MacArts is a fantastic new multi-purpose arts and community venue in the centre of Galashiels
Hosting a varied programme of live music, theatre, film and community events throughout the year. Located in the centre of Galashiels, just a 4 minute walk from the transport interchange, this converted church is run by a small but enthusiastic team of individuals who are dedicated to bringing top quality acts to the Scottish Borders and beyond!
If you're looking for the perfect venue for your community, arts or special event then look no further! Mac Arts is also available to hire and we have discounted rates available for charity/ fundraising/ community events. Call in and see us @
Bridge Street, Galashiels TD1 1SP
or speak to Kate or Chris on:
Telephone: 01896 756852
Email: info@macarts.scot
Bridge Street, Galashiels TD1 1SP
or speak to Kate or Chris on:
Telephone: 01896 756852
Email: info@macarts.scot
CHRISTMAS FAMILY SHOW:
Mother Goose The Panto
Mac Arts is thrilled to announce our FIRST EVER Christmas Panto!
In collaboration with Edinburgh Little Theatre and Shoogly Peg Promotions (the company that brought us the sell out show ‘And They Played Shang-A-Lang’ back in February!) the popular heart-warming tale of Mother Goose explores the theme of happiness and appreciating what you have, and is guaranteed to entertain children of ALL ages!
Santa and his Elves will be here in Mac Arts’ fabulous winter wonderland! An incredible way to start the holidays with loved ones.
Mulled Wine, Hot Chocolate and Mince Pies will, of course, be available- along with festive snacks and a fully licensed bar.
‘There’s Nowhere as Magical as Mac Arts’!
Wine, Mince Pies and Hot Chocolate plus a licensed bar.
Friday 21st and Saturday 22nd December
Time: 6pm
Doors: 5:30pm
Tickets: £10 adults
£8 concessions
£25 family (2 + 2)
Under 2's - free!
Box Office: 01896 756852
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
★★★★ “Fully embracing the tried and trusted pantomime formula… when something works this well, why change it?” – It’s On It’s Gone
★★★★ “… captures the essence of the genre, a cheerful night of local lampooning that will keep the winter cold at bay.”
– Edinburgh Evening News
In collaboration with Edinburgh Little Theatre and Shoogly Peg Promotions (the company that brought us the sell out show ‘And They Played Shang-A-Lang’ back in February!) the popular heart-warming tale of Mother Goose explores the theme of happiness and appreciating what you have, and is guaranteed to entertain children of ALL ages!
Santa and his Elves will be here in Mac Arts’ fabulous winter wonderland! An incredible way to start the holidays with loved ones.
Mulled Wine, Hot Chocolate and Mince Pies will, of course, be available- along with festive snacks and a fully licensed bar.
‘There’s Nowhere as Magical as Mac Arts’!
Wine, Mince Pies and Hot Chocolate plus a licensed bar.
Friday 21st and Saturday 22nd December
Time: 6pm
Doors: 5:30pm
Tickets: £10 adults
£8 concessions
£25 family (2 + 2)
Under 2's - free!
Box Office: 01896 756852
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
★★★★ “Fully embracing the tried and trusted pantomime formula… when something works this well, why change it?” – It’s On It’s Gone
★★★★ “… captures the essence of the genre, a cheerful night of local lampooning that will keep the winter cold at bay.”
– Edinburgh Evening News
NORTHERN SOUL/ MOD CLUB NIGHT: Kitten Casino
Kitten Casino was established in 2011 by Trisha & Bruce Wagener and since then they have been having regular events throughout Scotland with visitors coming from as far afield as Spain!
Kitten Casino is an exciting and amaaaazing club night full of fantastic people who love to dance to original sixties vinyl with a mixture of classic mod, soul, northern soul, r&b, boogaloo and original ska. With the colourful set up at Kitten Casino you will not be disappointed. And don't forget the licensed bar, open throughout the evening!
Resident DJs and guest DJs from all over the UK and beyond will keep you on your feet or you can take it easy in the chill out area that overlooks the dance floor. You will get to hear various tunes to keep you entertained and meet a real friendly bunch of people in this incredible venue!
We don't have a strict dress policy but we do dress to impress. All we ask is that you come along and enjoy yourselves.
We look forward to welcoming you if this is your bag, cats!
Saturday 9th February
Time: 7pm to 12am
Tickets: £6 (only available on door so get along early)
DRESS TO IMPRESS!
Over 18s only
Kitten Casino is an exciting and amaaaazing club night full of fantastic people who love to dance to original sixties vinyl with a mixture of classic mod, soul, northern soul, r&b, boogaloo and original ska. With the colourful set up at Kitten Casino you will not be disappointed. And don't forget the licensed bar, open throughout the evening!
