Thank you all for your patience. I have said very little about 2007 so far, because things were in preparation. They still are.

Some of you are Friends because you want to do shows at the Free Fringe in 2007; some of you because you support the idea.

This is where we are: As you probably already know, The Free Fringe now has the advantage of being free from any promoter involvement and thus we will run as a co-operative.

However, three of the four venues we used last year have gone to a rival organisation.

I have found new and better venues for the Free Fringe in 2007. I’m now pleased to announce that the Free Fringe so far has five venues available for shows in 2007, and may yet have more.

VENUE A is the Canon’s Gait. This highly successful venue will continue to feature as the flagship for the Free Fringe. PBH And Some Comedians will happen here, as will my one-man show.

VENUE B is the White Horse, Canongate.  This is very close to the Canon’s Gait, with easy access. It is a 50-seater function room attached to a pub but with a separate entrance which will be opened for the Fringe. It is a good rectangular space with character, and has not been used as a Fringe venue before.

VENUE C is the Outhouse, Broughton Street Lane.  This is very close to Picardy Place and less than five minutes from The Stand. It is a wonderful bright and newly-furnished rectangular room, capable of holding 60, above a modern bar with a beer garden which has a substantial clientele of its own. This is a busy and lively part of town.

VENUE D is the Phoenix, Broughton Street, two minutes’ walk from The Outhouse. It is in a popular pub; a basement space with its own entrance. It has its own small bar, or drinks may also be got from upstairs. The stage be at the opposite end from the street entrance; the bar curves into the room slightly and there are some crannies, but it has a nice atmosphere and is conducive to good shows. Broughton Street is lively and well known to Edinburgh residents. There are many gay venues in the area, but it is by no means a ‘gay ghetto’ and the pub welcomes all orientations.

VENUE E is the Mercat Bar, West Maitland Street, EH12, near Haymarket Station, on the main road to Princes Street. This is an area of Edinburgh that has not previously been used for Fringe events, but is absolutely right for them. Edinburgh residents regard this as central, and there are many hotels in the area which will accommodate fringegoers. The bar itself is wonderful and the management enthusiastic. We will use the basement, reachable by a staircase from the main bar. This is a good performance space holding 80 and an opportunity to spread the geographic reach of the Free Fringe.

VENUE F is the Ivanhoe, South St David St. It is just off Princes Street, opposite the Scott Monument and opposite Jenner's. It's a 50 seater basement room well located and comfortable, a minute from the Café Royal. This is a very busy part of town and very easy to get to; the room will work well for comedy.

VENUE G is the Hudson Club in the Hudson Hotel.    It is on Hope Street in the West End, just off Princes Street, and is in a new boutique hotel, also near the Book Festival.  The bar occupies the centre of the room with spaces at either end; we will concentrate the seating at one end and deploy the 30 or so seats there around the stage. There is room for many more standing. You can see various other shots on http://www.thehudsonhotel.co.uk/club.htm looking at the slide show at the top. We have this room up to 7pm, after which it reverts to the hotel/bar/nightclub that it is for the rest of the year.

Now

If you want to do a show at the Free Fringe, now is the time to register your interest. This is the deal:

All venues will be free of charge to the performer. All performers' shows must be free of charge to the public. Collections are acceptable; excessive bottling is not.

All shows must at their own expense take a regular entry in the Fringe Programme.

All shows must in their Fringe Programme entry have the phrase ‘PBH’s Free Fringe’ as all or part of their group name.

All shows will be listed in the Free Fringe leaflet/programme free of charge.

All performers are expected to help with the Free Fringe and to co-operate with other Free Fringers, in ways including but not limited to the following:
1. Giving out the Free Fringe Leaflet alongside shows' own leaflets;
2. Helping the show before by controlling the crowd (i.e. holding back your audience until the audience for the previous show has cleared);
3. If asked to, holding the collection bucket for the previous show;
4. Ensuring that your show finishes on time (no matter when it has started);
5. Ensuring that your audience clears the venue, unless they're staying for the next show;
6. If performing in the first week, rigging the venue on Friday 3rd August;
7. If performing in the last week, de-rigging and tidying the venue on Sunday 26th August;
8. Lending to the Free Fringe such useful equipment as they might own, such as mics, mic stands, leads, cables, amplifiers, CD players, extension power cables, spotlights, lighting stands and gaffa tape;
9. Putting at the disposal of the Free Fringe such expertise as they might possess, such as advertising sales, web design etc;
10. Not being the sort of person who is obsessed with his/her own success to the exclusion and annoyance of his/her fellow artists.

All venues will be simply rigged and have no technical staff. Shows with lighting cues or complex technical requirements will not be suitable for the venues. There will be a stage, mics and a CD player. Any more complicated requirements should be agreed well in advance, and used in such a way that they can be easily rigged before the show and de-rigged afterwards with no inconvenience to the shows before and after.

The costs of the Free Fringe to the performer are therefore limited to programme entry fee and accommodation, plus whatever publicity the performer deems necessary. Any collection is managed by the performer him/herself and goes straight to the performer him/herself without any check or deduction. This is in contrast to other venues where there may be usage charges and other fees for central services provided by the venue. It is possible to break even on a Free Fringe show.

The number of posters to be printed is up to each show, but it is suggested that a low number is needed, for display in and near the venue. Similarly, the number of leaflets needed may be low, since the Free Fringe leaflet will be distributed by all acts. 5000 is a suggested maximum number of individual leaflets needed. Thus, expense is also saved.

Interested performers/shows should provide details of their suggested show to PBH by email. Details of any upcoming London gigs may also help.

The Free Fringe hopes to accommodate all sorts of shows. Within that, there is an approximate priority order of desirability:

1. variable bill shows
2. sketch shows (but not requiring staging or teching)
3. three-and four-handers
4. one-man shows from experienced performers
5. first one-man shows at Edinburgh, varied
6. first one-man shows at Edinburgh, single talking head
7. Known non-team players and assorted arseholes.

Performers new to the Fringe are advised to expect a much broader audience than the average comedy club, and usually a nicer one. Picking on individuals in the audience, unless they start it or unless it is done in a supportive and non-humiliating way, is discouraged. Remember: your show is an advertisement for others at the Free Fringe.

People new to the Fringe are strongly advised to perform within their limits and not to do a one-hour solo show unless they have seen the standard required. Such performers are best advised to get together with others and create a three-, four- or five-handed compilation show. These shows are more popular with the public and provide good peer support in a festival which can break performers as well as make them.

The Free Fringe no longer has any association with the Laughing Horse organisation. It will henceforth be run as a co-operative of performers, directed by PBH. In formal terms, the Free Fringe Ltd is registered in the UK, directors PBH and Melanie Hill-Stephens.

All offers of help welcome. Right now, we need a bulletin board script so we can communicate and discuss, and a better web site than this.  

I am also particularly interested in hearing from people willing to book and run variable-bill shows in some of the venues. Such shows are usually well received and attended, which will keep the venue owners happy with the takings. They also provide performance opportunities for people who don’t have a full Fringe show, thus helping the next generation.

Contact me on pbh@buckers.co.uk

Peter Buckley Hill

PBH's Free Fringe: winner of the Tap Water Awards 2006
PBH's Free Fringe: winner of the Chortle Award for Innovation 2007
PBH's Free Fringe: winner of the Chortle Award for Best Off-Stage Contribution 2007
Peter Buckley Hill: Three Weeks Editors' Choice Award 2006