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Riddle's Court
Riddle's Court is a Category A-listed 16th century former merchant's house in a close situated off the Lawnmarket in the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland.

History
Known as Bailie McMorran's House or the Grand Tenement, there has been a building on this site since the mid 16th century. Previous buildings were laid to waste in the Rough Wooing of the 1540s.

The site from which W.G. Burn Murdoch and Dr. William Speirs Bruce left Edinburgh to embark on their 1902 Scottish National Antarctic Expedition. Murdoch said of the location, “This Riddle’s Court, from which the Doctor and I make our departure for the Antarctic, is quite the centre of the world”.

Norie panels National Museum of Scotland

Notable Residents
John MacMorran Alexander Seton Anne Scott

David Hume

Patrick Geddes

Edinburgh Fringe Festival
Riddle's Court has been used as an Edinburgh Fringe Festival venue since the 1950s; in particular the 1953 Cakes and Ale, and the 1954 On the Mile productions by the Oxford Revue both featured a young Maggie Smith at the start of her career. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s numerous independent and university theatre groups continued this use,, including the 1980 Cambridge University Mummers production of Latin! or Tobacco and Boys, written by and starring Stephen Fry, which won the Fringe First prize. C Venues continued this tradition in 2014, and then in 2018 The Pauline Quirke Academy became a venue operation and began using Riddle's Court to host an ongoing programme of Fringe events.

Workers' Educational Association
Following a £27,000 renovation project, Riddle's Court reopened as adult education offices and an adult education centre in 1966. For forty years these classes were facilitated by a combination of the former Edinburgh Corporation, Lothian Regional Council, the City of Edinburgh Council, the Workers' Educational Association (who also opened their offices at Riddle's Court in 1975) and Stevenson College. These classes included literacy and numeracy, politics, languages, history, arts, crafts, exercise, and music. The Riddle’s Court Community Orchestra also met here weekly before later changing its name to the South Side Community Orchestra following the City of Edinburgh Council decision to close Riddle’s Court and the WEA's subsequent move.

Renovation
Scottish Historic Buildings Trust, a charity that secures the future of under-used historic buildings across Scotland through restoration, secured funding from Heritage Lottery Fund Scotland and other organisations and individuals to support a multi-year refurbishment project. Completed in 2017, the project cost £5.6 million which funded the repair, conservation and enhancement of Riddle’s Court to secure its future, improve access and its condition.

During renovation, fireplace found.

Patrick Geddes Centre
With the help of funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Patrick Geddes Centre at Riddle’s Court was established as a learning and cultural centre, seeking to build global awareness and expertise around the ideas, actions and impact of polymath and former resident Patrick Geddes.

The Patrick Geddes Centre is a world-class centre for learning. A place steeped in history, culture and architectural wonder it provides community, conference and event space.

Inspired by Geddes' educational philosophy, the Centre fosters learning through 'Hand, Heart and Head', learning by 'doing'.