What's On
What’s On at The Brunton venues
Summer has arrived! See what The Brunton is up to this July.
At the start of the month, join us at Loretto Theatre for a highly anticipated big screen release. Based on Raynor Winn’s 2018 memoir, The Salt Path tells the true story of a couple who embark on a year-long coastal trek after suffering numerous setbacks.
The Salt Path (12A): Wednesday 2 July at 7:00pm, Loretto Theatre, Musselburgh
Splat! is a physical comedy about art and creativity from Ofthejackel. The show explores themes of collaboration, play, dedication, spontaneity, and letting go. The show features no language and is accessible for deaf audiences. Recommended for ages 3-6 years.
Splat!: Thursday 10 July at 1pm and 4pm, Corn Exchange, Haddington
Film Fridays at the Corn Exchange in Haddington continues with a fantastic line-up of Family Friendly Films and Matinees.
Enjoy a live-action remake of Disney’s animated classic Lilo and Stitch. The film tells the story of the bond formed between a lonely human girl named Lilo and a dog-like alien named Stitch. In the afternoon, The Salt Path, starring Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs will be playing.
Lilo and Stitch (U): Friday 4 July at 1:30pm, Corn Exchange, Haddington
The Salt Path (12A): Friday 4 July at 4:15pm, Corn Exchange, Haddington
The last family friendly film of July promises audiences an epic adventure, as an ancient threat endangers both Vikings and dragons alike on the isle of Berk, the friendship between Hiccup, an inventive Viking, and Toothless, A Night Fury dragon, becomes the key to both species forging a new future together. Next at the Corn Exchange, The Ballad of Wallis Island: Charles, a strange lottery winner who lives alone on a secluded island, tries to make his fantasies come true. Starring Carey Mulligan and Tom Basden.
How To Train Your Dragon (PG): Friday 18 July at 1:30pm, Corn Exchange, Haddington
The Ballad of Wallis Island (12A): Friday 18 July at 4:15pm, Corn Exchange, Haddington
What's on in our museums
New exhibition
Scottish Art (1880-1940)
A landmark exhibition celebrating one of the most dynamic and influential periods in Scottish Art. Featuring works by the Glasgow Girls and Boys, artists of the Glasgow School, and the bold, vibrant innovators known as the Scottish Colourists.
This richly curated exhibition showcases works from Ross Cooper’s Private Collection. It brings together paintings, illustrations, and decorative works that reflect a time of creative revolution in Scotland. Visitors will encounter the expressive elegance of Edward Atkinson Hornel, the symbolism of Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Embroidery of Ann MacBeth and the bold work of Samuel Peploe, F.C.B. Cadell, and J.D. Fergusson, among many others.
28 June to 27 July
Free admission
Dunbar Town House Museum and Gallery, High Street, Dunbar, EH42 1ER.
Exhibitions
The Art of Balance in Nature
Exhibition as part of the European Land Art Festival & Stone Stacking Championships 2025.
11 June to 27 July
John Muir’s Birthplace, High Street, Dunbar, EH42 1JJ.
Creative Journey - A Hundred Years of Family Creativity
An exhibition celebrating the centenary of artist, musician, and educator, James Burnet Munro (1925-1990) who lived and work in Musselburgh. Eight artists from his extended family present paintings, music, sculpture, prints, photography and film from their own diverse creative practices alongside work by James Munro. Each of the artists were trained and some have worked at Edinburgh College of Art from the 1930s to 2025.
James Burnet Munro, Nancy Munro Curran, Alex Munro, Kenny Munro, Gordon Munro, Sheena Watson, Jane Hyslop, Kerry Watson and Rosalind Thomson.
A public trail accompanies the exhibition. www.jamesbmunroartist.co.uk
15 May to 16 August
John Gray Centre (Museum) 15 Lodge Street, Haddington, EH41 3DX.
Musselburgh Twinning Association and their journey to date.
July and August open 10.30am – 4pm Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
Musselburgh Museum, 65 High St, Musselburgh, EH21 7BZ.
Events
Wee Weds
Wednesday mornings at Prestongrange Museum, 10 to 10:30am, Bookbug for 0-5s and their parents/carers, no charge. Followed by craft activity, £1 per child.
