:00:26. > :00:32.This programme contains some strong I am merrieda.
:00:32. > :00:38.And the planet's greatest arts festival. A polish spectacular,
:00:38. > :00:43.modern Mcdeath haunted by the Middle East. Scandinavian comedians
:00:43. > :00:46.try the luck on the fringe. And two new plays make light of
:00:46. > :00:52.contemporary politics. The tribulations of coalition, and the
:00:52. > :01:02.tragic comic downfall of Tommy Sheridan.
:01:02. > :01:09.
:01:09. > :01:17.Plus a performance from the musical star of Brave, tonight's panel are
:01:17. > :01:27.old hands at the faest value. Mark Thomas performed at the Travis,
:01:27. > :01:29.
:01:29. > :01:34.and has won two awards. And Natelie Hayes has been a survivor of the
:01:34. > :01:38.fringe. The team are reading your tweets even as I speak.
:01:38. > :01:48.The Edinburgh film festival went out with bang with the UK premier
:01:48. > :01:49.
:01:49. > :01:54.Brave, a latest picture from Pixar which on released this week. With a
:01:54. > :01:57.bust blocking like Toy Story, it has a reputation for smart film.
:01:57. > :02:03.They turned their way of Scotland, and for heaven's sakes it is a
:02:03. > :02:08.story about a girl. The stars were out in force for the black tie
:02:08. > :02:14.premier, like Kelly McDonald, Robbie Coltrane and Kevin McKidd.
:02:14. > :02:24.Brave is Pixar's first historic epic, set across the Highlands and
:02:24. > :02:27.
:02:27. > :02:37.islands of medieval Scotland. It boasts their first female lead.
:02:37. > :02:37.
:02:37. > :02:47.am Merida. Kelly McDonald plays the flame haireded heroine, so Connolly
:02:47. > :02:50.
:02:50. > :02:55.is her father. His face scared with one dead eye. Tomboy mer mer -
:02:55. > :03:00.Merida likes nothing more than riding on horseback bare back.
:03:00. > :03:04.She's determined to maintain her freedom, and seeks a supernatural
:03:04. > :03:09.solution with catastrophic results. Brave's producetors toped up their
:03:09. > :03:15.use of real life locations such as Dunnottar Castle. There's even a
:03:15. > :03:19.bit parked for the almost indesieveable, die elect.
:03:19. > :03:23.Politicians, and tourism organisations have grabbed this
:03:23. > :03:29.chance to promote Scotland to a worldwide audience.
:03:29. > :03:38.Brave was a triumph in the opening weekend in the States, but will it
:03:38. > :03:45.hit the Bullseye for local audiences. This is let's hear it
:03:45. > :03:50.for the girls. It is the first time in 201, we've had a female hero, or
:03:50. > :03:56.her wien. But is there a great surprise? It is kind of a
:03:56. > :04:02.disappointing surprise, I was dying for this film to be good. I am a
:04:02. > :04:09.massive pickaxea cry baby, any time when emotional things happen, I
:04:10. > :04:15.cried so hard when looking Up, I had to have two begins. If I'm not
:04:15. > :04:20.crying, someone should get fired. Yeah, that's feisty, and yes, she's
:04:20. > :04:25.got red hair, I was born ready for this film, but she's not very funny.
:04:25. > :04:29.The thing that's joyous about their pictures is they have great
:04:29. > :04:33.friendships, because this is like an old Disney movie, a depairy
:04:33. > :04:41.story, rather than a new story, it is new but feels old, she doesn't
:04:41. > :04:47.have anyone to kick against. Even an old wet nurse. It wasn't like
:04:47. > :04:53.let give her a mate reyark to fight against, they gave her a mum and
:04:53. > :04:58.dad? I took my daughter to see this, and she loved it, relationship
:04:58. > :05:03.between the daughter and mum, and loched that, there are funny bits,
:05:03. > :05:07.where the mum gets transformed and tries to pretend everything is
:05:07. > :05:12.normal and lay out the breakfast table. I think the problem is with
:05:12. > :05:17.Pixar, you come to accept you can go and see it withen adult with
:05:17. > :05:20.children. And if you look at Toy Story, there's amazing subplots
:05:20. > :05:27.with children moving home and moving on, and there's gags about
:05:27. > :05:32.pop culture within it, and none of that here. There's none at all. It
:05:32. > :05:42.kind of does for Scotland what that one did for China. I'm putting that
:05:42. > :05:43.
