Edinburgh Festival reviews from locals, including but not limited to Edinburgh Fringe Festival reviews, are found here for easy access. A few tips on planning an Edinburgh festival visit are at the bottom of the page, and before that, you’ll find links to curated festival news.
We’ve built a Free PHB Fringe show finder, too.
Days until the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Edinburgh Festival 2026
The Edinburgh International Festival and the Festival Fringe both return on 7th August 2026, running through until 30th and 31st August respectively, as part of the city’s wider summer festival season.
The latest Festival reviews
Live music, master rights, and battles against tech giants collide in Michelle Shocked’s Bootleg This! at Edinburgh Fringe.
Read more Review: Michelle Shocked – Bootleg This!, Fringe 2026
East meets West in the afterlife as Peking Opera’s Yuji and Oscar Wilde’s Salome attempt to rewrite their fatal endings. A sharp, beautifully sung fusion musical running at C ARTS for the CCW China Season.
Wukong and Kong brings classic myth to modern student life at the Edinburgh Fringe with inventive puppetry, digital projection, and martial arts humour.
Former Traitors winner Hannah Byczkowski takes over the Turret at Teviot with sharp callbacks, high spirits, and hilarious takes on death in Killer.
Up close and personal inside The Nook at Teviot, Jess Carrivick turns childhood home movies into rapid character comedy. An inventive, nostalgic hour at the Edinburgh Fringe.
Read more Review: Jess Carrivick – For Your Consideration, Fringe 2026
A playful comedy about women reclaiming the messy, inconvenient parts of themselves that history and family memory tend to erase.
A playful, imaginative slice of children’s theatre built entirely on movement, visual storytelling and handcrafted sound. Instead of dialogue, the performers rely on sharp physical comedy and expressive character work to guide the audience through a simple but engaging storyline. The robot’s lifelike behaviour becomes the centrepiece of the show, creating a sense of wonder that pulls children in immediately.
A brilliantly energetic, funny, engaging and interactive magic show – not to mention fun for the entire family. Highly recommend!
A smart, funny and well-crafted hour from Alfie Brown, with plenty of laughs, excellent storytelling and an ending you really shouldn’t spoil for yourself.
Read more A review of Alfie Brown: The Entertainer, Fringe 2026
From Dust Bowl ballads to Merchant Marine anthems, Woody Sez at Underbelly Cowbarn is an exceptional celebration of Woody Guthrie packed with stunning four-part harmonies and live folk music.
You can find all the Edinburgh Fringe and festival reviews on this tag page.
Edinburgh Festivals news
In addition to Edinburgh Fringe Festival reviews and festival reviews, this page is occasionally updated by hand with EdFest news that provides context or might be interesting. Well, that’s the hope!
| Link to Story | Summary | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Why is Amanda Knox's upcoming Edinburgh Fringe comedy show causing controversy? | (BBC) Amanda Knox, a woman involved in one of the world's most famous murder cases, is set to perform a comedy show at The Edinburgh Festival Fringe. | 2026/08/06 |
| Are the Edinburgh festivals doing enough to protect free speech? | (BBC) Cultural festivals reflect the times we live in, so it's natural that Edinburgh, home to the world's largest arts festival, should be a noisy mix of opinions. | 2025/08/24 |
| 'Serious failure' in communication between venues and Fringe Society, Assembly founder warns | (The Scotsman) A“lack of communication” between the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society and venues at the festival is a “serious failure”, the head of Assembly has warned. | 2025/08/23 |
| New Edinburgh Fringe award to honour ‘unplatformed’ creatives | (The Stage) A new writing prize celebrating previously unplatformed artists has been unveiled at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, promising to find a "new voice in theatre" | 2025/08/12 |
| US performers seek safety and risk at the Edinburgh Fringe | (Reuters) Eddie Jen, a drag queen from San Francisco, wants to show that "America still fights for kindness", while Abby Govindan, a U.S. stand-up comic of Indian heritage, aims to convince audiences Texas is not what they think. | 2025/08/08 |
