I’d only heard stories of Edinburgh’s famed nocturnal Cowgate before I found myself shadowed by the George IV Bridge. A harmony of roaring aftermarket mufflers, faint yells, and a distinctive smog accompanied me on my walk. The day was spent sunbathing on Calton Hill, so it was with squinting eyes that I felt my way into Sneaky Pete’s dark, obscure hall — my grungy refuge for the evening. On 29 May, 2026, Sneaky Pete’s hosted three St Andrews student bands on their Edinburgh tour: Sofia...

“Wouldn't it be marvellous if some of these people from the past could come back and you could walk the streets of St Andrews with them?” On 18 April, 2026, St Andrews celebrated its centenary Kate Kennedy Procession. Townspeople, students, and University faculty alike gathered to watch as centuries of the town’s historical figures danced, fiddled, and recited poetry on the three streets. Among the parade were Wendy and Frank Quinault — the latter dressed as Bishop Lamberton — two of the Kate...

Outside St Michaels Inn in Leuchars, a Zippo lighter snaps shut, and a man puffs his pipe. Blue smoke wafts across the car park — Condor Original, “dark, aromatic.” “Go against the grain, go against the grain”; his parting words hang in the air before his next draw disperses them into the March wind. “My full name is Baron Charlie Lush, all right?” says the man, more commonly known as ‘the Baron.’ He’s sat at the corner table, leaned over a Coke and a patchwork of dusty photo albums. “They...