:05:43. > :05:49.up there, it is not as good as Mulan. What did you think of it
:05:49. > :05:54.was weak, but I didn't mind it. I haven't seen a Pixar movie, I was
:05:54. > :05:57.taken away by the brilliance of technology T advanced so much. It
:05:57. > :06:04.was breath-taking, the hyper realism. When she gets on the horse
:06:04. > :06:11.and rides across the countryside, I was swept away, absolutely swept
:06:11. > :06:15.away. I was between 4-14 youngsters, who were griped. The animation, and
:06:15. > :06:20.the conversation itself, animatetors were saying how did
:06:20. > :06:25.they do some of that stuff, the hair and bear's fur The hair was a
:06:25. > :06:32.character in its own right. Her hair was amazing, the layers, that
:06:32. > :06:35.got in it. That's wrong, if the hair is stealing the scene. People
:06:35. > :06:41.like Billy Connolly, there were fantastic lines. At the top of the
:06:41. > :06:45.castle, and he said "you can see my house from here". Like the 157
:06:45. > :06:50.chicken skp run, delivering funny lines. In terms of being anything
:06:50. > :06:57.fresh and different, maybe it doesn't need to be, for 4-14-year-
:06:57. > :07:01.olds? I agree, with Mark, the wit is gone, the brilliant one-liners,
:07:01. > :07:07.we get, but the kids don't miss them. They were taken in the heart
:07:07. > :07:13.of the legend. They're not going, how long is it going to be a story,
:07:13. > :07:17.when a girl is a heroine?. Let hope we don't have to wait that long. In
:07:18. > :07:22.a way, what's strange is it feels very much suspiciously so it is two
:07:22. > :07:27.stories that have been welded together. We start out Watt fairy
:07:27. > :07:32.story, so it feels Shren territory, and of course, she's basically, the
:07:32. > :07:39.one who controlled the bow, and shoot, and you think I'm ready for
:07:40. > :07:46.this, OK, a bear, and it feels. has through the mangle for seven
:07:46. > :07:52.years, and of course, animation itself has changed. They've a few
:07:52. > :07:56.writers on it. They have they loads of writers. The funniest things for
:07:56. > :08:03.me was Kevin McKidd speaking in a die elect, because people won't get
:08:03. > :08:09.that and nobody will try, nobody in Scotland will get that That's brave
:08:09. > :08:16.of Pixar. It is but, when you have people who have done smart things,
:08:16. > :08:22.doing Scots stuff, it feels like me old-fashioned and a bit visit
:08:22. > :08:27.Scotland. It's a big training and bonding Monday at that stage,
:08:27. > :08:37.baseed in Scotland, something, I cannot hear Queen, I have tuned in,
:08:37. > :08:40.
:08:40. > :08:46.expecting to hear Queen, what has happened here. Conor Mccloud of the
:08:46. > :08:52.Clan Mccloud. Brave is out now. One of the smallest festivals, The
:08:52. > :08:58.Festival of Politics has started. Bun shenanigans is not confined to
:08:58. > :09:03.Holyrood, it is a death meting show, slap stick show, with an election
:09:03. > :09:09.campaign and two comedies which set the downfall of high flying
:09:09. > :09:15.politicians. Coalition set in 2014 as the current term of Parliament
:09:15. > :09:23.draws to a close, sat tierising the fictional of a leader and advice
:09:23. > :09:28.leader, played by Thorn Tuck. As the next election looms, Cooper's
:09:28. > :09:30.vaelgsship with the Conservativepm has broken down. Despite threats of
:09:30. > :09:35.multiple defection ass poor rateings, he is determined to hang
:09:36. > :09:41.on to power, and to excertificate an iron grip on his party. Power is
:09:41. > :09:47.all you care about? For Christ sake Jeffrey, if power is all I care
:09:47. > :09:52.about, why on earth would I become a Liberal Democrat? There's cast of
:09:53. > :10:00.comedians with Tuck joined on stage by Jo Caulfield who plays his party
:10:00. > :10:06.Chief Whip. And Jupitus as the Tory maker in two-tone shoes. And we can
:10:06. > :10:11.rely on the colleagues, before squaring behind Matt too. You can
:10:11. > :10:17.always trust the Tories. Another show, finds tragic comic potential
:10:17. > :10:23.in the spectacular downfall of a real life politician. Eye Tommy,
:10:23. > :10:33.traces Tommy Sheridan's career, from his early campaigns to the
:10:33. > :10:37.
