Cake Goes Underground!

Calm before the cakey storm!

We've hosted some unusual events at The Real Mary King's Close before, but we never thought that cake would be a major feature for us to theme an event! 

How wrong were we?!  Last night we welcomed the fantastic Edinburgh Cake Ladies to The Close for a belated Halloween celebration of cake and savoury goodness! The talent was endless with some of the most elaborate cakes we have ever seen.

Entertainment was provided by Elliot Bibby, a local young magician who entertained with his feats of magic and mystery.

Between munching cakes and drinking tea, the Cake Ladies (and the younger guests) explored The Close, hearing tales of young Annie and Andrew Chesney's famous thunderbox.

Local charity, and nominated charity of the Edinburgh Cake Ladies, Its Good to Give raised £250 from the nights precedings which made us all feel that we were worthy of enjoying the delicious baking!

As one of our tour guides said after the event: "When I heard the Cake Ladies were visiting, I expected a group of ladies from the WI, complete with their old-school doilies.  This was so much more - AMAZING!!"  Hear, hear and thank you to them all for visiting....and being such wonderful bakers!

Thank you also to Alex Hewitt for taking the photos in the challenging, sorry, atmospheric light of the Close!!!

 

Our tour guides view the delicious spread!

One particularly talented Cake Lady Lou recreated the Close in cakey form! It tasted as good as it looked!

Only Street in Edinburgh Where It Never Rains....

Our first blog post comes on the same day that our brand new 'street promotion team' hit the Royal Mile and the streets of Edinburgh.  It also comes on one of the wettest days of the month so far...and that's really saying something given the dreadful weather July has given our fair city! The new team truly have their work cut out today!

The Real Mary King's Close - dry and rain-free!

Although we may moan and groan about the wet and wild weather that has been battering the city in recent weeks, the residents of Mary King's Close back in the days when it was open to the skies may have been grateful for the extra water in order to flush the 'nastiness' from the twice daily 'gardez-l'eau' sessions on the Close into the dank and reeking Nor' Loch in what is now Princes Street Gardens. 

However, for our visitors today, keeping dry is a real challenge!  A visit to the Close is providing an entertaining one hour respite from the elements and our doors remain open until 9pm this evening!

Walter King models the RMKC Poncho outside St Giles Cathedral

You can even sport one of our attractive ponchos to keep dry, adorned with the Plague Doctor (as modelled here by Walter King, one of our resident Foul Clengers! 

If you are passing by the attraction today, keep an eye out for Roberta, Mass and Douglas who will be out on the streets every day ready to welcome visitors to the city! Flash them your best smile as they work out in the challenging conditions on the Royal Mile!

Today the Real Mary King's Close is very much the only street in Edinburgh where it never rains!  

(If you're planning on sheltering from the rain in the next few days with us, you're best to prebook to avoid disappointment)