| Edinburgh Spiegeltent given permission despite accusations of 'cynical' behaviour | (Edinburgh Evening News) A planning application for an Edinburgh Fringe venue has been branded ‘cynical’ by Edinburgh councillors after it began construction well before permission was granted. | 2025/08/06 |
| Edinburgh festivals diary: Edinburgh, I am ashamed of you after experiencing anti-Fringe aggression | (The Scotsman) An experience of anti-English prejudice results in our diarist Jane Bradley feeling unwelcome in her own home town. | 2025/08/06 |
| Jewish comedian says shows cancelled as Gaza in the spotlight at Edinburgh Fringe | (Sky News) The comedian says she and another Jewish performer were allegedly given three reasons for the cancellation, but that it comes down to "what we bring to that venue by being ourselves". | 2025/08/02 |
| 'Strong concerns' after Edinburgh Fringe venue built in city centre without planning permission | (Edinburgh Evening News) The Famous Spiegeltent in St Andrew Square is returning to the festival after an almost decade long hiatus – and is already up and running after construction started in June. | 2025/07/31 |
| Unions to decide whether to call off bin strike | (BBC) Unions will meet on Monday morning to decide whether to suspend planned strike action by waste workers. | 2024/08/11 |
| Hundreds of cabins still available as FringeShip arrives in Leith Docks for week-long festival stay | (The Scotsman) The venture has failed to take off despite the prospect of festival acts being brought on board to perform for exclusive performances and a free shuttle bus service being laid on to transport festivalgoers to and from the city centre. | 2024/08/11 |
| Liz Truss heckled and booed by audience at Edinburgh Fringe event | (Daily Mirror) Ex-PM Liz Truss appeared at an event at the Edinburgh Fringe festival where was booed and heckled by the audience as she tried to defend her disastrous mini-budget | 2024/08/05 |
| Can Edinburgh survive this tsunami of visitors? | (The Herald) Every summer, Edinburgh residents can be heard bemoaning the number of visitors in the city centre. “It can’t get any busier!” has become an annual refrain, as reliable as the swallows’ return, uttered as locals queue fruitlessly for a bus or circle for an hour in search – the fools – of a parking space. | 2024/08/03 |
| Edinburgh Fringe comedian has 'boycott' graffiti etched on £300 poster | (Edinburgh Evening News) Another Edinburgh Fringe comedian has had a poster defaced with graffiti urging a ‘boycott’ - appearing to show a trend of vandalism in protest against the festival. | 2024/08/02 |
| I caught malaria in a medical trial to fund my Edinburgh Fringe show | (BBC) When comedian John Tothill set his sights on performing at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, he knew he would have to take radical action to afford the eye-watering upfront costs. | 2024/08/02 |
| Edinburgh power cut: Festival Fringe hit by massive outage as 'shows stopped' | (Edinburgh Live) There were reports of multiple shows being stopped in the Old Town with much of Newington also affected by the power cut shortly after 5pm. | 2024/08/02 |
| ScotRail announces changes to temporary timetable ahead of Edinburgh Festival | (STV) ScotRail will be adding additional services and carriages for those travelling to Edinburgh in August. | 2024/08/01 |
| Bin collectors confirm Edinburgh Festival strike | (BBC) Waste and refuse workers in Scotland's capital have announced they will go on strike for eight days during the Edinburgh Festival. | 2024/07/31 |
| Edinburgh Fringe comedian 'living in fear' after act only sells three tickets | (Daily Record) Nicole Nadler enjoyed five-star reviews and sell-out shows in 2023, this year could be a flop after spending around £5,000 on her latest gig at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. | 2024/07/27 |
| Former Edinburgh Festival workers tie the knot after 'sliding doors moment' | (Edinburgh Live) Jonny Coe and Jess Menon, 31, met when they both worked at a pop-up bar at St Andrew Square during the Festival Fringe back in 2015. The pair tied the knot on Saturday - but things could have been very different. | 2024/07/24 |
| Preparations for Edinburgh Festival Fringe under way with one week to go | (Edinburgh Live) With just over a week to go until over 3,300 shows will play across Edinburgh, the construction and assembly of the Fringe hot spots is well under way. | 2024/07/24 |
| Tram workers to vote on strike action over 'lack of breaks' | (STV) Edinburgh workers claim they are being prevented from taking comfort breaks due to trams running late. | 2024/07/23 |
