Cockburn Response
The Cockburn has objected to this application.
Edinburgh’s Vennel is a charming and historic alleyway with cultural and architectural significance for a number of reasons.
The Vennel is justly well-known for its breathtaking perspective of Edinburgh Castle. As a result, the alleyway has become a favorite location for photographers and tourists since it provides a particularly striking viewpoint of the castle, especially from the stairway that ascends to Heriot Place.
A popular walking route, The Vennel also allows tourists to experience the Old Town of the city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with its historic buildings and urban design. The Vennel also connects several additional historical sites, such as the protected portions of the city walls and the listed George Heriot’s School.
Given that The Vennel is already a popular destination for visitors adding a further source of potential congestion to the site is unwise and unsafe. This raised the question of who, if this application is approved, will monitor the subsequent impact on The Vennel of the plaque, who will deal with any unplanned consequences and who will maintain it in the longer term.
We consider it important to note that the proposed plaque does not commemorate a historic person or event. Edinburgh has many such plaques across the city. They all tend to be place specific although some can be themed such as notable homes of suffragettes or places where Robert Louis Stevenson has some connection.
The difference here is that the proposed plaque is to advertise Netflix’s “One Day”, a short romantic drama. The vast majority of the series was set outside Edinburgh. The Vennel was the setting for a very short segment in the first and last episodes. “One Day” has little to do with either The Vennel or Edinburgh. The purpose of the plaque is essentially marketing, not information sharing or marking a truly significant person or event relevant to The Vennel.
Guidance on advertising is largely on amenity, design and public safety issues. It makes it clear that within certain parts of the World Heritage Site where the streets are of exceptional architectural and/or historic interest or where advertising would adversely affect important views and vistas or the setting of designed landscapes or listed buildings, signs may not be acceptable. We would suggest the The Vennel is a location where advertising should be resisted.
Of wider consideration is the fact that Edinburgh is a very popular city for filmmakers world-wide. If every production or every connection with a novel or film or TV series did the same as is being proposed for The Vennel, the inevitable consequence is the proliferation of plaques across the city for potentially short-term and ephemeral promotional reasons rather than for any genuine public or cultural interest. Few, if any, of these are likely to be monitored or maintained in the longer term.
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Image: Planning Application