Resident DJs and guest DJs from all over the UK and beyond will keep you on your feet or you can take it easy in the chill out area that overlooks the dance floor. You will get to hear various tunes to keep you entertained and meet a real friendly bunch of people in this incredible venue!
We don't have a strict dress policy but we do dress to impress. All we ask is that you come along and enjoy yourselves.
We look forward to welcoming you if this is your bag, cats!
Saturday 9th February
Time: 7pm to 12am
Tickets: £6 (only available on door so get along early)
DRESS TO IMPRESS!
Over 18s only
Mind Reading:
DNA- We Know What You're Thinking Tour
Andrew and Darren, best known as mind reading double act DNA, took the nation by storm when they appeared on Britain’s Got Talent in 2017 with their incredible telepathic ability known as "The Gift". Wowing the judges, live audience and viewers at home, the duo went on to reach the live finals of the hit ITV talent show. Their first audition has reached almost 10 million YouTube views alone.
Performed completely live, they can ask volunteers to concentrate on the name of celebrities, telephone numbers, credit card numbers, a word in a book, the name of the street they grew up on, a relative’s name... literally anything. With devastating speed and accuracy, the pair are then able to reveal what that name, number or word is, every time.
Their unique mind reading performances have now been enjoyed by tens of millions of people around the world. Aptly named ’The Gift’, the duo have created a show that will blow minds and prove that the impossible really is possible - but only for them!
This brand new show features world exclusive, never before seen material that is being showcased for the very first time!
Now their incredible talents are being taken out to venues across the UK and will be coming to a venue near you in February and March 2019, so book your tickets now!
Sunday 24th February
Time: 8pm
Doors: 7:30pm
Tickets: *£12 (*booking fee applies)
01896 756 852
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
Performed completely live, they can ask volunteers to concentrate on the name of celebrities, telephone numbers, credit card numbers, a word in a book, the name of the street they grew up on, a relative’s name... literally anything. With devastating speed and accuracy, the pair are then able to reveal what that name, number or word is, every time.
Their unique mind reading performances have now been enjoyed by tens of millions of people around the world. Aptly named ’The Gift’, the duo have created a show that will blow minds and prove that the impossible really is possible - but only for them!
This brand new show features world exclusive, never before seen material that is being showcased for the very first time!
Now their incredible talents are being taken out to venues across the UK and will be coming to a venue near you in February and March 2019, so book your tickets now!
Sunday 24th February
Time: 8pm
Doors: 7:30pm
Tickets: *£12 (*booking fee applies)
01896 756 852
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
Music: Blue Rose Code
A hugely revered talent and presenting a very much in-demand live show (which his loyal fans certainly travel for), Ross Wilson (Blue Rose Code) has recently released his 4th outstanding record ‘The Water of Leith’ on Navigator Records to huge acclaim.
Ross writes from the heart; eschewing any specific genre but boasting an eclecticism that has become his hallmark - and has seen him compared to John Martyn, Van Morrison and Tom Waits.
Edinburgh born Ross Wilson spent his creative formative years in East London, then moved to South England “to be by the sea’s energy” but it is in his homecoming that he has found where his heart is. Life wasn’t always simple for Wilson. “I have swapped one type of chaos for another” says Wilson.
A nomad both geographically and musically, Ross writes from the heart eschewing any specific genre and the twelve songs on new album The Water Of Leith, addressing themes of love, loss, travel, home, accepting the past and embracing the future, are painted with colours of folk, jazz, soul and pop; an eclecticism that has become a hallmark of Blue Rose Code and has seen him compared to John Martyn, Van Morrison and Tom Waits.
Wilson cites taking his last drink as the start of living rather than the end of the drinking. Now a committed enthusiast and creative whirling dervish, Wilson has seen the past few years produce some of his most exciting work including the album ‘THE BALLADS OF PECKHAM RYE’, which was nominated for the prestigious Scottish Album Of The Year Awards in 2014 and featured a roll-call of remarkable talent, including Danny Thompson, Karine Polwart, John Wetton, Aidan O’Rourke and Kathryn Williams.
The Blue Rose Code game has certainly changed, they are heard regularly in session for the BBC (TV and Radio), STV, Alba, TG4, Virgin Radio. Live performance is where Blue Rose Code connects strongly with their audiences, they have toured the length and breadth of the UK selling out venues wherever they go and leaving a trail of fans in their wake. Featured in festivals Celtic Connections, Edinburgh Fringe, Looe, Summer Isles, Lindisfarne, Southern Fried, Underneath The Stars.
Ross Wilson has spent most of his musical life curating; he sculpts his band to every mood and temperament in order to create the perfect happening.