:10:37. > :10:41.courtroom and celebrity Big Brother with comedian, Des maclain himself.
:10:41. > :10:48.Freedom. The script where Rab C Nesbitt creates Ricardo Patino
:10:48. > :10:53.takes aim of the self-regard and his gift for overbleen rhetoric.
:10:53. > :10:59.Solidarity has stood a resounding zero seats. Which means, I myself
:10:59. > :11:04.have failed to be reelected. Which is an even greater result than I
:11:04. > :11:10.could possibly have hoped for. Both productions highlight the
:11:10. > :11:17.dangers of hueb rus and rebel in the aubsurdies of political life.
:11:17. > :11:22.Do they do their colleagues justice. What do you do when you're in a
:11:22. > :11:27.hole? Bring on the industrial digers and level the entire area.
:11:27. > :11:33.Mark, just dealing with Coalition first, putting comedians in place,
:11:33. > :11:42.does that take money out of actors mouths or does it give us something
:11:42. > :11:47.difference? It is different skills. And I feel reticent when comedians
:11:47. > :11:51.do films, they hold attention, but do they have the ability to act. By
:11:51. > :11:56.and large, coalition does, there are great performances from Jupitus
:11:56. > :12:01.who is really good. As the oily, Chief Whip, he is really good.
:12:01. > :12:07.Caulfield is really good. There's great performances from Thorn Tuck
:12:07. > :12:12.and Alistair Barrie, that bit is OK. That's good. The play itself, as I
:12:13. > :12:17.was leaving, people were saying it is like Yes Minister, it was a
:12:17. > :12:22.little bit like that, it wasn't as good, good lines, but certainly
:12:22. > :12:26.didn't, it really, it didn't have the skill to hold the entire play
:12:26. > :12:30.together. In fact, with the Coalition in turmoil, did you think
:12:30. > :12:35.it was tough enough Not sharp enough. It was political satire
:12:35. > :12:40.without the bite. It was enjoyable, it was funny, I zpblt see it live,
:12:40. > :12:45.it was on the same time as my show, but the audience were thoroughly
:12:45. > :12:50.enjoying themselves. It is a funny piece, but my problem is Thorn Tuck
:12:50. > :12:55.makes the Clegg figure out like John Cleese and I think we lost the
:12:55. > :12:59.lot there. He was a figure of fun right from the start. I agree, some
:12:59. > :13:04.of the best performances were from the comieedian, Jo Caulfield and
:13:04. > :13:09.Phill Jupitus the one that steals the show is Jessic why as the PR.
:13:09. > :13:13.She plays it straight and that's clever. And it works.
:13:13. > :13:17.The worst is there weren't hit, the audience laughed, it could have
:13:17. > :13:21.confirmed people's view, that people go to the festival have a
:13:21. > :13:28.dig at the Tories, there was no sharp turns in it? No there weren't.
