The Scottish Storytelling Centre occupies a 1450 stone-and-timber building which turns out to be Edinburgh’s oldest house.

Primarily an arts venue, it also has an exhibition on Scottish stories from ancient folk tales to Harry Potter but is most famous for its association with John Knox (1513–72), the fiery leader of Scotland's protestant reformation and minister at St Giles' Cathedral.

John Knox

One of the most important Scots of his time, Knox lived in the house during the 1560s and might well have died in an upstairs room, which today contains relics of his life.

This took many twists and turns from his ordination in 1536, to his occupation of St Andrews Castle with other protestants – for which he earned a two-year spell as a galley slave in the French navy. It wasn’t until his eventual return to Edinburgh in 1559 – after spells in London and Geneva – that he helped spearhead the Scottish Reformation.

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