Edinburgh has given so much to the world over the years, with inventor Alexander Graham Bell of course credited with inventing the telephone.
While in the arts, the city has produced stars of the stage and screen including James Bond himself Sir Sean Connery, Scotland’s biggest ever band Bay City Rollers and comedy legend Ronnie Corbett.
Some of Scotland’s greatest ever writers are from Edinburgh, including Sir Walter Scott, Sherlock Holmes creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Muriel Spark and Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh.
1. Sir Sean Connery
Perhaps Edinburgh's most famous son of all time, Sean Connery made the James Bond role his own in the hit blockbuster spy movie series, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Born in the city in 1930 and brought up in the Fountainbridge area, the actor also starred in a host of other hit movies during his career, including Indiana Jones, The Rock, The Hunt for Red October and The Untouchables - for which he received an Oscar for best supporting actor. He passed away in 2020 in the Bahamas aged 90. | National World Photo: Andrew Milligan
2. Bay City Rollers
Easily the biggest music act to come out of Edinburgh, the Bay City Rollers were massive in the 1970s all over the world, with their fans caught up in 'Roller-Mania'. The pop rockers biggest hits included 'Shang-A-Lang', 'Bye Bye Baby', 'Saturday Night' and 'Give a Little Love'. It is believed that the Edinburgh band sold an incredible 120 million records during their career. Sadly three of the tartan-clad five-piece have now passed away. Alan Longmuir died in July 2018, while Ian Mitchell died in September 2020 and singer Les McKeown passed away in April 2021. | National World Photo: jpi
3. Muriel Spark
Born in Edinburgh in 1918, this iconic author is probably most famous for her 1961 novel The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. Spark started writing seriously, under her married name, after World War II. In 1947 she became editor of the Poetry Review making her one of the only female editors of the time. | Getty Photo: Evening Standard
4. Ken Buchanan
Portobello resident Ken Buchanan MBE was considered by many to be the greatest boxer ever to emerge from the UK. The Edinburgh-born sportsman, who fought a total of 69 fights throughout his career, became the undisputed world lightweight champion in 1971. Sadly, the boxing legend passed away in April last year. His memory lives on in the city with a statue of the legendary boxer standing outside St James Quarter, which luckily he lived to see unveiled in August 2022. | National World Photo: Neil Johnstone