to develop early in life. So, solutions. I have two for you. Say yes to everything that doesn’t actively make you want to die and find somewhere to crash. The first: I know it’s very trendy in our current self-care culture to practise saying no. Stop that! You can do that when you are 30 and have too many friends making demands and just want to stay in with your cat! Right now, say yes to anything that doesn’t actively feel like it is putting you in danger/going against every one of your ethical codes. Learn to tell the difference between trepidation (going for a random coffee with this random person might be really awkward and you still won’t have a friend at the end) and actual fear (this random person seems to give all the signs of being a burgeoning neo-Nazi). If it’s the former you feel, say yes anyway. This is the time to be uncomfortable! Join societies even though organised fun is cringe. It is, but once you get past that initial group project feeling of a bunch of barely adults sitting in a room trying to bond over indie sleaze, you might find you actually have something in common and your friendship can move past the formalities of The Kooks’ back catalogue and into something meaningful. And once you have these friends, prevail upon them to crash at their house semi-regularly. You’re not in school anymore but sleepovers are still a delight, and it means you don’t have to miss out on the late-night parties and pub nights and birthdays or rush for that final train. I can’t think of anything I would have loved more as a student than one of my friends hanging out in my house all the time. Be that friend!

Do you have a problem Anahit could help with? Get in touch by email on pettyshit@theskinny.co.uk, send us your quandaries with an almost-unhelpful level of anonymity via NGL, or look out for Ask Anahit callouts on our Instagram stories — 41 —

September 2026 – Feature

How do I deal with a friendship breakup? I really admire how you’ve circumnavigated my tendency to philosophise by asking a very action-forward question. It’s going to shatter the illusion of me as the Central Belt’s foremost fount of wisdom but that’s not your problem. You want solutions, damnit! That’s your right! Unfortunately, I don’t really have any for you! I went through several paradigm-shifting friendship breakups over the last few years and I did not deal with them very well At All. I did more drugs than I’ve ever done in my life, I developed weird agoraphobic and disordered eating habits, I almost adopted a dying cat. I didn’t really have a language for what was happening, except that my world had very abruptly changed and that I just had to be OK with it. If I had broken up with a partner, there would have been some kind of public narrative and acknowledgement of what had happened. As it was, there wasn’t. “I’m going to have to tell people from work,” I remember thinking blankly after it happened. Except, as it turned out, I didn’t. Because there just isn’t a script for these things in the way there is for romantic relationships. People don’t have to ask, and you don’t have to say. We think of grief as a private process and it is, but many of the ways that we as a society deal with it is through acts of public mourning and ritual. Funerals, wakes, interminable brunches with your friends dissecting the moment your first boyfriend dumped you for good. It is how we understand and work through the pain of it – take that away, and the pain just kind of… lingers. So I guess if I had any concrete advice to give you, it would be to make the breakup public in some kind of way. I don’t mean you have to create a spectacle or badmouth them throughout the town. But more… can you give a language to how you feel? Can you let people around you know? Can you ask for help in managing the social fallout, the same way you would with a romantic relationship? Basically, can you treat it as important? I think that is the only way to deal with them, really. There’s nothing I can say for how to actually ease the sense of loss and confusion and hurt that you are feeling, but I can tell you to try and find a language for the pain. It’s the only way you’ll be able to eventually release it.

Student Guide

In this student special advice extravaganza, our resident agony aunt tackles your friendship at university questions

THE SKINNY

STRIKE A CHORD O

n a cold January evening last year, I walked up to Bowler’s Rest, a pub nestled in the heart of Leith. I was going to watch and support my friends who had just begun playing the fiddle at the Sunday bluegrass jam sessions there. This was how I met the members of the band Sociograss. It was a slow unveiling – first I met double bassist Conal McIntosh. Then, as I started going regularly, the other cast of the play were revealed to me: Ben Errington on the fiddle, Tim Leslie on the guitar, James ‘Jimmy’ Wright on the banjo and Mark Hand on the mandolin make up the rest of the five-piece, as is common in bluegrass music. They all sing. The band’s first album, Made It All Up, came out in 2024. After this, they released their Kentucky Dragon EP, a direct result of a commission from American horror novelist Michael Park to write musical accompaniments for the audiobook version of his trilogy of books set in Kentucky. Each story is woven around a song. This musical and literary collaboration gave the band a rare chance to spend some time at the studio, which also germinated the ideas that were to become Glee and Glutton. Released in May of this year, the record includes some original work alongside old and traditional tunes. The album pulls you in with steady rhythms and deceptively simple sounding arrangements. What is truly special about it is the juxtaposition

of the musicians’ virtuosity with the incredible restraint that they show in some of the pieces. You can choose to float on the surface, or you can dive under and discover its depth – and both of these are joyous experiences. The second track, Wake Up, is a haunting tale of lost love which deftly shifts into Little Maggie, retaining its sombre tone while lifting us towards Garfield’s, where the finesse and skill of the band is laid bare. The precision coupled with a certain ruggedness makes for an adventure which does not lose its thrill even when listened to on repeat.

“MUSIC SHOULD BE FOR EVERYONE” BEN ERRINGTON, SOCIOGRASS I meet up with the band after their July gig at The Pitt Market in Granton. We talk about the new album, the motivation behind the music and the beautifully rare community they’ve managed to find and build upon at their Sunday sessions. The band was formed when Leslie, who is originally from Pennsylvania, came to Edinburgh and found the other members who had been playing bluegrass professionally with different bands at the time. Joined together by their love for the genre, they happened on the name Sociograss

September 2026 – Feature

Student Guide

We catch up with Edinburgh bluegrass outfit Sociograss to talk about their new album and the beautifully rare community they’ve managed to build at their Sunday sessions

Sociograss at Bowler’s Rest

— 42 —

Words: Himani Tripathi

as a last-minute decision. “We needed to decide a name for a gig, and we thought it would be a funny take on the word sociopath, but people often assume that it is named that way because of the word ‘social’, which is definitely nicer,” says McIntosh, laughing. The band members are decidedly not sociopaths; a fact I can vouch for after having experienced the wonderfully inclusive space they’ve created at the Bowler’s sessions. The session is different from any other music jam I’ve ever been to, and you can feel this difference from the first time you attend. While the room at the back of the pub which hosts the night gets very warm, the numbers don’t dwindle. The stage at one end of the room is treated as an extension of the space, with musicians strewn throughout, often playing multiple instruments in any one song. There is palpable joy in the air, and musicians of every skill level are genuinely encouraged to participate. Sometimes, McIntosh helps the beginners play by naming the chords. “My job as a teacher helps with that,” he says. I ask Errington what makes the night so special. “I think it’s the fact that we are not strict about the genre. We’re happy to play along to different kinds of music because it means that more people can participate.” Music as an accessible medium of expression strikes a chord with all of them, with Leslie recounting his experience of being a jazz drummer back home. “People can be really judgemental about music, and it can be off-putting,” he says. I find it difficult that anyone could judge these musicians with the technical ability that each of them possess. Errington chimes in to say that bluegrass is sometimes called ‘hillbilly jazz’, and that it manages to be both community-based and technically challenging, which is quite fulfilling. Wright and McIntosh, being self-professed introverts, both express how playing music helps them connect with people and makes socialising easier. They’re also adamant the night wouldn’t be possible without the folks who come every week and join in. In fact, I have seen more women and queer people perform here than at any other jam, to the point where we now have our own wee subgroup called ‘Sociogals’, which came about as a result of women and femme people encouraging each other to take up more space. As a result of this, I have discovered so much new music – songs by women and for women – that I would have never come across otherwise. Among the myriad people who attend the night, I have met highly skilled and trained musicians, people who have studied music all their lives, and people who have never picked up an instrument, just coming in to listen. I have seen numerous cases of people singing in public for the first time, supported by a full band. It is a true

A DF Concerts presentation by arrangement with CAA

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IN THE MIX

THE SKINNY

They also play Church of Sound Festival, People’s Leisure Club, Edinburgh, 5 Sep; Glasgow Americana: Gathering South Festival, The Old Toll Bar, Glasgow, 2 Oct; Pianodrome, Edinburgh, 10 Oct; Howe Beer Project, Balmalcolm, Fife, 30 Oct

Photos: Jessica Marshall

TALENT TUESDAY

OPEN DECKS ADRIAN’S BAR OPEN DECKS

The Glass Bucket, Dundee, every Tuesday, 8pm Open to singers, instrumentalists, poets – basically anyone wanting a moment in the spotlight – join the melting pot of talent at the queerfriendly venue.

Adrian’s Bar, Glasgow, every Tuesday, 7pm Southside queer institution Adrian’s Bar welcomes all styles, abilities and identities for their weekly open decks – sign up on their website.

GLASGOW SINGAROUND

Dragonfly, Edinburgh, 2nd Sunday of the month, 7pm Meet your next favourite DJ – Open Decks Socials host the capital’s up-and-comers on Dragonfly’s decks each month. Join the WhatsApp group to get involved.

Dram, Glasgow Take a seat in the circle at Glasgow’s Singaround, where fans of traditional tunes take turns to hold the floor. Bring nothing but a ballad.

MAKE IT YOURSELF

OPEN DECKS SOCIAL

SPIN CLASS

OPEN MIC COMEDY

OPEN MIC POETRY

FREE FOR ALL

ROCK THE BOAT

RED RAW

The Stand, Glasgow, weekly Tuesdays, 8pm Every Red Raw sees a new batch of performers take to the stage for the very first time, as well as some familiar faces with fresh material for good measure. Check the website to apply for a spot. — 45 —

Nice N Sleazy, Glasgow, every Sunday, 7pm Calling all crate diggers and audiophiles, Spin Class hosts vinyl-only sessions making use of the club’s professional PA system. No mixing necessary, just your best wax.

Wee Red Bar, Edinburgh, 3rd Thursday of the month, 7-9pm Rock the Boat welcomes poems of all genres and poets at any stage of their voyage into verse. Register your interest for a spot to read.

CRISP PACKET POETRY

Various locations, Glasgow Show off your flavour at Crisp Packet Poetry, where the floor is open to all forms of languagebased experimental performance. Pitch your poem to their email or test a work-in-progress at one of their PEELERS nights.

September 2026 – Feature

Pianodrome, Edinburgh, 14-18 Oct Nestled in the middle of a church (and a mass of pianos), the Make it Yourself Pianodrome Festival is undoubtedly the most picturesque spot for an open mic gig. Locals can sign up to serenade on their website.

Monkey Barrel, Edinburgh, every 1st and 3rd Monday of the month, 7pm Free, unticketed and packed with back-to-back stand-up, Free For All is great for those looking to get their first five minutes on stage. Register on the night for a chance on the mic.

Sociograss

Adrian's Bar

Words: Myrtle Boot OPEN MIC MUSIC

instagram.com/sociograss

Student Guide

Find Sociograss at their regular Edinburgh meetups: Leith Community Croft (Wednesdays, 6-9pm), The Bowler’s Rest (Sundays, 6-9pm) and The Fort of Leith (Thursdays, 7pm)

Photo: Phoebe Willison

community with a shared purpose – one of bringing people together through music. Through this community, I have learned how to connect with people across generation gaps, navigate awkward but inevitable social situations when sharing elbow space with strangers to experience magic of making fleeting and beautiful art. The conversation turns to what the Edinburgh Council can do to support live music and talent in the city. “They do some things right,” McIntosh says, but the band generally agrees that music spaces and communities need to be better supported. Errington recounts an experience where a Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra performance was attended by people from all walks of life: “Music should be for everyone.” Before I met Sociograss and the wonderful people who attend the Sunday sessions, my faith in music was slowly being eroded by several encounters with musicians who believed in gatekeeping the medium. Becoming part of this community has reaffirmed my belief that another world is possible – it floats in, dancing lightly on thin strings and ivory keys.

THE SKINNY

September 2026 – Feature

Navigating a new city is hard enough, let alone knowing where to go out. We speak with seasoned student professionals about finding new sounds, riding party buses and starting your own night

Words: Juliet Gartside

W

hen you start at university, going out feels like the be all and end all of Freshers’ week. You can meet people at coffee socials or picnics, but it's on the wild nights out where friendships and memories are truly made. This was certainly the presumption I held. The trouble was, I had no idea where to go. Thus, I was convinced by the first promoter who handed me a wristband and ended up in Edinburgh’s infamous WhyNot Nightclub. While I had fun, I couldn’t help but wonder… is this it? The image I had of clubbing hadn’t included questionable One Direction remixes or spending more time getting shoved than dancing. It took time to figure out there was more to Edinburgh’s clubbing scene than the charts. I often wished someone had handed me a guide, explaining how to find the right places to save me more than a few disappointing nights out. So, I decided to talk to the people who know best how to navigate university nightlife: student DJs. Lulu Hookway, a History and Philosophy fourth year student also known as DJ Loose E, tells me that her Freshers’ week at the University of Glasgow was similar: “It started off going to the Union and HIVE, and I wasn’t really liking it… [so] I was like, okay, I’ll actually go out somewhere that’s not the West End.”

“GLASGOW’S CROWDS ARE VERY SOCIABLE, EVERYONE’S VERY FRIENDLY. SOMETIMES TOO FRIENDLY” When she started going to Berkeley Suite, Sub Club and Stereo, she found what she’d been looking for. “You learn a lot more about electronic music in a way you never had the opportunity to before – and you’ll hear sounds you’ve never heard before.” It was a techno night at Sub Club, famed as one of the longest running underground dance clubs in the world, that was the catalyst for Hookway’s own sound, blending a love for 140 BPM with grime and UK bass. Hookway adds: “Glasgow’s crowds are very sociable, everyone’s very friendly. Sometimes too friendly.” She says that although her favourite clubs mostly felt safe, it’s important to be careful: “Always have a friend.” Harris Merson, Neuroscience graduate and former president of the Dundee Electronic Music

Photo: Aidan Gillespie

Student Guide

RESIDENT ADVISORS

Dundee Electronic Music Society (DEMS)

Society (DEMS), described nightlife in Dundee as “brilliant,” but as a smaller city with fewer venues, you do have to be “resourceful.” The first step to navigating the nightlife? Join DEMS, of course. “We’ve been taking venues that are not fit for purpose and then repurposing them, as well as hosting house parties. So, the nights in Grouchos… it’s a bar, but if you put lights in, put camel netting and make the room a bit smaller and all the speakers in, it makes it a lot better.” Like Hookway, he emphasises that university is the perfect time to explore. “Get on RA (Resident Advisor), get on Instagram, social media, find promoters and artists that you like, go to these things. Go to events where you haven’t heard of the DJ, but you’ve been before and really enjoyed it… If you’re a Fresher, chances are you can get the bus for free. The Embers run all night. If you’ve never done that, the government is wasting money on you. When I was in second year I would go to Glasgow and then just get the night bus back and sleep until 1pm.” “Work hard, play hard.” Archie Holmes, who’s just graduated from the University of Edinburgh with a degree in Finance and Business, sums it up. “Get your work done early in the week and then it gives you time to go DJ on the weekends.” The first event Holmes DJed during university was at The Mash House, which he labelled as “the most underrated club (in Edinburgh).” He then — 46 —

quickly became a regular behind the decks at the iconic Sneaky Pete’s nightclub. Describing Edinburgh’s nightlife, Holmes says: “It’s small but there’s also a lot going on, a lot of fun events, it’s quite close-knit and feels quite safe.” Which means if you’re interested in DJing, it’s easy to get to know people who are willing to give you a chance. “Start your own event because all your friends are going out anyway so that’s quite a good way in if you can’t get someone to book you. Get to know all the student promoters. You’ll have to probably do a few free sets or for a couple of beers in exchange to start with, but then I always say once you start getting sets, definitely know your worth.” Do I regret that most of my nights out during first year were spent awkwardly mouthing along to pop songs? No. Do I wish that I had known sooner there was a whole other side to student nightlife? Yes. So, if you’re starting university this year, or even if you’re in your final year, take the advice of these DJs: listen to something different, go somewhere new, and if you’re going to skip a lecture because you’re hungover, make sure it’s worth it. Student Picks: ↘ DJ Loose E recommends Stereo, Glasgow ↘ DEMS recommends CANVAS, Dundee ↘ Archie Holmes recommends Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh

THE SKINNY

September 2026

— 47 —

April 2026 – Feature

Art

THE SKINNY

— 48 —

Art

George Douglas, Lovers 8

THE SKINNY

April 2026 – Feature

— 49 —

THE SKINNY

KEEPING THE FAITH

Student Guide

Revival or survival – reports suggest Gen Z are on the search for meaning during challenging times, but can answers be found in Christian spaces? Words: Myrtle Boot Illustration: Martin Stubbington

September 2026 – Feature

E

mma arrived at the University of Edinburgh in 2018, embarking on a life away from her family and home in the UAE for the first time. “I wanted to do something familiar, so I went to church.” New people, a new city, even a new country – arriving at university is a moment of great personal upheaval. Searching for normality in the chaos is natural – and for Emma, this meant religion. Then Emma decided to take a step back. “As the weeks passed, I was realising that I would really like to do this on my own terms. There was a lot of me that was changing, a lot of my beliefs and who I am that I was trying to have a fresh start on.” It was during this religious quandary that Emma found an altogether different kind of Christian space – one that opened her eyes to what a faith-led community could be. Emma’s re-evaluation of her relationship with Christianity has become a documented trend amongst her generation. 62% of the UK’s Gen Z cohort identify as ‘spiritual’ – a significant increase compared with 41% of their Gen X parents. Sales of the Bible have increased 134% since 2019, with youth editions of The Good Book leading the charge. Contentious reports of a new wave of young Christians have made headlines, christened the ‘Silent Revival’. So what does this reappraisal of Christianity mean for students entering university? And what role might spirituality have in student life today? Emma’s period of religious self-reflection led her to Roots, a Christian community space designated for Edinburgh’s substantial student population. Since graduating, she has joined the charity as a team member. She describes the site, a stone’s throw from the University of Edinburgh’s Old College, as a third space – separated from student accommodation, formal lectures and weekend jobs. “It’s always a place that will be warm where you can heat up food, play board games, sit quietly or join a conversation,” she says, “[we have] open hours for people to just be – and that ends up being where a lot of community building happens.” The space offers support for a tangible need: that of human connection. “Young people really want community but feel like they cannot get it for a myriad of reasons.” Emma cites teenage years impaired by the COVID-19 pandemic, a growing dependence on smart phones and the difficulties

of striking up conversations with strangers as some of the factors leading to this isolation. Despite Roots’ Christian foundations, many of the students who are welcomed through the door don’t subscribe to the same school of religious thought. “I would say most of our students, probably 80%, are not Christian….

— 50 —

a lot of students actually come into Roots being very anti-religion.” The charity doesn’t serve to preach or proselytise, instead it provides a meeting place for differing beliefs, values and backgrounds. “It’s less ‘let’s learn about Christianity’ and more ‘let’s have a chance to talk about these big questions that we have.’”

THE SKINNY

THE BROADWAY AND WEST END OBSESSION TUE 17 - SAT 21 NOV 2026 ATGTICKETS.COM/EDINBURGH

Our historic Palm Houses are back. Open from Friday 2 October. Book your tickets online rbge.org.uk/palmhouses — 51 —

September 2026

WONDER

Full Oscar-Winning Film

Huge High-Definition Screen

LIVE!!! Howard Shore's Academy Award-Winning Score Performed live to the Epic Motion Picture

SUNDAY 06 DECEMBER 2026 EVENING & MATINEE SHOWS

GLASGOW OVO HYDRO CONDUCTOR:

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THE SKINNY

Student Guide

Augustine United Church in Edinburgh went through the process of discernment. The entirety of the congregation were consulted on whether to set up an overtly LGBTQ+ affirming ministry. Augustine’s minister, The Reverend Fiona Bennett, describes the consensus: “The congregation were very clear, we have always been open and a welcoming place – why would that change?” As Bennett states, “Inclusion is not a destination.” Augustine has evolved to support the needs of their congregation, whether they are disabled, neurodiverse or identify as transgender. “When you start going down the road of inclusion, you realise it changes your perception,” says Bennett, “it’s not just that you put in a ramp so everybody can get in the building. It means everybody changes how they think about disabled people. It’s a lot more radical.” Whether this comes in the form of providing fidget toys for services, or by affirming those who have experienced ostracism from other religious spaces, acts of care are fundamental to the church’s worship. For the next generation of young people contending with their own spirituality, the church will have to adapt once again. “There is an underlying global anxiety which [Gen Z] carry,” Bennett says in reference to the political instability, global conflicts and climate crisis which have each shaped the outlook of young people, “they’re questioning those fundamentals and they don’t have the same securities as people of my generation.”

With this ingrained insecurity comes the need for stability, yet Bennett doesn’t see religion as a cure-all: “churches are not places that provide a service you consume. They’re a community of transformation that wrestles together.” In the age of the wellness revolution, where longevity and peace are regarded as things to be bought or consumed, Bennett regards the purpose of the church as an unending tussle amongst a community, rather than a transaction. “That’s a healthy church. It’s always growing, it’s always wrestling.” In conjunction with the surge of wellness content comes the documented rise of conservativism, particularly amongst young men. “I think these are really challenging times for being male in our society,” says Bennett, “it leaves men, particularly young men, with a certain sense to flee into the past.” These extreme ideas of tradition, be it misogynistic attitudes towards women or harmful perceptions of masculinity, have surfaced on social media and online forums – dubbed the manosphere. “What the manosphere is doing is conning people,” Bennet says. “All human beings need to work out our way forward… we need to take that responsibility rather than running away to fearful, rigid ideas.” While Gen Z grapples with what spirituality means for them, Christian groups grapple with what they offer to a largely secular Scotland. These spaces may not provide explicit answers to the questions of our age – yet what they can offer is a space to question personal beliefs, an hour to speak about grief, or simply, someone else to connect with. Roots can be visited 12–5 pm, Mon–Fri, on South College Street, Edinburgh rootsedinburgh.org.uk Death Cafe next meets of Thu 8 Oct, Memorial Chapel, Glasgow gla.ac.uk

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September 2026 – Feature

This broad approach to the function of religious spaces is echoed by the Reverend Scott Blythe, Chaplain at the University of Glasgow. “The university community is so plural,” he says about the some 35,000 people who make up the student population, “we need to make people realise that the chaplaincy is for everyone.” Alongside the five members of staff in the chaplaincy, a team of honorary chaplains represent this plurality – from Roman Catholicism and Hinduism, to Sikhism and Humanism. He describes their work as an inter-faith unit as “a listening process, an engaging process.” Alongside covering the expansive needs of those searching for spiritual guidance, the chaplaincy caters to the specific experiences of the student body. Several times each semester, the chaplaincy holds Death Cafe, described by Blythe as “a space [to] speak about loss and bereavement from different perspectives.” For some young people encountering loss for the first time, distance away from support networks can present further difficulties. The inevitable questions that arise with grief can be asked in this space, where listening and discussion is untethered from the rest of university life. This inclusive and adaptive approach to Christianity is a necessary step for the church – particularly in the context of Scotland’s sociallyliberal student body. “The church has been a tool of empire – it’s a tool of politics and power,” Emma says about the legacy of imperialism, homophobia and sexism across Christian denominations, “the exclusion of people from church has been a thing forever and that’s not just within Christianity.” Having grappled with these contradictions – as well as her own sexuality, having come out as queer during her degree – she reflects on her expectations: “I would love for a church to do what a church is supposed to do, which is to abide by the values that they profess and I think through exclusion, they don’t.” But what does an inclusive church look like? In 2010,

THE SKINNY

Student Guide

THE SKINNY GUIDE TO

UNIVERSITY RELATIONSHIPS Hindsight is a wonderful thing, so we’ve got our resident advice columnist to offer pearls of wisdom about university relationships – be it hookups, housemates or homesickness

P

erhaps the biggest lesson learned during university is not about postmodernist poetics or quantum mechanics, but how to exist in relation to other people. For many of us, this is the first time in our lives where we can feel a sense of agency over the relationships that make up our intimate lives – who we want to spend time with, for how long and in what way. This can be very exciting, but it can also be fucking terrifying. So here, in no particular order, is a collection of advice, tips and lessons that I have accrued in the redacted number of years since I started university, that I wish I had known then.

are completely fine, because they are your weird, complicated, contradictory feelings. We learn so much about our sexuality on the fringes of what sex actually is. In the privacy of our own longings and the disappointment of unrequited love and the flirtations that are sexier than anything we could have ever imagined. There is so much pressure, often from ourselves, to lead a fulfilling and active sex life throughout adulthood. But understanding who we are sexually happens as much in the absences as the event. Be open and curious to all the parts of yourself, not just the ones that can fit within a prescribed narrative ideal.

SEX

FAMILY

September 2026 – Feature

This piece actually started as a guide to sex and student life, but I had so little sex at university that we had to regroup. This is maybe a good place to start: it is OK if you don’t really have sex. It is OK if you do. It is OK if you want to be having sex but somehow can’t make it happen. It is OK if you don’t really want to but everyone around you is. I know this sounds like an after-school special, but please hear me when I say: all the weird, complicated, contradictory feelings you have around it

The inevitability of family life as a child can be liberating: you have to be around these people in very particular ways, and there is very little you can do about it. But now, as an adult, you have a say over how you live your life, and the kind of person you want to be. Figuring this out is a much more difficult endeavour, it turns out, than getting a degree. How often should you call your mother? How often should she call you? Ultimately, all you can do is accept that this is an enormous transitional phase, and you will get it wrong and wrong again until you figure out the new dynamic of being an adult child – something that is extra complicated in Scotland, where a lot of students stay geographically close to their family. Think carefully about the kind of relationship you want with your family. What does it look like in ten years? How might you get there?

CRUSHES ON PROFESSORS

Listen, we all have them. Don’t do it. I know you feel like a fully fledged adult and legally you are a fully fledged adult but within this context you are but a student and they are in a position of power over you and I promise if they weren’t holding your degree in the palm of their hand you would not find them sexy at all. — 54 —

Words: Anahit Behrooz Illustrations: Ruby O'Hare

FRIENDSHIP

Friendships are just like any other relationship, and I wish I had understood this years ago. I spent so much of my life seeing them as less than romantic relationships, and then overcorrecting and yearning for them as some kind of utopian ideal. But there is nothing magical about them: they require the same work, the same safety and the same boundaries as any other kind of relationship. University friendships are particularly intense when it comes to navigating these boundaries: you live, study and party with these people and so they can take on some of the most precarious qualities of a romantic relationship, where these people become your everything. Because of this, university friendships can be volatile, made up of extreme highs and lows. For a long time I associated intensity with what made a relationship worth it. And it can be! But also try and pay attention to how you feel when you are around certain people. Anxious? Tired? Safe? Yourself? Friendship breakups are gutting and university can be filled with them – old friends from school, new friends who don’t quite fit – but don’t be so frightened of things ending that you sacrifice yourself in the process. Sorry to sound like Moulin Rouge, but this is when you are learning how you want to love and be loved in the world. Teach yourself well <3

DATING

I say this with love, but I do not understand why you, a bright-eyed student with all the possibilities of life ahead, would spend your evenings on Hinge or, god forbid, Feeld. There is so much time for that in the future and when it happens, it will suck. Do not cosplay the shitty parts of adulthood before you have to. Allow life to surprise you.

