Craigmillar Festival Society
Encyclopedia
The Craigmillar Festival Society (CFS) was a Community Arts
organisation that existed in the Craigmillar
area of Edinburgh
, Scotland
from 1962 to 2002. It is regarded as important contributor to the Community Arts Movement. Starting in 1967, many of its productions involved Craigmillar Castle
.
By 1962, Craigmillar was suffering from all the social ills of 20th century urban living and decay. The crunch came when the school’s reply to a request for music lessons for her son from local mother Helen Crummy
was … “it takes us all our time to teach these children the 3Rs
far less music.” Biting their tongues the frustrated mothers in Peffermill School Mothers Club responded by knocking on doors, pulling out local talent and staging a People’s Festival of music, drama, and the arts. The Festival was an instant success which brought joy, colour and fun to a drab and grey environment.
The festival married fun with passion for intensive political action. This led to politicians working not just for, but WITH, the local people. Combining culture with satirical criticism, the people wrote and produced their own community musicals and historical productions, basing them on the area’s multitude of social concerns and issues.
A prime example of what the CFS did in the community was through the tireless work of the Bingham neighbourhood worker Claire Elder. In 1970, she persuaded some neighbours to go dressed as a gypsy tribe to the Mediaeval Fayre. Later calling themselves the Bingham Belles, they formed a drama and music group and became stars of the Festival's Old Tyme Musical Hall. Entertaining in and beyond Craigmillar, they successfully campaigned to obtain much needed amenities for Bingham, including their own community centre and youth facilities.
Several CFS workers AND volunteers who came from AND lived in the community went on to become teachers and trainers of the CFS ethic in their later lives with other organisations and even government quangoes. But they were first and foremost at the heart of the CFS activities in the community.
The CFS created and developed many concepts including Communiversity, Arts As The Catalyst, Creative Shared Government, Neighbourhood Workers Scheme and the hugely influential planning document "The Comprehensive Plan for Action" where Art and culture were the catalyst in all aspects of regeneration.
One of the CFS founders, Helen Crummy
created an MBE in 1973 (later awarded an honorary doctorate), produced a book called "Let The People Sing" that provides an account of the background and development of the CFS.
and also in the work of Neil Cameron and Reg Bolton in Australia. Craigmillar Festival Society helped create many things, amongst them; The Mermaid Sculpture by Pedro Silva; The Gentle Giant Sculpture by Jimmy Boyle
; The Bill Douglas
Trilogy, in particular "My Childhood" (funded by British Film Institute
).
The Craigmillar Festival Society was the recognised leader in the production of The Community Musical theatre
productions, where professional actors worked very closely with local people. In effect, since 1962, local people came together and produced well over 100 productions. From 1973's first Community Musical "The Time Machine", 1974's "Castle, Cooncil & Curse, 1975's "Time and Motion Man", 1976's "Willie Wynn", 1977's Culture Vultures" and 1978's "Oh Gentle Giant", to the 1980s with "Shoo", "For A' That & A' That", "Dampbusters" and "Watch It", the 1990s and "Fit For Heroes", "Kicking Up A Stink" and "In Your Dreams" and the more recent "Grease Niddrie Style". All included songs such as as "Craigmillar Now", "When People Play Their Part", "Arled Bairn", "Candy Barrie" and "He Promised Me".
Many local people who began performing in Community productions went on to become successful professional performers, Alice Henderson and Johnni Stanton, who went on to form their own companies, but most notably, Faye Milligan (The Steamie), and James (Micky) MacPherson, whose company Plum Films won a BAFTA award. Both returned to Craigmillar and directed local productions.
Craigmillar was at the forefront of the Golden Age of artistic expansion in Edinburgh in the early 70s and helped to create several lasting institutions, among them, Theatre Workshop Edinburgh.
It also has links with Professor Eric Trist
and The Tavistock Institute
, Billy Connolly
, Richard Demarco
, Anne Lorne Gillies
, Joan Bakewell, Michael Marra
and Bill Paterson.
It has also been compared to The Peckham Experiment
and Bromley by Bow Centre
and The Healthy Living Centre concept. In recent years The Bromley by Bow Centre
has taken up The Communiversity concept to develop its education programme.
in 2004 and an award winning documentary, which won The Saltire Award at The Edinburgh International Film Festival
in 2005. The Arts side of The CFS today continues its deterioration as Craigmillar "Community" Arts.