As the man at the helm of Blue Rose Code, he is, part director, part sculptor...total chameleon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSOHevyk0e4
The Water of Leith is an ode to forgiveness, to letting go of the past and holding on to hope – it's an astonishingly accomplished, pure and sincere record” ***** THE SKINNY – ALBUM OF THE YEAR 2017
“ a work laden with beauty, possessed of depth, heart and soul”
AMERICANA UK 9/10
“this album deserves your undivided attention” MAVERICK
Saturday 12th March
Time: 8pm
Doors: 7:30pm
Tickets: *£12 (*booking fee applies)
Box Office: 01896 756 852
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
Ross writes from the heart; eschewing any specific genre but boasting an eclecticism that has become his hallmark - and has seen him compared to John Martyn, Van Morrison and Tom Waits.
Edinburgh born Ross Wilson spent his creative formative years in East London, then moved to South England “to be by the sea’s energy” but it is in his homecoming that he has found where his heart is. Life wasn’t always simple for Wilson. “I have swapped one type of chaos for another” says Wilson.
A nomad both geographically and musically, Ross writes from the heart eschewing any specific genre and the twelve songs on new album The Water Of Leith, addressing themes of love, loss, travel, home, accepting the past and embracing the future, are painted with colours of folk, jazz, soul and pop; an eclecticism that has become a hallmark of Blue Rose Code and has seen him compared to John Martyn, Van Morrison and Tom Waits.
Wilson cites taking his last drink as the start of living rather than the end of the drinking. Now a committed enthusiast and creative whirling dervish, Wilson has seen the past few years produce some of his most exciting work including the album ‘THE BALLADS OF PECKHAM RYE’, which was nominated for the prestigious Scottish Album Of The Year Awards in 2014 and featured a roll-call of remarkable talent, including Danny Thompson, Karine Polwart, John Wetton, Aidan O’Rourke and Kathryn Williams.
The Blue Rose Code game has certainly changed, they are heard regularly in session for the BBC (TV and Radio), STV, Alba, TG4, Virgin Radio. Live performance is where Blue Rose Code connects strongly with their audiences, they have toured the length and breadth of the UK selling out venues wherever they go and leaving a trail of fans in their wake. Featured in festivals Celtic Connections, Edinburgh Fringe, Looe, Summer Isles, Lindisfarne, Southern Fried, Underneath The Stars.
Ross Wilson has spent most of his musical life curating; he sculpts his band to every mood and temperament in order to create the perfect happening.
As the man at the helm of Blue Rose Code, he is, part director, part sculptor...total chameleon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSOHevyk0e4
The Water of Leith is an ode to forgiveness, to letting go of the past and holding on to hope – it's an astonishingly accomplished, pure and sincere record” ***** THE SKINNY – ALBUM OF THE YEAR 2017
“ a work laden with beauty, possessed of depth, heart and soul”
AMERICANA UK 9/10
“this album deserves your undivided attention” MAVERICK
Saturday 12th March
Time: 8pm
Doors: 7:30pm
Tickets: *£12 (*booking fee applies)
Box Office: 01896 756 852
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
SPOKEN WORD POETRY: Hollie McNish UK Tour 2019
About the show
With Benjamin Zephaniah stating ‘I can’t take my ears off her’, Kate Tempest describing her poetry as ‘welcoming, galvanising and beautiful’ and fans ranging from Emma Watson, Robin Ince, Pink and Tim Minchen, Ted Hughes Award winner Hollie McNish is a poet whose readings are not to be missed. She is an Arts Foundation Fellow in Spoken Word, has garnered over ten million YouTube views for her online poetry performances and was the first poet to record at London’s famed Abbey Road Studios.
Her collection, Nobody Told Me, for which she won the Ted Hughes award and for which The Scotsman claimed ‘The world needs this book’, has been translated into French, Spanish and German.
Here, she will be joining us to perform poems, read from and chat honestly and openly from her latest poetry collections.
Expect strong language as she talks fruit and flesh, guilt, sex, politics, death, breasts, transformers and more.
Books will be available to purchase at the event. There will be a book signing afterwards
About the author
Hollie McNish is a poet based between Cambridge and Glasgow. She loves writing poetry. She has published three poetry collections Papers, Cherry Pie and Plum, and one poetic memoir on politics and parenthood, Nobody Told Me, of which the Scotsman suggested “The world needs this book” and for which she won the Ted Hughes Award. In 2017 Nobody Told Me was translated into German, French and Spanish and released in the USA.
Hollie tours continuously all over the UK and Europe and beyond and is a big fan of online readings – her poetry videos have attracted millions of views worldwide.