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Scotland's Baroque Ensemble

FANCY A NIGHT OF SERIOUSLY GOOD MUSIC?

£6 tickets: students, u30s & unwaged VIENNA AND BEYOND Mozart and more...

Sat 26 Sep Glasgow | Sun 27 Sep Edinburgh

HANDEL'S LEADING LADIES drama, divas and dazzling arias Thu 26 Nov Glasgow | Fri 27 Nov Edinburgh

HANDEL: MESSIAH the ultimate Christmas classic Wed 16 Dec Edinburgh | Thu 17 Dec Glasgow

scan to book

dunedin-consort.org.uk

September 2026

200 years

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The Royal Scottish Academy

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SEPTEMBER SEPTEMBER Students Freshers SEPTEMBERStudents Students+++Freshers Freshers

STUDENT STUDENT DEALS STUDENTDEALS DEALS Freshers Events Free Entry Wed & Thu from 23:00 £4 Pints/ Spirit Mixers

LIVE MUSIC: jazz | funk | soul | roots | blues 1a Chambers Street, EH1 1HR

September 2026

Great minds like a think.

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SIDESTEPPING SOCIETIES W

hen I first walked into a Freshers fair seven years ago, I felt like I had been transplanted into a clique montage from a high school comedy. The jocks, nerds, emos, stoners and theatre kids were replaced with sumo society, chess club, geog soc, rock soc, Spock soc – all extolling the friends and fun to be had if I just scanned the QR code and pledged my allegiance. Feeling insecure and desperately alone, I marched past every stand and straight to the exit. Do not pass go. Do not collect £200. From that moment, my fate was sealed; I was never joining a society. I tried a university pole dancing class one time, but after miserably sliding down the greasy mast in front of some 50 other students, I vowed to never return. I ruminated about starting my own; a girls-and-gays-only bar sports society to meet fellow table football enthusiasts. This was shelved as well, why would I create admin for going to the pub? By the time I finished my four years at university, I harshly reflected on them as spent listlessly bumming around. I couldn’t help but foster a gnawing feeling that I had closed myself off to an important aspect of university life without fully understanding why. My experience heavily contrasted with one of my flatmate’s. She got stuck into the Feminist

Society, spending her time rallying against period poverty and organising a mammoth number of meet ups for the university’s feminist contingent. Even with this perfect opportunity to get involved, I just… didn’t? Our time as flatmates was epitomised when she held a lockdown film screening from our flat. As I finished up my shift at Morrisons, she led a Zoom panel discussion with legendary director Ken Loach in attendance. She rode the high of orchestrating an event watched by one of the UK’s most revered filmmakers, I experienced an altogether different high, returning to hot box the kitchen. It was impressive to watch her and other university mates get stuck into society life, galvanising friendship groups over common interests and values. Their chosen societies came to structure much of their student experience – be it waking up at the crack of dawn to go train with teammates at the gym, or partying with comrades every Tuesday night like clockwork. From my position on the outside, I felt a palpable resistance. Like many students, university was my first real taste of independence – the freedom felt heady, the lifestyle hedonistic. I didn’t want to scupper this freewheeling way of living through organised fun. But despite relishing in my autonomy, the pressure to fit in felt equally potent.

Beyond my network of wonderful mates from halls, I found making friends on my university course hard. In rooms filled with students my age who were almost certainly experiencing similar issues – navigating adult friendships, grappling with flaky landlords, experiencing first heartbreaks – I withdrew, sitting by the door to exit as quickly as possible. Instead, it was my part-time student jobs where I felt I could speak freely about punk bands, reality TV, drunken hookups and minor inconveniences. There was no bravado. No fear of judgement. More importantly though, I felt no need to pit myself against my colleagues, unlike in the lecture theatres where my warped 20-year-old brain drowned in endless comparison with the hundreds of other students. Instead of learning to join in through societies – or even small talk before seminars – I kept a distance between myself and university life. One foot kept me on track to get my degree, the other kept me estranged, planted firmly outside of the university institution. I slowly embedded myself into the city I had moved to by means of hospitality jobs and the ever-expanding network of people that came with them. If societies were the way to reap the most from the university experience, then part-time jobs were my way of assimilating into my new city. Once I graduated, the pressure which had built up in my mind dissipated. With my peers now spread across the country, I finally began to indulge my curiosities – collecting hobbies like Pokémon. I learned to DJ. I discovered writing. I got into natural wine and became involved with community radio. My cautious, resistant voice was quelled and I learned to challenge the uncomfortable feelings that had made me withdraw in the first place. For the most part, I learned to do rather than overthink. Ultimately, I didn’t need university societies to structure my time as an undergraduate, or as a means to make deep connections, or as an addition to my CV like a flare to shoot up to potential employers. Really, I needed them to make me realise that retreating from new experiences out of fear is never the way. The one commonality between everyone’s university experience is that we all experience this time differently. There is no right or wrong way, no short cut to the lessons we learn during our early twenties. It’s up to us individually to strike a balance between making the most of the time we have in education and opening ourselves up to the experiences that occur outside of it. It took me each of those four years to realise this – and the years since to put it into practice.

September 2026 – Feature

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Words: Myrtle Boot Illustration: Vaso Michailidou

Student Guide

Teetering between your teens and twenties, between independence and education – university can feel like a balancing act. One writer shares why they shunned societies and what they learned instead

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THE SKINNY

Shapeshifters We catch up with three creatives from completely different backgrounds to talk about the importance of personal identity through hair colour and fashion Words: Tallah Brash

I

September 2026

Image: courtesy of Crazy Color

t changes a lot. The colour. That’s why you might not recogBut hair is just a part of Alina’s overall look. “My makeup nise me. It’s called Blue Ruin… I apply my personality in has been through a huge variety of stages,” she tells us. “At a paste.” music college was probably when I started really enjoying fun In Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Kate Winslet’s and glamorous makeup, using graphic eyeliner and bright Clementine dyed her hair to match her mood – Blue Ruin, Agent eyeshadows to match my outfits. I also dress somewhat eclectiOrange – it was a way to creatively express her identity and cally, because I can! You’ll catch me in a ballgown on a Tuesday what she was feeling through bold colour choices. Even though afternoon before you catch me in a black T-shirt and blue jeans.” we don’t meet Clem until she’s an adult, it goes without saying As a musician, identity is incredibly important to Alina. that in her backstory she was likely experimenting with hair “People need to recognise who you are,” she says. “I’ve had pink colour from a young age. hair for ten years… I also use a lot of pink and fairy themes in my I started dyeing my hair when I was about 13. The first time posters and art, making it easy for people to spot me.” Dyeing I did it, I had blonde streaks at the front with the tips dip-dyed a her hair every three to five weeks, Alina mostly uses Crazy peachy pink all over. It was an interesting choice, and I did get Color’s Pinkissimo shade, although isn’t afraid to mix it up. some funny comments from pals, but it was my choice and in “Sometimes I dye my fringe and the front parts a slightly that moment I understood the power and endless possibilities different pink to the rest. I think it’s really fun to experiment of hair and hair colour. I immediately caught the bug and with different shades, but I always feel my best with pink. started adding different coloured streaks here and there. When I Dyeing my hair is proper self-care time, I’ll pop on a podcast turned 18, I dyed every single hair on or an album and just spend 30 minutes taking care of myself my head bright red and continued in a creative way!” to dye my hair for the years (and For 25-year old retail manager and creative Ali, who has *cough* decades) that followed, with written three books of poetry, runs an online zine called PLUM a bright cobalt zine and DJs and runs a club night blue becoming my called Moondust, they feel that “hair go-to signature colour changes are a necessary need look, fading to a when I feel like I have a block in my gorgeous green identity.” They add: “I think the DIY that I also loved. culture of hair is such a beauty, it For allows so much autonomy and joy, it Brighton-based helps you shed a new layer, it can be a indie-pop musifun activity with a friend – it feels like cian Alina, who’s a celebration.” inspired by artists When we ask what their current like Stevie Nicks, hair colour says about them, Ali says: Lily Allen and “I’m currently rocking a salt n pepper Sabrina Carpenter, combination, with some chunky her go-to colour is spread greys mixed into my natural pink, although black hair… I think black and white as that wasn’t always a colour combination represents a Alina the case. “I first blank space and welcoming something dyed my hair new.” when I was about 12 – I put a single Like Alina, Ali is also based in Brighton, but they grew up black streak in on one side and in Dubai. “I always struggled to feel like I fit into the culture,” started wearing black eyeliner all they tell us, “so I was scheming for ways to find an outlet and the way around my eyes. Not my that included playing with hair dye, tattoo ideas, poetry and best look,” she admits. “From then ultimately moving to Brighton for university when I was 18.” on, I always dyed my hair a bright Despite this feeling of being “restricted geographically”, Ali colour during the summer holidays, asked their mum to dye their hair blue when they were 15, and discovered that I felt the most describing it as “one of the scariest but most thrilling expericonfident when it was pink!” ences I had at the time – I think that really started it for me.”

“Dyeing my hair is proper selfcare time, I’ll pop on a podcast or an album and just spend 30 minutes taking care of myself in a creative way!”

Alina

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Ali For 32-year-old Naomi-Rose, Nayy to her friends, the struggle to fit in when she was younger was real, and that’s when she started experimenting with hair and fashion. “I really didn’t like a lot of things other people liked like boy bands or whatever else was deemed cool at the time. I have a strong memory of borrowing CDs from the library, Korn’s first album being one of them, and my mum hating it but me being like, ‘hey! I do like music!’ That whole alternative subculture really started something in me, I started using face paint as hair dye and being resourceful with whatever I could to make me look different. Armed with super glue and random trinkets I felt unstoppable with making customisations on anything I did buy… My dad also used to tell me stories of the Camden Punks and the Electric Cinema which only fueled me into trying to make my own subculture of fashion and something I felt like I belonged too.”

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crazycolor.co.uk IG @crazycolorcasa

September 2026

“The DIY culture of hair is such a beauty, it allows so much autonomy and joy”

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Image: courtesy of Crazy Color Ali

Originally from South West London, creativity runs through NaomiRose’s veins. After studying art and SFX makeup, for a while she was a dog groomer and now, she tells us: “I live in the very south of the UK, working as a manager of a tattoo studio in the day and spending all my spare time trying to befriend neighbourhood cats, inhaling as much vegan sushi as possible and normally found with my head in a book and a guinea pig on my lap!” She’s also a self-professed “plastic connoisseur”, which she explains: “I went to a childminder as a kid so a lot of the stuff there was hand-me-downs, meaning most of the media I grew up on was 80s VHS and toys to match. I collect a lot of toys because of it, mostly My Little Pony, but there were so many good girls’ toys with fabulous hair, sassy voices and bright outfits to match which I loved then and now!” Identity, of course, is just as important to Naomi-Rose as it is to Alina and Ali. “There is no better feeling than when someone sends you something they see that reminds them of you – normally something tacky and pink! And you realise that’s how people see you,” she says. “Creativity only fuels that, realising if you want a giant impractical accessory you have the tools to make it a reality!” That same can-do, will-do attitude extends into Naomi-Rose’s DIY approach to hair colour. “My entire process for dyeing my hair is F-around and find out haha! I do change it quite a lot,” she admits. “I love colour blocking my hair and outfits meaning I do have a bulging wardrobe to match my hair choice at the time! But hair is changeable and not permanent so why wouldn’t you try something Naomi-Rose new? I love rinsing off a new colour and being like, ‘Cool! Now it’s time to change my entire look to match.’ I like the idea of shape-shifting – you can change your makeup, contact lens colour and clothes and suddenly you’re the pink lady one week and then the blue one the next. Keep them guessing!” So what is Naomi-Rose’s current hair colour and what does it say about her? “My current hair colour is actually turquoise blue and black, I wanted to try opposing to my fashion and I think dark colours absolutely pop with hot pink and leopard print (if you wanted to know what I’m wearing). Dyeing my hair darker didn’t mean I wanted to darken my style, just try something completely new! I think it’s giving a perfect nod to my younger years watching the Scuzz TV channel and yet keeping true to who I am now!” Image: courtesy of Crazy Color

Upon moving to Brighton, Ali tells us: “I went through a period of terrible fashion choices and hair, which I laugh back at now, but I think choices like that are so pivotal to creating your identity and how you like to present yourself to the world. It’s like experiencing a second puberty, almost. That in turn with becoming more confidently queer helped a lot with my fashion choices for sure. I’m also very inspired by the music I listen to and the poetry I write – so a bit of my expression comes from the type of media I’m consuming at the time as well.” The path to finding your identity can also come hand in hand with finding your people. “At my old job, I met a customer one day who had told me she was finishing up learning how to do hair and offered to cut my hair,” Ali says, “and that was the first time in years I trusted someone to touch my hair. Amber very quickly became one of my closest friends and gave me my mullet. That was 100% the time all my confidence with expression rushed inside of me... since then she has cut many hair styles [for me] and also helped me figure out my hair dye impulses, having done orange highlights, a green semi-mullet, pink and purple together; she brings out the joy inside me when I need that physical manifestation.”

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ARIES

21MAR­—19APR

Student Guide

Images: All images from public.work (Public Domain)

UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH Much to the University of Edinburgh’s dismay, they can never quite hit the number one spot for university rankings. So to cheer them up, I’ve put them first! Congrats guys! Savour it! Ambitious and prestigious, the University of Edinburgh breeds a culture of critical thinking – whether that’s using your cognitive skills to debate the ethics of human cloning, or critically engaging with the fact that after three months, you still haven’t met a Scottish person. You Edinburgh Uni students are really paving the way for us all, or at least paving the way back to London once your four years are up.

20APR—20MAY

UNIVER HOROS

TAURUS

UNIVERSITY OF DUNDEE

Words: Myrtle Boot

The quality of life in Dundee is great. It’s the sunniest city in Scotland, it’s cheaper than the Central Belt and there’s a great big boat looking thing. What more could any student ask for? Ruled by the steady, comfort-loving Taurus sign, students at the University of Dundee like their dependable pleasures. Fish and chips by the Tay, cheap pints by the Tay, looking at the big boat thing by the Tay – just anything by the Tay. Despite their hardworking and practical personalities, Tauruses are ruled by sensual Venus. Add shagging by the Tay to the list!

GEMINI

21MAY—20JUN

M

ystic Myrtle is a bit like Clubs Editor Myrtle except she’s wearing a bandana and fumigating her flat with Nag Champa incense. After much consultation with the planets and Reddit, she brings you the star signs of

September 2026 – Feature

EDINBURGH COLLEGE OF ART

ROYAL CONSERVATOIRE OF SCOTLAND

My alma mater is also my star sign – what a coincidence! Us ECA-ers are Gemini through and through. Spontaneous, independent and easily bored, we’re always juggling too many projects. Whether you’ve decided to knit a life-size replica of the Sagrada Familia, or host a pottery throwdown with the entire music tech class in your shoe-box flat – you just can’t keep that creativity at bay. Geminis are known as social animals, ideal for students looking to embarrass themselves at ceilidhs, club nights and catwalks – or at the ECA’s very own boozer, The Wee Red Bar. No paper maché with those beer mats now kids!

21JUN—22JUL

LEO

23JUL—22AUG

Let me start this off by saying FUCK Timothée Chalamet, the real ones know that the classical arts aren’t dead. Knowing how to play the bassoon is still cool. There’s loads of demand for ballerinas in the current job market. Organ scholars are IN for 2026. The students at the Royal Conservatoire embody the fiery Leo sign – they have no choice but to be fiercely loyal and completely stubborn, they’re fighting for the survival of the arts afterall. Leos back up their dedication to their craft with serious confidence. It would be annoying if they weren’t so damn talented. Play us another sonata, please, please, please!

CANCER

VIRGO

NAPIER UNIVERSITY

23AUG—22SEP

GLASGOW CALEDONIAN UNIVERSITY

Ahhh Napier. After a gruelling COVID-stricken undergrad, my master’s degree at Napier University has been bliss. Like Cancer signs, you’re nurturing, intuitive and family orientated. Just look at the way you celebrate the Napier fledglings once the time comes for them to leave the Brutalist nest. Plastering the sides of Edinburgh trams with every graduate’s name or changing the name of Shakespeares pub to The Napier Graduate – the Napier lot have each other’s backs. Now I feel all gooey inside. Someone pass the mystic a tissue.

Glasgow Caledonian University is Virgo – or at least I strongly recommend they be. With a specialism in healthcare, nursing and midwifery, the GCU students align perfectly with the caring, detailed and meticulous nature of Virgos. Frankly, if I go into hospital and the nurse isn’t: a) a Virgo, or b) a graduate from GCU, then I’m getting outta there and doing the amputation myself. Glasgow Caledonian is also known for its high employability rates, which is a good thing considering Virgos are major perfectionists.

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SAGITTARIUS

GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART

ERSITY SCOPES

22DEC—19JAN

CAPRICORN HERIOT-WATT UNIVERSITY

The chances of any Heriot-Watt student reading this horoscope are extremely slim. Rising signs? Retrogrades? Why are you asking me what time I was born? Capricorns are grounded, practical and responsible, just like the STEM-focused students at Heriot-Watt. I imagine the appropriation of their venerated solar system for horoscope purposes would leave them outraged. Thankfully they’re none the wiser, having not left the library since last semester. Don’t sleep now, you industrious bunch! Note to Freshers: don’t get a Herriot-Watt student to show you round Edinburgh, the only reason this lot ventures beyond the bypass is to guzzle WKDs at Hive. Stick that up your culture.

23SEP—22OCT

AQUARIUS

UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW

20JAN—18FEB

UNIVERSITY OF STRATHCLYDE

Oh Strathclyde. Despite your great reputation, fantastic rankings and central location, you live in the shadow of your big Russell Group brother. But you’re an Aquarius, so that’s okay with you. You’re independent, original and maintain harmony with those around you. That being said, the swinging spirit of the Sixties can still be felt at the Strath Union. Established in 1964 (during the Age of Aquarius no less), the Strath Union has a reputation for being one of the best amongst the Scottish universities. Even the Glasgow Uni lot prefer it. Isn’t that a win for peace and love?

SCORPIO

PISCES

UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS

19FEB—20MAR

DUNCAN OF JORDANSTONE

The oldest of Scotland’s universities is famous for beautiful sea views, a top university ranking and of course, THE STEAMY FLAT WHERE WILLS AND KATE GOT IT ON!! If you’ve made it into the hallowed grounds of St Andrews, you’re probably quite determined – just like your star sign Scorpio. It’s a tight-knit place where everyone knows everyone, which makes you an enigma to outsiders. What the hell do you get up to with three pubs in the whole joint? How the hell do you even get to St Andrews? Is your flatmate actually in line to the Swedish throne? We’ll never know with those secretive St Andrews Scorpios.

It’s only fitting that Duncan of Jordanstone College is Pisces, the dreamy water sign. Creative, empathetic and adaptable to any situation, these art students have learned to make peace with their coastal surroundings. A seagull steals your homemade falafel and beetroot wrap? Aren’t the natural cycles of life tremendous! You leave your technical drawings of sprouts in the rain? You’ve always wanted to experiment with abstraction! A drunken Dundonian shouts garbled insults at you on the bus? Aren’t the ways we communicate with one another enthralling! These easygoing fish just keep swimming.

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September 2026 – Feature

Socially charming with a dash of people-pleasing, University of Glasgow students can chat up a storm – much to the dismay of their Glasgow peers who have to listen to their unique take on the accent. There’s a reason Glasgow Uni students have become synonymous with top chaaat, they are passionate truth-seekers with a love for seeing things from every perspective. That perspective is usually looking down over the rest of Glasgow, I mean, what fool built a university at the top of a hill?!?! Don’t you know we’re all smoking rollies now?!!?!!?

23OCT—21NOV

Student Guide

Firstly, may I offer an apology for making the GSA a fire sign in light of recent blazes. Sagittariuses are free-spirited, principled and combustible (fuck sake). You’re never content with what has been done, instead, you strive to create work that is better, bigger, more outlandish and more unthinkable than all your predecessors. Sagittariuses are fearless, as are the GSA students traipsing up Sauchiehall Street dressed like Leigh Bowery on a drizzly Tuesday morning. Going to a GSA graduate show gives us mortals insight into what goes on in your brains. Frankly, it seems terrifying. Keep it up.

Scottish universities (in our distribution area – sorry Stirling). Mystic Myrtle is not responsible for last minute degree changes. Please do not get your parents to email her, she’s far too busy astral projecting.

LIBRA

22NOV—21DEC

THE SKINNY

BUTTER BEAN HUMMUS WITH CHARRED VEGETABLES A staple of Bar Dani in Glasgow, chef Steven Kenny shares the West End eatery’s recipe for butter bean hummus with charred vegetables. £3.75 in total*

Student Guide

Butter bean hummus with charred vegetables

Vegetable oil 1 garlic bulb 2 tins of butter beans 1 bunch of spring onions 200g mangetout 1 lemon Start by peeling all the garlic, cover with vegetable oil and cook on a low heat until soft and slightly brown. Strain oil and reserve for later. Mush garlic into a paste. Take the tops and bottoms off the spring onions, peel the first layer of skin and rinse under cold water. Boil a pot with salted water and cook the spring onions for a minute, then place in iced water to stop the cooking process. Repeat the process with mangetout, cooking for 30 seconds before transferring to cold water.

Slow-cooked ragù

Rinse butter beans then blend with the garlic paste, leftover garlic oil, salt and lemon juice until your desired consistency. Fry the spring onions and mangetout on a high heat with a little oil for a final char.

Spelt jammies

Place a generous amount of hummus on the plate, stack your vegetables and serve with bread or hard cheese (like parmesan) grated on top.

RAW COURGETTE PASTA

SLOW-COOKED RAGÙ

A quick and simple classic, Tomás Gormley from Edinburgh fine dining spot Cardinal offers his failsafe raw courgette pasta. £3.80 for two portions*

Harris McNeill from Eastfield in Dundee shares his slow-cooked ragù, to be made in a big batch for the whole flat or frozen in preparation for meals to come. Makes eight portions, £2.20 per serving*

200g pasta, rigatoni or orecchiette recommended 1 courgette Knob of butter Grated parmesan Lemon zest Bring salted water to the boil and cook your pasta of choice until al dente, draining 30 seconds before the recommended time. Use a cheese grater to grate your courgette then mix through the pasta. Season generously with black pepper, salt, a knob of butter and parmesan. If available, zest lemon over the top before serving.

SPELT JAMMIES The perfect pot luck addition, Darcie Maher from Lannan Bakery shares her recipe for spelt jammies. Find your local refillery for flour. Makes 20, roughly 20p per biscuit* 250g butter, very soft 70g icing sugar, sifted 200g plain flour 25g spelt flour 25g cornflour 5g salt 5g vanilla paste 100g raspberry jam

1kg red mince of choice, McNeill uses venison 6 tablespoons Scottish rapeseed oil 200g bacon 1 carrot 1 celery stick 1 small onion 4 garlic cloves 2 bay leaves 2 thyme sprigs 1 rosemary sprig 1 tablespoon ground mixed spice 3 tablespoons tomato purée 1 can crushed tomatoes 500ml cheap red wine 500ml whole milk Season the mince well with salt and pepper. Put in a heavy-based pot, drizzle with 6 tbsp of Scottish rapeseed oil and brown on all sides, chopping through the meat with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Remove the meat from the pot along with its juices. Dice the bacon and add to the pot with a splash more oil and render out some of the fat. Finely chop the carrot, celery, onion and mince four garlic cloves. Once the bacon begins to colour, add the vegetables along with two bay leaves, two thyme sprigs and one rosemary sprig tied together. Add the ground mixed spice and tomato purée. Turn the heat to low and cook gently until tender but without colouring.

September 2026 – Feature

Preheat the oven to 180c (fan).

CHEAP THRILLS Flat warmings, pot lucks and easy midweek meals – we’ve asked chefs from top Scottish dining spots to share their budget student recipes Words: Myrtle Boot

Beat the butter and icing sugar until very light and fluffy. Add in the remaining ingredients and mix until fully incorporated. Place the mixture in a piping bag and pipe onto a tray lined with parchment paper into 5cm discs. Make sure there’s no hole in the middle and leave space between each biscuit as they will spread slightly. Dip your finger in cold water then make a small indentation in the centre of each biscuit. Dry and repeat for each one.

Add the browned meat back into the pot with the vegetables and mix together. Raise the heat to high and fry. Stir in the tomatoes, red wine and milk – it may look curdled but it will come back together. Bring to a simmer, cover with the lid slightly ajar, and cook gently on the hob, stirring every so often. It’s ready when the oil collects on the surface, the meat is very tender and the gravy has thickened. Add a splash of water if it dries out, or raise the heat towards the end if it looks too wet.

Fill the indentation with jam then bake for 20 minutes until the edges are lightly golden brown.

Season the ragù with salt and pepper to taste. Use straight away and serve with pasta or on toast, or portion it into containers and completely cool before freezing for later.

Allow the biscuits to cool fully before eating.

*Prices estimated across Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Lidl budget ranges.

