The Real Mary King's Close | Edinburgh's deepest secret

USPA NEWS - Underground Unlocked. Step beneath the Royal Mile and experience The Real Mary King’s Close like never before.

Underground Unlocked 2015

Mary King’s Close like never before
For one night only, Mary King’s Close unlocked the secrets of The Close in a way few have ever seen. Underground Unlocked is a truly unique chance to step into the 17th century and witness history spring to life around you.

Unlike Mary King’s Close's traditional guided tours, this immersive event allowed the public to uncover stories, interact with the past, and see The Close as it might have been—alive with voices, characters, and hidden tales.

For the first time since people lived, worked and died on the streets beneath Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, the site of The Real Mary King’s Close bustled with life again. A select group of people were free to roam at leisure through preserved shops and homes, and met thirteen former residents along the way.

Lucky attendees of this special event met the formidable plague doctor, John Paulitious, to hear his grim diagnosis. They stepped into the world of Mary King, a determined businesswoman whose name still echoes through The Close. And exchanged words with renowned poet Robert Fergusson before crossing paths with the eerie Foul Clengers, those tasked with cleansing plague-ridden homes, revealing their chilling duties in Edinburgh’s past. The privileged attendees listened to Janet Chesney, mother of the Close’s last resident, as she shared memories of a life once lived in these very streets.

Journey Back In Time
Imagine a warren of streets frozen in time, where centuries of stories are just waiting to be told. Discover authentic truths about Edinburgh's dark past, and find out what it was really like for the people who lived, worked, and died on the Close.

Mary King's Close is a historic close located under the Edinburgh City Chambers building on the Royal Mile, in the historic Old Town area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It took its name from one Mary King, a merchant burgess who resided on the Close in the 17th century. The close was partially demolished and buried due to the building of the Royal Exchange in the year 1753, and later closed to the public for many years. The area became shrouded in myths and urban legends; tales of hauntings and murders abounded. In 1897, Andrew Chesney, the last resident remaining in Mary King's close, was given a compulsory purchase order for £400 and he left the close in 1902.

The close is currently operated as a tourist attraction by Continuum Attractions.

For more information please click on the link below.