42 Facts About Dundee

1.

Dundee is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom.

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2.

Dundee has two universities – the University of Dundee and Abertay University.

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3.

In 2014, Dundee was recognised by the United Nations as the UK's first UNESCO City of Design for its diverse contributions to fields including medical research, comics and video games.

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4.

In 1645, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, Dundee was again besieged, this time by the Royalist Marquess of Montrose.

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5.

Notable resident of Dundee was Adam Duncan, 1st Viscount Duncan of Camperdown, Baron of Lundie .

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6.

Economy of mediaeval Dundee centred on the export of raw wool, with the production of finished textiles being a reaction to recession in the 15th century.

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7.

Dundee was said to be built on the 'three Js': Jute, Jam and Journalism.

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8.

Dundee was granted Royal Burgh status on the coronation of John Balliol as King of Scotland in 1292.

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9.

Dundee is one of 32 council areas of Scotland, and is represented by the Dundee City Council – a local council composed of 29 elected councillors.

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10.

Dundee was part of the pan-Scotland European Parliament constituency until 31 January 2020 when the U K left the EU.

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11.

On 18 September 2014, Dundee was one of four council areas to vote "Yes" in the Scottish independence referendum, with 57.

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12.

Dundee sits on the north bank of the Firth of Tay on the eastern, North Sea Coast of Scotland.

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13.

The area occupied by the medieval burgh of Dundee extends between East Port and West Port, which formerly held the gates to the walled city.

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14.

The median age of males and females living in Dundee was 37 and 40 years, respectively, compared to 37 and 39 years for those in the whole of Scotland.

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15.

Dundee has a higher proportion of university students – one in seven of the population – than any other town in Europe, except Heidelberg.

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16.

Dundee has a lot of students from abroad, mostly from the Republic of Ireland and other EU countries but with an increasing number from countries from the Far East and Nigeria.

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17.

Dundee is a key retail destination for North East Scotland and has been ranked 4th in Retail Rankings in Scotland.

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18.

Dundee is served by the A90 road, which connects the city to the M90 and Perth in the west with Forfar and Aberdeen in the north.

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19.

Xplore Dundee operates most of the intra-city services, with other more rural services operated by Stagecoach Strathtay.

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20.

Passenger services at Dundee are provided by ScotRail, CrossCountry, Caledonian Sleeper and London North Eastern Railway.

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21.

Dundee Airport offers commercial flights to London City, Belfast City and Sumburgh by Scotland's Airline: Loganair.

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22.

Cargo port of Dundee is one of the largest economic generators in the city and is operated by Forth Ports.

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23.

University of Dundee became an independent entity in 1967, after 70 years of being incorporated into the University of St Andrews.

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24.

Dundee College is the city's umbrella further education college, which was established in 1985 as an institution of higher education and vocational training.

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25.

Dundee has one independent school, the High School of Dundee, which was founded in the 13th century by the Abbot and monks of Lindores Abbey.

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26.

Church of Scotland Presbytery of Dundee is responsible for overseeing the worship of 37 congregations in and around the Dundee area, although changing population patterns have led to some of the churches becoming linked charges.

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27.

Dundee was unusual among Scottish medieval burghs in having two parish kirks; the second, dedicated to St Clement, has disappeared, but its site was approximately that of the present City Square.

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28.

Dundee Buddhist Group is a Buddhist Temple based in Reform Street.

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29.

Dundee made a bid to be named the 2017 UK City of Culture, and on 19 June 2013 was named as one of the four short-listed cities alongside Hull, Leicester and Swansea Bay.

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30.

Ultimately, Dundee's bid was unsuccessful, with Hull winning the contest.

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31.

Dundee came in fifth place in a newspaper survey regarding numbers of cultural venues in the United Kingdom, ahead of other Scottish cities.

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32.

Dundee went to bid to become the European Capital of Culture in 2023 but due to the United Kingdom voting to leave the European Union in June 2016, Dundee's bid, along with those of other British cities submitting bids, was discontinued by the European Commission.

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33.

Dundee Contemporary Arts opened in 1999 is an international art centre in the Nethergate close to Dundee Rep, which houses two contemporary art galleries, a two-screen arthouse cinema, a print studio, a visual research centre and a cafe bar.

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34.

Dundee has a strong literary heritage, with several authors having been born, lived or studied in the city.

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35.

City of Recovery Press was founded in Dundee, and has become a controversial figure in documenting the darker side of the city.

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36.

Dundee is home to a full-time repertory ensemble, which originated in 1939.

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37.

Dundee hosted BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend back in 2006 and was due to host for a second time in 2020 but it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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38.

Dundee is home to one of eleven BBC Scotland broadcasting centres, located within the Nethergate Centre.

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39.

The Dundee derby is one of the most highly anticipated fixtures in Scottish football.

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40.

Dundee is one of four British cities to have produced two European Cup semi-finalists.

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41.

Dundee reached the semi-finals of the forerunner to the UEFA Cup in 1968 and Dundee United were runners-up in the UEFA Cup in 1987.

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42.

Dundee is served by the East Central Region of the Scottish Ambulance Service which covers the city, Tayside and Kingdom of Fife.

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