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THE SKINNY

In the Name of Love Ahead of Tramway hosting Scotland’s first-ever display of the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt, one writer explores how we remember collective acts of care

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noted by Lothian Health Services Archive, Edinburgh had seven times the national average in HIV transmissions. Edinburgh council’s ‘Take Care’ campaign favoured comprehensive education, with slogans like “Take Care of the One You Love”. Such slogans promoted empathy in a time when most other governing bodies stigmatised society’s marginalised groups, specifically gay men and intravenous drug users. The council were keen to emphasise that anyone, regardless of background or sexuality, could be at risk of contracting HIV. In Edinburgh’s Milestone House, the UK’s first AIDS hospice, many of the quilt’s initial panels were crafted. I speak with Margaret-Rose Singh, former charge nurse at Milestone House, about her experience of collective care. “It was an absolute privilege to work there,” she says. “We genuinely tried to let people live until they died.” From medical staff to ministers, to artists and videographers who documented the residents’ stories, to social workers, dieticians and volunteers, Milestone House was a hub of collective care. Much of her recollection is bittersweet. She remembers one man who belonged to Edinburgh’s close-knit gay community. “He always had visitors… he was so loved. And when he passed away, we remembered that yellow was his favourite colour. We managed to find yellow bedding for the bed. When his mum and dad came back in to see him, they were so touched.” Milestone House was unique for its time. Although initially subject to protest because it was built next to a school, before long, school concerts and fundraisers were organised for the residents. “Some of the residents, when they were well, would go around schools and talk about drug use, the virus, trying to dispel some of the myths,” says Singh. “So that was a really positive community spirit.”

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The quilt’s legacy of collective care has carried it into the modern day, and its conservation is very much a team effort. Originally, the UK AIDS Quilt was stored in a garage in Newcastleupon-Tyne, where it was almost lost to history in a house fire. This near miss prompted the National AIDS Trust to seek a more permanent home. The quilt then fell safely into the hands of George House Trust, which looked after it until the formation of the UK AIDS Memorial Partnership in 2014, which comprises seven different HIV charities. To care for such a huge memorial, this coalition depends on collective effort. Preserving such an important part of queer history takes a village. With antiretroviral medication – widely accessible in the UK, although such access varies globally – people diagnosed early with HIV have a similar life expectancy as anyone without HIV. Currently, as reported by Terrence Higgins Trust, there are over 111,800 people living with HIV in the UK; although there is a wide network of support available, HIV diagnoses are currently on the rise. Waverley Care remains Scotland’s leading HIV charity, with a goal of achieving zero new HIV transmissions by 2030. “Through peer support, people living with HIV can speak to others with lived experience,” says Grant Sugden, Chief Executive of Waverley Care. “Although HIV treatment and our understanding of the virus have changed enormously, stigma and misinformation still affect people’s lives.” The quilt, whilst being a poignant reminder of the past, also initiates important conversations about HIV that are central to increasing awareness in the present day. “The UK AIDS Memorial Quilt honours the people who died and the communities who supported and cared for them,” continues Sugden. “Bringing the quilt to Scotland gives us a chance to reflect on that history, how far we’ve come and the work that still needs to be done to tackle HIV stigma today.” In this way, the travelling display of the quilt is an act of collective protest, of a national refusal to forget. Tramway, Glasgow, 12 Sep-4 Oct; preview 11 Sep

September 2026 – Feature

Image: courtesy of Waverley Care Ally van Tillo with the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt in Scotland

‘The quilt, whilst being a poignant reminder of the past, also initiates important conversations about HIV that are central to increasing awareness in the present day’

Intersections

n anonymous panel on the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt reads, “IN THE NAME OF LOVE LOVE NEVER DIES S♡S”. With this, the legacy of those who died from AIDS-related illnesses is eternalised in care and devotion. This September, the quilt is hosted by Glasgow’s Tramway, marking its first-ever display in Scotland. Made up of 336 individual panels, representing around 600 lives tragically lost to HIV and AIDS in the UK, its scale is overwhelming. Founded in Edinburgh by Scottish queer activist Alastair Hume, the quilt was the UK Names Project addition to “the world’s largest community project”, spearheaded by Cleve Jones in San Francisco during the mid-80s. The quilt is not only a tangible memorial for the lives that were lost; it’s also an archive of the hands that made it and the care that those hands offer. Human touch is sealed into every stitch, every personalised panel symbolic of life. Where government response to the HIV/AIDS crisis was hostile, ignorant and slow, community initiatives for care were more pertinent than ever. Many Scottish organisations were set up by queer people, notably the Scottish AIDS Monitor and Waverley Care, which offered resources designed to spread awareness, destigmatise and educate the public about HIV. Lesbians and queer women played a huge role in creating the quilt – as well as supporting those who were affected by HIV/AIDS more widely – but are so often left out of the narrative. Because homosexuality was still stigmatised at the time, lesbians and queer women rallied around to care for those with HIV, offering solidarity where the general public often offered limited support. Care also centred in local council education, subverting the wider governmental approach. As

Words: Lucy Donoghue

THE SKINNY

Future Funds Intersections

Low pay, precarious contracts – Scotland’s creative workers want change. We speak to organisers and artists involved in the Basic Income for Artists Scotland campaign about creative freedom, class inequality and the nation’s cultural future

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hat is possible when we reimagine the value of artists and their practice? That’s one of the many questions at the heart of Ireland’s Basic Income for Artists pilot, and is now driving a potential pilot in Scotland. Ireland’s landmark pilot scheme, Basic Income for the Arts (BIA), which trialled a basic income for creative workers, is now set to become a permanent scheme, open to 2000 artists every three years. Reports from the initial three-year pilot suggested that financial stability allows artists space to create, improves wellbeing, reduces reliance on the welfare system, and found that for every €1 invested, €1.39 was returned to the economy. With the scheme being made permanent, the Basic Income Network Scotland is calling for a similar scheme to be introduced for artists in Scotland and is working with artists to co-design a pilot through their current campaign, Basic Income for Artists Scotland. The scheme has been backed by the SNP, who promised a pilot if re-elected earlier this year.

Emma Jayne Park, artist

Photo: Harrison Reed

September 2026 – Feature

“As a working-class artist, I’ve had to make some pretty severe life choices to stay in the arts [...] Class still shapes who gets through the door”

Anna Selwood, co-founder of the Basic Income for Artists Scotland campaign, believes it is desperately needed to make the creative industries more sustainable for artists: “We’re at risk of losing them before they’ve had the chance to fulfil their potential. As a society, we’ve become very comfortable reaping the rewards of artists’ commitment while taking for granted that they are able to make work with little or no income.” For so many creatives, finances dictate their access and capacity to work, worsened by the cost of living and various budget cuts, such as Creative Scotland’s temporary closure of the Open Fund for Individuals in 2024. Having a regular income could challenge how cultural practice is valued and who gets to shape it. “Being an artist isn’t a frivolous career choice, it’s not an alternative to a ‘proper’ job. It is work that makes a significant contribution to our economy, our wellbeing and our culture,” says Selwood. “I know too many talented young artists whose mental health is being eroded by the stress of financial insecurity.” Details of the promised pilot aren’t confirmed, but the campaign advises it could be inspired by other models, including Ireland’s, where participants were paid €325 (£282) a week for three years. An impact assessment from Ireland’s Department of Culture, Communications and Sport concluded that those participating in the pilot scheme spent 11 hours more per week on their creative practice than those not part of the scheme, therefore helping the nation’s cultural scene to flourish. For many artists, access and finances are too often limited further by their working-class background, shares artist Emma Jayne Park: “As a working-class artist, I’ve had to make some pretty severe life choices to stay in the arts. I’m angry about that, but also know how lucky I’ve been,

Words: Samar Jamal

while watching friends and peers get squeezed out by money, time and exhaustion. Class still shapes who gets through the door. Most of the opportunities I now have were completely invisible to me until my 30s, which feels like a massive systemic failure.” Park hopes that a basic income will also help reimagine how art by working-class artists is valued by “giving arts workers and communities more freedom to make, see and shape what is classed as ‘culture’.” It’s vital that working-class artists have space to not only create work that won’t be demonised or fetishised, but to really be part of the industry’s fabric. For Matt Hickman – musician and Head of Engagement & Advocacy for Creative Balance, a research project centred around the mental health and wellbeing of Black & Global Majority artists in Scotland – a basic income for artists has the potential to further support those who aren’t currently well reflected, due to factors such as race and gender. Alongside this, Hickman wants us all to consider the unseen work that is essential to art projects. “As someone working in the music sector, often there is so much unpaid time from writing an album, to its production and even in rehearsing to tour that album. This is the same across so many art forms. Those moments in between work are so precarious, but necessary to a practice.” While a basic income has the potential to support those in the arts, there are concerns that the scheme shouldn’t be limited to artists. Cofounder of Basic Income for Artists Scotland, Cleo Goodman, explains that piloting a basic income scheme with artists isn’t so much about prioritising artists but highlighting to the government the potential for widespread success. “The best way that we can make progress towards a universal basic income for all is to win the basic income or the targeted pilot policies. These incremental changes that build towards universality, I think, are the best way to make that case for us all.” And there is a collective understanding to push the scheme beyond artists. “In these rooms, artists are saying this is something that everybody should be given as a right, that it shouldn’t just be artists, and I think that also feels like part of a reason why this feels so exciting to me,” Goodman adds. Currently, the Basic Income for Artists Scotland campaign is working towards a report based on conversations with practitioners, set for publication this autumn. The campaign is hopeful: this is a scheme that could revitalise Scotland’s cultural landscape and truly challenge who gets to shape it.

Find out more about the Basic Income for Artists Scotland campaign on Instagram @basicincomeforartistsscot — 66 —

THE SKINNY

Bible Bashing The gay teens in Leviticus are told by their elders to fix their desires or die. The film’s writer-director, Adrian Chiarella, tells me how he mined childhood fears of homophobia and a fascination with the Bible to shape this allegorical horror

Words: Jamie Dunn

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Leviticus

“In earlier drafts of the film, I didn’t have that cold open,” reveals Chiarella, “because I was just so fixated on telling this story about these two young men and the bond that they form.” People he would share the script with, however, were concerned he was burying the lede. “They would say, ‘This is great, but something’s not quite working?’” Chiarella was initially reluctant to lead with blood and fury, but he began to see that a grisly opening would not only sate the gorehounds, it would also buy him a bit of time. “I realised the film needed something to point to the type of horror movie we were in, and I knew if I got that opening right, we would then be able to have 25 minutes or so of just watching Joe and Stacy’s characters connecting.” As well as exploring modern-day homophobia, Chiarella says he also “wanted [the film] to feel like a biblical parable.” He didn’t grow up religious, though; far from it. In fact, his mother got worried that he might have drunk the Christian Kool-Aid at school. “I remember mum was very concerned one day when I won a bunch of prizes in divinity class,” recalls Chiarella. “She was like, ‘You don’t believe this stuff, do you?’ And I was like, ‘No, I’m fascinated by the stories.’” Even the most hardened atheist must admit the good book has some good yarns. “I think the young filmmaker in me became obsessed with these epic tales, and so many of those stories in the Bible are quite violent, actually. So for Leviticus I drew on all that — 67 —

“I wanted the film to feel like a biblical parable” Adrian Chiarella biblical imagery: the snakes, the frogs, the goats and the stoning.” The title, of course, refers to the book of the Old Testament that right-wing commentators love to quote during debates on morality. Funnily enough, it’s not the verse urging us to ‘love thy neighbour’ they’re so attached to; they prefer the one that goes ‘You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.’ Chiarella admits that his choice of title was a bit of a provocation towards the religious right, but it has had an unexpectedly delightful consequence. “I didn’t realise this until recently, but the film has had some success in the US. It’s built this very loyal young fan base, and what’s happened is that [its US distributor] Neon’s been selling T-shirts that say Leviticus on them, and [the film’s fans are] all buying up the merch and walking around with that word in the world. So this word that’s been used to denigrate us for centuries, it’s now been reclaimed somehow by young LGBTQ+ film fans, which I love.” Leviticus is released 4 Sep by Picturehouse Entertainment

September 2026

hat if the person you most desired became your ultimate fear? That’s the predicament facing the gay teens living in a god-fearing backwater in Australian filmmaker Adrian Chiarella’s assured debut, Leviticus. Terror caused by your own sexuality is nothing new for queer kids: the fear of people finding out, the fear of being rejected, the fear for your own safety from the bigots all around. For these reasons, Naim (Joe Bird) and Ryan (Stacy Clausen), the boys at the heart of Chiarella’s film, keep their burgeoning feelings for each other on the DL. But when word gets out around town that adolescents in the community are having ‘unnatural’ urges, a mysterious shaman is brought in to put these kids right. His solution to the problem is to unleash a dangerous and particularly cruel hex. It’s a demon only the cursed person can see, that comes for you when you’re alone, and takes the form of the person you’re most attracted to. As horror premises go, it’s a nifty one. When Chiarella was thinking up ideas for what would become his debut feature, he kept getting conflicting advice. “Everyone tells you ‘do something personal’, but also, ‘try and reach an audience.’” Since he was a child, growing up in the suburbs of Sydney, he always found fear to be a great leveller. “I’m from quite a multicultural family,” he tells me over Zoom. His dad’s side is Italian, and his mum’s is Chinese. “When I was young, I realised quite quickly that jokes wouldn’t land with everyone in the family, but scary stories would. Like, if I saw something really creepy on the street and told any family member, no matter where they were from in the world, I’d have them in the palm of my hand.” So horror would fulfil the ‘reach an audience’ part of that advice, but how to make it personal? Chiarella’s approach was to simply think of what scared him most as a kid. “I was thinking about the things that terrified me through my teenage years and into my early adulthood, and it was this idea of homophobia. Not just the sort of gardenvariety homophobic violence. Sure, that’s terrifying. But also what burrows inside of us as a result of that.” Leviticus opens with a classic horror cold open. A young woman lifeguard is alone at night in a pool locking up when she succumbs to the amorous advances of an invisible entity, which we later discover is the doppelgänger of her girlfriend. During the tryst, however, the sex turns to brutal, bloody violence. If you walk into the cinema late and miss this scene, you’d be forgiven for thinking you were watching a low-key queer coming-of-age romance, so tender and intimate is the early section of the film as we’re introduced to Naim and Ryan.

THE SKINNY

Making Fetch Happen

September 2026 – Feature

Books

We speak with Highland-born poet Colin Bramwell about his debut collection Fetch and the unexpected influence of folklore in his work

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n Celtic folklore, the fetch is a dreaded omen. An individual’s ghostly body-double, it apparates on Earth to literally fetch that person to the afterlife. Colin Bramwell’s debut poetry collection Fetch, however, guides the reader into each poem to reflect on themselves, their surroundings and where they’ve come from. In Bramwell’s interpretation, the fetch acts as a through line, a metaphorical usher into introspection. “You can find [the fetch] throughout loads of cultures all over the world,” Bramwell begins. “You try and get to the world by being in your own bit first. “The title Fetch came relatively late in the process,” he adds. “I would say Fetch is almost more of a title than a theme.” As a ten year work in progress, the poems are wide-reaching and considered, each distinct in subject rather than being overtly conceptual. “The idea was just to try and get a book of poems together... so it’s kind of like an apprentice book in a way. I know others would go kind of full concept for their first book and I think that’s fair enough, but Pink Floyd didn’t write Dark Side of the Moon first, did they?” he laughs. “So maybe this is more of my Piper at the Gates of Dawn.” Despite the book’s namesake, Bramwell didn’t initially intend for the book to have mythological underpinnings. However, having been brought up in Fortrose on the Black Isle, he talks about folklore as almost integral to the structure of Highland culture, and therefore inescapable in the collection. “When you’re writing a first book of poems, you’re always attending to where you’ve been. Some of the poems are tributes to Highland writers like Aonghas MacNeacail and Sorley MacLean. So there’s kind of a gentle situation of

“With poetry particularly, there’s an idea that it’s untranslatable. But the thing is, if you’re reading a poem and reading it properly, then it’s almost impossible not to translate it in some way”

the book in the Highlands,” he says. “I didn’t want it to be like, here are my folklore poems. Whatever was good enough to be in the book was going to be in it. But I think I see [folklore] as part of my intellectual or cultural history that I like to riff on.” Bramwell is not only a talented poet but a translator as well, holding a doctorate in creative writing from the University of St Andrews, and it is through this that much of his approach to language is influenced. “I came to poetry thinking, ‘OK, I really don’t know what I want to say’” he says. “And what’s really good is that translation will enable you to go through the motions of writing a poem. You can learn some of the basics of craft.” He details how translation has helped him develop Fetch as a collection: “translation is sort of like a rehearsal for writing a poem,” he explains candidly. “With poetry particularly, there’s an idea that it’s untranslatable. But the thing is, if you’re reading a poem and reading it properly, then it’s almost impossible not to translate it in some way.” Expertly blending Scots and English, Bramwell’s approach to language is characteristically funny and lively, a nod to the ceilidh culture that he grew up with. “Scots is very good for entertainment, it’s kind of bouncy and onomatopoeic,” he says, qualities that are reflected in the readability and effervescence of Fetch as a whole. “There’s a perception with Scots that it’s harder to read, but I think as long as the poem’s good, then the pleasure of having encountered a good poem will carry the language in some way.” Witty, forceful and strangely comforting, this is a collection of poems that reimagines how we engage with language. For each Scots poem, Bramwell has included a glossary of Scots words, a thoughtful touch to increasing accessibility. He explains that he recently began studying Old English: “I find that a lot of those Old English words are surviving in modern Scots as well. So — 68 —

Words: Lucy Donoghue

there’s a thing about Scots that it gets you to the root of English,” he reflects. “I think it’s really important not to be too anachronistic with our Scots. Although, that said, I think it’s also important not to put any rules on how other people want to use it.” Bramwell emphasises the fluidity of language and its ability to morph, becoming something that moves with us as we encounter modernity. Fetch uses Scots in a poetic form that feels distinctly contemporary, language that feels like home. “It’s very cool to be able to start writing a poem in English and say, well that’s not working, and then you put it into Scots and it starts to work or vice versa,” Bramwell says, reflecting on his writing process as a whole. “So it’s maybe that sort of fetch thing of encountering yourself but in a different form.” Fetch is out with And Other Stories on 8 Sep

THE SKINNY

Community Matters IberoDocs returns with a festival celebrating creativity, connection and community Words: Jamie Dunn Image: Rei Pictures, Louverture Films Landmarks

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society today. Unlike Martel’s fiction work (La Ciénaga, Zama), which often unfolds in ambiguous visual and aural fragments, Landmarks is much more lucid and direct, but just as powerful as her earlier films. We also love the sound of Flamingos: Life After the Meteorite, Lorenzo Hagerman’s documentary about Caribbean flamingos. Word is this is a lyrical and incredibly reflective take on the nature doc, with Hagerman turning the everyday struggles of these extraordinary birds – from finding a mate to raising a brood of rambunctious chicks – into high drama. The First Women, meanwhile, tells the unsung story of the pioneers of Brazilian women’s football. Adriana Yañez‘s documentary details these players’ dominance of the game in the 80s and 90s, despite being legally barred from playing until 1979. What makes the doc so affecting is that Yañez catches up with the women today, and they’re still full of humour, resilience and a passion for the beautiful game. Another key title this year looks to be Elena Molina’s Remember My Name. The film follows teen refugees who have made their way independently to a child refugee centre in Melilla, a Spanish outpost within Morocco. There, they form a makeshift family as part of a dance troupe, but as some of them approach their 18th birthdays, they know they’ll have to soon leave the safety of the centre. Molina will be around to present the film and give a Q&A following the screening. Music features prominently in IberoDocs. Flowers for Antonio, the second film in the programme directed by Elena Molina, is a heartfelt tribute to Antonio Flores, a key figure in Spanish music. The doc is fronted by Flores’ daughter, Alba Flores, an actor who’s well known in Spain thanks to her role in the Netflix TV show Money Heist. — 69 —

We’re told she ‘embarks on an intimate journey to reconnect with her dad’s legacy, alongside family, friends, and artists who knew him through unseen footage, archival images and his iconic songs.’ Molina will give a Q&A after the screening alongside the film’s sound mixer, Diana Sagrista. The closing film, meanwhile, is Ritas, a documentary all about the late Rita Lee, the undisputed queen of Brazilian rock music, who died in 2023. As well as using incredible archive footage from across Lee’s rollercoaster career, Oswaldo Santana’s portrait includes Lee’s final, never-before-seen interview. Lee’s music will reverberate from the screen to the closing party at People Leisure Club, which will feature a live performance by Giulia Drummond celebrating the music of Lee, followed by sets from DJs Mark Quinn & el_pi_b0y. That’s just a taste of what’s happening at IberoDocs, which will also include a photography exhibition, two shorts programmes and a series of community screenings hosted by the Spanish Film Club, an offshoot of film distribution company Pragda. Clearly, IberoDocs believes that cinema is a force for bringing people and cultures together. Dive into this year’s programme and you’re sure to have your heart filled and your eyes opened. 16-26 Sep, various venues, including Filmhouse, The Institut Français d’Écosse, and three Edinburgh libraries (McDonald Road, Morningside and Craigmillar) To the Sea programme: ↘ 24 Sep, The Rockfield Centre, Oban ↘ 25 Sep, The Birks Centre, Aberfeldy ↘ 26 Sep, Dundee Contemporary Arts Full IberoDocs programme details at iberodocs.org

September 2026

beroDocs, the annual festival dedicated to celebrating non-fiction cinema from Latin America, Spain and Portugal, has a mantra: documentary cinema is for everyone. You can see this play out in myriad ways across this year’s festival, which takes place 16-26 September. First, the Edinburgh-based festival is expanding in this 12th edition, taking a touring programme titled To the Sea north to three coastal towns: Dundee, Oban and Aberfeldy. Second, IberoDocs is committed to making participation in the festival affordable for all, with as many free screenings and events as there are paid-for ones. Third, the festival has boosted its accessible provisions for people who are deaf and hard of hearing, with more screenings with on-screen descriptive subtitles and BSL interpretation at Q&As. And fourth, they have a dedicated community programme that brings their docs into three libraries across Edinburgh: McDonald Road Library, Morningside Library and Craigmillar Library. To top it off, their programme is pretty great this year too. The festival kicks off with the Scottish premiere of Landmarks, the first nonfiction feature from the great Argentine filmmaker Lucrecia Martel. The film’s genesis is the 2009 killing of indigenous activist Javier Chocobar by landowners who were trying to evict the Chuschagasta community from their ancestral lands. Despite the murderers recording their execution of Chocobar and uploading it online, it took nine years of protests before court proceedings finally opened in 2018. Using video clips from the trial, interviews with people from the Chuschagasta community, and other pieces of archival material, Martel draws a line between Argentina’s colonisation in the 16th century and the rot of racism within Argentine

Flowers For Antonio

THE SKINNY

Big Brother Theatre

Dominic Hill is set to direct a new adaptation of Orwell’s 1984 that claims the story for Scotland

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e are all familiar with the topoi of George Orwell’s 1984; state surveillance, doublespeak, political brutality. His last completed work before his death in 1940 has felt frighteningly close to reality in recent years, making Chris Hannan’s new stage adaptation, directed by Dominic Hill, a powerful addition to the autumn programme. Hill found a quiet corner to speak to us in between rehearsals. Like many of us, Citizens Theatre’s artistic director Dominic Hill first remembers reading 1984 as a teenager. “But revisiting it two or three years ago, it definitely felt more prescient and impactful,” he says. “I remember a Guardian article in particular after Donald Trump’s first election about how the book had become a bestseller again. The creeping totalitarianism came more and more to mind.” Orwell has time and time again proven his unfortunate clairvoyance. Big Brother’s mantras – war is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength – could easily evoke the normalisation of violence and hate in our political landscape; the Party’s ‘Two Minutes Hate’ could be likened to

Words: Lilia Foster

short Reform conference. Meanwhile, ‘Newspeak’ has been invoked by the Right to characterise progressive restrictions on extremist views as political censorship. The use of Orwellian references from across the political spectrum reflects our political isolation from each other, something both Hannan and Hill hope to confront in this staging. It would, then, be easy to build a production that directly references our current political climate. But Hill is conscious of sensationalising modern-day parallels; he wants us to draw our own comparisons. “It is a story that makes people politically engaged, but we wanted to keep hold of that Heath Robinson view of the future – we haven’t made it contemporary. We didn’t want to overplay resonances,” he says. His prop department have been hard at work to realise his vision of nostalgic science fiction. “We’ve had some extraordinary machinery and workspaces made, like something out of a Terry Gilliam film.” It was admittedly the book’s ever-growing resonance, though, as well as the timely lifting of 1984’s copyright a few years ago, Hill wryly adds,

September 2026 – Feature

Photo: Alasdair Watson

that prompted the commission of a new adaptation of the story for the stage. That playwright Chris Hannan was chosen to undertake the task is no surprise. In between adapting literary classics for Scottish stages, he has penned a number of original politically charged scripts, notably Elizabeth Gordon Quinn, a powerful tragicomedy set during the 1915 Glasgow Rent Strike. Hannan has been able to root 1984 in the lowlands too, through an ingenious framing device that weaves the original story around Orwell’s time spent in a sanatorium just outside Glasgow, where he was treated for tuberculosis. “It kind of claims the story for Scotland,” he quips. It was during Orwell’s gruelling seven months recovery at Hairmyres Hospital that he completed 1984, despite his doctor’s attempts to get him to rest. His own condition perhaps influenced Winston Smith’s gaunt depiction. Hill makes clear that the original’s brutality and horror will be an unflinching part of the production, but he hopes to “warm it up” through a love affair between Jack Tarlton’s Winston and Jessica Hardwick’s Julia that feels earnest and impassioned. Orwell likely first contracted tuberculosis in a Spanish hospital, where he was treated for a bullet wound in the neck that he sustained while fighting as a volunteer against the fascists during the Spanish Civil War. His memoirs document how Soviet-backed forces ostensibly fighting against the fascists brutally pursued dissenters and published false accounts of glory in battles to bolster their reputation, fuelling a misplaced rivalry amongst the tangle of leftist parties. While Franco’s forces were undoubtedly authoritarian, Orwell saw a totalitarianism within the leftist ranks that undermined the true workers’ struggle. “This was a time when propaganda, from both sides, overtook objective reporting and news telling,” Hill explains. It is easy to see where Orwell drew inspiration for Big Brother’s methods from. When he was finally admitted to Hairmyres in 1947, having suffered years of debilitating chest problems, his ordeals were far from over; Hill tells us that Orwell’s doctor there had fought opposite him in Spain. Hannan’s adaptation will hone in on this little-known relationship, bringing Orwell’s indictment of the horror and brutality of totalitarianism into more personal focus, while also exhibiting some of the political dialogue that Hill hopes to encourage. Set to tour Dundee and Edinburgh after completing its run in Glasgow, this production of 1984 promises to be a provocative and thrilling watch that unearths the lesser-known context of Orwell’s enduring classic. 1984, Citizens Theatre, Glasgow, until 26 Sep, 7.30 pm; touring to Dundee Rep, 30 Sep-10 Oct; The Lyceum, Edinburgh, 27 Oct-7 Nov

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Golden Oldie In Late Fame, Willem Dafoe plays a failed poet who gets rediscovered in his dotage by a group of young New York scenesters. The film’s director, Kent Jones, discusses Dafoe, New York and smartphones Words: Katie Driscoll Past is past, and if one remembers what one meant to do and never did, is not to have thought to do enough?

