I had mentioned about Edinburgh, in several of my older posts before – namely “Scotland – A Dream Land“, “Queen Elizabeth II and Her Platinum Jubilee” and “Gleneagles, Scotland” (Click the linked names to see the relevant posts). This post is about Edinburgh’s creative festival that has become a phenomenon worldwide and is running in the city right now: ‘The Edinburgh Festival Fringe‘ also known as ‘The Fringe‘… (Photo above: Fringe 2023 photo via edinburghfestivalcity.com)

The Fringe is a three-week festival of performing arts that takes place in Edinburgh every August, coinciding with the ‘Edinburgh International Festival‘. The Fringe is recognized as the world’s largest arts festival, which I hadn’t heard of until I spoke to the creator of this platform (mypleasantthings.com) and Product Manager at It Wired Ltd, who lives in Edinburgh, a couple of days ago. When I learned from him there’s the Fringe in town right now, I first wondered about the name Fringe and what it meant, which the story of the festival clarifies…

Photo: (frasershospitality.com)

The story of the Fringe dates back to 1947, the year Edinburgh International Festival was founded, when eight theatre groups who hadn’t been invited to perform in the festival came to Edinburgh and put on their show anyway outside the regular programme. The International Festival hadn’t stopped these performers who staged their shows on the fringe of the Festival – where the festival’s name comes from. More and more uninvited performers, not included in the festival programme, followed since then and this artistic movement has become a huge success – as millions flock to Edinburgh today for the Fringe. (britannica.com, edfringe.com)

Photos: edinburgh.org

The Fringe grew so much that a Fringe Society was formed in 1958 to organize the event. Today, performers register with the Fringe Society to sell tickets and are listed in an official program. However, unregistered participants are still welcome. Tickets are sold at the Fringe Box Office, by phone and on Edinburgh Fringe website (edfringe.com) at quite moderate prices. Street events or circle shows are free for the public. (edfringe.com)

Photo: edfringe.com (Fringe Box Office (to the back of Fringe Shop) is centrally located at 180 High Street at Royal Mile.)

No single person or organisation runs the Fringe. No-one’s in charge of deciding which shows shall take part in the festival and there are no curators or programme directors. The Fringe Society’s job is “to ensure a platform for freedom of creative expression that’s open to all” (edfringe.com). They say:

“Anyone with a story to tell and a venue to host them is welcome.” (edfringe.com)

As a written rule, the Fringe Society, founded by artists, does not take part in vetting the festival’s programme. The Society supports and encouragse the participants and assist the audiences. Their vision is:

“To give anyone a stage and everyone a seat” (edfringe.com)

The term ‘fringe’ means something on the outside of the main event, yet it has become the largest arts festival in the world – an open-access festival anyone can register to where less traditional and more unconventional performers and acts are welcome. (bbc.co.uk).

A Fringe street event (Photo: edinburgh.org) – (Street events bring colorful sights to the streets of Edinburgh. The shows are free yet you can put money in the buskers’ cases. Some artists even have online “scan to tip” signs.)

There are so many different kinds of shows including theatre, stand-up comedy, dance, circus, cabaret, musicals, opera, children’s shows and of course street events – one of the biggest part of the Fringe… The festival brochure is over 400 pages long – so huge! Yet it is said that there is something for everyone at the Fringe. (edinburgh.org)

A stand-up comedy show at “THE STAND COMEDY CLUB“, Edinburgh with performances every night. The famous basement club frequented mainly by locals is referred as where comedians go to see comedy. (Photo and info: cntraveler.com)
(There are three Stand clubs in the UK: Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle. Beers and pub meals are served. 2024 Fringe performances take place in their venues across city centre as well (the stand.co.uk – click the link)
(I am happy to discover this comedy club, said to be typical Scottish, by means of this post and have capitalized its name not to miss it when I visit Edinburgh.)

Fringe wall posters (Photo: Pinterest)

Edinburgh Fringe takes place at a wide variety of venues like a former medical school (Summerhall), a students union or small pubs. From grand theaters to small basements, many venues open their doors to Fringe performers. ‘The Pleasance‘, ‘Assembly Hall’, ‘Gilded Balloon‘ and ‘Assembly Rooms’ are counted among the main Fringe venues. (timeout.com, edinburgh.org)

Gilded Balloon, Edinburgh (Photo: whatsoninedinburgh.co.uk) / Assembly Hall, Edinburgh (Photo: factotum.co.uk) – both among the main Fringe venues

Street events, featuring international street performers and buskers, take place at the High Street (most popular part of the Royal Mile) and the Mound (the steep hill that connects Edinburgh Old Town and New Town). Mound Precinct (The Galleries) has a public space frequently used by buskers, street performers and outdoor events.

