I went on Edinburgh's Mary King's Close new lantern tour - it casts a creepy new light on history

dailyrecord.co.uk:

This half-term The Real Mary King's Close in Edinburgh is offering special lantern-led tours.Intrigued by the prospect of a creepily lit tour of one of the capital's most fascinating tourist attractions- I had to head down and see for myself.Having lived in Edinburgh my whole life, I am reasonably well-versed in the history of Mary King's Close but was looking forward to learning more about the stories of some of its residents.On Sunday night, I headed to the historic tourist attraction on the Royal Mile, with no idea what was in store for me.Shortly after 8pm I, along rest of my group, met a tour guide in full character: Mary King’s daughter Jonet.She told us about the history of the Royal Exchange, which was built on top of Mary King's Close.After a brief introduction, it was time to pick up our lanterns and head down into the darkness of the close.After walking down many steps, there was very little light other than our spooky lanterns.Unfortunately, no photographs were allowed on the tour, but the lack of flashes just added to the spooky atmosphere.The lack of lighting made everything feel very engaging and authentic.Our first stop on the tour was at Laigh House, where 12 people lived.

Our guide told us about the poor conditions in the house, all while our lanterns lit up the small space.We were then shown the semi-luxurious house of the Lord Provest Simon Preston, where Mary, Queen of Scots spent her last night in Edinburgh in 1567.

While the guide was telling us about the Queen of Scots' final days , the entire group—myself included—were startled by the sudden appearance of our second character of the night, John Dickinson.After taking us into another dark room, Dickinson revealed himself as Christian Caddell: