Drinking Out
Here are some of Fringe Unravelled’s favourite Festival spots, feel free to add your own.
Venue Bars
The Pleasance Courtyard – 60 Pleasance
C Bar/C Urban Garden – Chambers Street
The Underbelly – 56 Cowgate
These may not be the cheapest or most salubrious spots to get a tipple, but they’re where you’ll find off-duty comedians, tasty actors/actresses and the occasional famous face.
The Brass Monkey
14 Drummond Street
Edinburgh, EH8 9TU
Reasonable prices, a good booze selection, free Wi-Fi, a friendly atmosphere and film screenings in the back room mean this wonderful little gem is packed during the Festival, worth a visit none-the-less
The Pear Tree
36 West Nicholson Street
Edinburgh EH8 9DD
Not bad beer and a large area of outdoor seating make this a very pleasant place to spend a sunny afternoon.
BrewDog
143 Cowgate
Edinburgh EH1 1JS
A great spot for a relaxed evening – a good range of exciting beers (both BrewDog’s own and guests), knowledgeable staff, nice food and a relaxed, cafe atmosphere. Just make sure you leave the non-beer drinkers at home.
Escaping it all
There are times during every Fringe when you just need to be on your own for a couple of hours. Here are five spots which are tolerably quiet, suitably cultural and where you are unlikely to be found.
1. Arthurs Seat – No other city in the UK has an extinct volcano in its limits, so climbing Arthur’s Seat is a bit of a must during the Fringe anyway. The tallest of Edinburgh’s seven hills (251m), you can get up and back down in a couple of hours and the top offers fantastic views across the city. It’s quietest in the mornings and on weekdays.
2. The Royal Botanic Gardens are around a mile north of the city centre and offer acres of local and exotic plants including the largest collection of wild-origin Chinese plants outside China, along with Victorian glasshouses and the oldest botanical library in Britain. Admission is a bargain at around £4.50/£3.50.
3. The Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art – a fifteen minute walk from Prince’s Street or a short hop on a number 13 bus takes you to this oasis of calm. Set in extensive parkland featuring sculptures by Henry Moore and Sir Eduardo Paolozzi, the gallery boasts many famous names and best of all it’s free (except for special exhibitions).
4. The National Museum of Scotland is right in the heart of the old town (Chambers Street) and has recently been refurbished. During the school holidays the lower galleries are packed with hoards of shouting children, but head to the top floors and peace returns. Also free.
5. Second Hand Book Shops – there’s some great ones of these in Edinburgh, most of which are so piled high with stock that you can disappear into the back and not be spotted from outside. Perfect for half an hour of quiet and you might just find a bargain.
Fringe recipes (6)
Risotto
A large handful of rice per person (this is better if it is Arborio rice, but any type of rice will do)
1/3 onion per person
1/3 of a pepper per person
30g frozen peas per person
Crushed garlic gloves
Herbs – thyme/bay leaves/Italian seasoning or similar
Oil for cooking
Stock (some of the stock can be replaced by white wine if there is some going spare)
Optional extras: chicken pieces, bacon (cook before adding either), frozen prawns, mushrooms, celery and any other veg that might be lurking in the fridge
Fry the chopped onion, peppers, garlic (and any other uncooked vegetables you are using) together until soft but not brown, add the herbs and liberal amounts of black pepper. Throw in the rice; fry for a minute or so until it looks slightly translucent then add some stock and stir. Keep stirring and adding stock for around 15-20 minutes until the rice is soft and the consistency of the mixture creamy. Add in any pre-cooked items including the frozen peas and continue stirring for another couple of minutes until these are hot. Serve with grated cheese (ideally parmesan, but cheap cheddar will do) and green salad.
Reviews
These happen, particularly if you’ve sent out a rather snazzy press release. Sometimes they are good, sometimes rather less so. Here’s how to deal, whatever the circumstances.
Good Reviews
Well done you. Now, don’t boast, but do make sure you maximise the opportunities that these bring.