| Bin collectors to go on strike during Edinburgh Festival | (BBC) Waste and recycling staff in Edinburgh have voted to strike during the Festival over a pay dispute. | 2024/07/01 |
| New figurehead hired to lead revival of Edinburgh’s ‘fragile’ festivals | (The Scotsman) Edinburgh’s festivals have unveiled a new figurehead to leading efforts to secure the future of the Scottish capital’s “irreplaceable cultural assets.” | 2024/07/09 |
| Edinburgh festival to feature opening event with 10,000 people | (STV) The festival’s full programme will be unveiled on March 7, with tickets going on sale on March 21. | 2024/01/18 |
| EIF's open partnership with The Macallan | (EIF) Central to our 2024 theme, Rituals That Unite Us, the event will be held outdoors, welcoming 10,000+ people to create a new ritual together for the International Festival and the city of Edinburgh. | 2024/01/18 |
| Edinburgh tourist tax: Festival cast and crews should be exempt from tourist tax say festival bosses | (Edinburgh News) Call for Festival casts and crews to be exempt from proposed Visitor Levy in view of poor wages and big boost they bring to Edinburgh economy | 2023/08/27 |
| Edinburgh Fringe digs cost us more than our £10,000 prize | (BBC) The sky-rocketing costs of performing at the Fringe – and the slim chance of breaking even. | 2023/08/09 |
| Assembly Festival ‘could collapse’ over £1.5m City of Culture debt | (BBC) The boss of one of the Edinburgh Fringe’s biggest venue operators has warned the company may not survive another year due to a £1.5m debt. | 2023/08/07 |
| Is this the future of comedy? The AI acts taking to the stage at the Edinburgh Fringe | (Sky) From Courtney Pauroso’s invention, Vanessa 5000, which pokes fun at the emerging technology, to improv led by AI, artificial intelligence is having an impact at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe. | 2023/08/07 |
| ‘You absolutely can’t make money’: can the Edinburgh Fringe survive? | (Independent) Isobel Lewis speaks to performers, producers, food stall owners and community organisers about the problems facing the festival and whether it can be saved. | 2023/08/06 |
| Edinburgh’s festivals urged to spread out of city centre and become less reliant on public funding | (Scotsman) Culture minister suggests new ways of working may be needed. | 2023/08/02 |
| Edinburgh Festival Fringe chiefs defend plan for new multi-million pound HQ | (Scotsman) Organisers of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe defend plans for a multi-million pound new headquarters after the UK Government agreed to help bankroll the idea. | 2023/04/16 |
| Edinburgh Festival Fringe chief warns of ‘existential threat’ due to culture of complacency in Scotland | (Scotsman) The head of the Festival Fringe has warned it is being put at growing risk due to a culture of “complacency”. | 2023/04/11 |
| Transphobia at the Fringe | (Twitter) Yiannis Cove tweets about the abuse Jen Ives has faced. | 2022/08/23 |
| UK’s Summer of Discontent Hits Streets at Edinburgh Fringe | (Bloomberg) It’s horrid out there on the streets, with filth everywhere but doesn’t that show how much we need the hardworking refuse collectors? | 2022/08/22 |
| Raging Edinburgh business owners say Fringe pop-ups are taking their customers | (Edinburgh Live) John Gillespie reports that Underbelly’s offered pop-ups aren’t helping regular shops. | 2022/08/20 |
Planning an Edinburgh Festival visit
This section is a cop-out as I’m not confident in even suggesting to someone travelling to Edinburgh how to plan or manage their festival visit. I’ve never had to. We book time off work, leave enough gaps for food between shows and charge around town.
So, to help answer reasonable questions about planning an Edinburgh festival visit, here are some links. Be mindful that hospitality gets expensive.
- Getting to Edinburgh: For most festivals and most of any event, you can walk, taxi or bus everywhere. However, we have Avis, Budget, Enterprize, Europcar, National and Sixt, if you want to hire a car. Several train stations in the city have tickets available from rail providers and trainline.
- Places to stay: Edinburgh has a tense relationship with Airbnb, and the council is actively changing how/if it operates. Therefore, consider Hostel World, Hilton, Apex, Hotel du Vin, Britannia, Malmasion,
- Guides and events: It’s easy to arrange these on the fly, but you can also use Get Your Guide or City Sightseeing.
- One-stop shots: There are the usual big sites to see how much you can arrange in one go (but not tickets for shows), such as TripAvisor, Booking.com, or Last Minute.