Theatres and Shows in Edinburgh

Edinburgh can have some great shows and exhibitions. Here are our art reviews, museum reviews, tourist attraction reviews and theatre reviews .

GoOutIn Edinburgh Recommends

Scottish National Portrait Gallery

There are two good reasons to visit the NPG: one is for the faintly kitsch café with its no–nonsense dark wood panelling and constant clink of spoon on china. The other is for its hilariously grandiose presentation of relatively minor works of art. It can't boast the sheer range an Read more about Scottish National Portrait Gallery

Bedlam Theatre

Student theatre is a mixed bag. Mostly it's a wank-a-thon for the public school kids who think they have something to prove by painting themselves red and reciting excerpts from On The Road, all to a soundtrack of Radiohead and fax machine noises. The Bedlam theatre reflects a high standard of Read more about Bedlam Theatre

Talbot Rice Gallery

Something of a yin-yang effort – stark and wanky, versus ornate and stuffy. The former is the White Gallery: populated by painfully avant-garde chinstrokers and downright confusing modern installations. Undoubtably a great space but the comments book is usually the highlight, ranging from outr Read more about Talbot Rice Gallery

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Edinburgh Playhouse Theatre

You can pee a long way from the balcony (erm, or so we were told by someone, who's err, name we've totally forgotten). Sadly, that's the sole benefit of making your hard-earned lolly stretch as far a posh night out at Edinburgh's Playhouse. While you get to see the best in popula... Read more about Edinburgh Playhouse Theatre

Stills Gallery

Despite its initial impression as yet another vacuously fashionable contemporary art gallery, Stills does cast its net wider than some of its neighbouring galleries with the exhibitions. The emphasis is usually on contemporary photography, but a recent exhibition of Weegee's 1950s New York phot... Read more about Stills Gallery

Edinburgh Castle

Hundreds of tourists every day crap themselves when the one o'clock gun is fired. And we all laugh. Home to big guns, anthologies of Scottish history and royal jewels that make Tiffany's diamonds seem like knock-off QVC specials, Edinburgh Castle is the staple diet of Edinburgh. Even when ... Read more about Edinburgh Castle

Dean Gallery

A stone's throw away from the Modern Art Gallery, the Dean Gallery is just over the road, and free as well. Home to a large amount of work by Edinburgh-born artist Eduardo Paolozzi, which for the uninitiated means loads of huge transformer-like sculptures among other things, it's also pret... Read more about Dean Gallery

Royal Lyceum Theatre

Monks are damn sexy. Or at least they were in the last play we went to see at the Royal Lyceum. And that was just one in a long line of tempting productions by this small and feisty theatre. Tucked down Lothian Road, which offers the finest lap dances a tenner can buy these days, the Royal Lyceum ha... Read more about Royal Lyceum Theatre

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Royal Observatory Edinburgh

Despite being a fairly decent attraction in Edinburgh, the Royal Observatory only opens to the public once a week. Whether it's because of Edinburgh's ever-increasing Peeping Tom and pervert population or because it's actually used for scientific purposes, we'll never know. What ... Read more about Royal Observatory Edinburgh

Edinburgh Literary Pub TOur

Led by two hammy actors playing characters called 'Clart' and 'McBrain' (no, really), the Literary Pub Tour takes you through Old and New Town and introduces you to the city's past in literature. Apparently they represent the duality of Edinburgh but that was lost on us. A v... Read more about Edinburgh Literary Pub TOur

Edinburgh Dungeon

Before you pick up the phone and start booking tickets in uncontrollable excitement, let us clarify that this has nothing to do with leather, chains, or being tied up by a dominatrix (there are other guides to help you with that). This is just one of the Dungeon franchise that abound in the UK, taki... Read more about Edinburgh Dungeon

City of the Dead Tour

Another tourist-friendly walkabout tour, designed to scare the shit out of you as you walk about streets that seemed harmless enough during the day. It's all very overblown and macabre, and admittedly somewhat scary, but you know poltergeist sightings are serious when the organisers tell you th... Read more about City of the Dead Tour

Bedlam Theatre

Student theatre is a mixed bag. Mostly it's a wank-a-thon for the public school kids who think they have something to prove by painting themselves red and reciting excerpts from On The Road, all to a soundtrack of Radiohead and fax machine noises. The Bedlam theatre reflects a high standard of ... Read more about Bedlam Theatre

We've been on Amazon checking out all their Edinburgh Guide Books. The ones below are our favourites.