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Home : Travel : Fun at the Fringe :

Fun at the Fringe

Here are seven top reasons to take a trip to Edinburgh this August

Festival fever takes over the Scottish capital every summer, with an array of cultural events celebrating comedy, art, music and dance.

There are countless reasons to visit this beautiful and vibrant city at any time of year, but throughout August it's bursting with international culture and entertainment.

Discover raw new comedy talent or the next big thing at the Edinburgh Fringe, from 3 to 25 August, or enjoy established, renowned artists at the Edinburgh International Festival, from 8 to 31 August.

Anyone can show up and perform at the Fringe Festival as there is no selection process. Simply pay a fee to the organisers for ticket services and publicity.

Intimate and exciting

While this means some acts are rough around the edges and some of the venues rather basic, it can be exciting getting up close and personal to performers in small theatres, and spotting upcoming talent. Comedians such as Jimmy Carr, Ed Byrne, The Mighty Boosh and The League of Gentlemen made their names at the Fringe, with all of them receiving nominations for the coveted Perrier Award, now called the if.comedy Award.

Award-winning talent

Previous award winners also include Flight of the Conchords, Omid Djalili, Sean Hughes, Dave Gorman, Al Murray Pub Landlord, Richard Aoyade, Matthew Holness, Noel Fielding, Lee Evans, Frank Skinner and Dylan Moran.

And you never know who you could be rubbing shoulders with – fellow audience members could themselves be global superstars. Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins pitched up at the Fringe in 2002, and Christian Slater visited in 2004.

Plenty to see

The 2008 Fringe is set to feature 31,320 performances of 2,088 shows in 247 venues so you'll have to be organised and athletic to see even a small fraction of the acts. Regular festival-goers check out the early reviews in the local and festival press, for tips on the ones to watch. But be warned – hot tickets sell out fast.

Stacks of acts

You can book advance tickets, which is a safe bet is you fancy any of the more established names returning to the Fringe in 2008.

Big names performing this year include: Richard Herring, Count Arthur Strong, Rhona Cameron, Henry Rollins, Arthur Smith, Robin Ince, Stewart Lee, Shazia Mirza, Sean Lock, Paul Merton, Lucy Porter, Omid Djalili, Ruby Wax, Miles Jupp, Jeff Green, John Hegley, Nicholas Parsons and magician Ali Cook, of Channel 4's 'Dirty Tricks' and Five's 'Monkey Magic'. And Armando Iannucci will be recording a radio show on 14 August.

And if you fancy tackling stand-up yourself, why not go along to one of the two-day compering courses.

Fun for free

On every day of the Fringe the Royal Mile is littered with street entertainers, from fire-eaters and tightrope walkers, to unicyclist jugglers and mime artists. Some artists perform highlights of their shows helping you choose what to see.

And almost 250,000 people descend on The Meadows on Fringe Sunday to sample the best the fest has to offer for free. This family day out is always on the second Sunday of the Fringe – 10 August this year – and summed up as 'a buzzing outdoor carnival of live performance'. See street performers, comics, dancers and actors on stage or mingling with the crowds.

Edinburgh International Festival

The Edinburgh Edinburgh International Festival features invited acts only, and largely champions theatre and dance, classical music and opera. The fun starts on 8 August.

Energetic and entertaining, the Festival's dance programme for 2008 is set to feature imaginative choreography and movement from around the globe. The opera schedule features amusing and moving tales, some employing historical narratives with others using contemporary themes and music. Iranian, Belgian, Polish and Bosnian productions are among the line-up in this year's drama productions.

The closing fireworks concert on 31 August is reason enough to visit. Most tickets for the official venues – Ross Theatre and Princes Street Gardens – are sold in advance, with some allocated by ballot. However, you can enjoy the display from vantage points across the city without a ticket, including Princes Street itself and the family viewing area at Inverleith Park.

Edinburgh Military Tattoo

Thousands of spectators from across the globe descend on Edinburgh Castle each year for this major event, which encompasses displays of military costumes, music and parades, bagpipes and pipe bands, combat and motorcycle display teams, parachute displays and more. A visually rich collection of performances by Highland dancers, drummers, military bands and the famous Lone Piper make this a unique experience. It runs from 1 to 23 August. Official website »

Festival of Spirituality and Peace

Originally part of the Fringe, the programme for this independent event includes public debates, drama, film, workshops, meditation, prayer, concerts, exhibitions and more – all in the name of peace. Official website »

Edinburgh International Book Festival

Literary types should also travel to Edinburgh in August, for the 25^th anniversary of this global extravaganza, which runs from 9 to 25 August.

The festival attracts acclaimed authors and performers, with this year's line-up including Simon Callow, Will Self, Rick Wakeman, Clive James, Val McDermid, Tariq Ali, Louis de Bernières, Hanif Kureshi, Steven Berkoff, Irvine Welsh and Alex James. Organisers promise "lively debates on ethical, political and environmental matters" and a series of workshops, readings and events purely for children. Official website »

Edinburgh Mela

This multicultural mix of music, dance, lifestyle, visual arts and theatre is a celebration of the arts with a carnival feel. There are also debates, a Bollywood fashion show, DJs, an aerial circus and plenty of fun for children. Treat yourself to a plethora of colourful choreography, a triple-bill of new Pakistani films, and much more, from 25 to 31 August. Official website »

Check out our other inspirational ideas for days out and weekend breaks.

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