Edinburgh Landmark launches special tours for Pride Month
As Pride Month kicks The Real Mary King’s Close are preparing to restart their Pride History Tours
As Pride Month kicks The Real Mary King’s Close are preparing to restart their Pride History Tours starting this weekend.
The Edinburgh landmark will be sharing their research in an educational and throught provoking way to reveal the hidden stories of LGBTQIA+ community in Edinburgh from 1546 until 1912.
The tours will happen every Friday and Saturday throughout June but the tour will also continue to be provided throughout the year on a less regular basis.
You will be taken on a one hour journey underneath the City Chambers by Robert Ferguson, a 18th Century poet, and Mary Maitland, a 17th Century sapphic poet.
Throughout the tour you will meet two interactive characters, Dr James Barry and Sophia Jex-Blake, both historic queer people who worked in medicine in Edinburgh and London.
Elicia Walpole, a member of the team at the tourist attraction, said: “If you look throughout history queer voices are never really recorded or even spoken about, so you have to read between the lines when it comes to these stories. It’s important because its finally giving these people voices and getting to tell their stories.”
The tours started last year but Elicia told me they found there was still more to tell, “We’ve worked together over the last year finding new stories and new information. Last year it was only Robert Ferguson so we wanted to have a more femme presenting person taking the tours as well,” – enter Mary Maitland.
The Real Mary King’s Close has also partnered with LGBT Youth Scotland. When participating you will not only gain more knowledge of Queer people in history but also supporting the health, wellbeing and equality of LGBT+ young people.
The tours will run at 5.30pm and 7pm and tickets cost £25 (adults) or £19 (child). You can purchase them here (https://bookings.realmarykingsclose.com/book/pride-history-tours-2023/160)