One Week Left….2024

And just like that we are suddenly facing the last full week of the festival….wowsers, that’s come round quick, and several shows have sadly already finished their runs.

There is still plenty of time to get out and about and have lots of fun though. The pleasance kidzone is still up and running and a good place to spend some time with the kids, doing arts and crafts and perhaps squeezing in a show. The book festival has opened and has lots of family friendly activities and events too.

Some of our top show recommendations that are still on for another week are :

Cartoooon !! – This Japanese comedy duo hit the nail on the head when it comes to the perfect combination between hilarious clowning, and circus entertainment. Their unicycling acrobatic skills were like nothing we have seen before.

Ten Thousand Hours – Absolutely mesmerising acrobatics. The eight performers are highly skilled and will keep anyone of any age completely engaged. Jaw dropping stuff.

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Tom Brace: The Ride 4D – Take a trip to Tomland and be amazed by the rides, tricks and 4d features !!

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Children Are Stinky – A wacky and playful cocktail of jokes, hi-jinx, physical comedy and impressive acrobatics ! Loved the 90s soundtrack too ! Entertains wee ones and grown ups alike.

For older children :

Suitcase Show (12+) – Wowsers. I loved, loved, loved this show. Such clever use of light, shadows, sound and suitcases. An evocative, eerie tale that is pure escapism from everything else…brilliant storytelling.

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Murder, She Didn’t write (14+) – Hilarious improvised whodunnit, where you get to play detective and point your finger of suspicion. Different every night with hilarious consequences…we loved it!

Edinburgh Book Festival 2023 – 12th – 28th August

The Edinburgh International Book Festival has opened today !! As always it provides a bit of a sanctuary in the festival month and the book festival village at the art school is a great place to while away an afternoon….

You can look at the list of all the children’s events here– there are around 180 events, activities and workshops for children and young adults. There’s also a whole section of the website dedicated to families, with information on different themes, different age groups and categories – check it out here.

The Book Festival Village at Edinburgh College of Art on Lauriston Place is open daily from 9.30am until late – entry is free.

Entry to the Book Festival site at the Edinburgh College of Art on Lauriston Place is absolutely free. There are daily free activities, an interactive play area, guest appearances from costume characters in the Courtyard and a bookshop with children’s section.

Edinburgh book festival – opening this weekend !!

So, it looks like even more great things are happening and one of our favourites – the book festival – is about to open its doors in its brand new venue at the Edinburgh College of Art and as usual there are lots of free events going on – along with the bookshop which is always great for a browse….

New for 2021, the book festival is screening a selection of children’s events on the big screen in the Festival Village Courtyard each day during 14th-30th August for FREE.
You can see the daily timetable for the big screen and outdoor stage here

Young festival-goers can enjoy livestreamed events, DrawAlongs and costumed character appearances in the lovely leafy Courtyard at Edinburgh College of Art. Entry to the fesitval village is free and unticketed so just turn up and join the outdoor fun!

There is plenty to keep the kids entertained all day with an ‘Animal Spotting’ trail designed by Debi Gliori featuring 8 animal illustrations to find on site, a children’s play area and a café.

Kids of all ages can draw along with their favourite illustrators every morning at 9.30am during the Festival over on our Facebook page. If this time doesn’t suit, budding artists can still join in later as the videos will be available to watch following the livestream. We’re delighted to welcome a fab line-up of illustrators to take part in some arty fun including Dapo Adeola, James Mayhew, Harriet Muncaster, Beatrice Blue and lots more. Check out the daily schedule for more details.

This year’s Baillie Gifford Children’s Programme of online events is available to watch live and on-demand on a Pay What You Can basis. Pay What You Can is designed to help audiences who are struggling financially, whilst also providing sufficient income for the Book Festival to continue to produce a wonderful, international programme of events for everyone to enjoy.

Hopefully you all get a chance to enjoy some of these great offerings over the next few weeks….

First Week Highlights…

I’m not even sure if this was technically the first week- I think it’s been more a preview week; but for me, having seen 13 shows so far, it definitely feels a lot longer than a few days ! The good news is the Book Festival has not even started yet and there is still another 3 weeks of the Fringe left – yipee !!  I’ve seen some fantastic shows so far and am looking forward to even more in the next few weeks, I’ve only popped in to the BBC tent briefly and look forward to exploring all their great children’s activities and I’m hoping for a few beautifully sunny days to enjoy an ice cream or two while I soak up the festival atmosphere…

For now, my highlights so far have been :

  • Nick Cope’s Family Songbook – A lovely melodic start to any festival day – featuring songs about dragons, pirates and poo ! A real gem of musical delights.
  • I Got Superpowers For My Birthday – An absolutely brilliant show, featuring spellbinding storytelling and located in the rather lovely Roundabout theatre venue…three young people gain superpowers on the eve of their thirteenth birthdays and have to fight ‘the darkness’. For ages 7+ -not to be missed !
  • Children Are Stinky – Very fun and silly acrobatic and clown show from a lovable Australian Duo – featuring hula hoops, chairs and a fantastic soundtrack, lots of fun for the whole family !
  • 360 Allstars – Featuring some spectacular BMX tricks, brilliant basketball, impressive breakdancing and live beat-boxing – this show has something for everyone ! A jam packed hour of talented performers showing off their skills !

Weekend-ing…

So, we have had yet another lovely weekend of festivalling, and it feels a bit sad as the schools are going back this week and so our time together to go and see shows and hang out in all the fun places is now being cut short…

We made the most of it this weekend and saw the fantastic Albee Vector the Sound Collector, which I have been wanting to see since last year. It was a brilliant show, with lots of audience participation in the collection of sounds and some clever use of all those old jam jars that are normally thrown away ! I would highly recommend seeing it if you can, Albee and the lovely Adromeda are skilled storytellers and you’ll love meeting Mustard – the sound hoover too !

We also made it down to the brilliant Book Festival ! It was a great morning of events, discovering new books in the bookshop and squeezing in some colouring in too…I am looking forward to returning there a few times in the next two weeks.

I have been busy writing up reviews for the shows we have been seeing, so please take the time to check them out here if you have a moment….