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assertions, categorisations, rankings… If I have to hear one more thing about boomers versus Gen Z!” he laughs. “It’s demeaning ultimately… It’s all connected to business. It’s connected to marketing, putting people in categories.” Having lived in New York for the past 40 years, and having previously served as artistic director of the New York Film Festival, Jones comes to filmmaking with a wealth of references. Late Fame has a cosy, analogue quality that calls to mind Hal Ashby and John Cassavetes. He even showed Cassavetes’ Love Streams to his director of photography, Wyatt Garfield, for the “way the faces light up the screen.” “Films are a part of me,” he says, “so I don’t have to go back and look at them, and I don’t need to pay homage to them. They pay homage to themselves.” Late Fame is reminiscent of other quiet character studies in films like Paterson and Wendy and Lucy. At its centre is Saxberger, whom Dafoe plays with a tenderness and subtlety that feels almost devotional, like prayer. “Willem is a remarkable artist,” says Jones of his lead actor, “and he can do different registers, and his face is, as you say, extremely expressive, which is why he’s so effective in horror films and Robert Eggers and Yorgis Lanthimos movies.” There was a retrospective of Dafoe’s work at Anthology Film Archives in the middle of shooting. Jones recalls attending one of the screenings: “Willem did a talk with Marty Scorsese after The Last Temptation of Christ. He said, ‘When I’m giving a performance, I’m trying not to be an actor.’ Meaning he’s bringing everything to bear and then letting it happen so that it’s just about being on camera, with the sense of the character absorbed.” Ultimately, Saxberger’s not the tragic lost cause who missed out on being another Allen Ginsberg. He doesn’t need to be lionised. “I never really wanted that, and that’s OK,” he says to the Society at one point – something that seems appalling to them, but feels real. And really, when he says it, it does seem like he’s OK. Late Fame is released 4 Sep by Vertigo

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July 2026

o goes James Schuyler’s Salute, and the poem’s sentiment preoccupies Late Fame, Kent Jones’ second feature. In the film, Willem Dafoe plays Ed Saxberger, a postman in his 70s who published, decades earlier in the New York of Gregory Corso and Lou Reed and the Factory, a book of poetry titled Way Past Go. That collection didn’t make much of a splash on its release, but it’s now been rediscovered by a coterie of young, pretentious aspiring writers in the vein of Whit Stillman’s urban haute bourgeoisie (or U.H.B.). Like the U.H.B., they are loquacious, self-assured, and most of all, monied. They dub themselves the ‘Enthusiasm Society’, but they’re less Skull and Bones than the Lost Boys of the Lower East Side. “There is an element of satire,” Jones says of the group. “But I didn’t have any desire to skewer them. I just wanted to strike a balance there, which I hope I did, so that they’re not just figures of fun.” Fun is one word to describe the mysterious and flamboyant theatre actress Gloria, played with chutzpah by Greta Lee. The Wendy to their Lost Boys, she’s older and more clued-up, and through her, the exhausting emotional labour of the bohemian artist façade is peeled back. Gloria – who wants to convey the impression that she “eats caviar every day and goes to Paris every year for the finest silks” – is more vulnerable than she appears; but with Saxberger she can allow herself to be seen. “There’s a desperation to [Gloria] because the clock is running out of time,” notes Jones. “It’s always easier for men to age on screen than it is for women, and it’s somewhat the same in theatre.” Jones reckons “it’s debatable whether any of [the Enthusiasm Society] will ever write poetry,” which surprises me. “They just have dreams of writing poetry or having written poetry,” he continues. “The only one who

probably will be a writer is the boy that Luca Padovan plays [Winn, in the film], who confronts Saxburger at the end and gets a very harsh but extremely important lesson: you can’t plug yourself into someone else’s energy and get validation.” No matter how privileged or well off you may be, I want to add. One thing the Enthusiasm Society are vehemently against is smartphones, something Jones also stands behind. It’s a pure intention in today’s world, wanting things that are embodied, tangible, real. Like them, Jones doesn’t have a social media account. “I didn’t want to get messages from people that I knew 40 years ago saying, ‘Hey, how have you been?’” he laughs. “But also more than that, I could see that the truism that conflict drives traffic has always been there.” Talking about social media, he sounds like one of his characters. “There’s far too many

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Sounds Good October Highlights

September Highlights

Bill Callahan - SOLD OUT

6th

Edinburgh Psych Fest

1st

7th

The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain

2nd Cast

18th

SNJO: John Coltrane Centenary Celebration feat. Emma Rawicz

20th Jacob Collier - SOLD OUT 22nd Caitlin Moran: How To Be Hopeful 23rd Mike Wozniak - The Bench 26th Nish Kumar: Angry Humour From a Really Nice Guy

9th

Breabach

11th Nai Barghouti 13th Between the Covers Live: Celebrating Agatha Christie 14th Grace Petrie 15th Gareth Malone 17th Foy Vance 24th Dodie 25th Dr Richard Shepherd – Time of Death – More Unnatural Causes 26th St.Paul and the Broken Bones

Full Listings:

31st Fin Taylor: The Pre-emptive Comeback Special

September 2026

thequeenshall.net 0131 668 2019

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Album of the Month

Album of the Month corto.alto — SOME SMALL FORTUNE

Released 4 September by Ninja Tune rrrrr Listen to: APRIL, NOBLEHILL

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from French-Senegalese artist anaiis, while GO (feat. Vector) stretches the boundaries further by leaning into reggaeton influences. Further highlights such as the incredibly cohesive PRAYED WE WOULD (feat. Oscar Jerome) and the Dijon leaning SOMETHING (feat. BINA.) continue the collaborative spirit in style. Other moments such as TEMPLE sees Shortall lead the charge, utilising his own processed vocals alongside restless beats that encapsulate the album’s unpredictable twists and turns. NOBLEHILL makes for a virtuosic album closer. It features an astounding collaboration with fellow home talent, Jacob Alon, who vividly illustrates their vocal dexterity and poetic lyrical imagery: ‘A stranger awake in your place / The sun wanes on Noblehill / I hear you still in every breeze / A language of rustling leaves…’ Dedicated to “memory, nostalgia and being grateful for what I have” in Shortall’s words, it’s a rare thing to find an album of such vision from a young Scottish artist. And while he may be fortunate to have had opportunities in his career (such as attending the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland early on), SOME SMALL FORTUNE is ultimately testament to his dedication and unrivalled execution to follow his creative pursuits to the full. [Jamie Wilde]

Find reviews for the below albums online at theskinny.co.uk/music

ACTRESS Radical Frame Out 18 Sep via Ninja Tune

beabadoobee Pylon Out 18 Sep via Dirty Hit/ Interscope Records

Bloc Party Anatomy of a Brief Out 11 Sep via cOnTAGIOUS LTD — 73 —

Gilla Band Pugnello Out 25 Sep via Rough Trade

The Mary Wallopers Paddywhackery Out 18 Sep via BC Records

September 2026 — Review

he last few years have been a whirlwind for Glasgow’s corto.alto, aka Liam Shortall. From jamming with friends in his flat to a Mercury Prize nomination and worldwide tours, his rise as an artist in the UK jazz scene has been mesmeric. Alongside long-term bandmates Graham Costello and Fergus McCreadie, corto.alto peaked with a few of these aforementioned accolades after releasing 2023’s Bad With Names. Now signed to the revered indie label Ninja Tune, their follow-up, SOME SMALL FORTUNE, faces more pressure than ever to meet expectations. Thankfully, Shortall lets the music do the talking. Leading visually with its artwork collated by hundreds of images from Shortall’s childhood, this collage-like approach is what binds together the album’s strikingly varied 15 tracks. THIEF pulses with the contrasting worlds of classical violins and glitchy electronic drums. OMNI continues the classical themes in more delicate fashion, featuring vocals from Glasgow’s Terra Kin, while the trombones, frenetic drums and sirens of DON’T LISTEN capture corto.alto’s magnetic live presence to the full. Collaboration is also a core aspect of the album’s diversity. The highlight of this arrives on APRIL – a track that would easily feel at home on a Robert Glasper record – featuring luscious vocals

Albums

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Arab Strap Half-Told Tales Rock Action, 4 Sep

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September 2026 – Review

Listen to: Be a Man, Dollar Park

Space Afrika Quiet Storm Dais Records, 25 Sep

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Listen to: From the Heart of Knowing, H00D Ambient, If This Is Hell

Arab Strap were full of middle-aged malaise from day one. Now, 30 years on they’ve grown into the curmudgeons they were always destined to be, their ninth album just as funny and insightful as ever, as the grinding minutiae of life’s banality is contrasted with touching messages of hope and contentment. Many of these songs are more or less an inventory of gripes on a given theme: internet slop, physical decrepitude, the manosphere etc. All backed with varied arrangements, like the no-wave skronk of Dollar Park, the old-school thrash finale on You You You or the industrial jazzrock bombast of I Get Noise. It’s a rich musical abyss for Aidan Moffat to shout into. While the one-liners and pop culture references are always cracking, it’s Moffat’s sentimental side that brings out the best in the band. Half-Told Tales is a long and chaotic album, appropriately loose in structure, but its big heart will creep up on you. It ends with Beats Per Minute, a seemingly perfunctory list of time-related facts, but Moffat links it back to bittersweet feelings for his family. Not sure how many albums that talk about scrotal lifts might have you weepy by the end. [Lewis Wade]

Space Afrika’s latest takes its title from the late-night radio format pioneered by Melvin Lindsey in 1976 featuring silky-smooth R’n’B and soul ballads that he dubbed “beautiful Black music.” Although the group’s nocturnal dubscapes could hardly be described as easy listening – often combining urban field recordings and spoken word samples to recreate the low hum of state surveillance and the quiet desperation of social inequality – the duo have assembled a farreaching cast of collaborators that mirrors the way Lindsey would curate a night’s worth of music. Vanity opens the record theatrically, Axelle Fanyo’s classically trained soprano erupting against a backdrop of tape hiss and double bass. Elsewhere, Alto Aria’s angelic vocals weave through Kelly Moran’s delicate piano on From the Heart of Knowing, whilst on Pretty Gospel, the soulful voice of Paris-based producer Kiala Ogawa conjures images of rumpled bedsheets and midnight yearning. Perhaps most striking is Deuén’s breathless stream-of-consciousness on If This Is Hell, which spills out in overlapping, half-finished thoughts. These contributions suggest the record’s real achievement is less about recreating Quiet Storm’s sound than reimagining what it offered: a refuge from our increasingly polarised and fractious society. [Patrick Gamble]

Both Hands Be Like a Mountain in a Moonlit Way Lost Map Records, 18 Sep

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Listen to: How May I Remain, Ladder, Three Years

Blondshell Violins Partisan Records, 25 Sep

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Listen to: Lucky, Sea Legs, New Age Trojan Horse

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Edinburgh synth pop duo Both Hands crash the summer party with a lyrical, hopeful album which combines a futurist vision with a Wicker Man aesthetic to perfect effect. This is nouveau nostalgia for a moment in time that seems increasingly overlooked. The 90s weren’t just about Blur and Oasis – there were also groups like Moloko, Goldfrapp and Lamb moving away from basic beats, while You’re Not Alone by Olive and Not Over Yet by Grace took the dancefloor in a different direction. Wherever a flamboyant frontwoman may be found, there will surely follow a Kate Bush reference. Yet vocalist Hailey Beavis comes across more like Judee Sill or Alison Statton; there’s an absolute absence of artifice to any of the tracks that gives the listener chills as well as thrills. Be Like a Mountain in a Moonlit Way sounds altogether like an album, with moments of thoughtfulness between the more upbeat tracks, giving the record a sense of what might have happened if Life Without Buildings had been remixed by Perfecto. ‘I will burn with love for you’, sings Beavis on Turn the Sunset Up. Both Hands are ready to set September on fire. [Andrew Williams]

Diverting from her practice of literal lyricism, Sabrina Teitelbaum’s main focus on Violins, her latest album as Blondshell, was to expand her writing method. Throughout her gorgeous third LP, she routinely returns to metaphor to drive her thematic storytelling. Knotted is a quietly cut-throat example of Teitelbaum’s evolution in style: ‘It’s always knotted / When you make a promise you keep me on the hook / And if I’m honest / I’m in your pocket’. Through guitar feedback and beautiful backing vocals, Teitelbaum explores the devastating way she stays attached to someone who keeps putting others before her in a relationship. Although thematically similar to Blondshell’s back catalogue in its exploration of past relationships, Violins’ lens is more focused than ever on how Teitelbaum’s sense of self has evolved. Mid-album, Two Fried is a sly way for Teitelbaum to process how she’s come to like the way her body looks, while New Age Trojan Horse opens with dueling guitars, taking a stand against grown men’s inability to understand periods. Violins is not so much a reinvention as it is a dreamy evolution of a skilled singer-songwriter moving into a new style of writing. [Billie Estrine]

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Listen to: Stoop to Me, Do Yourself a Favor, Heaven or London

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Listen to: I Loved You, Robert Pattinson, Bom-Bane’s, Thinking Seat

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Listen to: Gimme my gun, Man may not last, Baby, oh baby!

Slowfoam Night Rider Somewhere Press, 4 Sep

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Listen to: Through Damp Canyons, Carpet Memory, What Is, What Was

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As Madelyn Byrd’s Through Damp Canyons opens, the camera is still. It’s a hot, dark night on the Sonoran Desert where they came of age – so dark that the arid landscape immediately disappears into the backdrop as thousands of insect wings buzz like uninterrupted static. Then, a motorcycle revs into the foreground, and the camera begins to move with it. Over the course of Night Rider’s next 50 minutes, Byrd’s amorphous soundscapes transmogrify in unpredictable and cinematic ways. Byrd’s production has evolved since Transcorporeal Portal, and the title of second track Of Nature, Of Bodies, Of Dreams acts as a kind of thesis statement for their psychedelic minimalism. In the edges and cracks between key and vivid details – spoken word, more traditional vocalisations, and Patrick Shiroishi’s saxophone – Byrd scatters field recordings, drone, confident employment of space and silence, and other meticulous sound design which shapeshifts between interiors and exteriors, the living and inanimate, truth and myth, memories and dreams. Until, something more bodily and kinetic emerges in the record’s final one-two punch of What Is, What Was and In Perfume, Remember – a trip-hop butterfly from the ambient chrysalis. [Tony Inglis]

September 2026 – Review

Penelope Isles 3 Bella Union, 25 Sep

After going their separate ways around the world – Jack as a touring guitarist with CMAT; Lily to southeast Asia in search of a recharge – the Wolter siblings return to Penelope Isles with a new full-time member, drummer Joe Taylor, and a palpably renewed sense of purpose. This is evident in the way in which 3 distills the band’s established blueprint down to its essence; pretty, melodic guitar lines, woozy harmonies, and a yearning lyrical style that’s scored through with dry wit. If there’s a main character on 3, it might be Brighton, with the record scattered with references to their adopted hometown, especially on the charmingly self-referential BomBane’s and the sparse, barely-there Embo. Whilst the album’s heady atmosphere is a constant, there’s real variety here, with room for the quietly epic (I Loved You, Robert Pattinson) and the occasional misstep, like the stomp-clap of the experimental pop tune You Think You Got a Way with Dogs. In the main, though, 3 is gorgeously well-crafted, replete with the kind of wistful intimacy that should make it a staple listen for the transitional months into autumn. [Joe Goggins]

Standing on the Corner II XL Recordings, 11 Sep

Emerging in the middle of the last decade, Standing on the Corner were central to the burst of creativity emanating from Brooklyn that brought, amongst others, MIKE to the world and rejuvenated Earl Sweatshirt, a movement that seemed intent on collaging the whole history of Black American music into a new, pulsing, genreless blur. They exemplified it better than anyone, their whole existence a kind of blur, shifting members and sounds, emerging when we needed them most. Things are a touch more structured on II than they have been in the past, songs more fleshed out than on their masterpiece mixtape Red Burns, where songs drifted through like thoughts, disappearing as quickly as they’d emerged. They lose something of the momentum of that record here, but there’s still the same restlessness as before, the same desire to never sit still, and it works to brilliant effect, particularly on swaggering single Gimme my gun. Man may not last, too, overpowers its clunky verses with an atmosphere of woozy chaos, sounding like a Quasimoto record with shell shock. It makes for a record that still carries the best of the group; urgent, soulful and raging. [Joe Creely]

Albums

The Tubs Hard Life Merge, 11 Sep

The Tubs’ acclaimed second album, Cotton Crown, was one of the most celebrated indie-rock releases of 2025. On it, Owen Williams sang with cutting honesty about failed relationships and the passing of his mother, on what was a virtuosically melancholic 30-minutes. Joined now by Scottish drummer, and all-round passionate performer Romeo Taylor, The Tubs have picked up where they left off on Hard Life, fusing upbeat backings with honest musings about modern London living. ‘You say you’re gonna move to London / Well who’s gonna pay the rent?’ Williams asks a partner, or perhaps an ex, on lead single Who’s Gonna Love You Now? Like all of The Tubs’ best work, a beautiful janglepop instrumental suggests an air of romance that is promptly flattened by lyrical realism. Hard Life has emotional moments, none less so than Williams singing to a heartbroken friend facing the prospect of being single in his 30s on Didn’t I Say?, though the four-piece never take themselves too seriously, following with a cover of Prince’s Do Yourself a Favor. The Tubs’ new material will sound at its best in the sweaty, low-ceilinged rooms they’re headed for on their forthcoming UK tour. [Daniel Munro]

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Music Now September is another bumper month in Scottish music – here we dig into releases from BIRDVOX, Hound, The Micro Band, Curiosity Shop and Gallus

September 2026 – Review

Photo: Ruth Barrie

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Photo: Laura Meek

Local Music

Words: Tallah Brash

Hound

BIRDVOX

ugust was pretty busy, eh? We covered a fair chunk of it in this column last month, but managed to miss a few bits and bobs, as is the nature of the beast. We missed albums from Scott C. Park and mango mango mango, an EP from Erland Cooper and numerous singles from comeback artists like The Spook School(!), The Ninth Wave(!) and BEMZ(!), plus the latest cuts from KILIMANJARO, Teenage Fanclub, Eilir Pierce (featuring Aidan Moffat), Reine Beau, Anya Vincent, Brooke Combe, Ellijai and remixes of artists like Barry Can’t Swim, Pictish Trail and Pleasure Trail. If you follow our Music Now playlist on Spotify and YouTube, chances are you’ll have caught a lot of that already, of course... This month, releases are similarly stacked. Turn back a few pages to find thoughts on our album of the month from corto. alto, whose single featuring Jacob Alon stopped us in our tracks last month. In our review pages, you’ll also find coverage of the ninth studio album from Arab Strap and the debut from Edinburgh duo Both Hands. There are also words on the latest from The Tubs, featuring Kingdom of Scotland’s Romeo Taylor on, well, the tubs. Beyond that, there’s loads more happening this month in the Scottish musical landscape. On 18 September, Sarah Hayes, Inge Thomson, Jenny Sturgeon and Charlotte Printer release Shamming the Drama, their debut album as BIRDVOX. Produced by Field Music’s Peter Brewis, whose influence is apparent across the record, the four’s unique voices are allowed to shine as the traditional and contemporary are brought together in a collage of different eras, genres and sounds. This mix of electronic and acoustic takes in 80s synth pop, cosmic pop, atmospheric balladry and more, peppered throughout with a Scottish sensibility that catches you off guard but delights in equal measure; a very modern Scottish twist on pop music. On the same day, Glasgow four-piece Hound release their debut album Another Lifetime in a Different Country. Fronted by Zack Manson, originally from Shetland, a lot of this bright and melodic guitar-driven album examines changing relationships with both people and place. Recorded at Black Bay Recording Studio on Lewis, Another Lifetime… proves Hound as masters at uplifting, shapeshifting song structures that consistently offer up nuance and are rarely predictable – a crisp guitar line, pummelling drums, or a feedback squall exactly when needed; it’s a beautifully paced record too, with Hound having perfected the art of ending a song – budding songwriters, take note, this is rhythmic slacker rock at its finest.

Another band choosing to retreat to Black Bay in the Outer Hebrides to record their latest self-titled album (26 Sep) is Leith outfit The Micro Band, stating that “the isolated location, close living quarters and cold sea-water plunges influenced the sound of the upcoming record, painting the band’s characteristically upbeat songs with a subtle melancholy and wistfulness.” While there certainly is a melancholic and wistful thread running through The Micro Band, more upbeat moments can be found on the likes of Thrown, Magical Animals and Lambs Tongue Tango as the band let loose, getting themselves into undeniably catchy grooves. The following week, alt-folk outfit Curiosity Shop, who managed to create quite the buzz before releasing any music, playing sold-out shows at either end of the M8 as well as international festivals, release their debut EP, Bound for the Sky. Oozing with lush vocal harmonies that float over a mix of trad, jazz and folk stylings with double bass, accordion, guitar and more in the mix, Bound for the Sky arrives on 25 September, their quite vintage aesthetic skewed through a modern lens with rich production from Kasper Sandstrøm (Divorce, Do Nothing) and mastering by Felix Davis (Cameron Winter, Geese, Westside Cowboy). Do not sleep on Curiosity Shop. On the same day, Glasgow punks Gallus release Life Is Bliss, in their own words, “mourning the loss of Glasgow’s former glories.” Despite there being a quite deep meaning behind the album’s creation, at its heart this is pop-punk, a weird cross-pollination of The Offspring and Franz Ferdinand, not really sounding like either, but with a mischievous twinkle in its eye, lines like ‘I’m a radge running in the wrong race’ (Alert Alert) and ‘I don’t stick or twist, I’m just sick and twisted’ (Donnie Murdo) softening the blow. But wait, there’s more. This month you’ll also find new albums from Hank Tree (Care I), Mackenzies (A Dog’s Breakfast), Spell Songs (In Thin Air), The Yummy Fur (Everybody Talks About the Weather) and Cashell (If, by chance, estranged…), plus there’s a 12” from George T (The Melodica Sessions) and numerous singles, too many to list here, from the like of National Playboys, Tina Sandwich, CUZINO, Philomenah and Sin Clair, the new solo project from The Ninth Wave’s Millie Kidd.

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Scan the QR code to follow and like our Music Now: New Scottish Music playlist on Spotify, updated on Fridays

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September 2026

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‘Crackles with creative rebellion’ DOUGLAS STUART ‘The greatest and truest story of two male lovers I have ever read. A masterpiece’ RUSSELL T DAVIES

September 2026

‘Immersive, intelligent, immensely sensual’ ELIF SHAFAK

SHORTLISTED FOR THE EDWARD STANFORD TRAVEL WRITING AWARD FOR FICTION 2026

www.synergyconcerts.com — 78 —

‘A stoater of a love story!’ JACKIE KAY

A BEST FICTION BOOK OF 2025 FOR THE GUARDIAN, THE OBSERVER, THE HERALD, AND A BBC R2 BOOK CLUB PICK

LONGLISTED FOR THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE FOR HISTORICAL FICTION 2026

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Film of the Month

Film of the Month — Heart of the Beast RRRRR Released 23 September by Paramount Certificate TBC theskinny.co.uk/film

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avid Ayer’s cinema is a study of masculinity in extremis. His films put their male protagonists into intense, dangerous situations, and then we watch as they try to fight their way out. Heart of the Beast fits squarely into that mould, but there’s a twist. While Ayer has often shown a sharp ear for the banter of male-dominated spaces and the way characters verbally negotiate their way through a hostile environment, the conversations in Heart of the Beast, which was written by Cameron Alexander, are much more limited and one-sided. For the majority of this film’s tight 97 minutes, the only characters on screen are James Belmont (Brad Pitt) and a German Shepherd named Odin. We meet Odin first. Heart of the Beast opens with a young woman (Anna Lambe) discovering the dog alone in the Alaskan wilderness. The story is starting at the end, with what might be considered a major spoiler, although perhaps it’s simply a shrewd choice from the filmmakers, knowing their film may be too tense to enjoy with the dog’s life permanently in the balance. Flashing back to one week earlier, we meet Odin and Belmont as they set up camp miles from everywhere. Placing a distance between himself and civilisation is clearly Belmont’s goal, and he bristles when a fellow hiker (played by a garrulous J.K. Simmons) crosses his path. This rambler ekes some backstory out of Belmont, but Pitt plays him as a man in a permanent state of wariness and defensiveness. — 79 —

We learn that Belmont and Odin served together in the military, and both carry the trauma of war with them. Odin is stricken by nightmares, while Belmont has an increasingly weak heart, which fails him terrifyingly while piloting his light aircraft, causing them to crash into a lake. From here, Heart of the Beast becomes a survival thriller. The pair must find a way through the mountains and the woods, navigating through a series of threats, including an encounter with a bear, a precarious bridge across some rapids, and a pack of ravenous wolves. This may sound rather familiar and straightforward, but Ayer knows how to put together a compelling action sequence, and Heart of the Beast has a couple of exceptional set-pieces which are always rooted in reality and detail, with Ayer making us feel the toll every moment takes on both Belmont and Odin’s bodies. Belmont’s frail heart is a manifestation of the physical and emotional pain he has carried from his Special Forces days, and what’s remarkable about Pitt’s performance is how vulnerable he makes himself. It’s clear how much Belmont and Odin need each other, and having already established a memorable canine companionship in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood…, Pitt again has a tangible chemistry with his four-legged co-star. Their bond gives the film its heart and soul, and while Ayer is liable to tip into sentimentality towards the end, the genuine emotion that this story ultimately stirs in the audience feels earned. These characters have gone on an extraordinary journey, and we feel as if we’ve been with them every step of the way. [Philip Concannon]

September 2026 — Review

Director: David Ayer Starring: Brad Pitt, J.K. Simmons, Anna Lambe

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Film

Scotland on Screen: Promising Scottish Shorts at EIFF 2026 Among the most exciting homegrown cinema at this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival was a programme of shorts created during the second year of the NFTS Sean Connery Talent Lab. We highlight three of the best films from the lineup

Words: Jamie Dunn

September 2026 – Review

Bubbles, Saint Anthony and PANG had their world premieres at Edinburgh International Film Festival