Community art
Community Art could be loosely defined as a way of creating art in which professional artists collaborate more or less intensively with people who don't normally actively engage in the arts. Community arts, also sometimes known as "dialogical art", "community-engaged" or "community-based art,"...
organisation that existed in the Craigmillar
Craigmillar
Craigmillar , from the Gaelic Crag Maol Ard, meaning 'High Bare Rock', is an area of Edinburgh, Scotland, about south east of the city centre, with Duddingston to the north and Newcraighall to the east.- History :...
area of Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
from 1962 to 2002. It is regarded as important contributor to the Community Arts Movement. Starting in 1967, many of its productions involved Craigmillar Castle
Craigmillar Castle
Craigmillar Castle is a ruined medieval castle in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is situated south-east of the city centre, on a low hill to the south of the modern suburb of Craigmillar. It was begun in the late 14th century by the Preston family, feudal barons of Craigmillar, and extended through the...
.
Inception
The Craigmillar Festival Committee was established in 1962, when a mothers group at Peffermill Primary School, south-east side of Edinburgh, created a Festival to celebrate local talent.By 1962, Craigmillar was suffering from all the social ills of 20th century urban living and decay. The crunch came when the school’s reply to a request for music lessons for her son from local mother Helen Crummy
Helen Crummy
Helen Crummy, MBE was a founder of The Craigmillar Festival Society , and served as the Organising Secretary for the group until 1985....
was … “it takes us all our time to teach these children the 3Rs
Three Rs
Three Rs , can refer to:*The three Rs, a widely-used abbreviation for the basic elements of a primary school curriculum: reading, ’riting , and ’rithmetic ...
far less music.” Biting their tongues the frustrated mothers in Peffermill School Mothers Club responded by knocking on doors, pulling out local talent and staging a People’s Festival of music, drama, and the arts. The Festival was an instant success which brought joy, colour and fun to a drab and grey environment.
The festival married fun with passion for intensive political action. This led to politicians working not just for, but WITH, the local people. Combining culture with satirical criticism, the people wrote and produced their own community musicals and historical productions, basing them on the area’s multitude of social concerns and issues.
Growth and development
In 1970 the Craigmillar Festival Committee gained official recognition, charitable status and changed its name to the Craigmillar Festival Society (CFS). By 1976 the Society was employing 600 people and involving 1500 volunteers. That year, 17000 people either took part or attended the annual festival. By this time, it had received a major anti-poverty research grant from The European Community.A prime example of what the CFS did in the community was through the tireless work of the Bingham neighbourhood worker Claire Elder. In 1970, she persuaded some neighbours to go dressed as a gypsy tribe to the Mediaeval Fayre. Later calling themselves the Bingham Belles, they formed a drama and music group and became stars of the Festival's Old Tyme Musical Hall. Entertaining in and beyond Craigmillar, they successfully campaigned to obtain much needed amenities for Bingham, including their own community centre and youth facilities.
Several CFS workers AND volunteers who came from AND lived in the community went on to become teachers and trainers of the CFS ethic in their later lives with other organisations and even government quangoes. But they were first and foremost at the heart of the CFS activities in the community.
The CFS created and developed many concepts including Communiversity, Arts As The Catalyst, Creative Shared Government, Neighbourhood Workers Scheme and the hugely influential planning document "The Comprehensive Plan for Action" where Art and culture were the catalyst in all aspects of regeneration.
One of the CFS founders, Helen Crummy
Helen Crummy
Helen Crummy, MBE was a founder of The Craigmillar Festival Society , and served as the Organising Secretary for the group until 1985....
created an MBE in 1973 (later awarded an honorary doctorate), produced a book called "Let The People Sing" that provides an account of the background and development of the CFS.
Achievements
Many artists, politicians and researchers came to Craigmillar, either to see or become involved in the community activities. Each of these have taken the seed and rooted it worldwide, from The Easterhouse Festival Society, Notting Hill CarnivalNotting Hill Carnival
The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual event which since 1964 has taken place on the streets of Notting Hill, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea , London, UK each August, over two days...
and also in the work of Neil Cameron and Reg Bolton in Australia. Craigmillar Festival Society helped create many things, amongst them; The Mermaid Sculpture by Pedro Silva; The Gentle Giant Sculpture by Jimmy Boyle
Jimmy Boyle (artist)
Jimmy Boyle is a Scottish sculptor, novelist and convicted criminal.In 1967 he was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of another gangland figure, William "Babs" Rooney...
