for the site of the future Scottish Assembly, and subsequently as a potential site for the Scottish Parliament, Calton Hill was the location of a permanent vigil for Scottish devolution. However, Donald Dewar, then Secretary of State for Scotland, considered the site a "nationalist shibboleth", and the nearby St Andrew's House buildings (which at that time were the base of the Secretary of State for Scotland and the former Scottish Office) to look "Nazi" like "Dresden" (sic). It was also the venue in October 2004 for the Declaration of Calton Hill which outlined the demands for a future Scottish republic. Events Calton Hill is the venue for a number of events throughout the year. The largest of these is the Beltane Fire Festival held on 30 April each year, attended by over 12,000 people. The Dussehra Hindu Festival also takes place on Calton Hill near the beginning of October each year and the Samhuinn Fire festival takes place at the end of October. Calton Hill has been used as a location for films such as Sunshine on Leith (where Davy and Yvonne sing Misty Blue), Death Defying Acts (Houdini) and Greyfriars Bobby (views across the city). Illegal activities Calton Hill has been the focus of considerable police and local media interest. Controversy has revolved around the area's popularity as a venue for public sex and prostitution among males, as well as for drug use and underage drinking; city centre councillor David Beckett said that it "has traditionally been known as the place to go for homosexual sex in Edinburgh". A male-on-male gang rape occurred on the site in 2000, and a man was arrested for encouraging tourists to watch him simulating sex with a traffic cone two years later. In 2008, a member of staff at Blacks Outdoor Retail advised against camping in the area after a couple who had pitched a tent on the hill claimed that a man had made "lewd" and inappropriate advances towards them. Calton Hill has also been the site of assaults on gay people, and on people suspected of being gay: in 1997, a Japanese tourist required plastic surgery after being robbed and subjected to a "vicious, brutal, and sustained attack" by two assailants. See also Hills in Edinburgh Regent, Royal and Carlton Terrace Garden London Road Gardens Carlton Terrace, Edinburgh Regent Terrace Royal Terrace, Edinburgh References External links Bartholomew's Chronological map of Edinburgh