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cottish film was pretty well represented at this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival, although I didn’t find a standout feature. Thank God (and Sean Connery!), then, for the short film showcase from the NFTS Sean Connery Talent Lab. This is the second cohort to emerge from the Lab, a new professional development programme for emerging filmmakers delivered by the National Film and Television School Scotland with funding from the Sean Connery Foundation. The talent on show was heartening, and three of the six films were exceptional, which isn’t too bad a hit rate. I’ve been eagerly awaiting the new Jagoda Tłok joint since Care, her graduate short following a Polish student over the course of a gruelling day’s work in the underfunded Scottish care system. Bubbles sees this Glasgow-based Polish writerdirector again exploring themes of labour, immigration and financial precarity. The film follows Justyna (Agnieszka Salamon), a Polish woman who’s settled in Scotland with her daughter, but their life is far from comfortable. She works as the housekeeper for Catriona (Fiona Button), a well-to-do businesswoman. Justyna is dedicated. She keeps Catriona’s palatial townhouse immaculate, cooks her and her son delicious meals and even provides the occasional shoulder rub when her boss is tired after work. Catriona calls Justyna “family” and is happy to pay cash in hand to avoid Justyna’s agency taking a cut, although from the pathetic pile of tenners she hands over, you suspect it’s mostly to get away with paying well below the living wage. Justyna’s pay packet certainly isn’t enough to make rent, even after she takes on more work cleaning Catriona’s huge second home, which appears to be a luxury Airbnb. But it turns out Catriona’s portfolio extends much further. When Justyna gets an eviction notice, guess who’s listed as her landlord? Tłok has a sharp eye for composition, a deft ear for dialogue and a natural gift with actors; Salamon is a wonderful blend of soulful and mischievous as Justyna. Tłok mines plenty of wry satire aimed at well-heeled elites, their entitlement, their obliviousness and their rank hypocrisy. The film also delivers

Bubbles

some glorious payback for Justyna that should satisfy everyone who’s stuck giving most of their salary to a smug landlord every month, but the comedy and catharsis don’t dampen Bubbles’ political fury. Another gem was Saint Anthony, Declan Dineen’s confidently shot, sharply-plotted dark comedy about a ne’er-do-well son getting something off his chest on the day of his Catholic mother’s funeral. That son is Tony (Andrew John Tait), who has many regrets, but one of the chief ones is stealing a 12-inch statue of St Anthony, the patron saint of lost things, from an altar in his mum’s place of worship when he was a teen. He never returned it, and he explains that it became a talismanic object for him through years where he struggled to find his way in the world. On the eve of laying his mother to rest, he tries to return the figurine, but St Anthony is missing. The pace of Saint Anthony is thrilling. Dineen deploys nimble editing, zippy flashbacks, a fast-talking voiceover, crash zooms, fourth-wall breaks. The blackly comic dialogue feels very much in the Scottish tradition (Peter Mullan’s Orphans is surely an influence), but the film’s nervy energy calls to mind Martin Scorsese and Edgar Wright at their most breakneck. After making you chuckle for ten minutes straight, Dineen catches you off-guard with a truly touching conclusion, which will make you want to call your mum and apologise for all those times you were a little shit in your youth. My favourite film of the six was the bruising PANG from Lara Delmage, who appears to be the most talented visual stylist of this cohort. It’s a troublingly surreal and sexy film examining the fierce erotic charge and power plays between Cam and Evie, two teenage best friends. Evie is glamorous, confident and popular with the boys; Cam is more reserved, slightly uncomfortable in her teen body but has a brighter future as she’s soon off to university. They seem to both sense their friendship is nearing its bitter end, and decide today is the day to push the boundaries of their relationship to see if it collapses. Delmage chooses the perfect arena for Cam and Evie’s psychodrama to play out: against the cream tiles, echoing soundscape and bright lights of a communal pool, where the girls’ bodies are bare and at their most vulnerable. Delmage makes great use of the space, which is interrupted by two boys who become mere puppets in Cam and Evie’s battle of wills. The results are pretty beguiling, partly because Delmage isn’t shy about taking her short to dreamy territory, where teen rites of passage play out as literal rituals, and a bird’s feather becomes a horrific metaphor for a queer desire that can never be realised. All three films are hugely promising. If there’s any justice, and if Scotland gets a better funding model, we’ll see even more ambitious work from Tłok, Dineen and Delmage at a future instalment of EIFF. PANG

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THE SKINNY

Late Fame Director: Kent Jones

Starring: Willem Dafoe, Greta Lee, Edmund Donovan, Jake Lacy, Clark Johnson, Tony Torn, Clay Singer

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Late Fame

The Incomer Director: Louis Paxton

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The pull of the mainland becomes an inescapable siren song in Louis Paxton’s The Incomer, a fable of culture clashes and chosen family. After losing their parents, 30-something siblings Isla (Rankin) and Sandy (O’Rourke) have been fiercely guarding their windswept island off the Scottish coast. They spend their days feeding on gulls and resisting a Finman (John Hannah) who wants to lure them into the sea. Incomers aren’t welcome here, as awkward council official Daniel (Gleeson) soon learns. Tasked with relocating Isla and Sandy to the mainland, Daniel waxes lyrical about the perks of life on the other side but keeps quiet about how lonely any place can feel when you struggle to find your people. Paxton’s poignant, if at times twee, search for belonging is anchored by the three charming central

Director: Adrian Chiarella

Starring: Joe Bird, Stacy Clausen

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There’s been a fruitful trend recently of horror films using attention-grabbing hooks to allegorically connect with social and psychological themes – think It Follows’ pursuer of promiscuous teens, The Substance’s fleshy symbiosis of misogyny, and Obsession’s recent satire of Gen Z abusers. Adrian Chiarella’s Leviticus expresses the violence of queer repression and conversion therapy through a literal curse, with a story following gay teenagers in a religious backwater in Australia being targeted by a demonic entity who appears as the object of their desire. For shy outsider Naim (Bird) and boisterous Ryan (Clausen), that’s each other. Recent Aussie horrors like Bring Her Back and Relic split the difference between oppressive atmosphere and brutal violence, but Leviticus is most compelling in the former mode.

Leviticus

The Incomer

performances, creating a playful dynamic in the loopholes of the social contract. Countering Gleeson’s nerdy nervousness and O’Rourke’s comedic relief, Rankin emerges as a force to be reckoned with, tapping into a feral quality she previously unlocked as Sheila the She-Wolf in Netflix’s gone-too-soon wrestling drama GLOW. Strengthening the fairytale structure of The Incomer are its supporting stars – Michelle Gomez, who adds another delicious antagonist to her streak as Daniel’s ruthless boss, Roz, and Emun Elliott, who joins in as her Rambo-esque henchman, Calum. Full of childlike wonder and quirks underneath its stern surface, The Incomer’s quaintness may not be everyone’s bag. Despite some sequences dragging, Paxton’s debut rises as a headstrong folktale that has humour, heart and understanding of what ‘home’ means, wherever it may be. [Stefania Sarrubba] Released 4 Sep by Universal; certificate 12A

Her Private Hell Director: Nicolas Winding Refn

Starring: Sophie Thatcher, Charles Melton, Havana Rose Liu, Kristine Froseth, Dougray Scott, Diego Calva, Shiolo Kutsuna, Aoi Yamada

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Most of Her Private Hell’s more maddening qualities could be defended as the artistic choices of a filmmaker who’s more than happy to needle his audience. Nicolas Winding Refn’s futuristic tale of disaffected divas and vengeful G.I.s is clearly supposed to be hyper-stylised and garish. It’s supposed to be ludicrously campy yet dourly self-serious. It’s supposed to be ambiguous to the point of near incoherence. But it’s surely not meant to be so fucking boring. Elle (Sophie Thatcher) lives in a high-rise hotel with her sleazy father, Johnny (Dougray Scott), and his harem of young actresses. The hotel is a space that’s pure Refn, both grimily industrial and glamorously chic. Inside, characters are arranged

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In its opening stretch, the film’s desaturated, post-industrial countryside setting shifts from sites of fumbling romantic rendezvous to an isolating hunting ground for sinister doppelgänger. Chiarella successfully conjures a mood that’s as aimless as it is eerie, marked by eruptions of voyeuristic and psychosexual frustration – in this film, homosexual desire is signposted by horny young men throwing rocks at each other. But when the horror mechanics kick in, Leviticus struggles to complicate its central gimmick. The beguiling mood dissipates as Chiarella instead opts for a series of repetitive, strained scares. Scenes depicting the bland but menacing church community at the heart of the film – featuring a deceptively low-key Mia Wasikowska as Naim’s worrying mother – are confident and convincing, but Leviticus’s tenderness would be more affecting if it could conjure fear elsewhere. [Rory Doherty] Released 4 Sep by Picturehouse; certificate 15

Her Private Hell

like dolls, creating images that are pretty in a high-end perfume advert sort of way. They speak in strings of pseudo-profound announcements, all delivered in hushed tones with interminably long pauses in between each line. The dialogue is so grating that it’s a relief when people stop talking and start beating each other up with brass knuckles and switchblades. The other half of the movie follows Private K (Charles Melton), a soldier on a bloody quest to track down his missing daughter. The brief action scenes are executed with Refn’s patented mixture of elegance and brutality, and they’re also the only place where the film properly zeroes in on its sense of humour – delivering sights that are viscerally unpleasant and archly funny at the very same time. Sadly, the film as a whole is mostly just the first part. [Ross McIndoe] Released 25 Sep by MUBI; certificate 18

September 2026 – Review

Starring: Domhnall Gleeson, Gayle Rankin, Grant O’Rourke, Emun Elliott

Released 4 Sep by Vertigo; certificate 15

Leviticus

Film

Ed Saxberger (Dafoe) is returning home from his post office job in New York City when his neighbour points out that a young man has been waiting across the street for his return. The reason? In Saxberger’s youth, he published a poetry collection that never made a splash, but it has now fallen into the hands of this young man and his literary friends at NYU, and they’ve reclaimed it as a lost classic. Flattered, Saxberger joins the youthful cohort as they strive towards literary greatness of their own. It is not particularly surprising that Saxberger’s own creative spark is reignited by this chance encounter – not to mention the attention he receives from the captivating actress Gloria (Lee), who moves in their circles – but Late Fame is a joy

as Saxberger takes that journey. Director Kent Jones has adapted a posthumously published novella by Arthur Schnitzler, a leading Viennese Modernist author and playwright, into a film that gently pokes fun at NYC literati while celebrating the city’s endless ability to embrace artists of all descriptions. Gloria’s rendition of Kurt Weill’s Surabaya Johnny is a marvellous nod to the story’s original milieu. As with her screenplay for 2023’s May December, screenwriter Samy Burch seems fascinated by colliding generations and identity as performance. The personal and ethical stakes are lower here, as is perhaps the story’s punch, but the quiet tragedy and rueful, gentle humour are present and affecting. Dafoe is a winning everyman, and Lee’s performance – her best to date – maximises archness and sincerity. [Carmen Paddock]

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THE SKINNY

Sunshine on Leith Leith, Newhaven and the Shore are home to some great galleries, excellent independent shops, a batch of great breweries and enough excellent coffee to keep you going all day – here’s a few of our highlights

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In Newhaven, just off the Hawthornvale cycle path, Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop (21 Hawthornvale) has everything you want in a gallery. It’s home to a host of artists’ studios, so it has that active, vibrant feel. There’s a regular exhibition programme, so there’s always something new to check out. And there’s a brilliant on-site cafe, if you’ve just cycled in from the other side of town and need a cup of tea and a breather. RECORDS, BOOKS AND GIFTS If you’re a browser, a collector, or just someone who likes picking up nice objects and saying ‘oooh’, then Leith’s independent shops have plenty for you. The great news is that they’re all in walking distance of one another. Vinyl Villains (5 Elm Row) have stocked a wide range of vinyl records and other musical treats for over 40 years, with an extensive and diverse mix on offer. Head down the Walk and you’ll find the new kids on the block at Lounge 33 (373-375 Leith Walk). Modelled after a Japanese ‘jazz kissa’, this is a space for listening to vinyl records as intended: in comfy surroundings, through a great soundsystem, maybe with a coffee in hand. The stock veers towards jazz, soul and hip-hop; the food and drink is from local indie suppliers; the vibes are extremely chill and welcoming. Continue across Great Junction Street and you’ll find more good vibes at… Good Vibes (151-153

Image: courtesy of Good Vibes

ART AND LIVE MUSIC Leith and Newhaven have long been a home base for the city’s artists. The combination of large former industrial buildings, an independent mindset, and a fairly pervasive can-do attitude has influenced artists for years, and it shines through in some of the art spaces currently calling Leith home. There’s the Out of the Blue Drill Hall (36 Dalmeny St), the long-established and much-loved arts space that’s home to studios, exhibitions, cinema screenings, a print studio and a cafe. Their regular Flea Markets and Arts Markets are a great chance to pick up some treats, and their Christmas market is legendary – make a note now, first weekend of December, you won’t regret it. Just down the road, you’ll find Leith Depot (138 Leith Walk), one of the city’s very best grassroots gig venues. The independent bar and venue is a Leith stalwart, and after a major refit its gig space is more accessible than ever. Head here for excellent shows from local promoters and bands, and head into the bar next door for some very, very good pub food. The Depot team also have a hand in the reinvention of the Leith FAB Cricket Club (1 Leith Links) as one of Edinburgh’s best spaces for live music. The Cricket Club hosts an array of gigs and club nights, with its brilliant retro feel and palpable community spirit making for some great nights out. Down at the Shore, Bard (1 Customs Wharf) is a shop, studio and gallery dedicated to Scottish craft and design, aiming to showcase the very best of Scotland’s design talent. Over on Ferry Road, Embassy Gallery (7 Ferry Rd) is an independent, artist-run space which offers support and exhibition opportunities to new and emerging artists. They host six commissioned exhibitions a year, as well as events and shows by gallery members. Bard Photo: Murray Orr

September 2026

Words: Peter Simpson

Good Vibes

THE SKINNY

Photo: Paula Szturc

Image: courtesy of Newbarns Brewery

TAPROOMS, BARS AND DISTILLERIES Leith, Newhaven and the Shore are ideal for this kind of ‘impromptu day out’ – they’re well-connected to the rest of town by bus or cycle routes, but once you get here you can’t help bump into the places you’re looking for. Take Newbarns Brewery (13 Jane St); the gorgeous, rusticindustrial charm of the taproom and the super-cool beer garden lures in folk from far and wide, and the excellent beer made on-site on the other side of the taproom wall keeps them there. You think ‘maybe we’ll check out another taproom’, pull out your map, and you realise that Campervan Brewery (112 Jane St) is literally down the street. So you head there: more beer freshly made on site, and another breezy bar space with plenty of room to sit al fresco if the weather holds up. If you’re in Newhaven and looking for a local pint, two local legends are well worth a visit – the Starbank Inn (64 Laverockbank Rd) and the Old Chain Pier (32 Trinity Cres) with its excellent beer garden. Or maybe you’ll end up down at the Shore, soaking up the sun (weather permitting). The Moonwake taproom (6A Tower Newbarns Brewery Street) is just off the Shore, and serves up some excellent pints from another of Leith’s excellent independent breweries. At this point you might fancy a nightcap; handily, there’s an enormous, jet black whisky distillery at the end of the road. The Port of Leith Distillery (11 Whisky Quay) has already become an iconic site in just a few years, and it’s just as impressive inside. Head to the top floor for excellent waterside views, brilliant food, lovely ambience and, yes, a dram or two.

Constitution St). It’s home to a beautifully curated selection of records from across the musical map, as well as a thoughtfully selected range of books, gifts and some extremely desirable baseball caps. If books are your bag, Leith has you covered. Back at the foot of the Walk, Argonaut Books (15-17 Leith Walk) is one of the city’s very best independent bookshops. The racks are stuffed with great new releases as well as a selection of classics, there’s a brilliant range of kids’ picture books and an excellent zine collection, and it’s staffed by a team of book lovers who are more than happy to help you find your next read. If you’re gifting a book and you need a card to go with it, head next door to Logan Malloch (13 Leith Walk). This independent gift shop stocks cards, prints and gifts from makers and designers from across Scotland and beyond. Back up the road, Leith Makers (105 Leith Walk) is the place to go if you’re looking for a unique gift: the shop stocks a wide range of artworks and curios by local artists, and there’s a lovely upstairs exhibition space as well. Head down Junction Street and you’ll find Edinburgh Community Bookshop (179-181 Great Junction St), a treasure trove of pre-loved literature with a twist: each month, the shop supports a new Edinburgh charity. If you want to help a good cause while filling your reading list, this is the spot for you. And if you venture right back to the top of Leith Walk, you’ll be rewarded with The Cookbook Shop (19A Haddington Pl). Scotland’s only dedicated culinary bookshop is packed with cookbooks, food and drink magazines and broader food writing, plus a host of other foodie treats.

Image: courtesy of Port of Leith Distillery

Photo: GRAS

COFFEE CULTURE Of course, with all that walking you might need a little pick-me-up, and Leith’s host of independent coffee shops have you covered. At the top of Easter Road, the excellent Little Fitzroy (46 Easter Rd) has been serving up brilliant flat whites for years now, with a dedicated following among Leithers. Their expanded seating area (brilliantly nicknamed ‘Little Sitzroy’) makes it ideal for a meet-up before a bit of exploring. Head further into Leith and you’ll find more great coffee – Williams and Johnson (1 Customs Wharf) are based in the Custom House complex, roasting Haze their beans on-site. There’s a secluded indoor cafe space inside and excellent dockside views outside. Over in Newhaven, Mr Eion (44 East Trinity Rd) stock a range of their coffees to make at home, as well as serving up an excellent range of espresso-based drinks. Down by the waterfront, Norah (3 Pier Pl) offers a great cup of coffee alongside some excellent breakfast and brunch dishes in a beautifully laid-back environment. Elsewhere, the Leith outpost of local legends Artisan Roast (72-74 Leith Walk) makes full use of its historic building with comedy nights, yoga classes and art workshops, while Haze (4-6 Shore) pick up the coffee mantle at the always-exciting Brown’s warehouse. Their coffee is excellent, their ice cream sandwiches are outlandish, and their location helps turns a morning coffee into a lunch date and before you know it you’re having a full-scale day out.

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Brown’s of Leith

September 2026

Port of Leith Distillery

Leith and Newhaven are easily accessible by walking, wheeling or public transport. Plan your journey at edinburgh.gov.uk/planyourjourney For more Leith inspiration, visit edinburgh.org/leith

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THE SKINNY

MOUNTAIN MOMO, EDINBURGH Mountain Momo serve up some plant-based Himalayan treats at their new permanent home in the west of Edinburgh

7 Dundee Ter, Edinburgh, EH11 1DL

@mountainmomoedinburgh on Instagram

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(which now features the excellent Wok & Sambal, which we covered earlier in the year) gets some very nice sunsets since the demolition of the school uniform shop across the road. Progress: it’s non-linear, and it doesn’t always make sense, but you make the most of it. Anyway, on to the food. It’s a fully plant-based Nepali menu, which means the eponymous momos (more on those shortly) and a selection of curries, breads, and lovely small plates. Well, we say plates, but our mung dal fritters (£5.50) and vegetable pakora (£6.50) are each delivered on a long, thin piece of black slate. It’s dramatic and not entirely necessary, but the fritters themselves have an impressive bounce and lovely earthiness to them. The pakora are

September 2026 – Review

Food

Mon-Thu, 12-8pm; Fri-Sun, 12-9pm

veryone has a different experience of Edinburgh in August, but one truth is universal – we don’t eat enough vegetables. It’s not like they all just disappear, you are still more than welcome to ‘have a salad’, but it’s very easy to get drawn into the diet of the visiting comics and circus performers (lots of pints, plenty of coffee, falafel, fried chicken, protein bars for the circus lads). Into that fold steps Mountain Momo. After a string of pop-ups and residencies, they’ve set up a new permanent home at the west end of Fountainbridge, and on a visit during the height of the Fringe it’s a tasteful, chilled out oasis. The interior is pretty straightforward but with some very nice floral touches, and it has to be said that this row of restaurants

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Words: Peter Simpson

exactly as you’d hope, crunchy and chunky and easy to devour, but the star of the starters is a homemade ginger chutney, which provides a spicy zing to everything it touches. There’s a rustic, handmade feel to it all, and that extends to the bigger dishes. The cheese and onion paratha (£8) is, to a committed omnivore, an impressive plant-based substitute. There’s a lactic-style tang and an impressive gooeyness to the filling, sitting between the layers of some delicious crispy paratha. The dal bhat (£9.50) is another pleasing, warming and comforting dish that seems ideal for the incoming autumn. An earthy, hearty bowl of lentil curry with a homemade flatbread fresh from the pan, it’s exactly the kind of dish you want after a week or so of forgoing every vegetable and piece of fruit that crosses your path. And then there are the momos, the Nepalese and Tibetan dumplings after which this very restaurant is named. When the name of the dish is written in big letters above the door, you’d better be good at making it, and these vegetable momos (£10) are excellent. We opt for pan-fried or kothe momos, with the same ‘crispy bottom, soft top’ combination as a pan-fried gyoza or a potsticker dumpling. They’re filled with an array of shredded veg that is a little hard to parse without doing a forensic examination, but what sets these apart is a delicious and surprisingly punchy tomato-based chutney that’s drizzled and draped across the plate. This stuff comes at you with pace and gusto, and turns these dumplings from very good to great. As with all great plant-based restaurants, there’s never a sense that you’re missing out due to the lack of animal involvement. Mountain Momo has the kind of homespun vibe that has helped build a bit of a following and should serve them well. The food coming through the porthole window behind the bar is made with care and love, and the occasional dramatic flourish, which we’re more than happy to excuse. If you’re a homesick student who fancies a taste of home, this is the spot for you. Alternatively, if you’re trying to return to the five-a-day habit after a summer of fun, Mountain Momo could be just the place to put you back on track.

THE SKINNY

In Pride, In Piety, In Vigilance @ Jupiter Artland, Edinburgh Glasgow-based performance artist Sgàire Wood’s venture into large-scale sculpture disorients rather than captivates, observes one writer

performer’s practice expands beyond the streets and queer nightlife scene where she made her name. Her commission for Jupiter Artland – In Pride, In Piety, In Vigilance – marks her first foray into large sculptural work. Through it, Wood uses ideas of heraldry to show that ideology can be embedded in what may look ornamental. Her signature maximalism blends the grave and political with the humorous, inviting us to contemplate the performativity of fascism and play with symbols of violent authority. There are moments in the exhibition that are truly memorable. Outside, a giant abandoned swan pedalo dressed up as a riot van is quickly overrun by wriggling children. As riot van becomes playground prop its authority is punctured by the children’s irreverence. Before we

‘The multiplicity of fragmented references compete for attention, making it hard to hold much of what you see in mind’ even enter the gallery, Wood primes us for juxtaposition and excess. Yet, walking through the doors, we are confronted by a sea of white. White walls, white curtains, white carpet hugging the edges of the room, and three white bird sculptures. The peacock in her pride, the pelican in her piety and the crane in her vigilance form the central axis of this exhibition. Its perimeter is decorated by large shields jutting out from the walls and bearing clashing iconography. Echoes of political violence abound, mostly drawn from Photo: Neil Hanna

In Pride, In Piety, In Vigilance, Jupiter Artland, Edinburgh, until 18 Oct Sgàire Wood, In Pride, In Piety, In Vigilance, Jupiter Artland

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jupiterartland.org

September 2026 – Review

Wood’s early encounters with Northern Irish sectarianism. These memories are found in small gestures, from the pile of bricks gathered at the crane’s feet, which you could pick up and throw, to the personal coats of arms that form the peacock’s tail. In this space, fascism seems to wink at you. Through the humorous assemblage of assault rifles in silhouette, camouflage print, a bedazzled union jack, psychedelic colours, fake eyelashes and bulging text, we enter a surreal comedic world which is both disorienting and sinister. It is so disorienting that I often find myself losing track of her point. The multiplicity of fragmented references compete for attention, making it hard to hold much of what you see in mind. There is a palpable feeling of experimentation in the work. It’s easy to imagine Wood in her studio, putting two patterns together and wondering does it work? Yes, no, maybe, sometimes. The results can feel arbitrary. If not for her willingness to share deep knowledge of heraldry and the helpful wall text, one might feel entirely adrift. Arbitrariness may indeed be part of what she is getting at. It may be true that the associations we make between patterns, textures, colours and their meanings are essentially ungrounded. Even still, I find myself wondering, so what? While the exhibition gives me plenty to decipher, it doesn't keep me hooked. As I think back to that first image I saw of her, I realise it was so captivating because its elements, however strange, seemed to belong together. The same cannot be said for a large proportion of this new work.

