1 Romeo and Juliet: Handlebards
The Hippodrome, Scottish Borders and Assembly at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, August 19 and 21
Literature lovers are in for a treat this week when the Handlebards bring their rather unconventional take on a Shakespearean classic to Scotland.
The female four-piece will take to their bikes for their irreverent and fast-paced performance of the Bard’s Romeo and Juliet. The quartet have toured their interpretations of Shakespeare classic around the globe since forming in 2013, carrying all of their sets, props and costumes on their beloved bikes.
The shows will go ahead come rain or shine so dress appropriately.
Ticket prices vary. Visit www.handlebards.com for more information.
2 Festival of Politics
The Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh, August 20-21
This ground-breaking festival brings together the worlds of politics, the arts and media.
Set in the inspiring surroundings of the Scottish parliament, the award-winning event features debates, exhibitions, films and entertainment in the Festival Café Bar. Highlights include Malcolm Tucker: the art of the special adviser, Chris Mullin in conversation, Yes, Minister: power without responsibility and Who Will Win America?
This year’s theme is The Architecture of Democracy.
Ticket prices vary. Visit www.festivalofpolitics.scot for more information.
3 Cuningar Challenge
Cuningar Loop Woodland Park, Rutherglen, today until August 21
Do you love a challenge? Then this may be for you.
The family-friendly challenge, which is part of the Commonwealth Games Legacy programme, gives budding adventurers 10 tasks to solve as they explore the stunning surroundings of Cuningar Loop Woodland Park.
However, you can only claim your prize if you manage to answer the final question at the Wee Cabin.
Entry is free. Visit www.scotland.forestry.gov.uk/visit/cuningar-loop.
4 Galloway Country Fair
Drumlanrig Castle and Country Estate, Dumfries, August 20-21
Set in the stunning surroundings of Drumlanrig Castle, the Galloway Country Fair promises fun for all the family.
The country extravaganza, which is celebrating its 14th year, will play host to food and drink stalls, exhibitors, rural crafts and entertainers, including Grant Bazin’s Horse Whisperer. The fair also includes country sports, fashion and some of the best produce Scotland has to offer.
Tickets prices start from £13. Visit www.gallowaycountryfair.co.uk.
5 Dinosaur Fun!
Fort Kinnard, Edinburgh, today until September 4
Would-be palaeontologists will get a glimpse of what prehistoric life was like at Fort Kinnard this weekend.
Six animatronic dinos, including a T-Rex, Allosaurus and Stegosaurus, have taken up residence at centre for the summer.
Future Doctor Alan Grants’ will also be able to test their dinosaur hunting skills at a series of dino themed sandpits and fossil digs.
Entry is free. Visit www.fortkinnard.com/news-events/dinosaurs-are-here.
6 Edinburgh Rum Olympics 2016
Various venues, Edinburgh, today until September 25
Celebrating all things rum, this event is any drinks connoisseur’s idea of heaven.
Presented by the Rum Club, the Olympics features blind tastings of 40 rums from 40 different countries across five venues in the Scottish capital. Each rum will be scored out of 10 for aroma, taste and finish, with the winner being announced at the end of September.
Flights are £10. Each flight contains four rums. Visit www.twitter.com/edinburghrum.
7 Royal Deeside Speed Festival
Kincardine Castle, Aberdeenshire, August 21
Petrolheads will gearing up for the inaugural Royal Deeside Speed Festival this weekend.
The exciting event features rare supercars, performance vehicles, motorbikes, historic racing cars, a soap box derby and Deeside’s first ever speed hillclimb. There will also be appearances from TT legend Charlie Williams and Aberdeenshire racing driver Chris Chilcott.
For those with less of a need for speed, the event also includes local food and drink, a craft festival, climbing tower and a childrens’ funfair.
Tickets cost £15 for adults, £12.50 for children up to 16 and £50 for a family ticket. Children under five go free. Visit www.rdsf.co.uk for more information.
8 Dead Centre Walking Tour
City Centre, Dundee, various dates in August and September
Explore the darker side of Dundee with this ghoulish city centre walking tour.
Starting at Howff graveyard, the one-hour tour delves into the world of the dead and the dying, telling stories about disease, death and execution, with a few tales about Viking and body-snatching thrown in for good measure.
It’s definitely not for the faint hearted.
Tickets start from £10. Visit www.darkdundee.co.uk for more information.
9 Edinburgh Vegan Festival
The Roxburghe Hotel, Edinburgh, August 20-21
Foodies will get to sample some vegan delicacies at this special food and drink festival in the Scottish capital this weekend.
The two-day event focuses on veganism and vegetarianism and features stalls, film screenings and talks from speakers including Sid Garza-Hillman, Fiona Oakes and Mike Walker.
Carnivores are also welcome.
Tickets cost £2 for adults and £1 for children. Visit www.veganfestival.co.uk.
10 Film and Comic Con
Braehead Arena, Glasgow, August 20-21
Film and comic book fans will be in their element this weekend when the Film and Comic Con visits Glasgow.
Formerly known as Collectormania, the two-day festival boasts stalls, talks, cosplay and gaming. Fans will also be able to get up close to their favourite stars during a series of photo shoots.
Stars attending this year’s event include Grado, Buffy’s James Marsters, Lord of the Ring’s Sean Astin, Doctor Who’s Colin Baker and Peter Mayhew, who plays Chewbacca in Star Wars.
Tickets start from £8 for adults and £4 for children. Visit www.filmandcomicconglasgow.com
11 Groove Loch Ness
Clune Farm, Inverness, August 20
This dance festival will transform the shores of the loch into Scotland’s biggest outdoor nightclub for one day only. The line-up of international and Scots DJs includes Leftfield, Duke Dumont, Boys Noize, Mark Knight, Optimo and Leon Vynehall.
Tickets £55 for a day ticket and £75 for a camping pass. Visit www.groovefestival.co.uk.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here