Talk of the town: We’re not going to party like it’s 2013

ARE you among the thousands preparing to party in Princes Street tonight – or does the thought of the low temperature and high excitement make you want to find somewhere else to celebrate the change of the year?

A new survey has found that 32 is the age when people are most likely to start opting out of venturing into the cold and the crowds on Hogmanay and stay 
at home to welcome in the New Year.

The poll, from brewer Carling, claims 71 per cent of men and women in their early thirties will be seeing in 2013 at home. Never mind, there will be plenty folk still keen to get out there and enjoy the street party – you will not be alone.

Pray silence

IF you are venturing out but you’d prefer a bit of peace and quiet amid the noisy celebrations tonight, St Cuthbert’s Parish Church in Lothian Road is holding a Hogmanay watchnight service, starting at 11.15pm.

But the church’s website clearly isn’t trying to oversell what might be on offer. It announces the event as: “Inside for the service, outside for the fireworks”.

In the soup

PEOPLE planning to take part in tomorrow’s Loony Dook at South Queensferry can at least look forward to a cup of hot soup after their plunge into the chilly waters of the Forth. Heinz has announced it is laying on tomato soup for those braving the cold for the famous New Year’s Day dip.

Brand manager Nicola Leenman says “Heinz is really excited to be involved with the Loony Dook New Year’s Day swim for the first time this year. We specialise in warming the nation on a cold winter’s day and we knew that the brave swimmers would appreciate a comforting treat to warm them up from the inside out.”

But is it really necessary to go to these lengths for some soup? As Heinz themselves say in their press release: “There is nothing nicer than locking the door and curling up in the warmth on a comfy sofa with a steaming bowl of soup.”

The vital spark

SPOTTED recently in a parking space in George Street: a van emblazened with the slogan “Yes 24”. Could it be a new round-the-clock campaign for a pro-independence vote in the 2014 referendum?

A Nationalist action team on permanent standby? No, it turns out Yes 24 an electrical firm – but perhaps it could add some spark to the debate.