Sunday 14th April
Time: 8pm
Doors: 7:30pm
Box Office: 01896 756 852
Tickets £12 / £10*
*booking fee applies
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
youtube.com/holliemcnish
facebook.com/holliepoetry
With Benjamin Zephaniah stating ‘I can’t take my ears off her’, Kate Tempest describing her poetry as ‘welcoming, galvanising and beautiful’ and fans ranging from Emma Watson, Robin Ince, Pink and Tim Minchen, Ted Hughes Award winner Hollie McNish is a poet whose readings are not to be missed. She is an Arts Foundation Fellow in Spoken Word, has garnered over ten million YouTube views for her online poetry performances and was the first poet to record at London’s famed Abbey Road Studios.
Her collection, Nobody Told Me, for which she won the Ted Hughes award and for which The Scotsman claimed ‘The world needs this book’, has been translated into French, Spanish and German.
Here, she will be joining us to perform poems, read from and chat honestly and openly from her latest poetry collections.
Expect strong language as she talks fruit and flesh, guilt, sex, politics, death, breasts, transformers and more.
Books will be available to purchase at the event. There will be a book signing afterwards
About the author
Hollie McNish is a poet based between Cambridge and Glasgow. She loves writing poetry. She has published three poetry collections Papers, Cherry Pie and Plum, and one poetic memoir on politics and parenthood, Nobody Told Me, of which the Scotsman suggested “The world needs this book” and for which she won the Ted Hughes Award. In 2017 Nobody Told Me was translated into German, French and Spanish and released in the USA.
Hollie tours continuously all over the UK and Europe and beyond and is a big fan of online readings – her poetry videos have attracted millions of views worldwide.
Sunday 14th April
Time: 8pm
Doors: 7:30pm
Box Office: 01896 756 852
Tickets £12 / £10*
*booking fee applies
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
youtube.com/holliemcnish
facebook.com/holliepoetry
MUSIC: Holy Moly and the Crackers
2017 and 2018 have been huge years for Holy Moly & The Crackers. The ever-evolving folk-alt-rock group, led by vocalist Ruth Patterson, from Newcastle Upon Tyne released their new album ‘Salem’ in July 2017 on their own Pink Lane Records label. The album received acclaimed reviews from R2 Magazine, Folk Radio UK, The Crack, Clash, No Depression, Blown Speaker and has been championed by BBC Introducing and RadioX.
Following the album release, HMATC have toured the UK twice, selling out venues across the country, and made successful debuts in The Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy as well as continuing their success on the festival circuit: They’ve pulled off an accoladed appearance at Glastonbury, appeared at Boomtown Fair, Bestival + Camp Bestival and graced the main stages at festivals such as Beautiful Days, Bearded Theory, Moonbeams and Colours of Ostrava in the Czech Republic.
'Salem's' lead single, the barnstorming indie-rock anthem ‘Cold Comfort Lane’, was included on major Spotify playlists including Fresh Finds, Fierce Femmes & New Noise, then found significant sync success, with 'Cold Comfort Lane' used by E4, BT Vision, Capital One, Ultimate Ears, KIA Sportage Cars and the end credits track for the 2018 summer blockbuster movie Oceans 8.
2019 brings Holy Moly & the Crackers back out on the world stage with a brand-new album in the Spring, an enhanced confidence and an army of growing fans. Come along for the ride - the craziest party in town always has room for one more...
****For fans of: Frank Turner, Gogol Bordello, Imelda May, Skinny Lister****
Sunday 21st April
Time: 8pm
Doors: 7:30pm
Tickets: £10* (*BF applies)
Box Office: 01896 756 852
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
Following the album release, HMATC have toured the UK twice, selling out venues across the country, and made successful debuts in The Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy as well as continuing their success on the festival circuit: They’ve pulled off an accoladed appearance at Glastonbury, appeared at Boomtown Fair, Bestival + Camp Bestival and graced the main stages at festivals such as Beautiful Days, Bearded Theory, Moonbeams and Colours of Ostrava in the Czech Republic.
'Salem's' lead single, the barnstorming indie-rock anthem ‘Cold Comfort Lane’, was included on major Spotify playlists including Fresh Finds, Fierce Femmes & New Noise, then found significant sync success, with 'Cold Comfort Lane' used by E4, BT Vision, Capital One, Ultimate Ears, KIA Sportage Cars and the end credits track for the 2018 summer blockbuster movie Oceans 8.
2019 brings Holy Moly & the Crackers back out on the world stage with a brand-new album in the Spring, an enhanced confidence and an army of growing fans. Come along for the ride - the craziest party in town always has room for one more...
****For fans of: Frank Turner, Gogol Bordello, Imelda May, Skinny Lister****
Sunday 21st April
Time: 8pm
Doors: 7:30pm
Tickets: £10* (*BF applies)
Box Office: 01896 756 852
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/galashiels