Prestongrange Museum Morrison’s Haven, Prestonpans, EH32 9RX.
Woolly Craft Club
Come along to learn about East Lothian’s industrial history, try your hand at some knitting and crochet patterns (crocheted coal and knitted bricks!), and have a blether in our café!
Join us at the Visitor Centre on the following Wednesdays:
16 July, 13 August and 10 September, all at 2-4pm.
Free entry. All materials will be supplied but you are welcome to bring your own materials and ideas!
Prestongrange Museum Morrison’s Haven, Prestonpans, EH32 9RX.
East Lothian Council Museums:
15 Lodge Street, Haddington, EH41 3DX.
Thursday and Friday 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm
Saturday 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 4pm
126 High Street, Dunbar, EH42 1JJ.
Wednesday to Saturday 10am to 5pm
Sunday 1pm to 5pm
High Street, Dunbar, EH42 1ER.
Wednesday to Sunday 1pm to 5pm
(from Wednesday 2 April to Sunday 28 September)
Morrison’s Haven, Prestonpans, EH32 9RX.
Wednesday to Sunday 11am to 4.30pm
(from Wednesday 2 April to Sunday 28 September)
School Road, North Berwick, EH39 4JU.
Wednesday to Saturday 11am to 4pm
(from Wednesday 9 April to Saturday 25 October)
65 High St, Musselburgh, EH21 7BZ.
Thursday to Saturday 10.30am to 4pm
(from Thursday 3 April to Saturday 27 September)
Coastal Connections workshops and activities in Dunbar
This year Sustaining Dunbar and North Light Arts are making Coastal Connections - the latest project to support our process of reconnecting with, respecting and restoring our environments.
David Attenborough introduces his latest film with the simple statement that ‘The Oceans are the most important place on Earth.’ The Oceans are in crisis but can and do recover when we make the right choices and take action.
We have developed a programme of walks, talks and workshops to stimulate connection with the marine environment, reflect on our relationship with nature and better understand our habits and social patterns.
We are collaborating with artists Katie Fowlie, Anna Davis, Lucy Robertson, marine biologists, a geologist and other local people with knowledge and expertise, to share their enthusiasms. It is an invitation to explore our coastline and your creativity.
All our activities are free including the art workshops, but we will ask permission of participants to use some elements of their work in our exhibition Shore Lines & Tide Marks at John Muir’s Birthplace in August & September.
Visit our websites or Facebook pages for more information about our work
Sustaining Dunbar
North Light Arts
SHORE LINES AND TIDE MARKS
Free art workshops to explore our coastline and your creativity.
Please make a booking for all of these sessions.
Contact Liz Wilcox - lizwilcox52@gmail.com or 07821 402466
find our more about us on northlightarts.org.uk and sustainingdunbar.org or on Facebook
Bookbinding and floating ink
Discover Suminagashi the Japanese art of marbling with 'floating ink.' Learn bookbinding techniques to craft a unique 'cascading' book, perfect for preserving your artistic creations and reflections and deepen your connection to the natural world.
Wednesday 9 July 10am-12 noon or 2-4pm. Suitable for age 14+
Dunbar Town House Museum and Gallery, High Street, Dunbar EH42 1ER
Booking essential
Make your own brushes and marks
An opportunity to craft unique brushes, tools, and pigments from natural raw materials and make marks inspired by the diversity of our shoreline. Celebrate the richness of our coastal landscape and its environments in this hands-on workshop.
Wednesday 16 July 10am to 12 noon or 2 to 4pm. Suitable for age 8+ at Lauderdale Park, Dunbar
Booking essential
Tidal Shift – alternative photography
Explore eco-friendly photographic techniques without a camera. Create images directly onto algae-based bioplastics and sea-worn fragments. Transform found objects and express your creativity in ways you never imagined possible.
Wednesday 23 July 10am-12 noon or 2-4pm at Lauderdale Park suitable age 8+
Thursday 17 July 2-4pm Underwater World - make stunning cyanotype images
Booking essential
Art on the beach party
Join us at Whitesands Beach for a party to make a super long shoreline drawing together, rockrubbing mark making. Experience the beach like never before - discover stunning geology, birds and plants galore.
