The long life of the Edinburgh Fringe is packed with the creative and the unexpected, not just in performances but in performance spaces.
It is, I believe, of the very essence of a ‘fringe’ that it lives on the edges, it has a visceral edge missing from The Festival, it travels the by-ways rather than the highways.
Fringe venues at their best are small and imperfectly formed. They make every performance memorable. The best are carved from Edinburgh itself.
Public toilets and bathtubs, swimming pools, chicken coops and Bob Slayer’s famous Big Red Bus have all made little pockets of August memorable.
I don’t imagine those who attended the PBH Free Fringe show at the top of Arthur’s Seat will ever forget it.
Fringe venues should not be smart. They should not be shiny. They should hold out a hint of a doubtful smell and a dubious ‘other life’.
Edinburgh’s Cowgate in some ways epitomises the Fringe, in terms of (mainly) comedy. And if you want to drink overpriced beer, play ‘dodge the vomit’ and get your laughs without having to walk up a single hill (easier said than done in Edinburgh) then it is the place for you.
And it has to be admitted that it offers about as much ‘Fringe’ atmosphere as anyone can handle without requiring specialised breathing kit.
Karen Koren’s original Gilded Balloon in the Cowgate – sadly lost in the terrible fire of 2002 – was fabulously fustily Fringe, and ruled the ‘gate until the the Underbelly chaps took their Winchester shirts and posh voices to join her in the very bowels of the city in 2000 with just four shows, a brave, and as it turned out, blindingly successful move.
The Underbelly still has that home in the Cowgate – albeit with many more rooms than originally – and it is by far the best and Fringiest of their many spaces.
Still on the Cowgate, Just The Tonic’s Rowantree Bar, stands like an alcoholic Cerberus guarding more subterranean Caves, and the many comedy shows therein.
And for those who like their Fringe experience to be truly intimate, PBH’s Free Fringe is offering a roster of fascinating shows in the three 15 seater karaoke booths at Carbon.
However, Cowgate aside, there is much fun and fascination to be had elsewhere, without ever venturing into a soulless Conference Centre or braving the lanyards and hi-vis vests brigade in the bigger ‘establishment’ venues.
You have a choice of 12 churches (I would say “a Catholic selection” but there is so much more than that) -and three major cathedrals in which to enjoy your Fringe as God intends. If you are planning a trip to St Giles or – by way of decorative contrast – either of the St Maries, combining it with some entertainment can be a genuine improvement. But perhaps that is just the atheist in me speaking.
In terms of fascinating stories for those of a theological bent (18th August, various times), The Magdalen Chapel (on the Cowgate) was built as a posh Catholic chapel and turned into the birthplace of Scottish Presbyterianism … a little like The Hawksmoor going vegan …
Alongside churches, many of Edinburgh’s museums and libraries host Fringe shows and many of them are as fascinating as the shows they host.
The National Museum of Scotland is offering ‘ Giants’ but, for me, more in keeping with ‘Fringe’ ethos … have you ever been to the Wee Museum of Memory? Or the Museum of Magic Fortune Telling and Witchcraft? Both enchanting in their own way (see what I did there?) and both hosting appropriately unusual sounding shows.
Even Gladstone’s Land, built in 1501 (which is old) is host to a singer guitarist so there is music to enjoy while your eyes are wowed by the fabulous painted ceilings for which the place is famed (as well as being ancient on a mile of ancient.
Then there is the Library of Mistakes in the New Town – staging an exhibition of maps with mistakes in them. Even the National Library of Scotland has developed something of a sense of humour by hosting an exhibition on Rain !
Lighthouse, Edinburgh’s Radical Bookshop offers ‘This Integrated’, a powerful sounding performance, for two days only. That is the thing with the independent venues – they play when they want to and you have to play along. That is the Fringe.
Elsewhere in the retail world, Slow Progress Cafe and Records offers a whole programme from PBH Free Fringe alongside great food and a wonderland of vinyl.
Even drama doesn’t only live where you expect it, and Hibernian Supporters Club – now with a place as one of the best loved off-Fringe venues again plays host to Saltire Sky, back by popular demand with two plays after the howling success of 1902. Athens of the North and MANikin are, I am told (by a biased source, I confess) so good that even a Hearts supporter will enjoy their surroundings.
If medicine quickens your pulse, then there is a chance to visit the Royal College of Nursing and learn the history of Prison Nursing, to say nothing of getting a look at the Exhibition Gallery at the Physicians Gallery in Queen Street to learn more than you ever imagined you could at the Fringe in “Modern Medicine: Menstruation” and “Rag : A History of Blood”.
Sometimes, the best thing is just to go with your gut – in this next instance, as it happens, almost literally. Is The Tipsy Midgie not just the greatest name for a scotch whisky bar?. And when you learn that their Midnight Treats at the Fringe offers a tasting of three top Scotch whiskies paired with three scottish canapes doesn’t it make watching Daniel Sloss do material he already did here last year, along with 3000 other people pale by comparison?
Should your sensitive bits be exhausted by the relentless hurly burly of August, take them for some quality quiet and art appreciation in the Recovery Room in Thomson’s Tower in Dr Neil’s Garden, down on the bank of Duddingston Loch. Good for the soul.
Keller Taproom
A specialist bar selling German bier and decorated with hops might not be that interesting for non beer drinkers. But on four nights in August it becomes a left wing, woke strippers bar run and 100% organised by the strippers themselves. Baby Dolls, this ain’t.
Carbon : PBH Free Fringe
Offers an entire roster of comedy shows plus two plays including the enticingly named Tit Talk in the Karaoke booths.
And talking of tits …
The Physician’s Gallery in Queen Street :
Discussion Modern Medicine : Menstruation
Exhibition : Rag: A History of Blood
The Museum of Magic, Fortune Telling and Witchcraft
Spoken Word “Witch: Women on Trial”
Theatre “The Mysterious Seelie Wight Women”
National Library of Scotland
Exhibition : Rain
West Port Oracle : Flight Club
A full programme of comedy which you watch from the comfort of airline seats, in a simulated aircraft cabin.
Wee Museum of Memory
An exhibition (interactive and family friendly) of 1000s of nostalgic objects.
Library of Mistakes :
Spoken Word : Mistakes on Maps
Lighthouse :The Radical Bookshop
Theatre : This Integrated (two nights only)
Hibernian Supporters Club
Theatre : MANikin
Athens of the North
