The bus station in Edinburgh in the 1990s looked a lot different than how it does today, in part thanks to the huge, concrete-clad office development that towered above it.placeholder image
The bus station in Edinburgh in the 1990s looked a lot different than how it does today, in part thanks to the huge, concrete-clad office development that towered above it.

Edinburgh Retro: 12 things you’ll remember if you grew up in Edinburgh in the 80s and 90s

Gary Flockhart
By Gary Flockhart

Live Editor

Published 11th Sep 2024, 19:19 BST

Here, we take a nostalgic look back at what Edinburgh life was like in the 80s and 90s.

For anyone who was living in Edinburgh during this time, a lot of the entries on this list will be very familiar.

Take a look through our gallery to see 12 things anyone who grew up in Auld Reekie during the 80s or 90s will remember.

And before you go, please let us know your own favourite memories of growing up in the city in the comments section.

Before buses were all fitted with CCTV, the driver used a kind of periscope contraption with a curved mirror to check what was going on upstairs.

5. Watching the driver on the top deck

Before buses were all fitted with CCTV, the driver used a kind of periscope contraption with a curved mirror to check what was going on upstairs. Photo: Photo: Contributed

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Here you can see a giant Tyrannosaurus Rex head being unloaded by workmen for the Dinosaurs Alive! Exhibition at the City Art Centre in Edinburgh, February 1990.

6. Dinosaurs Alive! Exhibition

Here you can see a giant Tyrannosaurus Rex head being unloaded by workmen for the Dinosaurs Alive! Exhibition at the City Art Centre in Edinburgh, February 1990. Photo: Albert Jordan

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For many Edinburghers, no hard day’s swim at the Royal Commonwealth (Commie) Pool was complete without a hunger-nullifying detour to Brattisani’s on Newington Road - its memorable red seating booths were a trip back in time to the year it opened.

7. Brattisani’s

For many Edinburghers, no hard day’s swim at the Royal Commonwealth (Commie) Pool was complete without a hunger-nullifying detour to Brattisani’s on Newington Road - its memorable red seating booths were a trip back in time to the year it opened. Photo: Third Party

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Here you can see the exterior of the St James Shopping centre at the east end of Princes Street, after its refurbishment in January 1992. Of course, now the centre doesn’t exist any more, having been developed into the trendy St James Quarter.

8. St James Shopping Centre

Here you can see the exterior of the St James Shopping centre at the east end of Princes Street, after its refurbishment in January 1992. Of course, now the centre doesn’t exist any more, having been developed into the trendy St James Quarter. Photo: Denis Straughan

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