Descend into a Cold War bunker, piece together guerrilla mosaics, unearth the most glorious of grottoes, genuflect before the wooden robot overlord, sniff out dogs more dazzling than Greyfriars Bobby, peruse a 17th-century list of ladies of pleasure, get water-boarded in a prototype Jacuzzi, travel to the Wild West of Morningside, discover hidden gardens and clandestine art that not even the neighbours know about. Far from the tourist traps and the crowded landmarks, you may have thought Edinburgh had no more to reveal, but the city still keeps many treasures hidden away in the most unexpected of places. An indispensable street and armchair guide for those who thought they knew Edinburgh well or who would like to explore the curiosities of this most secretive of cities.

Hannah Robinson is an Edinburgh-born writer and film director who has won two Hollywood awards for screenwriting. Her films are usually fictional and comic, but she has also made many documentaries about rescued buildings and monuments. She has worked as a food journalist for The Scotsman and The List magazine, as a story consultant for Sir Lenny Henry, and as art department for the Edinburgh International Film Festival. She founded the animation and film production company Palindromicals (@palindromicals - creative from back to front). She has an insatiable curiosity for discovering new places, people and stories.