:13:28. > :13:32.I agree, I have to admit and I hope she won't mind me saying this, Jo
:13:32. > :13:41.Caulfield knows me for a long time, and I didn't think she could
:13:41. > :13:48.possibly, she's a good standup, but that's means self-conscious, with a
:13:48. > :13:54.good actor, means you have to slip it out of her skin. She inhabits a
:13:54. > :14:01.good character, it is a 90 minute running time and has, maybe 40-45
:14:01. > :14:07.minute of worth of story. They miss out on the key things, if you have
:14:07. > :14:10.to do a satire, you have to mention the economy at some point. That get
:14:10. > :14:14.skiped over and magically cured, that's not the case. There are cuts
:14:14. > :14:19.in the next Parliament so that's not the case. There no, sir real
:14:19. > :14:24.ability to find Labour in there, there's the odd mention, but what
:14:24. > :14:30.we do, is Tories, hapless and venal Lib Dems, but then there's a
:14:30. > :14:38.missing chunk. You go, this feels really, immature as a piece of
:14:38. > :14:44.writing. It was longer than 90 minutes. The other production, I
:14:44. > :14:48.Tommy, 90 minces, David, you have presumably, have to put your hand
:14:48. > :14:55.up and say you were offered this? As a director and actor. The play
:14:55. > :15:00.is very well written. I do think it is a good piece of political satire
:15:01. > :15:06.and production lacks imagination, it is pedantic and does not have
:15:06. > :15:15.that, and relatively play is not given justice. It is lift today
:15:15. > :15:20.another level, with that production, it did not do it favours. Des,
:15:20. > :15:28.nailed part of Tommy Sheridan but he is such a fine writer, but Tommy
:15:28. > :15:35.Sheridan is actually, for a start, he is actually, I remember him as a
:15:35. > :15:39.menacing character, very dark. I don't get that. There are times we
:15:39. > :15:47.would support Scotland Socialist Party and do benefits, the play did
:15:47. > :15:51.not have the charisma, Sheridan is car r charismatic, but he was
:15:51. > :15:56.incredibly shrewd and sharp operator, and that bit is missing.
:15:56. > :16:00.Des does a great performance but the writing misses that bit of
:16:00. > :16:06.Tommy's character. What you don't get is the damage Sheridan did to
:16:06. > :16:12.other people's lives. I actually think, too many of the characters
:16:12. > :16:17.were charactertures. If you have your stl - central character as the
:16:17. > :16:22.baffoon the rest of the characters have to play it straight. Gail came
:16:22. > :16:28.on a character suture, Alistair was a caricature, and other characters
:16:28. > :16:32.as well. I exempt ma creedy as Alan, he played, he could have played it
:16:32. > :16:35.straighter, but it would be interesting, to start them off
:16:35. > :16:38.straight and become more caricatureed the more he loses the
:16:38. > :16:43.plot. From your point of view, looking in
:16:43. > :16:47.the Scottish politics. I have to admit, I thought it was not
:16:47. > :16:53.particularly brilliantly written. I found to flawed because if you're
:16:53. > :16:57.going to make a central character a baffoon, 90 minutes is a long time
:16:57. > :17:02.to watch that, you have to give somebody more dimension, you never
:17:02. > :17:07.get an idea why anybody fell for him or voted for him. And it is so
:17:07. > :17:11.frustrating, because the room is not exotic it is a fringe venue,
:17:11. > :17:21.but it feels very much like it could be a political rally could be
:17:21. > :17:24.
:17:24. > :17:29.held. You can't, can we do for something with a potential, you
:17:29. > :17:34.have microphones. I talked to the actors, ass it was the recognise
:17:34. > :17:38.qisity of the management. They must wear microphones, why. Do you think.
:17:38. > :17:42.It puts a barrier between the actors and audience. Do you think
:17:42. > :17:47.it is better suited for telly. writing wasn't up to scratch. You
:17:47. > :17:52.have the story of betrayal, and from all angles the whole load of
:17:52. > :17:55.people invested in Tommy, and his idea from comrades, party, all
:17:55. > :17:59.falling apart and world of possibilities shattering, and
:17:59. > :18:03.that's fantastically rich material, and it is treat to a panto
:18:03. > :18:09.treatment. Sthiefplt well coalition is on until 26th of August, and I
:18:09. > :18:15.Tommy until the 27th. Eye Tommy will be touring Scotland in October.
:18:15. > :18:17.400 years ago, Tommy Sheridan haes story could have plottor
:18:18. > :18:24.Shakespeare himself. But the Scottish play that Shakespeare did
:18:24. > :18:28.write is hard to miss with the festival with 13 different versions
:18:28. > :18:34.on show. MacBeth, set to music, set on an island, in Scots, and even on
:18:34. > :18:44.stilts. There's a version of the Scottish play to suit all tasteness
:18:44. > :18:47.
