Edinburgh's Christian Aid book sale returns after 'one year pause'

Book-lovers were left disappointed last year when it was announced the sale - which was first held in 1973 - would not take place.

However, the six-day event - Scotland’s biggest charity book sale - will be back at the New Town Church of Scotland in George Street - formerly St Andrew’s and St George’s West - on Saturday May 10 and then Monday May 12 - Friday May 16.

The sale is making a welome return this year after a one-year pause

The church will again be taken over by tens of thousands of books, spilling onto tables in the area outside.

And as well as the books, there will be CDs, records, music, stamps, postcards, ephemera, jigsaws, toys and games. The only categories missing this year will be antiques and “collectibles”.

Last year organisers explained the sale’s absence as being due to some of its longest-serving volunteers standing down and difficulties in preparing for the event.

But George Burgess, chair of the steering group behind the sale, said: “We are back. We've got a team of volunteers together and getting more offers of assistance coming in.

“It's the return of a well-loved Edinburgh institution. All we need now is for the good weather to remain until May.”

There was a one-day sale at the church in October last year, of pictures, books, jigsaws and games, for Christian Aid. Mr Burgess said: “Even for that we had a queue along George Street before the start of it and it raised around £30,000. It’s very encouraging there's still the demand and the enthusiasm in the public for it.”

One change this year is a request for people to pay by card for their purchases at the sale, though cash will still be accepted.

Mr Burgess said: “We'll be running things more by card payments this year rather than cash. People sometimes specifically saved up their notes and coins to come along to the sale, but this year and ongoing we're expecting it to be much more by card. We’ll still accept cash, but there'll be a preference to move to card.”

Donations of books and other items can be dropped off at the church in the weeks before the sale. The church will be open April 28 - May 2 and May 5 - 7, between 9am and 8pm. But organisers say they cannot accept encyclopedia sets, magazine collections or Reader's Digest publications.

The sale opens at 10am on Saturday May 10, running until 4pm; there is no sale on Sunday; and it runs 10am-3.30pm each day from Monday May 12 for the rest of that week, except for Thursday when it is open 10am-7pm.