; The Bill Douglas
Bill Douglas
William Gerald Forbes Douglas was a Scottish film director best known for the trilogy of films about his early life.-Biography:...
Trilogy, in particular "My Childhood" (funded by British Film Institute
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
).
The Craigmillar Festival Society was the recognised leader in the production of The Community Musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
productions, where professional actors worked very closely with local people. In effect, since 1962, local people came together and produced well over 100 productions. From 1973's first Community Musical "The Time Machine", 1974's "Castle, Cooncil & Curse, 1975's "Time and Motion Man", 1976's "Willie Wynn", 1977's Culture Vultures" and 1978's "Oh Gentle Giant", to the 1980s with "Shoo", "For A' That & A' That", "Dampbusters" and "Watch It", the 1990s and "Fit For Heroes", "Kicking Up A Stink" and "In Your Dreams" and the more recent "Grease Niddrie Style". All included songs such as as "Craigmillar Now", "When People Play Their Part", "Arled Bairn", "Candy Barrie" and "He Promised Me".
Many local people who began performing in Community productions went on to become successful professional performers, Alice Henderson and Johnni Stanton, who went on to form their own companies, but most notably, Faye Milligan (The Steamie), and James (Micky) MacPherson, whose company Plum Films won a BAFTA award. Both returned to Craigmillar and directed local productions.
Craigmillar was at the forefront of the Golden Age of artistic expansion in Edinburgh in the early 70s and helped to create several lasting institutions, among them, Theatre Workshop Edinburgh.
It also has links with Professor Eric Trist
Eric Trist
Eric Trist was a British scientist and leading figure in the field of Organizational development . He was one of the founders of the Tavistock Institute for Social Research in London.-Biography:...
and The Tavistock Institute
Tavistock Institute
The Tavistock Institute of Human Relations is a British charity concerned with group behaviour and organisational behaviour. It was launched in 1946, when it separated from the Tavistock Clinic.-History of the Tavistock:...
, Billy Connolly
Billy Connolly
William "Billy" Connolly, Jr., CBE is a Scottish comedian, musician, presenter and actor. He is sometimes known, especially in his native Scotland, by the nickname The Big Yin...
, Richard Demarco
Richard Demarco
Richard Demarco, CBE is an Italian Scottish artist and promoter of the visual and performing arts.-Richard Demarco Gallery:...
, Anne Lorne Gillies
Anne Lorne Gillies
Anne Lorne Gillies is a Scottish singer-songwriter, broadcaster, academic and writer. She was raised in Argyll and began singing as a child and as a native Gaelic speaker she participated in the Mod aged 17 where she won a gold medal for her singing talent.She studied Celtic and English at the...
, Joan Bakewell, Michael Marra
Michael Marra
Michael Marra is a Scottish musician from Dundee.Jenny Marra, the Labour MSP, is his niece.-History:Michael Marra was brought up in the Lochee district of Dundee. His first public performance was at an NCR Christmas party in the 1950s...
and Bill Paterson.
Commentary
The effectiveness of the Society’s work began to be noticed from both near and far with distinguished commentators making reference to it.- The Social Impact of Participation in the Arts Seminar, 1997 at The House of the Art Lover, Glasgow, organised by Scottish Arts CouncilScottish Arts CouncilThe Scottish Arts Council is a Scottish public body that distributes funding from the Scottish Government, and is the leading national organisation for the funding, development and promotion of the arts in Scotland...
, chaired by Seona ReidSeona ReidSeona Reid CBE FRSA is Director of the Glasgow School of Art, in Scotland and former Director of the Scottish Arts Council.-Career:She was Director of the Scottish Arts council for 9 years, and became the Art School's Director in September 1999. She has undertaken many roles within the Arts World...
, Director. - Donald Campbell (Cities of the imagination/Edinburgh, 2003, Signal Books)
- Eric TristEric TristEric Trist was a British scientist and leading figure in the field of Organizational development . He was one of the founders of the Tavistock Institute for Social Research in London.-Biography:...
(New directions of hope, 1979) - Eric TristEric TristEric Trist was a British scientist and leading figure in the field of Organizational development . He was one of the founders of the Tavistock Institute for Social Research in London.-Biography:...
(QWL Quality of Working Life and the 80’s (The Closing Address to the International Conference on QWL and the 80’s, Harbour Castle Hilton, TorontoTorontoToronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, August 30 - September 3, 1981) - Rafael Ramirez (The Beauty of Social Organization, Accedo, Munich, 1991)
- Alan Barnett (Community Murals, The Peoples Art, 1984, Associated University Press)
- Malcolm McEwen (‘The Other Edinburgh’, New Statesman, 18 August 1972.)