:18:47. > :18:57.Edinburgh this year. In the International Festival, 2008,
:18:57. > :18:59.
:18:59. > :19:05.MacBeth comes from the polish company, set in a Middle East earn
:19:06. > :19:15.conflict as MacBeth cast as a military commander set in the
:19:16. > :19:24.
:19:24. > :19:32.The split level set incorporates multi-media skhreens, projections,
:19:32. > :19:35.pyre tech nix and multi-laired sound scape to bring it to life.
:19:35. > :19:39.With campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan still fresh in our
:19:39. > :19:44.minds and Syria in turmoil, does this visceral version of MacBeth
:19:44. > :19:54.tell us something fresh about politics and ambition, or does it
:19:54. > :19:57.
:19:57. > :20:03.David, did you feel that the essence of MacBeth was here, that
:20:03. > :20:08.they striped the story right back? I felt it was there. I felt it was
:20:08. > :20:13.a extraordinary theatrical event inspired by spaix spear MacBeth.
:20:13. > :20:18.Surely we can miss some of the sole skwees, but the director took us on
:20:18. > :20:24.the journey through a night mare to the heart of darkness which I loved.
:20:24. > :20:28.It was captivateing, and visceral, it was tangible, I was completely
:20:28. > :20:32.blown away by it. There was a thousand people in the venue, I put
:20:32. > :20:37.money on the fact that two hours and ten minutes, not a member of
:20:37. > :20:45.the audience took a breath or moved. They were enrapted in it. There was
:20:45. > :20:52.in polish with subtitles. I wasn't looking for lines with MacBeth. It
:20:52. > :21:01.didn't matter. It was incredible, spectacle and brilliant to see
:21:01. > :21:06.Shakespeare done as a huge spectacle. It was I love people
:21:06. > :21:11.abseiling through the floors, I adored how dramatic and brutal and
:21:11. > :21:15.bloody it was. And how stunning it was, a blockbuster version, that
:21:15. > :21:22.bit, to see Shakespeare when it is done in a style that is absolutely
:21:22. > :21:31.thrilling, in its, the scale and its epic vision is great. Lady
:21:31. > :21:38.MacBeth is played, she's a vamp, highly sexualised? In my notes, it
:21:38. > :21:44.Hayes Polish Amy wine house MacBeth. She's amazing, one amazing scene,
:21:44. > :21:50.where they turned the lower part in the launderette, industrial
:21:50. > :21:55.machines with the blood pouring out of it. She is a character obsessed
:21:55. > :22:02.by dirt, and stains and guilt. And you go, elect cuteed by a washing
:22:02. > :22:05.machine, yes, elect cuteed by a washing machine is good for me.
:22:05. > :22:12.looking at the whole Middle East start and it starts in the mosque,
:22:12. > :22:15.and you know, it does the terribly brutal murder this the mosque of
:22:15. > :22:23.beheading and so forth. That seems to be the hoop to get you there,
:22:23. > :22:31.but there was no idea how it was developed. You got little hints of
:22:31. > :22:36.the abbuetkpwraib kind of, what went on, the aipbl rape. During the
:22:36. > :22:41.soldier's party. You but it didn't play a big part for me. I do, I
:22:41. > :22:46.think they were transfixed by the idea of behead be, which is
:22:46. > :22:51.necessarily, associated by us, with the Middle East. And they have T
:22:51. > :22:58.begins with the beheading and it ends with, that but: It was a
:22:58. > :23:06.creation that had its own rules. There was the emphasis on the cast
:23:06. > :23:10.on the compound which is the tale of the soldiers trapped in the
:23:10. > :23:16.emerald city. The building itself was very much led to you believe
:23:16. > :23:21.this could be anywhere in Iraq, it could be of course, in Sira, Libya,
:23:21. > :23:27.Tunisia. The other thing was use of cameras, and the effect that had,
:23:27. > :23:32.when you see an actress at one part of the stage, doing a sole qee to
:23:32. > :23:37.the ceiling, and then, the projection of the 0 foot high on
:23:37. > :23:43.the wall was astounding. designer was fantastic. You have
:23:43. > :23:50.the thing of perspective, and this intimate portrait in front of you.
