AROUND TOWN

Part of this year’s Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival, Edinburgh Festival Carnival (Sunday 14 July) will be taking over Princes Street Gardens with its kaleidoscopic display of costumes, dance and music. This free day out for all ages features a whopping 750 local and international artists, ensuring there’s something for everyone.

Fans of macabre merchandise should hotfoot it down to Edinburgh’s Out of the Blue Drill Hall this weekend for The Blackheart Market (Saturday 13 July), which features horror, goth and alternative art, crafts and more.

Meanwhile petrolheads will be in their element at this year’s Scottish Festival Of Motoring (Sunday 14 July) with its mix of super cars, bike demos and stunt shows, live music and food stalls, and kids’ zone. The Royal Highland Centre, Edinburgh plays host.

MUSIC

Musical royalty will be making an appearance at Edinburgh Castle when Paul Weller (Saturday 13 July) swings by to play tracks from his 17th solo album, 66, released earlier this year, as well as more than a few old faves.

One of the biggest events of the summer, TRNSMT (Friday 12 – Sunday 14 July) takes place this weekend on Glasgow Green, with tickets still available. Liam Gallagher, Garbage, Gerry Cinnamon, Calvin Harris and The Last Dinner Party are amongst the performers.

Edinburgh’s Lost In Leith will be showcasing a diverse range of Southwest Asian, North African and Caribbean-influenced sounds for their first summer party of the year when they welcome DJs Hiba, Ria and Ann Tweak (Friday 12 July) to soundtrack your night.

STAGE

South Shields’ finest Sarah Millican (Friday 12 – Sunday 14 July) is out on the road and she’ll be stopping off at Glasgow’s SEC Armadillo for three fun-filled nights. It’s part of her Late Bloomer tour, in which she talks about how she went from shy schoolgirl to phenomenally successful stand-up.

St Andrews’ Byre Theatre will be bringing the laughs too with MZA Present: Comedy Sneak Peeks 2024 (Friday 12 & Saturday 13 July). It brings together previews of Edinburgh Fringe shows from top comedians Joe McTernan, Connor Burns and Kai Humphries, with Craig Hill joining on Friday.

Glasgow’s Oran Mor is the setting for some raucous antics this weekend in Girls Night OOT! (Sunday 14 July) which follows a group of friends on a hen night and is flanked by a fun, retro soundtrack featuring empowering pop aplenty.

SCREEN

Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum make a charming couple in space race romcom Fly Me To The Moon, an effervescent, old-school and very funny feature from Greg Berlanti (Love, Simon), with a sparkling screenplay from Rose Gilroy.

In South Korean horror Sleep, a new mother battles with her husband’s disturbing sleep disorder, which threatens their happiness and the life of her child. This chilling, darkly comedic and beautifully executed film from Jason Yu stars Train To Busan’s Jung Yu-mi and the late Lee Sun-kyun (Parasite) in his final film role.

Apple TV+’s latest show Sunny is a black comedy revolving around a grieving American woman living in Japan who is given a domestic robot after her husband and son disappear in a plane crash, before things get even weirder. Rashida Jones and Drive My Car’s Hidetoshi Nishijima star.

PODCASTS

Colleagues and pals Clara Amfo and Jordan Stephens compete to build for listeners and celebrity guests the best compilation of tracks centred around a given theme in their new podcast Make Me A Mixtape. Expect epic tunes and friendly banter.

In The Rise And Fall Of Oasis broadcasting legends Jo Whiley and Steve Lamacq dig into one of the most famous sibling rivalries of them all – that of Liam and Noel Gallagher, while celebrating the music they made together.

Reporters Dan Ashby and Lucy Taylor join forces with actor Michael Sheen in Buried: The Last Witness, an investigation into one whistleblower’s fight against the forever chemicals he believed had contaminated the local food chain.

VISUAL ART

Pride At The Burrell! (Saturday 13 July) combines talks and tours, music and dance, crafts, family activities and more, as it celebrates Pride, and uncovers the LGBTQ+ stories from this Glasgow institution’s objects.

Beyond Van Gogh (until Monday 26 August) is an immersive, illuminating and kinetic exhibition featuring more than 300 masterpieces from the Dutch master, allowing you to experience his art in an entirely different way. Catch it at Glasgow’s SEC Centre.

And finally, Colour-Less (until Saturday 28 September) demonstrates the range of techniques used to create depth and contrast in the absence of colour. On display is a striking array of black and white art, including drawings, paintings, prints, textiles and sculpture. Dundee’s Tower Foyer Gallery plays host.

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