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he first time I see her, I want to know who she is. She appears nude on a billboard, draped in her own impossibly long hair, surrounded by animal skins and Persian rugs, clutching the head of a snarling tiger. Her name is Sgàire Wood. She is Scotland’s answer to Angelyne, the 1980s icon who became famous by plastering her image across LA’s billboards, selling only the spectacle of herself. In this captivating shot of Wood in Fountainbridge, drag collides with the strange glamour of taxidermy. It is bold, absurd and faintly unsettling. It is not something you easily forget. Although her images, including this one, Tiger (2024), are found throughout Edinburgh courtesy of the BUILDHOLLYWOOD project Your Space Or Mine, these days, the Glasgow-based Irish artist and

Words: Mayson Taylor

Books

THE SKINNY

Exit Party

Girling

Big Man

The Castle

By Emily St. John Mandel

By Eve Esfandiari-Denney

By Dean Atta

By Jon Ronson

It’s 2031 in Los Angeles, the United States has collapsed, and the Republic of California is celebrating its lifted curfew with a night of partying. Emily St. John Mandel’s Exit Party is far from conventional sci-fi: it’s a dystopian whirlwind of a novel. Protagonist Ari is 48, newly released from prison, and ready to begin her life anew. She and her roommate Gloria attend friend Kareem’s party, and what should be a night of freedom quickly turns into chaos. ‘Doubles’ of party attendees mysteriously arrive – they look the same, but have different names and lives, and it seems like they’ve arrived from a different universe altogether. Mandel’s Exit Party intertwines dual narratives, fracturing time. With the strange events of the party looming over the narrative, the novel is a strange puzzle that the reader slowly pieces together. In a dizzying series of events, Ari moves from California, to militia work in Ohio, to art collecting in Paris. Meanwhile, a parallel universe to Ari’s world is slowly revealed throughout the novel – one of a singular United State militantly run by the Service through surveillance drones and citizen informers. Through a botched teleportation experiment, characters are transported into worlds they don’t belong to, with no way to get back. Mandel’s creative and emotional craftsmanship tells a story of missing people, lost families and unexpected endings. [Lucy Fradin]

In Eve Esfandiari-Denney’s Girling, the word becomes more than its associated verb (being a girl) and assumes an entire logic within the collection’s poetic world. Girling, the verb, encompasses experiences from the banal to the transformative – and those that are both – producing an effect of both satire and poignancy. At times, it feels as if the poems’ address switches between that of speaking to a close friend and that of speaking to a past, future, or higher self. The effect is a register of intimacy which begins at a cultural level and grows into one that is distinctly cosmic and existential. From pop culture to online references, Esfandiari-Denney treats contemporary culture as a repository of references to establish closeness. The speaker’s history is equally traceable. In the way that ‘girling’ becomes an ironic commentary, the contemporary moment becomes a point of discussion for broader ideas of lineage, anxiety, and grief. The collection moves between the grotesque and the sentimental to paint stories that prove to us that angst is not an adolescent but a timeless feeling. Esfandiari-Denney writes beautifully, alarmingly, and at times, grossly. Readers could pick a page at random and be sucked in by the way she moves between interrogating a world of words, sounds, and light, and the one plagued and blessed by the Internet and all that modernity has wrought. [Maria Farsoon]

Dean Atta’s adult literary debut is sharp, honest, and sometimes painfully real. Big Man follows Big, a Black British gay man approaching his fiftieth birthday. The life he shares with his boyfriend Little may seem perfect – bouldering, running, yoga, coffee dates – but Big’s matterof-fact narration exposes the cracks in this veneer. Big is Black, workingclass and mentally ill, while Little is white, and comes from money. Big Man explores whether two people from such different backgrounds can love each other and make it work, even when identity seems like a chasm between them. As Big contemplates getting older, he starts to come to terms with having been sexually assaulted in the past. Although Big’s truth causes a rift with his idolised ex-mentor, Mother (who is reluctant to cut ties with Big’s abuser) it brings him closer with Little, who is then able to see him more clearly. Identity is integral to this novel, but Atta shows that it is not an immovable barrier to love and tenderness. Atta doesn’t shy away from the grittier truths about relationships, whether romantic, platonic or familial, and Big’s frank, relatable voice makes Big Man feel like listening to multiple five-minute-long voice notes from your pal at 1am. Impossible to put down, and comforting in spite of the dark themes it deals with, this novel will remain in the heart for a long time. [Ciara Bowen]

Jon Ronson has always had a knack for stumbling upon a captivating mystery, and it seems that knack is hereditary. His new book, The Castle, starts with his teenage son discovering a newly-built medieval castle in Woodstock, upstate New York, which prompts Ronson to investigate the eccentric aristocrat responsible. Its builder Chris Mark turns out to be a “gilded age scion,” a descendant of a wealthy steel magnate who lures women – and the occasional journalist’s son – to his castle for various seedy projects. Ronson is hooked. He sets off on a quest to understand Mark, and in doing so opens the door to a wider exploration of America’s drifting men. Along the way, his case studies include various controversial figures of our time like (non-American) Father Ted creator Graham Linehan and Hollywood actor Armie Hammer, but the book is strongest when Ronson is able to connect the struggles of everyday people with their coordinated siphoning into organisations like ICE or cult-like internet factions. The investigation at its centre never quite lands on a satisfying climax, nor does it fully coalesce with the wider throughline, with Ronson himself sometimes admitting a precarious weld between the subjects. Nevertheless, it’s as pacey and page-turning a read as his reputation promises, and the self-examination the tale prompts in its teller is amusing. Ronson fans will delight in it; newcomers might benefit from starting with 2001’s Them before finding their way back to The Castle. [Louis Cammell]

Picador, 17 Sep

Canongate, 13 Aug

Cipher Press, 3 Sep

Viking, out now

September 2026 – Review

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— 86 —

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THE SKINNY

On the Rise Ahead of his upcoming tour, Li Jin Hao reflects on the highs of this year’s Fringe, the strong influence of the Scottish comedy circuit on his career and the parallels between his stand-up style and sushi Words: Cameron Wright Comedy

F

rom counting the stars at night, hunting for the perfect that’s when it all started.” coffee during the day or walking past a loch each evening, It’s been an exhilarating ride from there, as Jin Hao threw Li Jin Hao’s approach to the Fringe this year has been one himself into the Scottish circuit, balancing it with his Literature of newfound bliss and simplicity. With little pleasures dotted and Film degree. “Lectures would end at 5pm, then I’d hop on a throughout, the comic experienced the Fringe in a more relaxed train to Edinburgh to do 10 minutes at Top Banana!” Gigging in fashion than back in 2024 when he first tackled the festival: Dundee, Aberdeen and Glasgow, the comic isn’t shy dishing out “That first experience, it’s like sitting an exam, and that’s praise to the clubs that built his foundation: “I owe everything nobody’s fault but mine. But now the exam has passed, I’m able to Monkey Barrel. In many ways the Scottish comedy scene to remind myself this is something I get to do, not something I birthed me. I didn’t have time to think. I just did it.” It’s no wonder comedy has been kind to Li Jin Hao. His have to do.” distinct style, lilting turn of phrase Comparing this year’s Fringe to and fantastic whimsical fairytales are his first, Jin Hao reflects on his in a class of their own. Descriptions current mentality: “The other day I of the act’s unique personal brand laughed on the bus!” This may sound often rotate around similar adjectives, trivial or small, but much like within but this doesn’t always align with how his stand-up, it’s these minute the performer sees himself: “People moments that reveal the bigger would call my debut gentle or soft and picture. He explains, “In my first year that’s not exactly how I see myself. I at the Fringe, I don’t think I would think, in that first instance, you have laughed on the bus. But this present your best self. That softer year, while passing supermarkets, I side doesn’t cost me anything – it’s laughed. I could feel myself looser not a risk. But what I want now is to this time.” be energetic like I am with my friends. It’s been a fast few years for Li I want that electricity.” Jin Hao, who only started performing Li Jin Hao Ever evolving, Jin Hao graduated stand-up in 2022, post-pandemic, in 2023 and is now on the quest to before debuting his first Fringe show perfect and hone his craft: “I want to have fun on stage. I’m in to critical acclaim. Returning triumphant this year with his constant conflict between wanting to rush off the page and say brilliant follow-up Falling From A Moon and landing a role in an something silly, but also wanting to be professional. I don’t know upcoming Judd Apatow movie along the way, the comic acif I owe the audience my best written work or my best perforknowledges his flourishing journey thus far: “I feel so privileged when I talk about it, but everything fell into place so nicely and I mance. I’m working on marrying the two.” Hirokazu Kore-eda gets a mention, with the physicality of am so lucky with the opportunities. In 2019 I was in the his movies shaping the way Jin Hao moves across the stage. The Singapore Army, then I moved to St Andrews for university and sentimentality of Ocean Vuong and the dreamlike magic realism of Salman Rushdie’s literature are also referenced, and the comic confesses he frequently looks for inspiration outside of the usual channels: “I find myself plucking from different fields, that way I can have different flowers.” The most apt analogy of his own comedy comes from none other than sushi. “It’s just fish, but it’s so delicious. [With sushi, you’re] subtracting and subtracting until you’re left with only the perfect ingredients.” It’s that quest for simplicity that captures the essence and intent of Jin Hao’s comedy. As Falling From A Moon begins touring, it marks another crucial chapter in the artist’s rising career. His debut tour, which comes to Glasgow and Aberdeen in October, is a fantastic opportunity to see one of the most assured, singular voices in the modern comedy circuit: “The promise is for every show to be better than the last one, which is a crazy thing to promise,” says the comic, before sniggering and giddily joking “but I do promise that – it’s only going to get stronger! Do not come to the early shows, they will be weaker than the later ones.” Despite his teasing, Li Jin Hao is no doubt a comedian who is exactly where he needs to be, his finger firmly on the pulse.

“I owe everything to Monkey Barrel. In many ways the Scottish comedy scene birthed me. I didn’t have time to think. I just did it”

Jin Hao Li

— 87 —

September 2026 – Review

Photo: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan

Falling From A Moon tours to Glee Club, Glasgow, 21 Oct; Monkey Barrel, Edinburgh, 22 Oct

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THE SKINNY

Listings Looking for something to do? Well you’re in the right place! Find listings below for the month ahead across Music, Clubs, Theatre, Comedy and Art in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee. To find out how to submit listings, head to theskinny.co.uk/listings

Glasgow Music Mon 31 Aug

JUAN LAFORET (STUFFED ANIMALS) THE HUG AND PINT

Indie.

JOSH ROSS ST LUKE'S

Country from Canada. LILY SEABIRD

THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS

Indie rock from the US. NOAH JAMES SWG3

Country from the US.

Tue 1 Sep

HUDSON FREEMAN ORAN MOR

Folk from New York. MAC DEMARCO BARROWLANDS

Singer-songwriter from Canada. DAY WE RAN

THE HUG AND PINT

Alt rock from Australia. SHAKEY GRAVES QMU

Blues folk from Texas. MORE EAZE

THE GLAD CAFE

Experimental from Brooklyn.

Wed 2 Sep

THE NEIGHBOURHOOD

Alt rock from the US. ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT ORAN MOR

Hip-hop from the US. MAC DEMARCO BARROWLANDS

Singer-songwriter from Canada.

WEIRD NIGHTMARE THE HUG AND PINT

Lo-fi pop.

ANNA VON HAUSSWOLFF ST LUKE'S

Rock from Sweden.

LISTENING BACK: GACO X ĀE ENSEMBLE THE GLAD CAFE

Improv from Glasgow.

Thu 3 Sep

SHALLOWATER MONO

Post-hardcore from Texas. K-LYN (E.M. KANE + DANIEL LECKERMAN) KING TUT'S

Country pop from Glasgow. PRIMAL SCREAM BARROWLANDS

Rock from Scotland. NORRIE TAGO MACIVER (ISLA SCOTT) ST LUKE'S

Folk from the Isle of Lewis.

THE TOASTERS

Singer-songwriter from Amsterdam.

Ska from the US.

SWG3

SIN CLAIR

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Sun 6 Sep

Electro.

SPY + SPACED + DRY SOCKET

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Hard rock lineup.

LA CHEETAH CLUB

IMPOSTER SHOWCASE

MONO

Alt from Glasgow.

THE NORTHERN BOYS

TRANSFIXXED (4KITSAKE, ANGEL CAKE, RXVEGRL, SWEDGER)

ROOM 2

Trance and hardcore.

VOLTAGE VOLUME 1

STEREO

Fri 4 Sep

ALAN REED AND THE DAUGHTERS OF EXPEDIENCY THE GARAGE

Prog rock from the UK. HEADSEND THE GARAGE

Rock.

SOULFLY + NAILBOMB SWG3

Thrash metal from the US.

Alt rock from LA.

PRIMAL SCREAM

Rock from London. MAX RYAN

Pop from the UK.

Heavy metal from Manchester.

EDENBANK (STEPHEN MCCAFFERTY + MICHELLE CAMERON + MAX BRACKENRIDGE + NEIL MORRISON)

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Acoustic from Glasgow.

WAILING BANSHEE NICE 'N' SLEAZY

KAREN DIÓ KING TUT'S

Punk rock from Brazil. HANA STRETTON THE HUG AND PINT

LOSCIL (KINBRAE)

Ambient from Vancouver.

ST LUKE'S

KING TUT'S

Folk from Scotland.

Indie from the UK.

THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS

SWG3

LOWERTOWN

CHANEL YATES (ILI)

Indie rock from Atlanta.

Country.

NAPPY NINA (LADÉ)

DANCE GAVIN DANCE

Rap from Oakland.

Post-hardcore from the US.

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

SWG3

CAP CARTER STEREO

SLEEPY BADGERS

Folk rock from Northern Ireland.

GLASSHOUSE RED SPIDER MITE

BARROWLANDS

Pop from the US.

PAIGE TURLEY

THE HUG AND PINT

Singer-songwriter from Scotland.

LAURA VEIRS (KARL BLAU)

SWG3

Folk rock from Oregon.

ST LUKE'S

LAURA SILVERSTONE

ST LUKE'S

Indie from the Basque country.

JUST THE BRAVE

Indie rock from Glasgow.

Hardcore.

TOMORROW SYNDICATE

THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS

New Wave from Scotland. FROST CHILDREN SWG3

Pop from the US.

CEREMONY EAST COAST (TEST PLAN) THE GLAD CAFE

THE GOLD TIPS

Singer-songwriter from Scotland.

WHEELS IN MOTION

RESTRICTED CODE

Sat 12 Sep

JAMIE RAFFERTY

Funk and soul from Belfast.

BABY KEEM

THE GARAGE

O2 ACADEMY

Rap from Las Vegas. ROSA WALTON

HELICON (THE MIRACLE SEEDS)

THE HUG AND PINT

Eclectic lineup.

Psych rock from Glasgow.

Singer-songwriter from the UK.

Thu 10 Sep

THE HUG AND PINT

STEREO

STEREO

BLUE NATION THE GARAGE

Indie from Birmingham. ANDRÉ RIEU

THE OVO HYDRO

Classical from the Netherlands.

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Jazz from Romania.

KING TUT'S

MS RAY

FROG

Pop from London.

Indie rock from New York.

WILLIAM TYLER (ALEX REX + JACK MELLIN) THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS

Indie from Nashville.

DAILY J

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

TOBY LEE ORAN MOR

Blues rock from the UK. DOVES

BARROWLANDS

Indie rock from the UK. GOOD KID SWG3

Indie from Canada. MAYA LANE SWG3

Singer-songwriter from London.

BARROWLANDS

EDM from Ireland. TALIA MAR SWG3

Pop.

SUNBEAM (PAPERHOUSE, PELIKAN ROUGE, BISTANGO) NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Indie rock from Whitby. DEAD FREQUENCY STEREO

Rap.

THE ALBUM CLUB (NIALL CONNOLLY) THE GLAD CAFE

Indie pop from Glasgow. ADAM ROSS (XAN TYLER) THE GLAD CAFE

Indie folk from Scotland.

Sun 20 Sep

Fri 18 Sep

STEREO

THE HUG AND PINT

MAIN STREET RECORDS SHOWCASE

AMPHITRIO

ANNIE MAC

Indie from Sweden.

Dream pop from Virginia.

Mon 14 Sep

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Ska.

Rock from Scotland.

BARROWLANDS

Alt rock from Glasgow.

Shoegaze from New York.

THE HUG AND PINT

ROOM 2

ANCHOR LANE

SHITKID

MEAN AND FILTHY

THE GLAD CAFE

Indie.

THE GLASGOW SKA TRAIN PRESENTS… ESPERANZA + DAKKA SKANKS

KING TUT'S

Folk from the UK.

Experimental from Edinburgh.

Indie from the US.

Krautrock from Glasgow.

THE OVO HYDRO

Rock from the US.

Eclectic lineup.

KING TUT'S

Prog rock from the US.

JUSTYNA JABLONSKA

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Metal from the UK.

THE DEAR HUNTER

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

VOICES BEYOND BORDERS

LOCKED SHUT (GO DOWN FIGHTING + SLEPT ON)

Alt rock from Glasgow.

I PREVAIL (POLARIS + AMIRA ELFEKY + GORE.)

KURT VILE & THE VIOLATORS SWG3

THE GLAD CAFE

Eclectic lineup.

Pop from Scotland.

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

DROOK

ST LUKE'S

SWG3

HIGH CALIBRE

Wed 9 Sep

Blues from the UK.

Alt rock from Brighton.

THE GLAD CAFE

Indie rock from Scotland.

Thu 17 Sep

THE WHISTLIN' DONKEYS

MADDIE ZAHM

JASON RIDDELL (MOONSOUP + DAYYDREAM)

THE RUM SHACK

KING TUT'S

THE OVO HYDRO

Rock.

TIDE LINES

Rock from Chicago.

Pop from the US.

O2 ACADEMY

STEREO

CATHOUSE

GLYDERS

Indie rock lineup.

HILARY DUFF

Alt from London.

Sat 19 Sep

Electronica from New Zealand.

Pop punk.

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Soul from London.

METRIC + BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE + STARS

Sat 5 Sep

CONNOR SELBY (CLEMENTS)

ORAN MOR

THE GARAGE

STEREO

Rock from Scotland.

Eclectic lineup.

VIENNA VIENNA

Rock from Glasgow.

Indie from Portland.

BEST OF BRITISH': PUPPY TEETH + THALADELA + SADIE!

THE GLAD CAFE

Sun 13 Sep

KING TUT'S

Dream pop from Canada.

MONO

ACID CABARET

Indie pop from Sweden.

JAGUAR SUN (SEAN NICHOLAS SAVAGE)

THE GLAD CAFE

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

DOGPARK

MARISA ANDERSON (THE SEEP)

BARROWLANDS

PP ARNOLD

THE GARAGE

MULAA JOANS (ORLANDO)

PRIMAL SCREAM

Wed 16 Sep

THE GLAD CAFE

THE JARAD ROWAN BAND

Rock from New York.

Pop from Scotland.

SWG3

Blues rock from Texas.

Fri 11 Sep

JO MANGO

Indie from the US.

ARCY DRIVE

SWG3

Indie rock from LA.

Tue 8 Sep

THE GARAGE

STEREO

ALLY VENABLE

Metal from Glasgow.

STEREO

THE GLAD CAFE

IRIDIUM

JUST THE BRAVE

Blues.

SWG3

Folk soul from Manila.

PREWN

S.G. GOODMAN (DAYYDREAM)

THE GLAD CAFE

BILLY BIBBY

Indie rock from Glasgow.

Underground rap from Glasgow.

Indie.

THE HUG AND PINT

Singer-songwriter from the UK.

THE HUG AND PINT

DAVID THOMAS BROUGHTON

BARROWLANDS

Rock from Scotland.

ROOM 2

Rock from the UK.

MORTAL REMAINS + SKRAP (SPIRIT WARDEN + DEATHRATTLE + TRILL)

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Mon 7 Sep

KING TUT'S

THE KING BLUES

THE MOLOTOVS

DEAD AIR

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

THE OVO HYDRO

UNTITLED

Indie from Nashville.

THE HUG AND PINT

LUKE HAINES (TO THE LIGHTHOUSE)

DRYGATE BREWING CO.

THE JOY HOTEL

Singer-songwriter from Glasgow.

Rap from the US.

THE BRACKNALL

THE HUG AND PINT

Rock from Australia. A$AP ROCKY

BIRDTALKER (TWOHEADED CALF)

Tue 15 Sep MIMI BARKS THE GARAGE

Trap from London.

— 89 —

BABY SMITH

Indie pop from Australia.

O2 ACADEMY

THE GLAD CAFE

SAINT ETIENNE (THE PASTELS)

BRIELLE (MAGENTLESS + THE DRIVE)

Mon 21 Sep NINUSH SWG3

Indie folk.

POSSIBLY JAMIE: DID IT ALL FOR YOU NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Pop from Glasgow. HOLY FUCK STEREO

Electro rock from Canada.

Tue 22 Sep SPLIT CHAIN THE GARAGE

Rock from Bristol.

PACIFIC AVENUE KING TUT'S

Indie rock from Australia. JAMIE WEBSTER O2 ACADEMY

Singer-songwriter from Liverpool.

THE AFGHAN WHIGS SWG3

Rock from Ohio.

MUSICMANMIKE SWG3

Rapper from Nottingham. ALEX APOLLINE NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Singer-songwriter from Glasgow.

JAZZ AT THE GLAD: RACHEL LIGHTBODY & BAND THE GLAD CAFE

Jazz from Glasgow.

Wed 23 Sep LA TÈNE (SUZAN PEETERS) THE GLAD CAFE

Drone.

LIANA FLORES (MUCO) KING TUT'S

Bossa Nova from the UK. FORAGER

THE HUG AND PINT

Indie rock from New York. ALTERED IMAGES ST LUKE'S

New Wave from Scotland.

BONNACONS OF DOOM

UNHOLY COMMUNION: URU GANA + THINNERS + THE TV CASUALTIES

Electro folk.

Eclectic lineup.

Indie dance from London. THE HUG AND PINT

THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS

THE GARAGE

DEAD CALM

THE MAINE

MIKE DAWES

Indie rock from Ireland.

Alt rock.

Indie from London.

SWG3

Pop rock from Glasgow.

ST LUKE'S

SWG3

ORAN MOR

RAIN MCMEY

LITTLE BARRIE

AQUILO

Indie.

Psych rock from the UK.

Electronica from the UK.

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

KING TUT'S

FRANCIS OF DELIRIUM

ELECTRIC WIZARD BARROWLANDS

Indie rock from Luxembourg.

CATHAL FITZ

STEREO

Doom metal from Dorset. THE HUG AND PINT

Folk from Cork.

GONG

Psych rock.

THE JAYHAWKS

VICKIE PAXTON (CHARLIE CLARK)

Country rock from the US.

Alt folk from Scotland.

THE OLD FRUITMARKET

THE GLAD CAFE

STEREO

Thu 24 Sep ANUV JAIN THE GARAGE

Singer-songwriter from India. WISHBONE ASH ORAN MOR

Rock from the UK. ARKAYLA

KING TUT'S

Indie rock from Manchester.

September 2026 —Listings

THE OVO HYDRO

ISABEL VAN GELDER

THE SKINNY CAMMY BARNES BARROWLANDS

Rock from Scotland.

UNDER (ACIDSAURUS BONG + FALL OF THE GATEKEEPERS) THE HUG AND PINT

Alt metal from Stockport.

DECLAN WELSH & THE DECADENT WEST ST LUKE'S

Indie from Scotland.

THE GLAD CAFE

Experimental.

Edinburgh Music

ALLIE SHERLOCK THE LIQUID ROOM

Singer-songwriter from Ireland. LITTLE GRANDAD

THE MASH HOUSE

Indie punk from Durham.

SNEAKY PETE'S

THE VOODOO ROOMS

ROBIN TROWER

SAM GRASSIE

FLUFFY MACHINE (GOODBYE BLUE MONDAY, CROCODILE TEARS)

CHAPTER TWO

CHRIS HELME

Indie rock.

Rock from the UK.

THE QUEEN'S HALL

THE VOODOO ROOMS

Rock from the UK.

Wed 2 Sep

SHE PAST AWAY

ANTI-FASHION (CONTINENTAL LOVERS + THE DUKES OF BORDELLO)

Post-punk from Turkey.

Punk.

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Punk from Swizerland. STEREO

FAMILY STEREO (KATHI DEAKIN) THE GLAD CAFE

Indie folk from London.

Fri 25 Sep

MAN/WOMAN/ CHAINSAW KING TUT'S

Rock from London.

BANNERMANS

HARRY JOWETT SNEAKY PETE'S

Indie.

Thu 3 Sep CUD

BANNERMANS

Indie rock from Leeds.

CONCRETE VEHICLES SNEAKY PETE'S

Blues folk from Scotland.

WHISPERED (AS THE SUN FALLS + THE DROWNING)

SNEAKY PETE'S

Electronica.

Fri 11 Sep

WAILING BANSHEE (RATTLESNAKES + PYROCLAST) BANNERMANS

Heavy metal from Manchester.

Fri 4 Sep

SNEAKY PETE'S

MARY COUGHLAN

Indie rock.

Sludge from Norfolk. ST LUKE'S

Jazz from Ireland.

THE YUMMY FUR SWG3

Post-punk from Scotland. BAS ROTTEN

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Hardcore punk from Portugal. THE TUBS STEREO

Jangle pop from Wales. NORMAL SERVICE (THE SEEP + JEUX D’EAU) THE GLAD CAFE

Alt from Glasgow.

Sat 26 Sep MATT MAESON ORAN MOR

Singer-songwriter from the US.

THE SMALL FORTUNES KING TUT'S

Rock from Warrington.

ANDY IRVINE (QUILTY)

SNEAKY PETE'S

THE FROLIKS (DEFINITION + FERGUSON)

THE MASH HOUSE

Indie from Scotland.

Sat 5 Sep

WHEN RIVERS MEET (GREENE) THE VOODOO ROOMS

Blues rock from the UK.

HOT WIFE (LOW TIDE)

Indie rock. AS IT IS

LA BELLE ANGELE

Pop-punk from England.

Sun 13 Sep

DOBERMANN (STAR CIRCUS) BANNERMANS

Rock.

Mon 14 Sep

GLASSHOUSE RED SPIDER MITE (WEATHERMAN)

ARMAND VAN HELDEN

SNEAKY PETE'S

EDM from Boston.

Tue 15 Sep

EDINBURGH CORN EXCHANGE

TALLBOY (SYNESTRIUM + RETROSKEPTIC + SILBURN + TOOTH GORE)

Rock.

BANNERMANS

DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE

Indie rock from the US. JACOB COLLIER

Jazz and blues from the UK.

Rock from the US.

Sun 6 Sep

THE VOODOO ROOMS

Dream pop from Scotland.

Punk from Canada.

HIDDEN DUNDEE

GODSTICKS

Prog rock from Wales.

Indie rock.

UNDER (ACIDSAURUS BONG + FALL OF THE GATEKEEPERS) MARTHA HILL

Indie rock.

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!

MORTAL REMAINS + SKRAP (KILLSCYTHE + HERETIK) HIDDEN DUNDEE

LESBIAN BED DEATH

Metal.

Rock from Stoke-on-Trent.

Mon 21 Sep

BANNERMANS

SKINNY IMPS (HOTEL MOTEL + DIET OF WORMS) SNEAKY PETE'S

Punk.

GILBERT O’SULLIVAN

THE HUG AND PINT

Hard rock from LA.

ELEPHANT KIND

Mon 7 Sep

Alt pop from Indonesia.

BANNERMANS

Thu 17 Sep

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

THE UKULELE ORCHESTRA OF GREAT BRITAIN

Pop from the UK.

THE VOODOO ROOMS

THE VOODOO ROOMS

SHE HER HERS

Indie rock from Tokyo.

LA BELLE ANGELE

BIG FEAR

SATAN'S BABY (NO QUARTER + START MAKING SENSE)

LAUREN AUDER

Experimental from London.

BANNERMANS

BANNERMANS

Rock from the US.

SWG3

CROBOT

FRANCES MISTRY

ROBERTSON + THE MORNING EARLY + BROKEN BY ROCK

Hard rock from the US.

Indie pop.

