Edinburgh in August is a fascinating place, as one of the largest art festivals in the world descends on my city. And, yes, one of the shows was named "A Fringe Affair", and was really good, and I have totally stolen the name for it for this article.
I've actually written a song to express how it feels to be in Edinburgh in August:
This year, the Festival's theme was "Bin Strike", and they went all in, with trash bags piled high, papers littering the ground, and rubbish bins overflowing everywhere. The smell was so realistic!
This is actually the Brighton bin strike of 2013, but same idea. It's a popular theme.
This month, we'll look back at the street in the years before the apocalyptic theme of this Fringe Festival. Next month – presuming the performers I contacted get back to me, or our readers have images they'd like to submit – we'll have shows themselves.
Performers fill the street, working the crowds, trying to either gain tips from their prowess or lure people into shows...
Accordionist on stilts in 2021
Unicycle juggler in 2018
Chinese dance troupe, 2013
Piper, 2017
Centaur, 2017
Balancing illusion, 2017
Puppeteer for the show "Glitch", 2016
"Free the Nipple" protest, 2017. Because the Fringe gets used for many things.
Living statue, 2010
Unliving statue, 2010
Leafletter/performer for "Sword in the Stone" (I think, the leaflet's a little hard to read), 2007
Comedian Thom Tuck leafletting in 2008
Pretending to be dead to advertise for a play about JFK, 2006
Some sort of horn player, 2007
Axe juggler, 2007
Band, 2010
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