Yeehaw! Bring on the tap-dancing cowgirls! How the Edinburgh Military Tattoo suddenly got cool

A New Era for Edinburgh’s Military Tattoo: Where Tradition Meets Progressive Vision

Wanderstayfinder.com – As twilight descends upon Edinburgh Castle, a luminous beam traces pathways across ancient stone walls and stretches upward into the evening sky. The solemn narration of actor Richard Rankin echoes through the grounds, speaking of solitary soldiers responding to duty’s summons, while brilliant illumination floods from the gatehouse. Emerging from this radiant portal come dozens of drummers and pipers, their combined music weaving melody with majesty. They move across the esplanade to the stirring strains of The Skye Boat Song, creating a scene that captures the essence of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

Often overshadowed by the sprawling Edinburgh Festival Fringe, this military spectacle has quietly become the city’s most beloved event. Last year alone, it attracted 230,000 spectators and generated £1.5 million for charitable causes. The production operates like an enormous variety performance, combining fireworks displays, projection mapping, flags sweeping over audiences, and musical selections spanning from Carmen to Star Wars.

Global Audiences and International Performers

Visitors arrive from every corner of the world. Susan from Aberdeen brings her daughter for their third consecutive visit, drawn particularly by the highland dancing performances. “The atmosphere is amazing,” she shares, clearly thrilled to return to this annual tradition.

Meanwhile, Francesca has traveled from New Zealand, staying with relatives in Glasgow for a single night to experience the event. “It’s a bucket-list item,” she explains. “I was going to go when it toured to Auckland in February but I was told I had to see the original one first.”

The performers themselves feel equally privileged. Staff Sgt Ross Yorkstone, drum major with the New Zealand army band, marks his sixth year participating. “The closest would be the Basel Tattoo but it’s nowhere near as big as this,” he notes. “We always come here with our top A-game.”

A Leader with Two Identities

On a warm summer afternoon, I meet Alan Lane, the creative director, in West Princes Street Gardens. Our location holds significance: beside us stands a statue of a kilted soldier with a rifle resting across his knees. This figure represents the character voiced by Rankin in this year’s show, “A Call to Gather,” gazing thoughtfully toward the Scottish National War Memorial visible above in the castle grounds.

Known as The Call 1914, this memorial honors American expatriates who traveled to fight during the first world war. It serves as Lane’s central inspiration. “It’s a celebration of those who will lend a hand,” he reflects. “If you’re my friend, I’m going to come when you call.”

Yet Lane presents an unexpected duality. One version matches expectations for someone commanding a military display: a Sandhurst-trained Royal Engineers reservist who, as an enthusiastic eighteen-year-old, committed to directing the Tattoo. Standing at 1.9 metres tall, he carries himself with military precision.

The other Lane surprises those who know him only through his military background. A lifelong Labour party member, he founded Slung Low, a Leeds-based theatre company specializing in large-scale community productions. He created “Flood,” a four-part epic featuring 58 performers for Hull’s UK City of Culture designation, and “Camelot: The Shining City,” which incorporated audience evacuation from the Sheffield Crucible as part of its narrative.

His community involvement extends further. He established a community college aboard a double-decker bus, managed a working men’s club, and during the pandemic coordinated free food delivery across Holbeck and Beeston in Leeds. A vegetarian who appears in pink shorts, he keeps watch over Bolt, his spaniel companion.

Bridging Divides Through Performance

“Having run a food bank and working men’s club, there aren’t many theatre directors who are more obnoxiously leftwing than I was,” he laughs, maintaining awareness of Bolt nearby.

Lane embraces apparent contradictions. “The beach commanders on D-day were part of the Labour cabinet five years later,” he observes. “I don’t get how it isn’t leftwing to believe we need a military and that there is some honour in that.”

Transitioning to the Tattoo required adaptation. Following his April 2024 appointment, he received tweed, tartan, and ties. The organization maintains rigorous standards—Lane reveals they hold crisis meetings when attendance for the 8,800-capacity show falls below 96 percent, a threshold most arts organizations could only aspire to achieve.

“But actually what I’ve found is, fundamentally, we’re not that different,” he concludes. For Lane, differences exist to be connected. “Where that gets us to in this year’s Tattoo is a sharing of culture in order to understand each other,” he explains. “This year, we’ve got the Americans and the Qataris in a show — bringing together traditions that might seem distant but share common values of service and community.”

As the Tattoo enters this new chapter under Lane’s leadership, it demonstrates that military precision and progressive vision need not conflict. Instead, they can create something greater than either alone—a celebration that honors tradition while embracing the diverse world around it.