By Aurore Jouanin June, 9th, 2008
Scotland boasts some of the UK's best landscapes.
The Fringe box office opens today and fans wanting to secure a few seats should book their tickets as soon as possible for this top UK event. Places are highly contested, you have been warned!
This year's Fringe Festival will take place over a non-stop three-week period, from August 3rd to 25th.
Theatre, comedy, music, musicals, opera, dance, exhibitions and children's, the Fringe Festival is 1.6 million visitors and some 2,000 shows, making it one of the most acclaimed arts festival in Europe, as well as the world's largest open arts festival.
Ticket holders should also book their accommodation well ahead as this is Edinburgh's busiest time of the year, when both hotel rooms and rental properties sell out very quickly.
Home rentals are particularly sought after due to their good location and good value. Especially popular among families and groups of friends, renting a house or a flat can prove much cheaper in a time when Edinburgh prices generally double.
World Premieres, European Premieres and UK Premieres all figure on the programme for this 62nd edition, and no less than 21 awards will also be distributed throughout August.
Among the awards we find the "Amnesty Freedom of Expression Award" which was given to "The Container" last year, a play written by Clare Bayley and produced by Nimble Fish; and the "Carol Tambor Edinburgh to New York Award", won by the company 1927 for its theatrical cabaret "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea".
Linda Fabiani, Scotland's Culture minister, has described Edinburgh as "a principal destination for festival lovers everywhere, attracting tourists and boosting [Scotland's] economy as well as showcasing Scotland on the international stage".
Clive James, Joan Rivers and Brit Ekland will take part in the festival in 2008, alongside the likes of Bill Bailey, Jimmy Carr, Jason Byrne, Ed Byrne, Ruby Wax and many more.
From the very beginning, even when the Fringe was only a bunch of artists performing in a "disused pub with a leaky roof just off the Royal Mile", the Fringe has always aimed at providing an open-access platform for performers to express themselves as they wish. Home to arts and culture, the festival is also a place for debate and current issues.
The Fringe 2008 programme is available for free in many stores across the UK, including HMV stores, and can also be ordered online on https://www.edfringe.com/programmes/index.html (postage costs £3.50).
When the Fringe is on, the Scottish town is teeming with people from all over the globe who have chosen the best period to discover Scotland's beautiful green landscapes and enjoy another culture beyond Hadrian's Wall - a legacy of the Roman Empire still marking the geographic boundary between Scotland and the rest of the country.
Many airlines, including budget airlines such as EasyJet, fly directly from numerous towns and cities across Europe and the UK, while overseas visitors can opt for a connecting flight to nearby Glasgow or London.
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