'It's no for us now son' – Leithers lament hipster takeover
Source: scotsman.com
TL;DR
- Stephen Jardine laments Leith's gentrification displacing working-class locals with hipster influx.
- Old shipyard now brews cortados at £13 sardine tins on toast.
- Real Leithers declare "It’s no for us now son" while fleeing to suburbs.
The story at a glance
Leith, Edinburgh's historic port, has morphed from shipbuilding hub to trendy enclave of cortado bars and £300 hamster-hair jumpers. Columnist Stephen Jardine charts this shift, mourning the loss of sailors, deckhands, and authentic locals to influencers and digital nomads. Published 4th Apr 2026, it captures peak gentrification amid Scotland's urban renewal debates. Leith's resilience shines through rats and holdouts like Tom Kitchin's restaurant.
Key moments & milestones
- Shipbuilding era: Men in boiler suits hammered ships at the Shore engineering works.
- Tom Kitchin's early days: Stepped over drunk Lithuanian deckhands to open his restaurant doors.
- Recent transformation: Old works now serve £13 sardine tins with toast amid cortado struggles.
- Last week: Harry Enfield onstage reviving his "Saw You Coming" yuppie-trap sketch.
- Weekend scene: Man-boys blast jazz funk at swans along Water of Leith footpath.
- Tram encounter: Two original Leithers head to Ocean Terminal bingo, declare "It’s no for us now son."
Signature highlights
- Old Shore engineering works symbolises change: boiler-suited ship fixers replaced by baristas perfecting cortados, serving sardines in tins with toast at £13—"peeling back the lid is the only heavy metal work."
- New arrivals thrive: Shops peddle £300 hamster-hair jumpers, ever-closed art galleries, mystery offices slurping coconut water; pop-up flogging empty crisp packets or odd socks would boom if run by "Mati" with shifting pronouns.[[1]](https://www.scotsman.com/news/opinion/columnists/its-no-for-us-now-son-why-real-leithers-despair-over-whats-happened-to-the-place-6561989)
- Clinging survivors face influencer raids: Long-established spots risk "#SHHH, the hidden Leith gem" trades for free cronuts.
- Hopeful holdouts: Port O’ Leith bar, Tom Kitchin's top Scottish food, Barry Fish's normal seafood plates—not in "miniature wheelie bins alongside Negronis featuring live goldfish."
- Nature fights back: Water of Leith path bucolic save DJ decks, but massive rats scurry defiantly—"Leith’s oldest residents will always stubbornly defy gentrification."
Key quotes
“It’s no for us now son.”
—Two original Leithers on the tram, passing their old home en route to Ocean Terminal bingo.
Why it matters
Gentrification erodes community fabric in ports like Leith, swapping industrial grit for curated quirk, pricing out natives citywide. Readers in changing neighbourhoods face hikes in £13 tins over pub pints, weighing authenticity against buzz. Watch if rats and rats prevail or if social media whims fade, letting real Leithers reclaim ground.