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Festivals
Edinburgh is home to the most varied and dynamic calendar of international events and festivals in the world.
Summer festivals
In August the city hosts the Edinburgh Festival, a term used to cover the various festivals which take over the city for Summer.
The International Festival, which started the festival ball rolling, showcases the best the world has to offer in classical and contemporary dance, music, opera and theatre.
The Fringe is well known for attracting experimental works and any type of event is possible, although comedy and drama feature heavily.
Originally set up as a small scale ‘fringe’ event to the main festival, the Fringe has now grown to be the largest arts festival in the world.
The Book Festival is also held in August and features some of the biggest names in the literary world.
The Military Tattoo sells out every year. It is a spectacular performance by military bands and display teams which takes place on the Castle esplanade.
Sneaking in at the end of the month is Mela, Scotland’s biggest inter-cultural festival.
The rest of the year
The Film Festival, now in June, is the longest continually running film festival in the world.
July has the Jazz & Blues Festival, May the Science Festival and the Children's Theatre Festival and April hosts the family Easter Festival and Ceilidh Culture, an annual celebration of Scottish traditional arts.
Winter brings Edinburgh’s Christmas, closely followed by Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, the world’s best New Year celebrations, and one of the largest street parties in the world.
Believe it or not there are actually more. Fashion, art and television all have their own festival, among others.
At the University
The University is the largest venue owner on the Fringe.
We are also responsible for the venues of many of its most influential companies.
We are the proud programmers of George Square Theatre, home to many of The Fringe’s top acts, year after year.
This article was published on Jul 7, 2009