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​The Rev. D. Norman Maclean founded Colinton Parish Church Literary Society (the ‘Lit’) in October 1903 with three Members of the congregation.  
       They met in a wood and corrugated building in Dreghorn Loan, known as the Old Tin Hall.  For more than 100 years the Lit programmes have covered both literary topics and those of general interest across the entire community from whom our membership is drawn. 
       The name of the Society was changed to Colinton Literary Society in 2024 ​when the Parish of Colinton united with the Parish of Juniper Green.  Colinton Literary Society remains an official church organisation in the new parish of Edinburgh Pentlands Parish. 
       The Lit has hosted many eminent academics, authors, artists and musicians at its events. ​In 1911, Sir Ernest Shackleton gave a lecture entitled ‘Furthest South’ and in 2011, author Ian Rankin let us into his secrets of crime writing and now, in our 2023-2024 season, experts in the fields of history, music, politics and art will enthrall us again.

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The Committee
Honorary President
The Minister, Colinton Parish Church
​  Secretary  
Sally Fischbacher
[email protected]
Treasurer
Katie Davidson
Programme Coordinator 
Colin Fischbacher
[email protected]
Committee Members
Kay Dalley, Vasily Demyanov, Kath Hay, Joe McGeough,
Bob Mylchreest, Gemma Roper-Caldbeck,
Lorraine Veitch-Rutherford 
Hon. Accounts Examiner
A W Murray

Dreghorn Loan Hall

An Invitation to The Lit  
 Our meetings for the 112th season of Colinton Literary Society will commence in October and will be held in the Dreghorn Loan Hall, Colinton EH13 0DE.
Tea, coffee and wine will be served from 7:30pm.
 Each talk commences at 8pm and the
evening finishes at around 9pm.
 
Membership costs just £15 for the full
programme of 16 meetings, or £3 per meeting
for visitors. New members of all ages are assured of a warm welcome.  Our programme covers both literary topics and those of general interest which should be attractive across the entire community from which our membership is drawn. Proposals for future talks may be handed in to the Programme Co-ordinator at any time.
​Talks taking place at the start of our next season
​ are listed below.​

16 Oct:        The Scottish Enlightenment:
Professor David Purdie reviews the impact
of this intellectual and philosophical movement              
23 Oct:         Phoebe Anna Traquair: 
Professor Elizabeth Cumming looks at the life of a
leading artist in the Scottish Arts and Crafts movement
and her Colinton connection
30 Oct:         The Wild Swimmer of Kintail: 
Kellan MacInnes tells the story of a journey through
water to self-discovery
06 Nov:        Writing about Place: 
Sir Alexander McCall Smith talks about the influence
that location has on the writing of his books
13 Nov:        The Scottish Parliament - what next?              Sir Paul Grice considers the impact and future of devolution
20 Nov: Edinburgh - our Storied Town:  Donald Smith          reviews 900 years of Edinburgh’s literary history
27 Nov:       Edinburgh’s Theatres: 
Reverend David Todd delves deep into the history of the city’s theatres
04 Dec:      Buffet Supper with musical entertainment provided by the Glencairn Ensemble