Russell Clegg of the The Living Memory Association uncovers some of the photographs from their archive which have captured the Leith Pageant over the decades.

The Living Memory Association is fortunate to hold several photographs documenting the Leith Pageant from over the years searchable via its digital archive which is hosated on Edinburgh Collected (www.edinburghcollected.org).

“One of our earliest donated images dates from 1907, the year the inaugural pageant was held to support the funding of Leith Hospital in the days before universal healthcare had been thought of. The image shows workers, and possibly family members, of Thomas Howden’s Kirkgate business, a ‘grocers and egg merchant’, posed atop an open cart; a splendidly groomed horse completes the image.

“In the 1930s a photograph produced by local studio photographer ‘A. Paterson’ captures the crowds gathering on the corner of the Kirkgate and Great Junction Street to marvel at the parade of vehicles; even a tram is stuffed to the gunnels with onlookers!

“The Howden photograph is one of many charting decades of local business participation in the pageant serving almost inadvertently to celebrate Leith’s commercial history. In the 1960s the town’s co-operative association, The Leith Provident, would have a float of supporters wrangling buckets for charitable donations. In the 1990s it was Crawford’s Bakery workers in their green and white overalls and aprons.

“Horses featured many times across the years and in the photographs; equine powered wagons continued to appear even when motorised floats had come to dominate the parade. A dynamic image of a Thomas Usher Brewery float from 1966 shows an array of horses heaving a garlanded cart along the street.

“Children, schools and youth organisations were always keen 1938 class of peers from Leith Academy Primary School, told us that the girls were dressed as ‘Rosebuds’ whilst the boys, sporting their short ties, acted as their escorts! Costumes were handmade by busy mums, grans and aunties, and the Gala ‘Queen’ wore the prettiest dress.

“Over the years both maritime themes and events from Leith’s history have featured in the parade. 1995 was a particularly bumper year when visiting tall ships sent their mariners along to the pageant; floats recreated the mid-16th century when Leith hosted the army and court of Marie de Guise; even an RNLI lifeboat can be seen being towed down Leith Walk!”

The Living Memory Association’s ‘Wee Museum of Memory’ based at Ocean Terminal showcases artefacts and items from all aspects of lived experience and images from their photo archive can be seen throughout the space.

They currently have some objects specific to Leith’s social and industrial history on display including dock worker’s tools, a WW1 flag day pincushion and an iconic Leith/Edinburgh boundary plaque.

www.livingmemory.org.uk

Mon-Fri 10.30am/4.00pm Sat/Sun

Grid Iron brings Mayflies to life in Brown’s of Leith

Grid Iron returns to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe to present the world premiere of Mayflies, a site-specific adaptation of Andrew O’Hagan’s best-selling novel. They are very proud that ‘Mayflies’ is part of the Made in Scotland showcase, which promotes high-quality music, theatre and dance from Scotland-based artists.

They are also excited to be basing the site-specific production of ‘Mayflies’ in the beautiful and historic Brown’s of Leith building on The Shore. With an epic soundtrack forged straight from the heart of the 80s, this former metal works echoes the iconic venues of Manchester’s music scene, providing an ideal setting for this love letter to friendship.

Everyone has a Tully Dawson: the friend that defines your life. This tale of 80s youth and facing mortality in middle age is a joyous and heart-breaking elegy to the young people we still carry within us.

Once the George Brown & Sons Engineering Works, the building housed generations of engineers and metalworkers. Grid Iron’s story with them goes all the way back to 2010 when parts of the scaffolding that created the swings for ‘Decky Does a Bronco’ and then a large metal ring that formed a main part of the set for ‘Letters Home’ in 2014.

We hope to see you there – this is a theatrical moment you won’t want to miss!

Cover: Tom Manley Photography: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommanley/