Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Why is Granite Noir such a criminally good festival? The clue’s in the title

Ian Rankin’s new book is A Song for the Dark Times.
Ian Rankin’s new book is A Song for the Dark Times.

It has quickly become a staple of the Aberdeen festival scene, with a packed programme for crime-writing enthusiasts.

Yet there’s something for everyone at Granite Noir, whether you are interested in literature, science, forensic medicine, music, taxing your little grey cells Poirot-style, or simply being immersed in a fun-filled occasion with like-minded aficionados.

With the best in home grown and international crime fiction, a courtroom drama, poison cocktails, music and murder mystery escape games, the festival returns to the city next week from February 20 to 23.

Crime fiction’s popularity lies in its ability to tackle many topical issues and prick our social conscience.

Headlining Granite Noir 2020 are the legendary American author Sara Paretsky, Norway’s best-selling female crime writer Anne Holt, Ben Aaronovitch, author of the hugely popular Rivers of London urban fantasy series and Scotland’s own Ian Rankin who will be making his first appearance at the event with comedian Phill Jupitus.

But there are all sorts of treats in store for attendees. Check out Margaret Kirk, for instance, who produced the much-acclaimed  What Lies Buried. Or Neil Lancaster who has transferred his attention from solving crime to writing thrillers.  Or Nikki Welch, Olga Wotjas, Clare Carson and Ms Kirk, who are involved in the event Gin and Sin.

The North of Scotland’s connection with Scandinavia is reinforced with appearances from Norwegian, Swedish and Icelandic writers and home-grown talent including conversations with Denise Mina, Helen Fitzgerald and Ambrose Parry.

Crime fiction is only one element of the busy schedule. Non-fiction events include conversations with three of Britain’s most renowned forensic scientists who advise both the police and crime writers and Robert Jeffrey who explores the remarkable story of Peterhead Prison, a truly grim institution with a fearsome reputation.

A look inside the walls of Peterhead Prison in 1959

Using original records from Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives, “Outcasts: Women, Crime and Society”, a free exhibition at the Music Hall and Lemon Tree, examines many people’s morbid fascination with female criminals and looks as far back as the witchcraft paranoia around Aberdeen during the 1590s.

Criminally good music events include Jupitus and Rankin spinning tunes from their own collections and David Holmes, a Belfast-born DJ and composer and the winner of a BAFTA for his score for the Killing Eve BBC TV series, who is joined by journalist Tom Morton to discuss his life and work and Stuart Cosgrove who discusses the surprising link between soul music and murder.

The fun and games continue with The Locked Door: Murder at the Movies escape room where participants revisit a crime scene, glean clues and solve puzzles to crack the case.

Film screenings, performances of Dial M For Murder starring Tom Chambers and Christopher Harper, writing workshops, an evening of Gin and Sin, local history walks and talks, a Poison Cocktail Party and Poisoned High Tea complete the hectic line-up of events for adults.

Little detectives can enjoy Monstrously Funny Adventures with Justin Davies and his adventurous character Alice MacAlister as she meets some hilariously scary monsters – and learn how to howl like a werewolf (in English, French and maybe even Doric).

Sara Paretsky is appearing at Granite Noir.

Or they can join the CSI:  Crime Squirrel Investigators with author and CBeebies screenwriter Emily Dodd as she explains how to identify different animals, and invites children to take part as she sings, raps and plays guitar.

Granite Noir is produced by Aberdeen Performing Arts on behalf of partners Belmont Filmhouse, Aberdeen City Libraries and Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Archives and supported by Aberdeen City Council, Creative Scotland and EventScotland.