Edinburgh Fireworks - Where to watch them
Time to crane your necks skywards and gawp at colours and loud noises – here’s The Skinny’s guide to the best places to see fireworks in Edinburgh this Bonfire Night
George Heriot's Playing Fields
For a chance to help out a charity while watching your explosions, head to Scottish Love in Action’s Fireworks Extravaganzas at George Watsons’s Rugby Ground. The show, an annual affair, has become so popular that this year they'll be hosting three different shows in order to cope with demand. Their first display, aka the 'Green Show' takes place on 4 Nov at George Heriot’s Playing Fields, Inverleith Row. There'll be pipe bands, costumes courtesy of ECA, food and drink and fire-eating fun with Delighters Fire Circus Theatre. Fire on the ground, and in the air – sounds good to us. Gates 6.30pm, show 7.00pm; £7.50, tickets available at sla-india.org.
George Watson's Rugby Ground
Conveniently, SLA's second and third shows (aka the Blue and Red shows) both take place on 6 Nov, with a gate time of 4.30pm and 6.30pm respectively. Expect much the same as the Green show – except this time with added bollywood dancing from Edinburgh Mela! £7.50, tickets available at sla-india.org.
Meadowbank Stadium
On Bonfire Night itself, the official Edinburgh fireworks will launch, as ever, from Meadowbank Stadium in a display starting at 7.30pm (gates at 6.00pm, live entertainment from 6.30pm) on Sat 5 Nov. Those who've been regular attendees to the display during its three-decade lifetime might be slightly saddened to hear this event will be Meadowbank's final firework show before they close for refurbishment. But it's not all bad news – this year's theme is sci-fi!
Free fireworks!
And if you’re not the organised type, you could do worse than going to Calton Hill, Arthur’s Seat or Bruntsfield Links on Bonfire Night and simply looking around. Hot tip: there's sort of an unwritten rule that you sit (rather than stand) atop Calton Hill to watch the fireworks, so take a rug and get snuggly. Head to one of Edinburgh’s parks or spots of higher ground and you’ll have a decent view of the various official and guerilla pyrotechnics – your only challenge will be surviving the cold and/or making it to the pub.
And for afters...
Shed your woolies, down a dram and get yourself along Fiesta Bombarda. A pretty big party institution in the North, they started in Liverpool but have since taken on Manchester and Leeds. They're launching in Scotland, and are set to transform Studio 24 into a tropical, reggae-filled carnival, complete with performers, live music, face-painting, and braiding. A change of scenery, sure, but massively fun. 9.00pm, £14-16
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