Breaking news

Spurtle ‘s had many pokes at the state of Edinburgh’s bins and birds over the years – most recently on Monday (Breaking news, 2.9.13) and in August’s printed edition (Issue 221).

Work has proceeded faster than expected, and York Place will now reopen to all traffic at 10.30am on Friday, weather permitting.

The news came from Alasdair Sim, Edinburgh Trams’ Interface Manager, at last night’s meeting of the New Town & Broughton Community Council.

Edinburgh streets are getting cleaner, with a reduction in dog mess and fewer incidences of graffiti.

The weather finally feels like it's beginning to turn, so in an attempt to cling on to the last flavours of summer for just a little bit longer here's a recipe that straddles the outgoing and incoming seasons with the last of this year's homegrown blueberries.
 

Spurtle volunteers, their friends and informants were busy in and around Broughton over the weekend.

First of their photos to arrive was this detail of a ground-floor flat in Bridge Place, Stockbridge.

Issue 222 is written, printed, and about to skip gracefully across Broughton like a couple of South African bishops dressed in ballet skirts.

A signed letter from Charlotte Brontë to a Scottish pharmacist will be auctioned in Broughton Place next week, and has interesting connections to this area's past.

Broughton residents have secured tree preservation orders (TPOs) for five mature Norwegian Maples on Bellevue Road.

The trees line the boundary between a yet-to-be-built residential development  (Ref. 12/04302/FUL;  Breaking news, 11.12.12) and flats at Nos 115–17 to the south west.  

Sinuous, supple and highly sprung – this wonderful hare is a highlight in the current show at Bon Papillon (full image below).

The linocut is by Babs Pease, a graduate of Edinburgh College of Art now living in Dollar. She says her principal interest is not so much in the subject matter as in capturing the quality of light. For this she paints in 'luminous' watercolours, and uses a variety of printmaking techniques.

Listed building consent has been granted for plans to change the inside of 1 Gayfield Square and alter windows and doors on its north elevation (pictured right; Ref. 13/02338/LBC).