Try this checklist to ensure full coverage
- Place flashes on posters – pick a choice quote and splash it everywhere
- Staple flashes to your flyers, this is incredibly tedious to do, but does work. Fringe Central have the facilities (printers/guillotine etc) to make this process easier.
- Put up copies of the full review in your venue (most venues have a reviews board)
- Put up links to, or quotes from the review on your website and social media accounts. Get your cast to post links as well.
- Tell people directly when flyering
- Mention the review casually (and I mean, casually) to other casts or venue staff, as they often make recommendations to potential audience members. Leave copies lying around in the changing rooms or staff areas
If you successfully get the word out about a couple of good reviews, if/when some not so good ones come along people are less likely to notice.
Distinctly Mediocre Reviews
Take the good points and quote them if you don’t have anything better. Assess whether the criticisms are valid (and if so do something about them). Move on.
Bad Reviews
Fringe Unravelled had one of these last year – an absolute stinker, the sort of awful one star monstrosity that makes you want to hide under the kitchen table and sob. Fortunately we’d already had a number of very good reviews in other publications, which we’d spread around liberally (see above), so barely anyone spotted it.
When you get one of these nasties, let the cast know as soon as possible (unless it’s right before a performance), it’s much worse to hear about it second hand. When dealing with the cast, make light of the review; mock the grammar/writing style/reviewers choice of shoes – it might not be strictly true, but it will prevent them getting too downhearted and that’s important when they still have 18 performances to go.
Don’t tell anyone outside of the cast. Everyone gossips about reviews at the Fringe. Fact. They may not admit it but they do, bad reviews make for good bitching. As soon as someone spots a terrible review for a show they recognise, it will get passed around. And around. And around. The less people that know about it initially, the less likely it is to get found, especially since most Fringe publications are daily and it will have disappeared within 24 hours.
Don’t start an online comment war, passionately defending your artistic choices, it will only increase the number of people looking at the review. Maintain a dignified silence and it will all blow over much more quickly
Finally, remember 70% of reviewers at the Fringe are students, who don’t get paid for what they do and have never reviewed professionally, so you shouldn’t take everything they say too seriously.
Moving in
- Prior to arrival, get together with some of the reliable members of the company and draw up a list of room sharing arrangements, this allows you to spread out the more irritating members of the cast fairly, place the ones that need watching with suitable authority figures and arrange the snorers together. Whatever you do, keep this plan secret. Top secret.
- Ensure that you are the first to arrive in the flat, enabling you to nochalently direct cast and crew members to their allocated rooms, without letting on that a plan ever existed; this also enables you to claim a quiet-ish corner for yourself.
- Bring tea, coffee, biscuits and loo roll with you to prevent having to instantly dispatch someone to the nearest grocery store.
- Send a couple of people off with whatever vehicle you brought the set in to complete the first weekly shop before said vehicle has to be returned to the hire company/the friend you borrowed it from.
- Make a list of anything in the flat that doesn’t work/is missing/is a bit temperamental and email a copy to the landlord as soon as possible, this avoids spurious accusations of breakages later in the month.
Finding Accommodation
The most important advice Fringe Unravelled can give is to start early with the search for Fringe accommodation, the earlier the better.
There are three main things you need to think about when approaching the question of accommodation – how big your cast is (and how many of them need a place to sleep), what your budget is and who’s paying.
Obviously the bigger the cast, the more space you are going to need. For the last couple of years Fringe Unravelled has had a flat with really huge rooms which comfortably sleep 3-4 people, in smaller flats, you’ll need more rooms. Obviously. When working out how much space to look for, also remember to take into account the fact that you will always have visitors. Yes, always.
The number of people that a flat claims to sleep does not mean you can’t fit more in with some spare camp beds and mattresses, the Fringe Unravelled flat officially sleeps 9, we had 13 of our cast staying last year, plus a constant stream of visitors. Every year, however, we hear tell of flats that are so cramped that people sleep on every inch of the floor, on the kitchen table, in the bathroom or in the airing cupboard. This is fine for a week, don’t do this if you’re there for the whole month, you’ll go crazy.
