Breaking news

This little fella is Alfie, and he’s been missing from his home on Bellevue Place since Sunday 6 September. 

A local resident saw the body of a dead cat being removed near here by a Council employee in a white van on that day, but CEC staff say they have no record of it. (It's their standard practice to log such events and check for a microchip.) 

Local animal shelters report no recent arrivals matching Alfie’s description. 

All of which leaves the owner in a horrible state of doubt and apprehension.

The Scottish National Party and Labour won in yesterday’s City of Edinburgh Council Leith Walk (Ward 12) by-election. 

As expected, it resolved into a three-horse race between Lewis Ritchie (SNP), 2,290 votes; Marion Donaldson (Lab.) 1,623 votes; and Susan Rae (Grn) 1,381 votes. 

The turnout was only 25.1 per cent. So much for re-energised Scottish politics. 

Kingsford Developments Ltd have applied to create two new gates in the existing stone boundary wall and cast-iron railings of the former school at 154 McDonald Road (Ref. 15/03993/LBC).  

One is on the McDonald Road side itself (see below-right). The other (pictured here) is adjacent to Broughton Primary School’s top playground facing Broughton Road. It would entail the removal of a tree. 

Just in case you’d forgotten, there will be a City of Edinburgh Council by-election tomorrow to elect two councillors for Ward 12 (Leith Walk).

Ten candidates are standing, of whom eight appeared at our hustings last month.

Some 25,526 eligible voters can rank as many or as few of these candidates as they wish.

David Sterratt takes an occasional look back at what was rattling Broughton's cages … 

5 years ago 

Spurtle 186 reported  that The Royal British Legion Club on Rodney Street was under threat, as the Royal British Legion Scotland Edinburgh Central Branch (which owned the property) feared the quite separate Club (whose committee ran social events and the bar there) was financially insecure and would no longer be able to pay rent.

NTBCC WILL OPPOSE OLD ROYAL HIGH SCHEME

New plans for the old Royal High School were roundly criticised at last night’s meeting of the New Town and Broughton Community Council.

There was some agreement that the latest iteration of the proposal had improved on previous ones, and that the eastern accommodation block was to be applauded for its hugging of the hill.

But the six-storey western block was condemned  by all for excessive height, bulk and the way it would obscure views of the Hamilton building and its landscape context.

EAST SCOTLAND STREET LANE – NEW BLOW

It may not quite match the thunderous rumblings and counter-rumblings of the current debtate about the old Royal High School.

The following account of multiple break-ins around Broughton on Friday night are enough to give anyone who loves their dried ling fish nightmares. 

Fortunately, your claret and spruce beer are probably safe for the time being since it dates from 30 September 1765. The report, which appeared in the Caledonian Mercury, comprises one breathless sentence of 247 words. 

As reported in Issue 244, the Union Gallery will close its doors on Monday for the last time. 

After six-and-a-half years, the search is now on for larger premises in which to grow the business. 

‘I would like to say an enormous, heart-felt thank you from myself and all the artists who have shown here over the years,’ wrote Alison Auldjo in announcing the development to clients last week. 

‘The support and encouragement you have shown have been incredible, and we would never have achieved the things we did without your support.’

Spurtle asked the Architectural Heritage Society of Scotland what they thought of the latest plans for the old Royal High School.

They describe it as 'architecture of a very high calibre', BUT ...

Below we reproduce their reply in full, which follows a meeting of the Forth & Borders Cases Panel on 2 September.