SNEAKY PETE'S

THE QUEEN'S HALL

Rock from the UK. KING KING

LA BELLE ANGELE

Blues rock from Glasgow.

Indie pop.

Hip-hop from Liverpool.

SNEAKY PETE'S

Tue 8 Sep

ALICE FAYE

BANNERMANS

Folk pop from Scotland.

ALTERED IMAGES

Psyche-folk.

FLAMIN' GROOVIES

Pop from the UK.

USHER HALL

Rock from San Francisco.

THE GARAGE

SPELL SONGS

THE MASH HOUSE

MANTEL

Folk supergroup.

Fri 18 Sep

KING TUT'S

Indie funk rock from Glasgow.

MEGAN MORONEY O2 ACADEMY

Country from the US.

STEPHANIE LAMPREA (FEARGUS HETHERINGTON) THE OLD HAIRDRESSERS

Classical.

LIMBO DAYS

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Funk from Newcastle. HAWXX

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Alt metal from the UK.

Wed 9 Sep

JOHN BRAMWELL

DELIRIUM (HONEY + ALDOUS) SNEAKY PETE'S

BONES ATE ARFA (FOG BANDITS + ALCATRAZ)

Alt rock

Rock.

Rock from the UK.

AWRB

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Techno.

MAHMOUD'S 10 YEARS IN SCOTLAND - ALARMPHONE CALAIS FUNDRAISER (RUBIE, 100% POSITIVE FEEDBACK, MELLOWDRAMATICS, MANDABUS, NICK, JUNGLEHUSSI) STEREO

House and disco.

Thu 10 Sep

ACROSSTHEBOARD PRESENTS: FASTER HORSES

MUSIC HALL DUNDEE

JAMES WALSH + BEN OTTEWELL STONED STATUES

House and garage.

THE ART SCHOOL

JOY HOTEL OFFICIAL AFTERS

Rock.

Fri 11 Sep

FEMMEDM CORE

THE BERKELEY SUITE

Garage and electro.

ACCELERATE FRESHERS: DANSE ATMOS // JENN GUNN

HIDDEN DUNDEE

LA CHEETAH CLUB

Punk.

NOCTIDIEM

House and electro.

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

House.

Dubstep.

KAVITA SETH + KANISHK SETH

SUNBEAM (DAZED AND CONFUSED + DECADE + THE KARAVATS)

THE OPPRESSED (PANIC ATTAK + THROWN AWAY + DAPITZ)

Indie rock from Whitby.

Oi! from Wales.

Sat 19 Sep

THE LIQUID ROOM

BANNERMANS

Thu 3 Sep SUB CLUB

VICE VERSA PRESENTS: TECHNO VS GROOVE THE BERKELEY SUITE

Dub techno.

THE CASTROS

LEWIS CARROLL // BOUNCE IN MOTION

Indie.

House.

LA CHEETAH CLUB

STEREO

Sat 12 Sep

THE BERKELEY SUITE PRESENTS: PEACH ALL NIGHT LONG THE BERKELEY SUITE

House.

A NIGHT OF ITALO DISCO LA CHEETAH CLUB

Italo disco.

Rock from the UK.

— 90 —

PILOT

THE BERKELEY SUITE

Trance.

Tue 15 Sep

GCFS X GEMS: FRESHERS WEEK

THE BERKELEY SUITE

Club.

PEDESTRIANISM 15: FRESHERS AND FESTIVALS LA CHEETAH CLUB

Garage and jungle.

Wed 16 Sep

FUNK THE SYSTEM: CIEL THE BERKELEY SUITE

Funk.

ONE UNDER: ALL NIGHT LONG LA CHEETAH CLUB

Garage. SHED

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

House.

SUB CLUB

Prog house.

Sun 27 Sep

House and disco.

EXIT

CALUM MACPHAIL

Folk from Scotland.

BREATHE: MINNA

Thu 17 Sep

Punk rock from Dundee.

Rock from the UK.

Experimental.

Funk and disco.

House.

Hard rock from Canada.

THE VOODOO ROOMS

THE RUM SHACK

Sat 26 Sep

Jazz from Scotland.

BILLY BIBBY

WORLD OF TWIST WITH DAR DISKU: BIRTHDAY SPECIAL

Folk from Northern Ireland and Detroit.

LA BELLE ANGELE

THE QUEEN'S HALL

Musical theatre.

House.

THROUGH THE ROOF // DENNIS QUIN & RANGER TRUCCO

BANNERMANS

USHER HALL

LA CHEETAH CLUB

SOUND: 20 YEARS OF DUBSTEP (JAMES HOMETOWN B2B DJ GREENMAN, ONYX STONE, T-O-D, BOBO, POWERED BY HOMETOWN SOUND)

THE QUEEN'S HALL

THE DEADLY ROMANTICS (HOLYRUDE VAULT)

MICHAEL BALL

BURST

THE BERKELEY SUITE

Glasgow Clubs

WISHBONE ASH THE OLLLAM

THE MASH HOUSE

Disco.

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!

Rock.

Post-punk from Scotland.

JOHN COLTRANE CENTENARY CELEBRATION FEAT. EMMA RAWICZ

Folk from India.

THE BERKELEY SUITE

FLY - TWOFACED

MUSIC HALL DUNDEE

THE LIQUID ROOM

SNEAKY PETE'S

THE CAVES

DISCO MUNDIAL W FOURTH PRECINCT, CRAIG MOOG + MACDIARMADA

DAVID DELINQUENT AND THE IOUS

MUSIC HALL DUNDEE

Rock from London.

THE VOODOO ROOMS

Singer-songwriter from the UK.

Disco.

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

LOCUST

BANNERMANS

THE BERKELEY SUITE

THE JARAD ROWAN BAND

THE NORTHERN BOYS

911

MELTING POT DAYTIME DISCO

Techno and acid.

STEREO

Sun 27 Sep

Sat 5 Sep

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!

Indie.

LA BELLE ANGELE

STEREO

SUB CLUB

WISHBONE ASH

GUNK

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

House and garage.

DANSE MACABRE'S SIXTEENTH BIRTHDAY

MIDNIGHT RIOT! WITH HAYLEY ZALASSI

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Soul and funk.

THE VOODOO ROOMS

Club.

SUB CLUB

Sat 26 Sep

AGL & THE ALCHEMISTS

AK'CHAMEL

Fri 25 Sep

EXIT

Italo and goth.

Techno and house.

THE BONESHAKERS (PAUL ROSE)

THE QUEEN'S HALL

Trip hop from the UK.

Singer-songwriter from Liverpool.

Folk from Scotland.

Fri 25 Sep

Psych rock from Glasgow.

THE GLAD CAFE

LIVEHOUSE

EXIT CLUB

Mon 14 Sep

TAIKANO PRESENTS OBSCURE SHAPE WITH JOHNNY5 // AJAY C

SAM HIBBARD (JEN KIRSTEN)

Art pop.

JAMIE WEBSTER

Prog house.

THE ART SCHOOL

RUSH X RECORDS?

Alt rock.

Fri 11 Sep

SWG3

Club.

Club.

BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!

FLY | DANCE FOREVER PRES. BENWAL + KYLE STARKEY

STEREO

EXIT 3→RD BIRTHDAY - SATURDAY

Rock from the UK. Indie folk.

EXIT

LATE LANDING (SOLAR SONS)

BANNERMANS

Trad from Ireland.

WARRIOR SOUL (WARNER E. HODGES INTERNATIONAL ALL STARS)

Sat 5 Sep

JEFFREY LEWIS & THE VOLTAGE

LOVE/HATE (NEW GENERATION SUPERSTARS)

THE HUG AND PINT

JOHN BRAMWELL

Rock from the UK.

Pop.

SARAH / SHAUN (HANS KLAMMER + SO SO:IF SO)

Tue 1 Sep

DEAD BOB

THE VOODOO ROOMS

EXIT 3→RD BIRTHDAY - FRIDAY

Hip-hop and club.

LA BELLE ANGELE

MUSIC HALL DUNDEE

JAMES WALSH [STARSAILOR] + BEN OTTEWELL [GOMEZ]

Garage.

Pop rock from Bristol.

Synth pop.

Psych.

Wed 23 Sep

LA CHEETAH CLUB

GETDOWN SERVICES

SNEAKY PETE'S

Fri 4 Sep

LA BELLE ANGELE

FLOWERS.LDN & WSHWSH PRESENT: INTIBINT ALBUM RELEASE PARTY (INTIBINT, SALAM KITTY, FATMA, UNKNOWN NEICE, MAVEEN, NIHAL EL AASAR)

SMART//CASUAL - GAU7T, ORLA HALLIGAN, ET AL

SCANDAL.GLA X STEREO: CORTISA STAR (RAHUL. MP3, SOMA, FUNLISTENABLE)

GIFT (OSLO TWINS) SNEAKY PETE'S

Drum 'n' bass.

Techno and electronica.

Rap and hip-hop.

THE HIDDEN CAMERAS

Rock from Scotland.

Rock from the UK.

THE BERKELEY SUITE

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Thu 31 Sep

LIVEHOUSE

USHER HALL

BASS INJECTION

DRIP

LUSTRA: ASAP ROCKY AFTERS

PRIMAL SCREAM

ROGER TAYLOR

Fri 4 Sep

Neo-prog from the UK.

Psychobilly from the UK.

BANNERMANS

THE MASH HOUSE

LA BELLE ANGELE

MARILLION

THE METEORS (BUZZBOMB)

Tue 22 Sep

Rock 'n' roll.

Wed 16 Sep

Tue 29 Sep

Dundee Music

PAT HAMILTON

BOYCE AVENUE

BANNERMANS

THE QUEEN'S HALL

Thu 24 Sep

Indie rock from Edinburgh.

TV SMITH & THE BORED TEENAGERS (BILLY LIAR + SHOCK & AWE)

USHER HALL

GENITORTURERS (MAKES MY BLOOD DANCE)

Rock from Canada. SNEAKY PETE'S

Sun 27 Sep

Folk from Northern Ireland.

Sun 20 Sep

DESTROYER [SOLO]

CLOVER

Alt rock

THE PLEASANCE

Alt metal from England.

SILVERTONE (THE FALLS + THE SPITZ) SNEAKY PETE'S

SNEAKY PETE'S

JOSHUA BURNSIDE

THE MASH HOUSE

SNEAKY PETE'S

THE VOODOO ROOMS

VERSE METRICS

Punk.

IMMERSION (ABERDREAMIN)

Rock from Scotland. THE HUG AND PINT

Indie rock from Ireland.

EDINBURGH CORN EXCHANGE

Metal from Finland.

Sat 12 Sep

KULK (IAN)

DEAD CALM

Metal from the US.

Hardcore.

SIIGA (PASTEL MOON + RHIANNON MUNRO)

THE MASH HOUSE

BANNERMANS

CAMMY BARNES BARROWLANDS

FRANCIS OF DELIRIUM

LA BELLE ANGELE

Folk from Ireland. Alt pop.

Indie rock.

MARTHA (THE JUST JOANS)

Indie rock.

Thu 10 Sep

SWG3

SNEAKY PETE'S

Indie rock.

Tue 1 Sep

JP O'GRADY

THE DEMOGRAPHIC

SNEAKY PETE'S

THE OLLLAM QMU

September 2026 —Listings

SONICA: RAIVO SLOAN + MOIRA SALT, TOMMY PERMAN & ANDREW WASYLYK + JETT ILAGAN

RARE CLUB // DJ SEINFELD

House.

STEREO

Wed 23 Sep THE ART SCHOOL

House.

HAMBO

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

House.

Thu 24 Sep

PATRICK MASON SUB CLUB

House.

~ BIG MIZ ~ ROLLIN' THE BERKELEY SUITE

House and club.

DEEP PURPLE: JADE SEATLE LA CHEETAH CLUB

Tech house.

GREAT GROOVES BETTER PEOPLE NICE 'N' SLEAZY

House and garage.

SKIVE GLASGOW (LOOSE E,AVERAGE JOE, HARRY TUFFLEY,LOCAL BOY) STEREO

Breakbeat.

Fri 25 Sep CÉLESTE

THE BERKELEY SUITE

Techno.

23 DEGREES: G33, SKALAH + LOOSE-E

25 YEARS OF NOVEK

Garage.

DUB CLUB: CHARLIE P + HOMETOWN SOUND SYSTEM

FLY - HOUSE HEADS PRES. LUUK VAN DIJK, ROBBIE DOHERTY + PRUNK

Bass and dancehall.

House.

THE BERKELEY SUITE

THE ART SCHOOL

909 SOCIETY

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

House.

SCATTER 003 STEREO

Techno.

Fri 18 Sep

CÉLESTE'S END OF SUMMER ROOFTOP PARTY SUB CLUB

House.

POLKA DOT DISCO CLUB THE BERKELEY SUITE

Disco.

SWG3

Trance.

SWG3

A.D.S.R W/ SOMNIAC ONE, KALOPSIA, DJ SMOKER, 3SBAT EXIT

Hardcore.

PRTY: SLVL

THE ART SCHOOL

Techno.

DUURTY TECHNO NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Techno.

SERVE! & STEREO: ANGEL D'LITE STEREO

Club and house.

Sat 26 Sep

NIGHTVISION PRESENTS: FUNK TRIBU

LA CHEETAH PRESENTS: ANTAL

Funk.

TEKHOLE PRESENTS: SIN

GLASGOW REGGAE CLUB PRESENTS ROCKING VIBRATIONS

Electro.

Reggae.

SWG3

EXIT

LA CHEETAH CLUB

House and disco.

THE RUM SHACK

BASS INVADERS HILL52 X SUBCITY

Y2K NIGHT

Bass.

BARE MAXIMUM X STEREO: DJ FLIGHT & MORE

THE ART SCHOOL

LUSTRA

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Rap and hip-hop.

BOUNCE 101 X STEREO: AMBRR & ONOOLA SAMA STEREO

Jersey club.

Sat 19 Sep

SOFIA KOURTESIS (DJ SET): FREE TIME SUB CLUB

Techno and house.

SHOOT YOUR SHOT GIULIA GUTTERER THE BERKELEY SUITE

Disco.

SOFT SERVE: OR:LA LA CHEETAH CLUB

Breakbeat.

2PASSO // HIDDE VAN WEE SWG3

House.

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Club.

STEREO

Jungle.

Sun 27 Sep ELEVATE: PACO OSUNA SWG3

House.

ZHOOSH!

NICE 'N' SLEAZY

Pop and disco.

Stanislavski Can't Save Me From the Apocalypse The Superpower Agency Award Ethan and Gigi The Radgie Award

The Festival Fringe Society The Accessibility Award selected by Gig Buddies Palestinian Circus The Soul of the Fringe Award

Dracula: Lucy's Dream The No Strings Attached Award Tia Rey The Debut Award

Xhloe and Natasha The Fringe Legends Award

Trans Masc Studies [the gender euphoria award]

The Arrow at Rest at Every Instant of its Flight The Visionary Award

Elf Lyons The Heart Award

The Legacy Museum The Impact Award

Border Bodies The Outwith Award

Tess O’Shea The Buzz Award

Dane Buckley The Breakthrough Award

Sam Eley is Basil Crumbwick The Night Owl Award

Eva Peroni The Emerging Talent Award

Pink Rabbit The Solo Play Award

Comedy Club 4 Kids Best Kids Show

Craig Manson The Local Hero Award

Jack Anderson, Charlotte Mclean and Malin Lewis The Collaboration Award The Good Immigrant The Truth to Power Award

THE SKINNY

Sat 19 Sep

Regular Edinburgh club nights Cabaret Voltaire TUESDAYS

MIDNIGHT BASS, 23:00

Big basslines and small prices form the ethos behind this weekly Tuesday night, with drum’n’bass, jungle, bassline, grime and garage aplenty. FRIDAYS

FLY CLUB, 23:00

Edinburgh and Glasgowstraddling night, with a powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent. SATURDAYS

PLEASURE, 23:00

Regular Saturday night at Cab Vol, with residents and occasional special guests.

Sneaky Pete’s MONDAYS

RIDE N BOUNCE, 23:00

R‘n’B, pop, rap and hip-hop bangers every Monday. TUESDAYS

RARE, 23:00

House, UKG and occasional techno from special guest DJs and rising locals. FRIDAYS (FIRST OF THE MONTH) HOT MESS, 23:00

A night for queer people and their friends.

SATURDAYS (LAST OF THE MONTH) SOUL JAM, 23:00

Monthly no-holds-barred, down-and-dirty disco. SUNDAYS

POSTAL, 23:00

Bass, breaks, grime and more from a selection of Cowgate all stars.

The Bongo Club

FRIDAYS (SECOND OF THE MONTH) ELECTRIKAL, 23.00

Sound system and crew,

part of a music and art collective specialising in BASS music.

FRIDAYS (MONTHLY, WEEK CHANGES) SOUND SYSTEM LEGACIES,23:00

Exploring the legacy of dub, reggae and roots music and sound system culture in the contemporary club landscape. FRIDAYS (EVERY OTHER MONTH)

DISCO MAKOSSA, 23:00

Disco Makossa takes the dancefloor on a funk-filled trip through the sounds of African disco, boogie and house – strictly for the dancers. FRIDAYS (EVERY OTHER MONTH)

OVERGROUND, 23:00

A safe space to appreciate all things rave, jungle, breakbeat and techno. SATURDAYS (FIRST OR SECOND OF THE MONTH) MESSENGER, 23:00

Roots reggae rocking since 1987 – foundation tune, fresh dubs, vibes alive, rockers, steppers, rub-a-dub. SATURDAYS (MONTHLY)

CHROMATIC, 23:00

Championing all things UKG, grime, dubstep, bass and more, with disco, funk and soul from Mumbo Jumbo upstairs. SATURDAYS (EVERY OTHER MONTH) PULSE, 23:00

Techno night started in 2009 hosting regular special guests from the international scene. SATURDAYS (MONTHLY)

HOBBES MUSIC X CLUB NACHT, 23:00

A collaboration between

LIKE THIS #028

PEOPLE'S LEISURE CLUB

House.

longrunning club night and Edinburgh record label ft. house, techno, electro, UKG and bass.

Subway Cowgate

The Liquid Room

Blow the cobwebs off the week with a weekly Monday night party with some of Scotland’s biggest and best drag queens.

SATURDAYS (FIRST OF THE MONTH) REWIND, 22:30

Monthly party night celebrating the best in soul, disco, rock and pop with music from the 70s, 80s, 90s and current bangers.

The Hive MONDAYS

POPTASTIC, 22:00

POPULAR MUSIC: ALEXIS TAYLOR

MONDAYS

SNEAKY PETE'S

TRACKS, 21:00

TUESDAYS

TAMAGOTCHI, 22:00

Throwback Tuesdays with non-stop 80s, 90s, 00s tunes. WEDNESDAYS

Banger after banger all night long. THURSDAYS

TRASH TUESDAY, 22:00

FIT FRIDAYS, 22:00

Pop, cheese and chart. Chart-topping tunes perfect for an irresistible sing and dance-along.

90s and 00s cheesy pop and modern chart anthems.

SUNDAYS

SUNDAY SERVICE, 22:00

THURSDAYS

Atone for the week before and the week ahead with non-stop dancing.

Student anthems and bangerz.

The Mash House

FLIP FRIDAY, 22:00

MASH MONDAYS, 23:00

Yer all-new Friday at Hive. Cheap entry, inevitably danceable, and noveltystuffed. Perrrfect.

Edinburgh’s new Monday night.

SUNDAYS

SECRET SUNDAY, 22:00

Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/handle on a Sunday.

THE FRIDAY SHOW, 20:30

The big weekend show with four comedians. SATURDAYS

THE SATURDAY SHOW, 20:30

The big weekend show with four comedians.

RED RAW, 20:30

The Glee Club FRIDAYS

FRIDAY NIGHT COMEDY, 19:00

The perfect way to end the working week, with four superb stand-up comedians. SATURDAYS

SATURDAY NIGHT COMEDY, 19:00

An evening of awardwinning comedy, with four superb stand-up comedians that will keep you laughing until Monday.

THE MASH HOUSE

Club.

House.

Regular Edinburgh comedy nights

SNEAKY PETE'S

The Stand Edinburgh

House.

Thu 24 Sep Bass.

SLICE SATURDAY, 22:00

Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure.

Legendary new material night with up to eight acts.

MASH MONDAYS

The drinks are easy and the pop is heavy.

WEDNESDAYS

BUBBLEGUM, 22:00

Mon 21 Sep

YBZ

MONDAYS

Host Billy Kirkwood & guests act entirely on your suggestions. TUESDAYS

SATURDAYS

FRIDAYS

MONDAY NIGHT IMPROV, 20:30

House.

MÉLANGE: ALL NIGHT LONG

Alternative Tuesday anthems cherry picked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

SATURDAYS

SNEAKY PETE'S

THE BONGO CLUB

FLIRTY, 22:00

FRIDAYS

HI-SOCIETY THURSDAY, 22:00

FREE TIME: SOFIA KOURTESIS (DJ SET)

FIRST MONDAY OF THE MONTH

FRIDAYS

VAN ROUGE X THE BONGO CLUB: PART 4

TUESDAYS

COOKIE WEDNESDAY, 22:00

Sun 20 Sep

The Stand Glasgow

Wed 23 Sep

TWISTA, 22:00

Pop, requests and throwbacks to get your week off to an energetic start.

Indie dance.

Regular Glasgow comedy nights

SNEAKY PETE'S

Fri 25 Sep

TELFORT'S GOOD PLACE WITH NOODLE SNEAKY PETE'S

House.

SUBLIMINAL BLEEPS THE MASH HOUSE

Techno.

SAMEDIA SHEBEEN, 23:00

Joyous global club sounds: think Afrobeat, Latin and Arabic dancehall on repeat. SATURDAYS (LAST OF THE MONTH) PULSE, 23:00

The best techno DJs sit alongside The Mash House resident Darrell Pulse.

RED RAW, 20:30

Legendary new material night with up to eight acts. TUESDAYS (FIRST OF THE MONTH) STU & GARRY’S IMPROV SHOW, 20:30

The Stand’s very own Stu & Garry’s make comedy cold from suggestions. THURSDAYS

THE THURSDAY SHOW, 20:00

Techno.

Simply the best comics on the contemporary Scottish circuit.

LA BELLE ANGELE

THE FRIDAY SHOW, 21:00

UNTITLED

SATURDAYS (FIRST OF THE MONTH)

MONDAYS

THE MASH HOUSE

OFF CAMPUS VS HEATED RIVALRY

Pop.

Sat 26 Sep

DEEP EXCURSIONS (DAYTIME): MARCELLUS PITTMAN PEOPLE'S LEISURE CLUB

Techno and house.

JUST LIKE HEAVEN LA BELLE ANGELE

Rock.

SLOPEN 004

THE MASH HOUSE

Techno.

Sun 27 Sep

FRIDAYS

Monkey Barrel Comedy Club SECOND AND THIRD TUESDAY OF EVERY MONTH

THE EDINBURGH REVUE, 19:00

TOP BANANA, 19:00

Mixed bill comedy lineup.

WEDNESDAYS

Catch the stars of tomorrow today in Monkey Barrel’s new act night every Wednesday. THURSDAYS

BEST OF THE FRINGE, 19:00 + 21:00

THE SATURDAY SHOW (THE EARLY SHOW), 17:00

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY’S BIG FRIDAY SHOW, 19:00/21:00

SATURDAYS

THE SATURDAY SHOW, 20:30

FRIDAYS

Monkey Barrel’s flagship night of premier stand-up comedy. SATURDAYS

The big weekend show with four comedians.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY’S BIG SATURDAY SHOW, 17:00/19:00/21:00

BAGA CHIPZ: BAGZ TO RICHES

BOUNCE HOUSE: SOLVES EVERYTHING

Join the international drag superstar and icon as she embarks on her autumn nationwide tour.

Solving all of the petty squabbles they come across with improv comedy.

FREE TIME: JAMES LAVELLE

Monkey Barrel’s flagship night of premier stand-up comedy.

The Gilded Saloon

Four acts every Thursday take to the stage to try out new material.

A slightly earlier performance of the big weekend show with four comedians.

MONKEY BARREL COMEDY’S BIG SUNDAY SHOW, 19:00/21:00

The University of Edinburgh’s Comedy Society, who put on sketch and stand-up comedy shows every two weeks.

The big weekend show with four comedians. SATURDAYS

SUNDAYS

FRIDAYS (EXCEPT LAST) THE COMEDY SHOW, 20:00

LAST FRIDAY OF THE MONTH

STORY PLATFORM, 19:30 + 21:00

Comedy sketch show with local comedians. SECOND THURSDAY OF THE MONTH ROBIN GRAINGER'S SPECIALIST SUBJECT, 20:00

Mixed-bill of stand-up comedy and live podcast. LAST THURSDAY OF THE MONTH GARETH MUTCH, 20:00

Mixed bill comedy lineup.

Monkey Barrel’s flagship night of premier stand-up comedy.

SNEAKY PETE'S

Eclectic.

Regular Glasgow club nights The Rum Shack

SATURDAYS (LAST OF EVERY OTHER MONTH)

September 2026 —Listings

VOCAL OR VERSION, 21:00

Vintage Jamaican music on original vinyl by resident DJs and guests.

Sub Club

FRIDAYS (SECOND OF THE MONTH) RETURN TO MONO

SLAM’s monthly Subbie residency sees them joined by some of the biggest names in international techno.

REDEMPTION // FRESHERS TAKEOVER

Glasgow Comedy

House and techno.

The Glee Club

Tue 15 Sep SATURDAYS

SUBCULTURE, 23:00

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic, oft’ joined by a carousel of super fresh guests.

THE BONGO CLUB

Wed 16 Sep

NIGHT TUBE RETURNS // CRAZY P CABARET VOLTAIRE

House.

BORLEY ROOM: AURAMATIC SNEAKY PETE'S

FANGS: CARMEN BAÍA, LARA SINCLAIR, DAIZ.Y

Thu 17 Sep

VAN ROUGE FRESHERS SPECIAL

PEOPLE'S LEISURE CLUB

CABARET VOLTAIRE

Drum 'n' bass.

LUSTRA: EDINBURGH

ORIGINS X TOTEM: OLDBOY

SNEAKY PETE'S

Club.

THE BONGO CLUB

LA BELLE ANGELE

MEMBRANE: DAKSH ALL NIGHT LONG

House.

Wed 2 Sep

THE BONGO CLUB

House and electro.