Other things to look for include more than one toilet (essential if your cast is larger than five), a dishwasher (this just makes everything so much easier) and a social space, whether this is a big kitchen, or even a huge foyer area, people need somewhere to be/talk when others are asleep.
We usually try to keep the cost to under £250 per person for the month. It is perfectly possible to find a comfortable flat within a 10/15 minute walking radius of the Royal Mile for this figure. If this seems low, congratulations, you’re in for a very comfortable Fringe, if it seems a bit high, you’ll have to look further out from the centre.
Most amateur companies ask their cast members to contribute to accommodation, but this will depend a bit on your show budget.
Places to look -
1. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society compile a list of possible accommodation, it’s available here (for registered shows) from late spring
http://www.edfringe.com/participants/accommodation
2. The Gumtree – http://www.gumtree.com/edinburgh
All of the Fringe Unravelled flats have come from the Gumtree, they have all been very nice.
3. There are also a number of letting agents who specialise in festival flats, although these tend to be a bit pricier.
Once you’ve found some options check locations carefully on Google maps, how far is it to your venue, the Royal Mile and your drinking establishments of choice? You really don’t want a massive commute. You should also take into account the proximity of the nearest shop, but most importantly the proximity of the nearest shop that sells booze. Fringe Unravelled have lived next door to Meadows Wine for the last two years, this is the preferred level of distance.
Also do ask for photographs/plans/anything else that helps you determine the actual size and layout of the flat, descriptions can sometimes be deceptive.
Fringe recipes (5)
Kale and Lentil Soup
This is usually what we feed people when we’re worried that Fringe flu is about to hit. It’s also delicious.
Makes one pot.
500 grams red lentils
2 onions
Cayenne or other spice mixture (if you’d like. Something- turmeric, paprika, whatever- would be nice)
1 or 2 cartons of tomato passata (500-1000 g)
1 or 2 heads of kale (around 300 g? whatever you want). Any kind of winter greens would work, really.
Vegetable oil
Stock (stock cubes and hot water)
Chop and fry the onions in vegetable oil, adding in the spices after a few minutes. When they brown, add the stock and lentils, and simmer for 45 minutes (or less if people are really hungry). Add the tomatoes, bring to a boil, and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the kale, and cook for another 10-15 minutes, then serve. The longer you simmer the lentils and tomatoes, the better it will be.
Fringe recipes (4)
Potato Leek Soup
Makes 1 stock pot worth
6 potatoes
4 leeks (use the part from whites to the very dark green. Make sure to wash them well)
2 onions
100 grams butter
Stock (hot water and stock cubes work)
Milk
200 ml of white wine, if there’s some lying around.
Chop and fry the onions and leeks until the onions brown. Chop the potatoes into cubes, and add in with the stock. Allow this to boil for 30-45 minutes, until the potatoes are falling apart in the water. Mash or blend with a hand blender, and then add milk (and wine if you have it). Cook for another 10 minutes, and serve. (I think a suitable accompaniment is blue cheese on toast, but that’s completely personal taste.
Fringe Dating
One month is not a long enough time to form a real relationship. Many have attempted it, be it at the Fringe, summer camp, or awkward family vacations, but they have failed. You will almost certainly fail at the Fringe.
Don’t get me wrong. The Fringe is an excellent place for getting over an ex, hooking up, finding a dance partner, finding someone to giggle over with your castmates, and doing truly horrific walks of shame (more on that later). It is a terrible place to find your soulmate.
I should probably pause at this point and explain that, at one Fringe, this half of Fringe Unravelled met a guy she dated for a year. But that is unusual, and had extenuating circumstances. Nonetheless, with the understanding that this is unusual, I present: the Fringe rules of dating.
1) Basic manners still apply: What it rude in the real world is also rude at the Fringe. If you sleep with a girl, you call her the next day. If you let a guy buy you a drink, you don’t just take it and not talk to him (if you don’t want to talk him, don’t take the drink). Don’t just leave your friends and go off with someone else without saying anything.
