What's On In Scotland: Three things to do tonight

FESTIVAL: ALLOWAY 1759

Robert Burns’ birthplace hosts a four-day celebration of the Bard, beginning today with a range of events across Alloway that mostly revolve around Burns Cottage, the house and museum where the poet was born. A fire garden, a haggis hurling championship and a special concert are among the attractions promised over the celebration, but even if you choose not to do any of that then a long weekend in this sleepy Ayrshire town, steeped with literary history, is just about one of the most authentic Burns experiences you could hope for.

Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, 40 Alloway, Alloway, South Ayrshire, free

CINEMA: SHERPA

For those in the know, Sherpas, an ethnic group in eastern Nepal, are synonymous with mountaineering in the Himalayas. Jennifer Peedom’s documentary, however, is one of the few spotlights they’ve been afforded. The film puts their story at the forefront of the region’s forbidding peaks, which so many Western adventurers have aspired to conquer over the decades. Shot in 2014 and centred around the death of 16 Sherpas during a climb in April that year, the film is a dispassionate portrayal of the social and economic hierarchies that play out between visiting climbers and Sherpas. Equal billing, however, goes to the Himalayas themselves: imposing, beautiful, and, as the film shows, dangerous.

Filmhouse, 88 Lothian Road, Edinburgh, 5.55p, £10 with concessions

MUSIC: ALY BAIN AND PHIL CUNNINGHAM

Aly Bain and Phil Cunningham have history that stretches back three decades, so there’s not a lot they don’t know about each other or their instruments. The self-deprecating duo – “The older we get the better we used to be” – are celebrating what they refer to as “Le Grand Anniversaire,” which encompasses their years together, Bain’s 70th birthday in May, and Cunningham’s 40th anniversary as a professional musician. Tonight’s Celtic Connections gig marks the start of the party, and the traditional music duo – accompanied by a suite of international guests – know only too well how to kick off one of those.

City Halls, Candleriggs, Glasgow, £17