10 things to do in Scotland this week

THE pick of the best one-off events and festivals in Scotland this week, including the Borders Book Festival, the Dunoon Film Festival, LeithLate, the Glasgow Mela and a big gig from The Stone Roses.

Glasgow Mela Festival performers. Picture: Greg Macvean

Family: Glasgow Science Festival

Various venues, Glasgow

Until Sun 16 June; more info

The Glasgow Science Festival continues this week, and includes a tribute to Paisley-born ornithology pioneer, poet and illustrator Alexander Wilson, a talk about the Large Hadron Collider and the Higgs Boson and, intriguingly, a “Festival of Frogs”.

Music / Art: LeithLate

Various venues, Leith

Thu 13 June, 6pm – midnight; more info

Back again for its annual takeover of bars, galleries, shops and studios around Leith and North Edinburgh, LeithLate is billed as “one huge art opening” and is a good showcase of cutting edge talent. The venues open their doors in the early evening, before everyone assembles at Pilrig Church for live music from LAW, TeenCanteen and Sparrow and the Workshop, and a DJ set from The Egg.

Dance: Every Day

GoMA, Glasgow

Tue 11 to Sun 16 June, 11.30am – 4.30pm; more info

The first dance work commissioned by Glasgow’s Gallery of Modern Art, Every Day sees choreographer Siobhan Davies creating a new work in response to sculptures by six artists – Laura Aldridge, Carla Scott Fullerton, Niall Macdonald, Scott Myles, Mick Peter and Hayley Tompkins (one of the three Scots representing the country at the Venice Biennale).

Days out: Glasgow Mela

Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow

Sat 15 & Sun 16 June, 12pm – 8pm, free; more info

Scotland’s biggest multi-cultural festival is back, with a rich programme of entertainment for all the family this weekend. Among the performers will be Bhangra sensations Sona Walia and Foji Gill, and the sensational Dhol Foundation featuring Johnny Kalsi.

Theatre: Some Other Mother

Wed 12 Jun @ macrobert, Stirling

Fri 14, Sat 15 June @ Tron Theatre, Glasgow; more info

Somewhere behind the media stories about asylum seekers, there are human beings, some of whom have experienced untold suffering. Inspired by photographs taken in Glasgow by her late brother Robin, AJ Taudevin’s beautiful short play takes a poetic rather than a documentary view of the plight of Mama, whose mind is cracking under the pressure of the asylum system, and her little daughter Star, who sees life in Glasgow in brighter colours.

Books: Borders Book Festival

Harmony Garden, Melrose

Thu 13 – Sun 16 June; more info

Starting life in 2004 with an audience of just over 200, the Borders Book Festival has grown to become an important fixture on the literary circuit, attracting thousands of fans to Melrose every year and establishing the Walter Scott Prize for historical fiction. This year the event will play host to the likes of Joanna Lumley, Hilary Mantel and William McIlvanney.

Film: Dunoon Film Festival

Dunoon

Fri 14 – Sun 16 June; more info

A welcome addition to a new breed of events across Scotland focusing on what films mean for a community, the inaugural Dunoon Film Festival will combine screenings of old favourites like Local Hero and The Maggie with a Scottish shorts programme, a mini Alan Sharp retrospective and the first screening since 1990 of John Byrne’s Your Cheatin’ Heart.

Music: Capitals album launch

The Art School, Glasgow

Fri 14 June, 7.30pm, £5; more info

Edinburgh-based Highland duo Capitals could be poised to become one of the country’s next breakout acts, with their panoramic electro-pop seemingly tailor made for a wider audience. They launch their debut album, A National Service, this Friday, with support from The Mouse That Ate The Cat and Kill The Waves.

Music: The Stone Roses

Glasgow Green, Glasgow

Sat 15 June, 4pm, £55, phone for availability; more info

One of the most hotly anticipated gigs of the year, the iconic Manchester band comprising of Ian Brown, John Squire, Mani and Reni are back following last year’s reunion to play their seminal indie anthems. If you’ve seen the Made of Stone documentary, you’ll have some idea of what to expect. Support comes from Primal Scream, Jake Bugg and The View.

Art: Ilana Halperin: The Library

National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh

Until September 29; more info

In her work, Ilana Halperin has always seemed a student of time, exploring the apparent chasm between geological time and human time and trying to find a new perspective on it. Now as first recipient of an Artist’s Fellowship at National Museums Scotland, she has had the opportunity to explore the Museums’ geological collections and she has drawn on them to put together this exhibition. Judging by past experience of her work, it will be both original and thought-provoking.

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