Friday 18 July 1 to 4pm Whitesands Beach, Dunbar. All ages welcome
Booking essential
WALK, TALK, CONNECT, CREATE
Explore our shores with experts – Look and learn
Contact Liz Wilcox - lizwilcox52@gmail.com or 07821 402466
find our more about us on northlightarts.org.uk and sustainingdunbar.org or on Facebook
Geology walk at Whitesands
Explore this very special site and discover the stories in the stones that explain how our landscape was formed and the shifts from tropical sea to forest to icy desert. Find fossils of the creatures that inhabited these terrains and their influence on local industries.
Sunday 6 July. 4 to 6pm - meet in the car park at Whitesands beach.
Booking essential.
Dunbar Lifeboat Day and The Pearl of Dunbar Restoration Project
Dunbar Lifeboat Day is one of the high spots of the town’s year and a fantastic example of community spirit. Take this opportunity to meet the Harbour Master and hear about the project to restore this wooden sailing boat. We won’t make you climb the rigging but you can see how its made and try your hand at knotting and splicing. See how the fishermen make their lobster pots. Hear about life on the harbour, the changes and how we can keep it at the heart of our community and identity.
Saturday 12 July at McArthur’s Stores, Dunbar
Lobster pot demo 10am to12 noon, Harbour Master talk 11am to12 noon.
Drop-in no booking required
Life in the ocean and recycling fishermen’s ropes
Marine plastic pollution is a severe environmental problem. This response is not even a drop in the ocean but a moment to reflect on the part we can play in its restoration. Weave the patterns of marine bacteria - the basis of ocean life. Simple and satisfying you can take them home with you but we would be very pleased if you could make some for our exhibition.
Saturday 12 and Thursday 24 July, 2 to 4pm at McArthur’s Stores, Dunbar
Drop-in no booking required
Rock Pooling with the Rangers
Join our Countryside Ranger for a guddle in the puddles and discover the creatures that live there and what they do. Come prepared for fascinating insights and amazing facts about the intertidal world and don’t forget your waterproofs.
Wednesday 16 July, 12.30 to 2pm at the East Beach, Dunbar
Booking essential
This project is supported by Community Windpower and East Lothian Council Arts and Museums Services.
Genesis Scottish Open 2025 traffic and travel
The Genesis Scottish Open golf tournament returns to the Renaissance Club, near Dirleton, for the seventh consecutive year, with thousands of visitors expected to flock to East Lothian from Wednesday 9 to Sunday 13 July. 
As in previous years, the Council has been working closely with event organisers DP World Tour and Police Scotland on a Transport Management Plan to help minimise the impact on residents and businesses. We have kept community councils updated and letters have been distributed to local residents.
The Plan includes temporary changes to the parking, waiting, loading and unloading restrictions in Aberlady, Longniddry and Dirleton, with these restrictions being in place from 6am on Wednesday 9 July until 11pm on Sunday 13 July. A temporary 30mph speed limit will also be in place along a section of the A198 close to the entrance to Archerfield Estate.
Spectators will also be encouraged to use public transport as much as possible. Ticket holders will be advised to use service buses between North Berwick and Edinburgh as well as the Edinburgh to Longniddry train service. A free courtesy bus service will operate between Longniddry railway station and the event public car park. For local visitors to the event, it may be useful to note that the Prentice 122 bus service now runs between Haddington and North Berwick via Gullane, Monday to Saturday.
Those driving to the event will be directed from the A1 at Haddington before heading eastbound at the Ballencrieff Roundabout, along the A1377 via Drem. This means the majority of traffic will be ushered away from the A198 coast road which will remain open at all times, but delays and congestion may be experienced during the event, particularly in the expected peak travel periods.
The event public car park is free and is immediately to the east of Gullane, at ‘Muirfield fields’ on the north side of the A198.
Traffic restrictions include:
- There will be no parking, loading or unloading on the B1377 at Longniddry (past the train station) and part of Main Road (B1345) and Manse Road in Dirleton
- 20mph speed limits will be in place on the B1377 at Longniddry and 30mph limits on part of the A198 at Dirleton
- Parking will be suspended on the north side of the High Street (A198) in Aberlady
Full details of the restrictions are on the Tell Me Scotland website.
Full event details are on the DP World Tour website.