Talk of the Town: Council TV viewers have the exit factor

IT might lack the glitz and glamour of X Factor, but it has got one thing in common. No, it’s not broadcasts of full council meetings ending with a member being booted out, but a shared suffering of plummeting ratings.

After 611 tuned in for the first live transmission from the City Chambers in September, only 351 switched on last week.

The stars of Council TV definitely think it’s worth watching, with city chiefs looking into a permanent archiving of the recordings. That prompted Conservative councillor Dominic Heslop to urge Labour’s Andrew Burns to ensure proceedings were preserved for posterity so his children and grandchildren would have a record of his time as “Edinburgh’s glorious leader”.

Library launch far from 
an open-and-shut case

RESIDENTS who turned up early to get their first taste of the brand new neighbourhood centre and library in the heart of Craigmillar were left battling just to get inside.

About 20 people who had gathered outside the main doors for the official opening of the £7.7 million East Neighbourhood Centre and Craigmillar Library at 10am yesterday found themselves struggling past misfiring automatic doors.

Staff had to wrestle them by hand, before one visitor was left bowled over by the new facility when the doors suddenly jerked open, knocking him to the floor.

Penny fails to drop for star

EVERYBODY loves a bargain, and the chance to meet Emmerdale star Tom Lister – aka Carl King – is always hard to resist.

He was on hand recently to declare a new branch of Poundland open at Corstophine Retail Park. And while we don’t doubt the counting skills of store manager Jim Johnstone, it’s shame that the occasion’s official photographer couldn’t get there before he said: “I’m thrilled that the people of Edinburgh turned out in their hundreds.”

Rebus nose his stuff

HE’S the detective who’s sniffed out hundreds of criminals in his time – and now his doggy namesake has a tale to tell of his own.

Police dog Rebus has been hailed after following his nose to a drug smuggler who appeared in court last week after an incident at this summer’s T in the Park.

An Ian Rankin spin-off in the pipeline, perhaps?