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Visiting Edinburgh during the Festival Fringe

September 10th, 2010

Visiting Edinburgh during the Festival Fringe

For those looking for the perfect time to visit the capital of Scotland, August is the month you’ll find to be most strongly recommended. Not only does it bring Edinburgh’s best weather (well, sometimes), but it also heralds the time of year when Edinburgh Festival Fringe takes place, an event that sees hundreds of thousands of tourists descend upon the city every year.

The Fringe is the world’s most famous arts festival and has run for over 60 years now. Getting bigger every time, the Festival Fringe is the perfect opportunity to take in a broad spectrum of the arts scene from across the globe, with thousands of performers visiting Edinburgh every year to put on shows, open galleries and entertain the masses – all in celebration of art and its impact on society.

A time of great joy in the city, the festival is sure to have something to suit all tastes. Well known for its huge comedy sections, you’ll be guaranteed to get more than a few laughs at any one of the hundreds of comedy shows taking place. Best of all, like many of the shows at the Fringe, plenty of these acts will be free – meaning you can take in a show whilst having dinner, enjoying a few drinks or simply if you’re a fan of the comedian.

Free performances abound: just take a walk through the Meadows or down the Royal Mile to see numerous performances taking place, from fire eaters to magic acts, from stand up to street mimes and music performers all aiming to please the crowds and win the most spectators. The city is at its most colourful best during these months and party-lovers will also benefit from many clubs changing their opening hours to accommodate a 5am closing time rather than the more traditional 3am.

One of the best things about the Fringe is the sense of equality amongst artists it brings. You’ll find students performing amongst some of the world’s biggest names, populating the same stages and sharing the same time slots. First time artists will put on shows beside professionals who have been in the business for years, and all with a sense of camaraderie that passes on to the audience.

So when thinking of a time for booking Edinburgh hotels and wondering when the best month is for seeing Edinburgh at its finest, make the Edinburgh Festival Fringe a priority for a memorable insight into what the Scottish capital has to offer.

Victoria Cochrane writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.

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Guide to the annual Bath Fringe Festival, England

August 24th, 2010

Guide to the annual Bath Fringe Festival, England

The Bath Fringe Festival is an annual celebration of arts that is hosted in the town of Bath in England. This festival takes place during the end of May/beginning of June every year and is usually a 17-day event. The Bath Fringe Festival showcases various forms of artistic talent with over 170 events taking place across these 17 days. The art forms featured in this wonderful event range from mainstream arts to marginal arts with Stand-up Comedy being at the forefront.

The first Bath Fringe Festival began in the year 1981 and evolved from the earlier community festivals. In the past, in terms of hosting events, Bath was famous for the Bath Music Festival, which was popular only among the upper class. To balance this out, the people of Bath decided to organise the Bath Fringe Festival. This festival was designed to appeal to a larger cross-section of the population of Bath, specifically targeting the younger local crowd who did not appreciate the more classical dominated music showcased at the Bath Music Festival.

Among the various forms of art that are portrayed in this wonderful 17 day event are Cabaret, indoor theatre, digital arts, street theatre, dance, circus arts and film. The Bath Fringe Festival also has a large musical element to it that includes an eclectic mix of various forms of music like folk, world music, Latin jazz, rock and pop. Through the years, various artistes, both local and international have taken great pride in performing at this event. The most famous of these are Arthur Smith, Jeremy Hardy, Ken Campbell, Mark Thomas, Bill Bailey, Julian Clary, Rory Mcleod, Billy Childish and Howard Marks.

The Bath Fringe Festival is said to have evolved directly from the Walcot Festival, which was a popular festival in the 1970s and early 80s. Today, the Bath Fringe Festival is the largest and oldest continually operating fringe festival in the world, which is a remarkable achievement considering its humble beginnings.

The events that take place in Bath Fringe Festival are varied and targeted at the different age groups. There are many events that appeal to adults of all ages, and others directed specially at the children. Some of the most popular events at the Fringe Festival include “The Wheel Thing” which is a pedal power festival, the Bath Community Carnival, the Bedlam Street Fair and the Outdoor Arts Festival. Along with the regular events, there are other new events added every year including several theme based events as well.

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Frugal Fringe Alternatives Come To The Edinburgh Festival

August 19th, 2010

Frugal Fringe Alternatives Come To The Edinburgh Festival

The famous Edinburgh International Festival may have been overshadowed in recent years by its wilder offspring, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The ever-expanding range of festivals spanning the arts that descends on the Scottish capital each summer looks set to be more profitable and popular than ever in 2010.

Even despite the global economic downturn that affected many areas of tourism and entertainment in 2009, the various festivals that took place at venues across Edinburgh last August managed to make for the most successful year yet. In a Year of Homecoming that also saw significant boosts to tourism and hotel occupancy elsewhere in Scotland, organisers may have a tough task beating last year’s record-breaking performance with this year’s festivities, but they may have a hope in the form of relative newcomers such as the Five Pound Fringe.

It may seem counter-intuitive to charge less for performances in order to make money, but the last few years have seen the phenomena of the Five Pound Fringe and its even more frugal cousin – the Free Fringe – growing in popularity and critical acclaim. Not merely the refuge of struggling performers who can’t afford the exorbitant rates charged by many of the larger Fringe venues, these fringe alternatives to the Edinburgh Fringe offer an economical means for performs to boost their audience figures, and a means for people who would otherwise be put off by escalating ticket prices to enjoy comedy, theatre and music performances for less.

It has been suggested that the influx of audiences to comedy shows in 2009 may have been partly due to the need for escapist comedy amidst the dour recession, but not everyone can afford prices upwards of £10 that are often the Fringe standard for an hour-long show. The mission statement of the Five Pound Fringe is to charge a set rate for shows to put audiences at ease, and the award-winning Free Fringe goes one step further in offering shows for no money at all.

Satisfied punters are encouraged to leave a donation of whatever they think the show is worth, and although it could be said that those involved are performing for love rather than money, generous donations could go a long way towards funding their lodging and other expenses during their time in the city.

With big-name comedians like Mark Watson, Robin Ince and Richard Herring making appearances in these cut-price shows, those taking Edinburgh flights to see the festival this August are encouraged to look beyond the lavish posters and established venues to seek out low-budget laughs at the Fringe alternatives.

Adam Singleton writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.

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