3 h. ago Canvas of Sound with Tazeen Qayyum at EIF: 'There's something special about seeing an artist working live'

In her Edinburgh International Festival collaboration with musicians Basel Rajoub and Feras Charestan, conceptual artist Tazeen Qayyum hopes to ‘touch some souls’. Interview by Jim Gilchrist

Politics

4 h. ago TIFF pulls documentary on 2023 Hamas attack from festival lineup, citing footage rights issue

The Toronto International Film Festival has disinvited a documentary on the Hamas' 2023 attack into Israel over what the festival says was a footage rights issue

Culture

12 h. ago Director Paul Andrew Williams on returning to EIFF with intense new film Dragonfly: ‘Brenda Blethyn was up for anything’

Writer/director Paul Andrew Williams is back at the Edinburgh International Film Festival with a quietly gripping film starring Andrea Riseborough and Brenda Blethyn. Interview by Alistair Harkness

Politics

3 d. ago Hot air balloons fill skies over Bristol for International Balloon Fiesta

Dozens of hot air balloons have filled the skies above Bristol for the city’s annual fiesta.

Society

3 d. ago Hot air balloon crashes into primary school roof during festival

The balloon was blown off course and came into contact with the roof of a primary school.

Events

4 d. ago Can the Edinburgh International Book Festival repair itself?

After last year’s sponsorship furore nearly broke the Edinburgh International Book Festival, David Robinson looks ahead to see if new strands, new venues and appearances from internationally renowned writers can help it thrive

Society

5 d. ago US Air Force to bring Super Hercules to International Ayr Show

The United States Air Force will return to the International Ayr Show - Festival of Flight with their C130J Super Hercules,

Society

5 d. ago Moment balloon crashes into primary school roof during huge festival

The balloon was seen flying low before hitting the roof of a primary school near the scheduled landing site of a popular balloon festival

Events

5 d. ago Edinburgh International Film Festival: Jane Horrocks, Brenda Blethyn, Andrea Riseborough in full star line

The Edinburgh International Film Festival starts next week.

Culture

5 d. ago Brewery invites Brits to 'shake things up' with UK's first hot air balloon pub

A new survey has revealed that nearly a third of Brits are letting fear of judgement hold them back from pursuing their passions

Politics

5 d. ago Hot air balloon crashes into Bristol primary school roof as people nearly 'fall out'

This years' Bristol International Balloon Fiesta almost saw disaster strike as one balloon was filmed colliding with the roof of a school during the first mass ascent

Events

5 d. ago Moment hot air balloon crashed into primary school roof during international festival

Witnesses described seeing the balloon's basket tip as it tried to get back into the air above the primary school in Bristol.

Events

7 d. ago UK's first hot air balloon pub could help the 3 in 10 Brits who feel 'held back'

A new survey shows that the majority of Brits are afraid to step out of their comfort zones with many sticking to their familiar routine.

Politics

8 d. ago Edinburgh's 'Disneyland' overcrowding set to get worse as locals are hit with fresh issue

The Edinburgh International Festival has been a mainstay on the city's calendar since 1947, but not everyone is a fan of the city being overrun by tourists in the summer

Events

8 d. ago Watch: First look at trailer of Highlands porridge documentary set for Edinburgh International Film Festival

The competition has been running for three decades

Culture

3 w. ago Two children and two adults remain in hospital after school bus crash that killed a boy, 10, when 70

A 70-seater a coach carrying Minehead Middle School pupils on Thursday crashed off the road, flipped onto its roof and slid 20ft down a steep bank.

Events

3 w. ago Prix Pictet 2025 shortlist for the theme ‘storm’ – in pictures

This year’s theme for the Prix Pictet, the photography award that focuses on sustainability, is ‘storm’. The shortlisted images were announced at the international photography festival Les Rencontres d’Arles. The winner will be selected at the Victoria and Albert Museum in September.“In many ways our planet is a more dangerous place to live than ever before. The impacts of the climate catastrophe abound. Fires, floods, heat and drought are killing and injuring people and destroying both infrastructure and precious ecosystems. Already, parts of our planet are unliveable, and all the indications are that more will follow. The economic, social and political impacts of these changes are immense. There could not have been a more timely moment for the Prix Pictet to invite nominations on the theme of ‘storm’.” Sir David King, Prix Pictet jury chair Continue reading...

Sport

3 w. ago 2025 London International Chinese Music Festival to be held in August

2025 London International Chinese Music Festival to be held in August  China Daily

Culture

3 w. ago London toots its own horn hosting first International Trombone Festival in Canada

London toots its own horn hosting first International Trombone Festival in Canada  CBC

Politics

3 w. ago Eight hours, 250 singers and as many bananas as it takes: Tavener’s Veil of the Temple

Who’d be brave enough to programme John Tavener’s choral epic? We talk to the team behind the staging that’s opening this year’s Edinburgh international festival, and veterans of its 2003 premiere remember the challenges and rewardsWhat’s the longest concert you’ve ever been to? Ever found yourself sitting through more encores than you’d bargained for, worrying about your last train? Or mid-symphony becoming desperate to stand up and stretch?What about the longest single piece of music? Opera-goers may or may not sympathise with Rossini’s quip about Wagner’s “good moments but awful quarters of an hour”, but there is no denying the monumental scale of Die Meistersinger, for instance, which runs to about four and a half hours, not including intervals. And then there’s the same composer’s Ring cycle – about 15 hours in total, albeit split across four instalments; as close to a marathon as classical music usually gets. Continue reading...

Politics