2) On the other hand, what happens at the Fringe stays at the Fringe, aside from criminal records and pregnancy. Unless you tell a Fringe date that you will love them forever and want to marry them, there should be no expectation that a relationship will extend past August 31st. Friends that you make, yes. Boyfriends or girlfriends, no. This is why: Fringe skills are different than other skills. The Fringe really oughtn’t to involve watching films, cuddling, going on proper dates, being completely alone, or having deep and meaningful conversations. People who really want to do this aren’t there. They are somewhere else, in a world where you don’t share a shower with 15 other people, you drink less, and you don’t spend two hours a day trying to give fliers to people who don’t want them. At the Fringe, if you cuddle, you’re wasting time that could be better spent watching questionable modern dance or truly terrible comedy. Fringe skills are different, involving someone who can find a decent bar that isn’t packed; who knows good, or at least entertaining, things to do; who is willing to come find you on the Royal Mile so you can awkwardly chat with each other; and who can brave your flatmates judgement when you invite said person to come drink wine in your kitchen late at night. If you find someone, hang on to them. Until the beginning of September. And then let it go.
2.1) It should be pointed out that this also means that you do not need to formally break up with someone. Fringe Unravelled once had a very lovely castmate who felt the need to explain to a girl he’d hooked up with exactly why he did not want a post-Fringe relationship. It’s unnecessary, and requires an awkward breakup chat for no reason. You get a temporary relationship without an awkward breakup chat. Don’t ruin that.
3) Fringe time is different from other time. Come on, you only have a month. If you like someone, ask them out quickly. If you go on one date, and you want to go on another, just say it and stop pretending to be coy. It’s probably already half over and you only have two weeks to decide if you like them enough that you’ll be upset when they don’t call afterwards.
4) Pre-arrange hookups with your flatmates. Everyone in your flat knows if you bring someone back. In fact, no group of people will ever know more about your adult personal life. So… if you are going to bring someone home, make sure you arrange for there to be an empty room. People are remarkably willing to accommodate, usually because they are so relieved that you’ve mentioned it first. Again, basic courtesy applies: don’t have sex when there are other people in the room, and don’t do it anywhere terribly unsanitary.
5) If you don’t look embarrassed, no one can tell you’re doing a walk of shame. There are people at the Fringe who, for their costume, wear a miniskirt and heels at 9 AM. Wake up in the morning, brush your hair, figure out where your own flat is, and take yourself there. Get a coffee and look nonchalant, and everyone will assume that that’s how you dress every morning, and you aren’t suffering from the twin effects of a hangover and shame. Don’t cry and walk barefoot carrying your shoes. Either walk the walk of glory, or the walk of ‘I don’t know what you’re looking at.’ (If, as the Fringe Unravelled has been, you are involved in a children’s show, anyone who knows you will guess that’s it’s not a costume. Just be proud.)
6) The official Dibs rule. Gosh, some attractive people go to the Fringe. Not all of them, but a bunch, some even single. None of them are yours. If you’re talking to them, if you invite them to a party, if they smile at you on the Royal Mile, you still do not have dibs on them. That means that someone else in your cast can flirt, kiss, dance with them, and they have not stolen them or betrayed you. You can be upset and disappointed, but do not be angry or betrayed. You only have any claim on someone if a) you are already in a relationship with them, b) they have properly asked you out on a real date, or c) you have kissed. Then, yes, you have dibs. But crushes? No. Don’t do that.
6.1) Do not steal someone’s boyfriend or girlfriend. In any cast, really, but especially your own. Unless you guys are suddenly in love, which you aren’t, and have waited your entire lives to be together, which you haven’t, don’t do it then. Wait until after the Fringe, when you aren’t sharing a flat and possibly a bed with your new fling’s now-ex. It makes everything awkward, and prevents intra-flat unity (that’s a thing). Also, people will judge you. I will judge you.
7) Please go and do potentially embarrassing things. You will never see these people again, in all likelihood. Go flirt with someone out of your league. Go sleep at someone else’s flat. Go kiss someone unexpected. Please. I need things to gossip about.
