Improv Corner will return next week but before we delve into the world of Improvisation for the new season, I thought it would be good to write a mini article about what I learnt at Edinburgh Fringe this year. I am currently writing this whilst sitting in Bristo Square area underneath a big lamp and surrounded by these huge chairs!

There are a few things that came to light this year that have been playing on my mind that I wanted to write about and may be good to others to be aware of for next year.

Merchandise

Shows were not enough for a lot of acts this year – considering how expensive it is now to be a part of the festival, I can completely understand why a lot of acts are offering items at the end that members of the public can purchase. Some of the items I was promoted to buy from acts (everything from comedians to theatre and circus acts) included Tee-shirts, gift bags, pins, books and even hand drawn playing cards. If the Fringe stays as expensive as it is – this is going to start happening even more then it already is.

Overrunning

A common theme I noticed this year was a lot of shows were over running – this may be all well and good for the act but if you have other shows to see then this is incredibly embarrassing for the audience who have to creep out and look like they are not enjoying the show. There were many shows I went to where audience members had to do this and some times they were mentioned by the act which again is embarrassing to the public – it is not their fault your show over run! I have never experienced this at the Fringe, maybe on one show but never back to back shows. I would be aware of this for next year.

Brexit

It has been years since Brexit happened and yet even after all this time there are comedians that keep adding jokes to get what I personally feel is an easy laugh. There has been a lot that has happened since 2016 and whilst I don’t really feel comedy needs to have a political aim or even a mention, if you are going to do it I would prefer it if it was clever not just to get an easy laugh. I was tired of every show mentioning Brexit in 2019, I am exhausted of the mention in 2024. If I knew your show was going to mention it – I would not of gone in the first place.

The rise of the QR code

I noticed a lot of acts this year were using QR codes where they could – to keep green (or maybe save money) with leaflets, and even to link to their social media pages so you can follow, to find the list of the cast and I am sure one was a link to donations but I cannot confirm that. Whilst the idea of QR codes is clever there are a few problems with this.

Firstly, I don’t know about you but I am very conscious of scanning a QR code as there are so many dodgy ones – whilst this may not be the case, you can’t guarantee where the link is going to send you to.

I was in the queue for a show and the man in front of me scanned the QR code to get the cast programme and was sent directly to a mailing list they would of had to sign up to receive that information. That made me really angry – that to me is conning your audience in being part of your newsletter – they did not want they they innocently wanted your cast list to find out more detail about the people in the musical – the were showing an interest in your show and personally I felt you conned them out of it and upset an audience member before the show even started!