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A red telephone box stands on a street corner in front of a sandstone tenement building, pedestrians walking on the pavement beyond.
Edinburgh

Gilbert the Phone Box

Welcome

Once a rarely used Edinburgh phone box, Gilbert got a complete makeover and became a charity fundraiser and photobooth.

Visited and photographed by Simon Hird

It was done up under BT’s ‘Adopt a Kiosk’ scheme, and for a small donation you can dress up in its hats and books for a photograph. All the money made here is donated to the UK charity Save the Children.

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Ben Lerwill

From our guide to Edinburgh

Standing outside Stewart Christie & Co’s tailor shop on Queen Street is a classic red phone box, nicknamed ‘Gilbert’ and reinvented as a debonair photo booth complete with hats, books and a vintage phone. Pop into the shop to ask for the key – you’ll be asked to make a small donation to Save The Children.

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What is on

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New places, news and stories, as we find them.

What is on in Edinburgh
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  5. The green shopfront of Mother India Cafe on Infirmary Street in Edinburgh, its name in gold letters above the door.Mother India's Cafe EdinburghThe Edinburgh cafe of Glasgow's Mother India, on Infirmary Street by the Old Town, serving Indian dishes as small plates made for sharing.Under a mile as the crow flies
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Directions
Framed pictures line an exposed brick wall beside a yellow-topped bar with beer tapsRestaurantsArcade BarA step away
A flight of whiskies and their bottles on a table in a stone vault at the Lost Close, a chandelier behind.AttractionsThe Lost CloseA step away
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Whisky barrels line the bar counter beneath shelves of bottles and a mezzanine levelRestaurantsStramash0.2 miles
Arched glass roof spans an open studio filled with art and weaving loomsAttractionsDovecot Studios0.2 miles
Edinburgh Castle seen from a rooftop terrace with a stone drainage holeAttractionsAndy Goldsworthy's 'Hutton Roof'0.2 miles
Timber slabs laid along the wooden floor of a grand columned galleryAttractionsTalbot Rice Gallery0.2 miles
Union Brew Lab specialty coffee bar frontage on a quiet streetCafeOrigin Coffee, South College Street0.2 miles
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Stay nearby

Places to stay near Gilbert the Phone Box, and when each is next free.

A hotel studio room with a beige fitted kitchen unit and stainless sink beside a bed dressed in white and teal cushions, a wall of black-framed pictures above a patterned headboard.Old Town Chambers
  • To stay
  • In Edinburgh
  • Under a mile from Gilbert the Phone Box
Check datesA round table and chairs stand before tall curtained windows looking onto stone buildings, a sofa and mounted television to the right.Moment George IV Bridge
  • Sleeps 2
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Check datesWest End Muse
  • Sleeps 4
  • In Edinburgh
  • Under a mile from Gilbert the Phone Box
Check datesA turreted sandstone building with conical spires catches the evening light above rooftops, a large pine tree standing beside it.The Scott Hotel
  • A hotel
  • In Edinburgh
  • A mile from Gilbert the Phone Box
Check datesPlaces to stayEvery stay in EdinburghAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
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