SNEAKY PETE'S

REFRACTA & FRIENDS

THE MASH HOUSE

Drum 'n' bass.

KEEP IT STEEL : LORD OF YOUR RING

House.

Club.

SNEAKY PETE'S

Sun 13 Sep

ARCADIA IV: FRESHERS SPECIAL

MIDNIGHT BASS

Bass.

Thu 3 Sep

MILE HIGH CLUB: YUNG KIDD ALL NIGHT LONG SNEAKY PETE'S

Fri 11 Sep

DISORDER PRESENTS: ANIKONIK THE BONGO CLUB

Techno.

Drum 'n' bass.

Fri 4 Sep

PEOPLE'S LEISURE CLUB

CLOUD.SCO LAUNCH PARTY THE MASH HOUSE

Club.

Sat 5 Sep

SOUL MOTIVE PRESENT - TERRY FRANCIS

PEOPLE'S LEISURE CLUB

Tech house.

HAND-MADE WITH LOVE: ALDONNA SNEAKY PETE'S

House.

LA BEAT SOUL CLUB

FLY FESTIVAL EDINBUGH - SUN AFTERHOURS

Eclectic.

THE MASH HOUSE

Club.

CABARET VOLTAIRE

House.

Fri 18 Sep

SNEAKY PETE'S

Mon 14 Sep

PEOPLE'S LEISURE CLUB

Bass.

Sat 12 Sep

FLY FESTIVAL EDINBUGH - SAT AFTERHOURS

CABARET VOLTAIRE

House.

TEMPERATE SOUNDS PRESENTS: FRESHER'S WEEK SPECIAL CABARET VOLTAIRE

House and jungle. KONVERSION SNEAKY PETE'S

FLY FESTIVAL EDINBUGH - SAT AFTERHOURS

Queer club.

House.

Club.

THE LIQUID ROOM

MASH MONDAYS: FRESHER'S TAKEOVER

MICROSTERIA

Acid and electro.

HEADSET WITH SKILLIS + MORE SNEAKY PETE'S

Garage.

FERAL

After two sell out tours, Josh Pugh is back performing stand up comedy to the best of his ability for an hour and a bit. SUN 6 SEP

Kanan Gill is one of India’s most prominent standup comedians, widely regarded for his incisive observational humor and meticulous approach to writing.

JAMIE HUTCHINSON: CAN MY MATE COME? HE'S SOUND WED 16 SEP

Disco and funk.

PALIDRONE: NEFFA-T

THU 3 SEP

KANAN GILL: NOT THIS AGAIN

Hard house.

10 Sep Edinburgh Thu CANDYFLIP X CONTRABASS: Clubs CIRCADIAN

JOSH PUGH: HA HA YEAH SOUND

Stand-up comedian and podcast cult hero Jamie Hutchinson returns with a brand-new hour of unfiltered comedy, mad stories, and chaotic charm. HARSH GUJRAL: HARSH - O - ULLAS TUE 22 SEP

Harsh Gujral is a renowned Indian stand-up comedian and content creator for his authentic style and dynamic performances.

THE MASH HOUSE

Club.

WED 23 SEP

The King's Theatre

VITTORIO ANGELONE: YOU CAN'T SAY NOTHING ANY MORE THU 24 SEP

One of the fastest rising names in UK comedy returns with a new show.

SAM CAMPBELL: KID GIBLET SAT 26 SEP

Aussie comedian Sam Campbell brings his signature brand of absurdist observational comedy to a new show.

The Old Hairdresser's HAROLD NIGHT TUE 1 SEP

Two Glasgow Improv Theatre house teams performing The Harold. Feat. Saved By The Beep and With Bits. HAMISH NIGHT TUE 1 SEP

Two Glasgow Improv Theatre house teams performing The Harold. Featuring tubducky and Smoking Cat.

TUE 8 SEP

CHOPPED UNCS & FRIENDS TUE 8 SEP

Chopped Uncs perform with some of the least chopped improvisers around ACTOR VS IMPROVISER TUE 15 SEP

Theatre Royal

GARY DELANEY: GARY ON LAUGHING SUN 20 SEP

Internet sensation brings a new stand-up hour of joke-dense material.

NISH KUMAR: ANGRY HUMOUR FROM A REALLY NICE GUY SUN 27 SEP

As the world continues to burn, both politically and actually, Nish Kumar returns to be angry about it.

An improv show where the actor knows their lines but the improviser... doesn't.

Edinburgh Comedy

TUE 22 SEP

Monkey Barrel Comedy Club

PERFECT IMPROV GUEST MONOLOGIST

Our flagship improv show with a special guest monologist and an all-star improv cast. COUCH SURFS THE WEB TUE 29 SEP

A night of improv comedy where Couch looks up bad reviews of places the audience have been to. GIT IMPROV CAGE MATCH TUE 29 SEP

Two improv teams battle to be crowned champions of the Glasgow Improv Theatre this month. You decide who wins!

JOSH PUGH: HA HA YEAH SOUND SUN 6 SEP

After two sell out tours, Josh Pugh is back performing stand up comedy to the best of his ability for an hour and a bit. AURIE STYLA: MAVERICK SAT 26 SEP

Hilariously exploring Aurie's bad work-life balance, family influence, relationships, health and more.

The Edinburgh Playhouse

KEVIN BRIDGES: HERE IF YOU NEED ME TUE 22 SEP-SAT 26 SEP

Scotland's beloved comedy powerhouse returns with a brand new show.

THE MASH HOUSE

— 92 —

THE SKINNY

SAM CAMPBELL: KID GIBLET SUN 27 SEP

Aussie comedian Sam Campbell brings his signature brand of absurdist observational comedy to a new show.

The Queen's Hall

MIKE WOZNIAK: THE BENCH WED 23 SEP

As seen on Taskmaster, Man Down and Junior Taskmaster.

NISH KUMAR: ANGRY HUMOUR FROM A REALLY NICE GUY SAT 26 SEP

The UK’s leading political comic.

Glasgow Theatre Citizen's Theatre THE SINGER

TUE 15 SEP-SAT 19 SEP

Gig-theatre with music by KT Tunstall about Joe, a deaf artist who “sings” with his hands, and Andy, a washed-up musician hungry for a comeback.

Oran Mor

A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: READY TAE DRAP MON 31 AUG-SAT 5 SEP

A new dark comedy about three women stuck in a high-rise lift. A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: TRANSPARENT

MON 7 SEP-SAT 12 SEP

A touching comedy about love and connection set on one night out in Glasgow. A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: FEEL_GOOD

MON 14 SEP-SAT 19 SEP

A black comedy about a lonely man who buys a sex robot. A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT: THE WHALER'S WIFE

MON 21 SEP-SAT 26 SEP

A bold new play blending sea shanties, bawdy humour and Orcadian folklore to tell a powerful story of female resilience.

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland TRAVESTIES

WED 2 SEP-SAT 5 SEP

POMONA

WED 2 SEP-SAT 5 SEP

A woman searching for her missing sister finds answers in an abandoned concrete island in the middle of the city. BLITHE SPIRIT

THU 3 SEP-SAT 5 SEP

Noël Coward's classic comedy is part supernatural farce, part outrageous domestic drama.

The King's Theatre HIGH SOCIETY

TUE 1 SEP-SAT 5 SEP

Following a sell-out season at the West End, the top of the social strata makes its way up to Scotland in this classic musical. BURLESQUE THE MUSICAL

TUE 8 SEP-SAT 19 SEP

Produced by Christina Aguilera, this musical adaptation of the iconic film goes behind the sequins and feathers of a glamorous New York club.

Studio Theatre

WED 2 SEP-THU 3 SEP

SAT 12 SEP

BALLET NIGHTS

A star-studded programme of classical and contemporary ballet, featuring dancers from Scottish Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet and more. SCOTTISH BALLET: EMERGENCE

THU 10 SEP-SAT 12 SEP

Scottish Ballet take on Crystal Pite's mesmerising ballet, in which dancers take on the guise of swarming creatures. PARANORMAL ACTIVITY

TUE 22 SEP-SAT 26 SEP

Prepare to wet your pants as the incredibly scary film becomes an incredibly scary play.

Tramway TIGHTROPE WED 2 SEP

An ageing circus company put on one final show. Part of Gathered Together 2026. FOUR GO WILD IN WELLIES THU 3 SEP

A whimsical adventure in play and curiosity. Part of Gathered Together 2026.

PROCESS IN MOTION THU 3 SEP

An exciting showcase of new performance works-inprogress. Part of Gathered Together 2026. GATHERED TOGETHER EVENING PERFORMANCE THU 3 SEP-FRI 4 SEP

Two nights of work by some of the world’s leading inclusive dance organisations. Part of Gathered Together 2026.

Tron Theatre ANTIGONE

FRI 18 SEP-SAT 10 OCT

A messy, modern retelling of Sophocles' tragedy taking place in the aftermath of a civil war.

Edinburgh Theatre Festival Theatre

THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS TUE 8 SEP-SAT 12 SEP

The cunningly named cannibal takes to the stage in this adaptation of the electrifying psychological thriller. SIX THE MUSICAL

TUE 15 SEP-SAT 26 SEP

The smash-hit subversive, all-singing reimagining of the wives of Henry VIII returns.

King's Theatre LULLABY

THU 24 SEP-FRI 25 SEP

Choreographer Jasmin Vardimon revisits her seminal 2003 show in a bold new production.

Royal Lyceum Theatre THE TAILOR OF INVERNESS

MON 7 SEP-TUE 8 SEP

Since its premiere at the Fringe in 2008, Matthew Zajac’s stunning show about war, displacement and survival traces his own father's journey through the 20th century. PRIVATE PEACEFUL

THU 17 SEP-SAT 19 SEP

From the novel by Michael Morpurgo, the author of War Horse, comes another moving story about the human cost of war.

WOLF PACK

Wolf Pack, Barrowland Ballet’s pioneering intergenerational dance company, celebrate ten years with a special anniversary triple bill featuring Ha Ha Ha, Like Blood and See Me. REVEL

SAT 26 SEP

Two dancers reflect on life in their 60s, with all its losses, gains and adjustments in this ambitious new piece fusing dance, physical theatre, and music.

The Edinburgh Playhouse HIGH SOCIETY

TUE 8 SEP-SAT 12 SEP

Following a sell-out season at the West End, the top of the social strata makes its way up to Scotland in this classic musical. ANNIE

TUE 15 SEP-SUN 20 SEP

The classic rags-toriches musical featuring precocious orphans and benevolent billionaires.

Traverse Theatre

PAGE2STAGE WED 16 SEP

An exciting new writing night, as extracts from four brand new plays are rehearsed in front of a live audience.

Dundee Theatre Dundee Rep THE SINGER

WED 23 SEP-SAT 26 SEP

Gig-theatre with music by KT Tunstall about Joe, a deaf artist who “sings” with his hands, and Andy, a washed-up musician hungry for a comeback. RAY

THU 10 SEP-SAT 26 SEP

Choreographer Meytal Blanaru goes on a quest for a deep, collective, shared physical experience, blurring boundaries between audience and performer. A HISTORY OF PAPER

WED 16 SEP-SAT 19 SEP

The little bits of paper making up a life are the crux of this heartwarming play starring Alan Cumming and Shirley Henderson.

Glasgow Art artpistol

SHANSHAN JIANG: THRESHOLD INDEX: GLASGOW URBAN WATER INTERFACES

SAT 12 SEP-SAT 10 OCT

Drawing on sensory experiences, such as listening to, touching, or observing water – to break down the boundaries between human and environment.

Common Guild LAWRENCE ABU HAMDAN: ZIFZAFA

THU 20 AUG-SAT 17 OCT

Presented in association with Edinburgh Art Festival, this audiovisual installation demonstrates the effects of noise pollution and green colonialism activities in the Israeli occupied Syrian Golan Heights.

David Dale Gallery

The Hunterian

L. CAMUS GOVOROFF + EDEN DODD: TO BECOME 2: ARMING ONESELF SAT 19 SEP-MON 5 OCT

Web weaving explored as metaphors for the queer community, strategies for protection and forms of self-defence in a global context perceived as increasingly hostile.

Glasgow School of Art

THE MARRIED LIFE OF ATOMS: THE HARRY KERR BURSARY SAT 19 SEP-SAT 31 OCT

A retrospective of the photographs of Harry Kerr alongside works by the Harry Kerr Bursary 2024 awardee.

IAN WHITTLESEA: SOME BOOKS & SOME OTHER BOOKS TUE 4 AUG-MON 5 OCT

A display of new publications exploring the artist's ongoing preoccupation with the ability of text to transform the physical and psychic state of the viewer.

Glasgow Women's Library

WE MAKE MUSEUMS: SUSTAINING AND CHANGING WORLDS FRI 5 JUN-SAT 26 SEP

Showcasing three new commissions by Sohaila Baluch, Ruth Ewan, and Alixandra Prybyla highlghting their creative approaches to activism, feminist protest and antiracism.

GoMA

JASMINE TOGOBRISBY: LIQUID LAND FRI 5 JUN-SUN 6 SEP

Spanning sculpture, photography, installation, and video, this exhibition looks at colonial legacies of kidnap and exploitation within Pacific Islander communties.

iota

TOBY MESSENGER: PLEIN SOUL

SAT 5 SEP-SAT 19 SEP

Reimagining the tradition of plein air painting by shifting observation from the external landscape to the interior landscape of the studio.

RGI Kelly Gallery NEW VOICES EXHIBITION

SAT 19 SEP-SAT 17 OCT

An exhibition of newly selected RGI members.

Street Level Photoworks

NAEEM MOHAIEMEN: THROUGH A MIRROR, DARKLY FRI 5 JUN-SUN 11 OCT

Film work pinpointing the turbulent moments of transition and rebellion in the 1970s, through the the legacy of students killed during Vietnam War protests.

The Modern Institute

VICTORIA MORTON: HITTING THE LIFE FRI 5 JUN-SAT 5 SEP

Work spanning the artist's interest in pushing the bounds of both painting and music.

Tramway

HAROLD OFFEH: THE MOTHERSHIP COLLECTIVE 2:0

SAT 5 SEP-SUN 7 FEB

An immersive exhibition exploring ideas of futurity and imagination through a sci-fi playscape. UK AIDS MEMORIAL QUILT

SAT 12 SEP-SUN 4 OCT

The AIDS Memorial Quilt comes on display in Scotland for the first time.

Edinburgh Art &Gallery

POINTS OF ENCOUNTER

SAT 5 SEP-WED 30 SEP

The gallery's third open call exhibition featuring 42 selected artists working across a broad range of disciplines.

City Art Centre JEAN F. WATSON: AN ARTISTIC LEGACY

SAT 16 MAY-SUN 4 OCT

Works acquired through the Jean F. Watson Bequest Fund, including pieces by Arthur Melville, Joan Eardley and Eduardo Paolozzi. SANDRA GEORGE: START FROM THE LEVEL

SAT 27 JUN-SUN 27 SEP

Themes of community and activism are explored in this archival exhibition from seminal Craigmillar photographer. RACHEL MCBRINN + JONATHAN WEBB: STUDY FOR NORTH BRIDGE

SAT 18 JUL-SUN 13 SEP

Moving image piece responding to the evolving architecture of the city.

GIFTED: NEW ACQUISITIONS AT THE CITY ART CENTRE SAT 12 SEP-SUN 6 JUN

A selection of recent gifts and bequests to the gallery collection.

Collective Gallery

JERWOOD/ PHOTOWORKS AWARDS 5

SAT 12 SEP-SUN 20 DEC

Photograhy works, including still and moving image, by Roman Manfredi and Sayuri Ichida presented as awardees of the fifth Jerwood/Photoworks Awards.

The Briggait

HAMISH ANGUS MCANDREW: ART_ ITECTURE

KATIE PATERSON: AFTERLIFE

FRI 19 JUN-SUN 6 SEP

200 amulets inspired by cultures around the world consider ideas of protection, ecological fragility and care.

RICHARD MAGUIRE: THERE IS NO BEGINNING, AS THERE IS NO END FRI 19 JUN-SUN 6 SEP

MON 24 AUG-FRI 25 SEP

Exploring the intersection between art and architecture through detailed pen drawings, physical models and animations that delve into both the real and imagined.

The first edition of Time + Space, Collective's new early-career artist programme, this exhibition explores British and South Asian histories and representations of race and sexuality.

— 93 —

Dovecot Studios

COSTUME COUTURE: SIXTY YEARS OF COSPROP

SAT 18 JUL-SAT 16 JAN

Six decades of awardwinning film and television costume studio Cosprop is celebrated through iconic pieces.

Edinburgh Printmakers

JAMIE FITZPATRICK: MEMORIALS TO SAUSAGE POLITICS

SAT 18 JUL-SUN 25 OCT

Sourced from elements of statues and monuments found in Edinburgh, this exhibition explores sculpture as a tool of civic statecraft. ETCHINGROOM1: UNEXPECTED TRIP

SAT 18 JUL-SUN 25 OCT

New works by Ukrainian printmaking duo exploring stories of our shared daily lives.

Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop

ESTHER CASTLE: ABUNDANT PARTS

FRI 3 JUL-SUN 27 SEP

An otherworldly garden drawing symbolic connections between the non-normative body and weeds.

Fruitmarket

EVA ROTHSCHILD: THE VOID PRESSES THE WALL FRI 10 JUL-SUN 11 OCT

Sculptures born out of the urban landscape examine sculpture's capacity to create bodily encounters in space.

Ingleby Gallery SONGS OF INNOCENCE & EXPERIENCE PART II

SAT 20 JUN-SAT 5 SEP

Celebrating the centenary of Caribbean artist Frank Walter.

Jupiter Artland TAI SHANI: THE SPELL OR THE DREAM SAT 11 OCT-TUE 1 SEP

A new sculpture by Turner-prize winning artist, in which a luminous giant figures lies and breathes gently in Jupiter Artland's orchard space. SGÀIRE WOOD: IN PRIDE, IN PIETY, IN VIGILANCE

FRI 14 AUG-SUN 18 OCT

Blending heraldic and pop culture iconography, this exhibition by the Irish performance artist examines traditions of heritage and violence.

National Gallery of Modern Art

GWEN JOHN: STRANGE BEAUTIES SAT 1 AUG-MON 4 JAN

The first major retrospective of seminal 20th-century Welsh artist.

National Portrait Gallery

WENDY MCMURDO: THE DIGITAL MIRROR

SAT 30 MAY-SUN 25 OCT

Reflections on childhood, the digital world and imagination by pioneering photographer.

Open Eye Gallery

ALICE MCMUROUGH + NEIL MACDONALD: STORIES AND OLD STONES

FRI 28 AUG-SAT 19 SEP

The third joint exhibition for husband and wife duo, presenting new and recent works. SAUL ROBERTSON: BLUE REMEMBERED

FRI 28 AUG-SAT 19 SEP

This body of work continues the artist's interest in idyllic imagery, combining fragments of observation, memory and invention.

Out of the Blue Drill Hall DOWN TO EARTH

TUE 1 SEP-SAT 5 SEP

New exhibition celebrating 30 years of the Columcille Centre, showing a selection of work produced by people who attend workshops in art, crafts, print, painting, and pottery. DOMINIK ZARZYCKI: IN A ZIGZAG WAY

RYO YAMADA

SAT 25 JUL-SUN 13 SEP

Site-specific installation calling attention to rising sea levels by imagining Summerhall in millenias' time.

RUDY KANHYE: BLACK CORAL SAT 25 JUL-SUN 13 SEP

Interdisciplinary pieces interrogating the diasporic gaze and binaries of colonial discourse. GARVALD EDINBURGH: FORMING SPACE

SAT 19 SEP-FRI 9 OCT

An exhibition of work by learning-disabled and autistic artists exploring the theme of the vessel, and the relationship between form and meaning.

Talbot Rice Gallery ANNE HARDY

SAT 27 JUN-SUN 27 SEP

An examination of the technology of exhibition making, transforming the gallery into an immersive space.

TUE 8 SEP-THU 17 SEP

Centring on weaving in the widest sense — the loom as structure, sculpture, and its relation to the body; fabric as the outcome of algorithmic thinking; the histories of specific devices and their shaping influence on cloth. CONNECT - AN ECAS EXHIBITION

TUE 22 SEP-THU 24 SEP

A celebration of Ecas and all that they do, featuring artworks, creative writing, music and performance from their weekly activity groups and befriending service.

RSA: Royal Scottish Academy

JOYCE W. CAIRNS: A PERSONAL ODYSSEY SAT 1 AUG-WED 2 SEP

A retrospective of paintings and other work by the first woman to be elected President of the RSA. CATHERINE OPIE: TO BE SEEN SAT 8 AUG-SUN 1 NOV

Photographic works by major American artist exploring themes of queerness, subversion and community. THIS 26: CONTEMPORARY SCOTTISH ART AND THE ACADEMY

SAT 12 SEP-SUN 11 OCT

Looking at the recent history of the RSA’s artist opportunity programme, presenting works by 26 artists for each year of the century thus far.

Stills

JILLIAN EDELSTEIN: AMONG PEOPLE

FRI 31 JUL-SAT 24 OCT

The first major survey exhibition of internationally renowned photographer who has spent the past forty years documenting people, communities and defining moments of contemporary history.

Summerhall JENNIFER BINNIE: SPIRITS OF THE FOREST

SAT 25 JUL-SUN 13 SEP

Large-scale paintings of human and nonhuman creatures explore our entanglement with nature. SALLY PRICE: TWIG POOLS

SAT 25 JUL-SUN 13 SEP

Site-specific sculptural rope works that explore notions of tension, catharsis, weight, repetition and flow.

Dundee Art DCA: Dundee Contemporary Arts FRANCE-LISE MCGURN

SAT 22 AUG-SUN 15 NOV

Gestural and fluid works exploring facets of human experience including connection, separation, pleasure and loss.

Generator Projects

EVERYTHING FOR EVERYBODY

THU 10 SEP-FRI 25 SEP

Everything for Everybody unites works by contemporary artists exploring the politics and practices of archiving alongside two archives from the UK and Ukraine.

V&A Dundee

CATWALK: THE ART OF THE FASHION SHOW FRI 3 APR-SUN 17 JAN

Charting the evolution of catwalk art and culture, from 19th-century salons to contemporary immersive runways. DESIGN AND DISABILITY

FRI 5 JUN-THU 31 DEC

Showcasing the radical contributions of Disabled, Deaf, and neurodivergent people to contemporary design and culture.

September 2026 —Listings

A riotious new staging of the comedy by Tom Stoppard which turns turns history into a dazzling parody.

Theatre Royal

THE SKINNY

The Skinny On... Eva Peroni The Skinny On...

One of Scotland’s youngest and most exciting standups, Bestie winner and Edinburgh University survivor Eva Peroni takes on the Q&A

What’s your favourite place to visit? I’m not really a places guy, I don’t really go somewhere unless there is something specific to do there. There is a new Dominican restaurant in Edinburgh called The KeLoKe Corner, it’s a good vibe and the food and drinks are good even though the menu is AI. I was accidentally their first customer ever, which I found embarrassingly keen but I have been back a good few times now. Favourite food? I’m really really into sweetcorn, it’s so class and you can do so much with it! I recently had sweetcorn and black pepper ice cream and it rocked so hard. That massive green guy is actually so cool. Favourite colour? My absolute favourite colour is the colour of the orange wool in Minecraft but not how that colour actually looks, how it looks when I try to recreate it in my head, it is probably not a real colour but it’s mine and that’s what matters.

then she opened the till and I cannot express how

“[Japanese macaques] utterly full of change the till was. I will, one day, get my revenge on her and she will rue the day she ever don’t even know what wronged me. capitalism is. All they When did you last cry? Well it’s Fringe at the moment so I am crying most know is sauna and days, I definitely cried two mornings ago properly but I have been welling up daily. that’s so beautiful” Who was your hero growing up? I was weirdly OBSESSED with Gordon Ramsay, I had multiple pillows and t-shirts with his face on them. I later found out he used to play for Rangers and I think that explains why he is so angry. Whose work inspires you now? Rosco McClelland is a genius, he just drips funny, everything he says is so original, I would love to spend a day in his mind.

September 2026 – Feature

Photo: Nicholas Elliot

What three people would you invite to your dinner party and what are you cooking? I think I would have Nicola Sturgeon, Susan Calman and Susie McCabe round so we can all celebrate being short women with short hair. I won’t be cooking, we will be having Huel. Nicola is paying, where is the money coming from? Who knows? What’s your all time favourite album? Declan McKenna: What Do You Think About the Car? What’s the worst film you’ve ever seen? Probably a very controversial opinion but my girlfriend recently made me watch High School Musical for the first time and I found it literally impossible to follow, it was like open mic comedy level for me.

Eva Peroni

Who’s the worst? There was once a woman who worked in a shop in Italy who told me she had no change when I tried to pay for a couple of postcards with a ten-euro note, — 94 —

What are you most scared of? Horses. They are such scary little fuckers. I don’t like that they have eyes on either side of their head so you never know when they are looking at you. I also once was being chased by a horse and ran into the ocean fully clothed to escape it, only for it to follow me in. The horse was a stronger swimmer than I am and I do not like that one bit. When did you last vomit? Well it’s Fringe at the moment so I am vomiting most days. I definitely vomited while crying two mornings ago during a flyering shift for Chris Forbes, probably not related. I was getting over a flu so it could be that or just nerves. Tell us a secret? I used to be the admin of a Gossip Girl style Facebook page with over 15k followers. Which celebrity could you take in a fight? I secretly really fancy my fighting abilities even though the only fight I’ve ever been in I got absolutely battered while hysterically laughing. I don’t know his name but I reckon I could take that ginger English astronaut for sure. If you could be reincarnated as an animal, which animal would it be? I think that the Japanese macaques live the dream life, all they do is chill in natural hot springs, eat, sleep and bang. They don’t even know what capitalism is. All they know is sauna and that’s so beautiful. What’s your favourite plant? Audience plant. What’s your advice to new students in 2026? Don’t stress out if you don’t enjoy uni when you first start, or if you don’t find it super easy to make friends. People are weird when you all first start uni, everyone is trying to sell themselves, and often a kinda new version of themself. Just settle into yourself and things will fall into place eventually, try making friends in the city that are not at your uni or not at uni – these often feel like more balanced friendships. Info on Peroni's upcoming standup shows at www.instagram.com/itsevaperoni'

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KAI REESU / ALICE FAYE + MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED TICKETS ON SALE NOW VIA THE DUNDEE CITY BOX OFFICE FIND OUT MORE AT: SAYAWARD.COM