Fringe impresario to open rival festive ice rink

While Ms Koren insists her new venture is not a direct challenge to Winter Wonderland, which is now under new management after she lost the contract this year, she said the new venue would benefit from a warmer indoor location and a promotional tie-in with the latest Chronicles of Narnia Christmas blockbuster movie.

Last month, it was reported that Ms Koren's Gilded Balloon firm owes the city council more than 200,000 after Winter Wonderland made a huge loss over the last two years.

The council is about to start legal proceedings against Ms Koren, who launched the ice rink in 1998 after taking inspiration from the famous attraction in New York's Central Park.

Ms Koren had already secured planning permission for a large outdoor ice rink at Ocean Terminal but she abandoned the plan in favour of the smaller indoor rink.

She said: "The outdoor rink was going to be too expensive but we're still going to create a bit of wintery magic at Ocean Terminal.

"It's a completely different animal from Winter Wonderland, which takes place outdoors in the city centre, whereas the new rink is indoors in a shopping centre, but it means we'll benefit from a bit of warmth, which will be lovely."

Ms Koren said she had yet to hear from the council about the pending court action, but a council spokeswoman confirmed that proceedings were due to begin in the coming weeks.

The council insists the contractual wrangles will not dampen its own winter programme, which will be officially launched tomorrow.

Council festivals and events champion Steve Cardownie said: "This year's Edinburgh's Christmas programme will boast an enhanced ice rink, complete with an entertainment stage to get skaters and shoppers into the festive spirit.

"The popular Christmas funfair will delight kids and adults alike, while shoppers can sample delicious produce and find beautiful artisan crafts and gifts in the Highland Village and Traditional German Christmas markets. Children can come and meet Santa Claus too - he'll be popping into East Princes Street Gardens every day to collect his letters from 4 December up until Christmas Eve."

Ocean Terminal manager Dennis Jones said he was looking forward to the opening of the centre's new Narnia rink on December 3. He said: "The rink will be made of real ice, as opposed to the plastic ice you often see in shopping centres, and will occupy about a third of the food court.

"In retail you're always in competition with someone, whether it's The Gyle or Fort Kinnaird, and we're always looking for new ways to bring in customers.

"We've always had a great success with promotional tie-ins such as Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, and the ice rink is the perfect accompaniment to the Narnia movie with its theme of ice and snow."