Monday 25 to Sunday 31 August 2008

August is Festival season in Edinburgh. Hundreds of thousands of people travel from the four corners of the Earth to perform, participate in and savour one of the many festivals exploding around the city. We’ve decided to add our Festival to the mix!

Gypsy Arts Festival Scotland will take place at the three different locations across Edinburgh to highlight three different aspects of Gypsy Traveller Culture.

Firstly there will be a celebration of Scottish Traveller culture through storytelling, music and film at the Scottish Storytelling Centre situated along The Royal Mile. Each day from Monday 25 August there will be a programme of films and special ‘one off’ events with traditional storytellers and live music.

A special celebration will be given to commemorate the life and works of Duncan Williamson, a giant in Scottish Traveller storytelling, and a founding member of the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Duncan sadly passed away last year.

Larger music events will be held at The Famous Spiegeltent, George Square Gardens, (in Edinburgh University grounds) and feature a selection of the finest European Gypsy musicians. There will be one concert each night from Wednesday 27 August until Saturday 30 August.

The third part of our celebration of Gypsy Traveller heritage will take place at The Scottish MELA. This year the MELA will be held on a site in front of the Ocean Terminal in Leith (a Traveller site up until the 1970s). The festivities will feature a collection of antique painted Victorian & Edwardian wagons encircling a host of traditional crafts and activities. These will include open fire cooked food, craft demonstrations, storytelling, wagon painting, and some music and dance. There will also be information on historical and contemporary Gypsy Traveller life.