Edinburgh Pub Guide: Maggie Dickson's

Maggie Dickson's Pub

Maggie Dickson's Pub is one of the run of interesting pubs along the north side of the Grassmarket in Edinburgh's Old Town.

Wider View of Grassmarket The Bar

A board outside the pub explains the origin of the name. Maggie Dickson was a fish hawker from Musselburgh. In 1723 she "fell pregnant" after a relationship with an innkeeper's son in Kelso. The newborn baby died and Maggie concealed its body. Found guilty of killing the child she was returned to Edinburgh for execution, which duly took place in the Grassmarket not far from the pub named after her, on 2 September 1724.

The Story of Maggie Dickson

Her execution was followed by a near riot as friends and relatives fought with medical students for possession of her body. The friends and relatives won, and Maggie was placed in a coffin and taken to Musselburgh for burial. While the party paused en route for refreshment in a roadside pub, the lid of the coffin was seen to move, and Maggie was found to be alive. She was well enough to walk the rest of the way to Musselburgh the next day.

She lived for another 40 years, known universally as Half-Hangit Maggie. Some say that Maggie survived because she had become a "good friend" of the ropemaker who supplied the hangman: and the early breaking of the rope allowed her survival. Whatever the reason for her survival, her story is remembered in the name of this pub.

Once through the front door you find yourself in a pub of dark wood and exposed brick. Some ghoulish features enliven matters: like the full size skeleton in stocks that presides over one area. A range of malt whiskies is on offer, and pub grub is available. The pub is popular with tourists and students, and can be very lively at weekends.

Inside Maggie Dickson's Pub