Torrents of thunder, lightning and hail can only mean one thing: it’s July, and time for another edition of Oot! Just think, it’ll soon be Christmas.
There are literally several events coming up over the next month for you to get your teeth into, including the release of the final instalment of Harry Potter (at least until Hollywood wise-up to the potential goldmine of ‘The Continued Adventures of Lucius Malfoy’ franchise) and about 6,000 events from the Scottish Storytelling Centre, more of which on their website.
Closer to the Spurtle’s cosy burrow, summer seems to be a time for people to get artistic. Union Gallery (45 Broughton Street) have a new exhibition from 7 July to the end of the month. Called 'Head to Head', it features work by four artists (David Hosie, Joyce Gunn Cairns, MBE, Sophie McKay Knight and Norrie Harman) celebrating the human head. There are some lovely adjectives in the show’s bumf, including ‘brooding’, ‘fanciful’ and ‘disquieting’, and if that doesn’t inspire you to go along you probably don’t have a soul.
Or maybe you just hate paintings of heads, in which case you could always toddle over to Axolotl (35 Dundas Street) for 'Carrion', an exhibition made up of bird paintings by Sarah Green, and Michael Jackson illustrations by Gregor Laird. It’s eclectic, if nothing else. The show opens on Friday 8 July and runs until the end of the month.
A little way up the road, a mysterious bunch of ladies known as the Saltire Sirens are organising a Midsummer Masquerade at the Voodoo Rooms to raise money for the Saltire Foundation. There will be all the glamour you might expect from such an event, including face painting, glitter tattoos and a raffle, all for £10 a ticket. We assume that’s exactly how such occasions transpire in Venice.
Down on the Shore, local writer Emily Dodd prepares to launch her first book on 11 July. It’s a collection of poems, illustrations and photos called Banana Me Beautiful, and is starting life as an e-book which we hear is very popular nowadays. Perhaps one for the bananaphobics amongst you to avoid, though.
The 15th is St Swithin’s Day, sacred to the MET office and weather forecasters across the land on account of its prophetic nature. Do join in, we all know the poem:
St Swithin’s day, if thou dost rain,
For forty days it will remain.
St Swithin’s day, if thou be fair,
For forty days 'twill rain nae mair.
There’s no scientific basis for this, but it is a fact.
Another occasionally useful thing science has given us is the iPhone – but what if you don’t know how to use it? Worry no longer, for help is at hand. On 26 July you can attend a free iPhone training session courtesy of Veecom Systems at 4 Broughton Market. Your children / colleagues / grandmother will never laugh at your useless phone skills again!
And then you’ll be able to use you iPhone to look up what’s on at The Playhouse (18–22 Greenside Place), whereupon you’ll discover the joys of The Glee Club Experience on 29–30 July. Fans of the American televisual sensation will be able to enjoy over 20 hits including 'Rocky Horror Medley', 'Halo' / 'Walking On Sunshine' and of course 'Don't Stop Believin''.
Everyone else, flee now while the going is good.