Once a traditional processional route of monarchs, Royal Mile is the center of Old Town running from Edinburgh Castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse (Photo: ewh.org.uk)

Either the Old Town, dominated by Edinburgh Castle, and the neoclassical New Town of Edinburgh are UNESCO listed World Heritage Sites. A city of remarkable architecture and beautiful parks, Edinburgh is home to the Scottish Parliament. Well-known visitor attractions include Edinburgh Castle, Palace of Holyrood House, Royal Yacht Britannia, and the National Museum of Scotland. (edfringe.com)

Edinburgh Castle – the fortress at the centre of Scotland (Photo: historic-uk.com)

Edinburgh is known as the ‘Festival City‘ and hosts 11 major festivals each year. “Edinburgh International Film Festival” and “Edinburgh International Book Festival” are on now in the city. “Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival” (In July) would appeal to me as a jazz lover which I think would suit very well to the city’s historic shady atmosphere.

Photos: edinburghfestivalcity.com / festivalflyer.com

Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2024 is on now and will last until August 26. This years programme features 3,317 total shows (including free and Pay What You Can shows) and 51,446 performances presented by 53 countries (including UK) to take place at 262 total venues. (edfringe.com)

Photo: (Dan Smith Photography / Shutterstock.com via timeout.com)

Fringe poster wall and a Fringe artist (Photos: edinburghfestivalcity.com)

You may come across recognized artists at the Fringe. For instance, Dion Owen, a professional comedian and cyclist from a small town in British Columbia (a province of Canada mentioned in my older posts titled “Chalets – (Part 3) and More From British Columbia and Aspen to Wanaka“), performs his stand-up at this year’s Fringe and he also provides free bikes for Fringe artists – a notable event. (edfringe.com).
Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, Emma Thompson, Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Jude Law, John Cleese, Rowan Atkinson, Graham Norton and Billy Connolly are counted among the celebrities who got their start at the Fringe.

Dion Owen (Photo: crowdfunder.co.uk) / Emma Thompson (Photo: filmstories.co.uk)

The Fringe Edinburgh had been an inspiration for other fringe festivals in the world. For instance, The Adelaide Fringe in Adelaide, South Australia, is said to be the second-largest annual arts festival in the world (after Edinburgh Fringe), started in 1960 during the main Adelaide Festival of Arts. (adelaidefringe.com.au)

‘The Garden of Unearthly Delights‘ in Adelaide, Australia – a major outdoor hub of the Adelaide Fringe (Photo: Andre Castellucci / The Garden via abc.net.au)

You may check the website ‘worldfringe.com‘ (Global Association of Fringe Festivals) for the fringe festivals all over the world. Edinburgh Fringe though, is the first and the largest one…
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Festival is passed only by the Olympics and The World Cup in terms of global ticket of events. In 2023, the festival had issued 2,4 million tickets! (edfringe.com)

Edinburgh Fringe performances (Photos: edinburghfestivalcity.com)

A tip is listening to people in the box office queue for what’s going around and what they’ve enjoyed. As the centre of Edinburgh is very busy during the Fringe, public transport is suggested to get to the street events. You can find bike racks within the sites. (edinburgh.org)

Streets of Edinburgh during the Fringe Festival 2024 which is on in the city now – (Photos taken by Burak, the creator of this platform and Product Manager at It Wired Ltd, who lives in Edinburgh. Special thanks to him for inspiring me of this post.)

I finally would like to mention Waterstones in West End, whose image I came across a couple of months ago: a four-floor bookshop at city centre located opposite Edinburgh Castle on Princess Street, the main shopping street.

View from Waterstones West End – a secret gem (Photo: edinburgh.org)

You can enjoy your tea or coffee in the bookshop’s cafe with the majestic view of the Edinburgh Castle, as you go through a book or the Fringe brochure and think about the creative free spirit of the Edinburgh Fringe: Still going on…