- George McRobie (Small Is Possible, London: Jonathan Cape, 1981 — this is part of the E. F. SchumacherE. F. SchumacherErnst Friedrich "Fritz" Schumacher was an internationally influential economic thinker, statistician and economist in Britain, serving as Chief Economic Advisor to the UK National Coal Board for two decades. His ideas became popularized in much of the English-speaking world during the 1970s...
Small Is BeautifulSmall Is BeautifulSmall Is Beautiful: Economics As If People Mattered is a collection of essays by British economist E. F. Schumacher. The phrase "Small Is Beautiful" came from a phrase by his teacher Leopold Kohr...
trilogy) - Kenneth CalmanKenneth CalmanSir Kenneth Charles Calman, KCB, DL, FRSE is a Scottish cancer researcher and former Chief Medical Officer of Scotland, and then England. He was Warden and Vice-Chancellor of Durham University from 1998 to 2006, before becoming Chancellor of the University of Glasgow. He has held the position of...
(Arts The Catalyst, Craigmillar Communiversity Press, 2004) - from ‘A GIANT STEP’ An Appraisal of The Craigmillar Festival Society’s Approach to Community Development, Relative to the Craigmillar (European Economic CommunityEuropean Economic CommunityThe European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...
Programme of Pilot Schemes and Studies to Combat Poverty, Abstract, p. 6. By M Stephen Burgess in consultation with Eric TristEric TristEric Trist was a British scientist and leading figure in the field of Organizational development . He was one of the founders of the Tavistock Institute for Social Research in London.-Biography:...
November, 1980.) - Professor Albert Cherns of Loughborough UniversityLoughborough UniversityLoughborough University is a research based campus university located in the market town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, in the East Midlands of England...
(in a letter to the Michael Young Rt. Hon. Lord Young of Dartington, 2 August 1982) - Dr. Helen Wood (‘Festivity and Social Change’, Leisure in the 80’s Research Unit, Department of Social Sciences, Polytechnic of the South Bank, London Road, London SE1, December, 1982)
- Charles Landry and Franois Matarasso (Art of Regeneration, Comedia, 1996)
- David Harding, Head of Environmental Art and Sculpture (1985–2001), Glasgow School of ArtGlasgow School of ArtGlasgow School of Art is one of only two independent art schools in Scotland, situated in the Garnethill area of Glasgow.-History:It was founded in 1845 as the Glasgow Government School of Design. In 1853, it changed its name to The Glasgow School of Art. Initially it was located at 12 Ingram...
. (Art with People, AN Publications, 1994.) - David Harding (Arts The Catalysts, Craigmillar Communiversity Press, 2004)
It has also been compared to The Peckham Experiment
The Peckham Experiment
The Peckham Experiment took place between 1926 and 1950, initially generated by rising public concern over the health of the working class and an increasing interest in preventative social medicine.-Commencement:...
and Bromley by Bow Centre
Bromley by Bow Centre
The Bromley by Bow Centre is a community centre in Bromley-by-Bow, in the East End of London. It was founded in 1984 with the aim of transforming the local community. Over the years, the Centre has grown to encompass a GP surgery, church, nursery, children's centre, community facilities and a cafe...
and The Healthy Living Centre concept. In recent years The Bromley by Bow Centre
Bromley by Bow Centre
The Bromley by Bow Centre is a community centre in Bromley-by-Bow, in the East End of London. It was founded in 1984 with the aim of transforming the local community. Over the years, the Centre has grown to encompass a GP surgery, church, nursery, children's centre, community facilities and a cafe...
has taken up The Communiversity concept to develop its education programme.
Into the future
By 2002 after a very controversial, and some would say, unfair public investigation into alleged improper use of funding, funding was cut-off and the remaining CFS projects were made independent organizations. Although the original CFS organization is now defunct, its spirit lives on within the community and it continues to attract attention through the "Arts As A Catalyst" Exhibition at The City Arts Centre, EdinburghEdinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
in 2004 and an award winning documentary, which won The Saltire Award at The Edinburgh International Film Festival
Edinburgh International Film Festival
The Edinburgh International Film Festival is an annual fortnight of cinema screenings and related events taking place each June. Established in 1947, it is the world's oldest continually running film festival...
in 2005. The Arts side of The CFS today continues its deterioration as Craigmillar "Community" Arts.