Talk of the town: Art auction draws out six-figure sum

IT was a good day for art lovers - and the auctioneers - yesterday when a pair of "important" oil paintings by Francis Cadell fetched £150,000 in the Capital.

The Pink Robe, which the 26-year-old Edinburgh artist completed in 1909 shortly after acquiring his first studio in the Capital, was sold at Bonhams' sale of Scottish pictures to a Scots collector for 72,000.

A later, unexhibited work, Iona looking to the Dutchman's Cap, painted around 1920, sold for 78,000. Bidders forced the figure 18,000 over the painting's pre-sale estimate, to what is thought to be the highest sum for a Cadell Iona of its small size.

With app, getting a taxi doesn't have to be taxing

IF, like Talk of the Town, you find you've lost the ability to carry out even the most basic tasks without first consulting your smart phone, we have some good news for you.

The tiresome and laborious practice of sticking out your hand to hail passing taxis could soon be a thing of the past.

Central Taxis has launched its very own iPhone app, meaning customers can use their phones to make instant bookings without even having to talk to anyone.

Royal meal of approval

WHILE royal wedding frenzy continues, so does the lookalike lunacy.

For the next week and a half, just about any woman with long brown hair and any young man with a blue blazer in his wardrobe can find work pretending to be the royal couple. Having seen the pictures of just one such couple, we take with a pinch of salt the claims from Craig House Brewers Fayre restaurant in Musselburgh that "The tongues of customers and restaurant staff alike were set wagging when it appeared that Prince William and his bride-to-be Kate Middleton stopped by to try some local cuisine".

Ms Middleton might be more down-to-earth than her in-laws-to-be, but we have a feeling that in the approach to her big day, she may not be taking advantage of the "right royal feast chip shop style" for 7.99 with free pint.

Julie comes to the rescue

RESCUE dog Bonnie was a star on STV's The Hour last week, taking just seconds to impress viewers.

The collie, who underwent physiotherapy and rehab after catching pneumonia, was taken to Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home after a member of the public spotted her wandering the streets.

Her appearance on the show's 'Give a Dog a Home' appeal paid off when Mayfield woman Julie Gillan took her home the next day.