Edinburied

So as this great festival draws to a close I look back on my last day and think "Whatever happened to the 'Edinburgh International Festival?'", which of course is what started all this back in 1947. It's a bit like the Murray brothers, in that big brother was good for a while but now is completely eclipsed by the young upstart.

I spent the day pottering around and chanced upon James Sherwood, comedy with the aid of a piano, he kindly pointed out some quite serious grammatical errors in a number of popular songs including 'And I stiiiill haven't found, THAT FOR WHICH I'M LOOKING', thanks James, what a funny man with a piano and a beard, no really!

Next I chanced upon a medley show 'F***ing funny for a fiver', now I'm sure that on occasions they are rather good but I have never had the chance to see a whole show die quite so spectacularly. It was rather entertaining to watch, a bit like snuff movie. There was also an element of the masochistic about it all, comedians began their sets with such amusing and prophetic lines as 'well, this is probably going to be the worst gig I've ever done', and 'this audience is s**t', and then continued to force through their act in some sort of misguided attempt at valor. By far the worst thing, which was surprising, was that there was no heckling, no booing, no tomato throwing, just a uniform half smile on the face of the audience which seemed like a rag to a bull to some of the performers, in hindsight, extremely funny!

Laura Solon is very good, but then I suppose you're meant to be with a Perrier award. Comic monologue with some brilliant characters set to the tune of an owl on an island. Spiffing.

Evening entertainment was musical in nature and took the form of an exclusive Masters performance by a group of sound artists. If you have never had the aural experience of being taken into the inner workings of a drum whilst it is dismantled around you or gone for a qudraphonic trip on a piano as it tunefully tumbles down the side of a mountain then you are surely missing out, the soundscapes created here were truly impressive, and who would have thought the noises of an empty office building could be so intimidating and alive?

Yes, Edinburgh festival has delivered and I have been entertained. Good!