:23:50. > :23:57.The reason I mentioned Lady MacBeth, she stood out an extraordinary
:23:57. > :24:01.character. The rest was ensemble. You didn't see whether MacBeth was
:24:01. > :24:10.playing brilliantly. But that was good. You didn't get a sense,
:24:10. > :24:16.perhaps MacBeth himself? I had who MacBeth was, Duncan,. They were all
:24:16. > :24:22.incredibly even? They were, but she was just as much a part of the
:24:22. > :24:26.ensemble as the others, the dresses, she was the only female. That's
:24:26. > :24:30.another thing where I would say the Middle East setting let them down,
:24:31. > :24:37.if everyone is dressed the same and we're away from it, because it is a
:24:37. > :24:42.massive space, it makes it hard tore differentiate between men
:24:42. > :24:48.wearing uniforms. The plainest, the speeches and the tomorrow and
:24:48. > :24:53.tomorrow, you miss those. internal dilemma, to kill or not to
:24:53. > :24:57.kill. That is removed from him. So that's, there's a sense.
:24:57. > :25:01.completely. When you look at it, he is portrayed as the man of action,
:25:01. > :25:06.soldier, a man who does these bloody act and there's at sense
:25:06. > :25:14.subtletys of the doubt is removed. But, then in the end. Also the man
:25:14. > :25:20.who looked in the beginning there, you go, what did he Stort off, the
:25:20. > :25:25.vein of corder. When you got the story of
:25:25. > :25:28.# Duf, where it brought you back to the Middle East, where they wanted
:25:28. > :25:35.to slaughter the women, children and servants, wiping out swathes of
:25:35. > :25:40.people. That in a sense was incredible done, and done on a
:25:40. > :25:46.television screen. It was mesmerising. But this is where the
:25:46. > :25:52.Middle East falls down, and when you talked about a moving forest,
:25:52. > :25:57.maybe if you done this where there was nor trees. But you still get
:25:57. > :26:00.the Shakespeare which is thrilling. I loved it. What it proves is the
:26:00. > :26:04.power of Shakespeare after 400 years, douck whatever the hell you
:26:04. > :26:08.want the essence will still work and grip an audience. There is just
:26:08. > :26:13.one more performance, of what is called 2008 MacBeth tomorrow night.
:26:13. > :26:18.If you can't make it to Edinburgh, watch a recording of the show on
:26:18. > :26:26.the Guardian website on second of September. With what Wallander, and
:26:26. > :26:29.two in the killing T would seem appropriate piety for Nordic
:26:29. > :26:39.insatiable. But on the fringe this year, there's at chance to see
:26:39. > :26:53.
:26:53. > :26:59.another, perhaps unexpected side to the Scandinavian psyche. Magnus
:26:59. > :27:05.Betner made his debut in Scotland two years ago in four star reviews.
:27:05. > :27:13.If a killer you are a murderer, and if you dismember the body, you are
:27:13. > :27:19.a stick murderer, use that, I'm giving it to you, why the fuck
:27:19. > :27:25.would you take the other words, you don't need those, you need stick
:27:25. > :27:31.mode. The first thing I did in English was 98, in a small rookie
:27:31. > :27:35.club somewhere in London, and it was horrible. I was so nervous, coy
:27:35. > :27:40.barely walk to the gig andel gig was horrible. Like seven people in,
:27:40. > :27:45.every comic on the bill was horrible and I was horrible too.
:27:45. > :27:49.Carl-Einar Haeckner is Sweden's answer to Tommy Cooper, with an
:27:50. > :27:54.interest in the furniture, Mcyidge tricks and comic songs.
:27:54. > :28:04.I just want to say thank you to internet.
:28:04. > :28:09.
:28:09. > :28:15.And to Skype and to Facebook and to thanks to the murderer. Daniel
:28:15. > :28:21.Simonsen winner of So You Think You're Funny Award, exploits his
:28:21. > :28:27.awkwardness for comic effect. you see somebody far away,
:28:27. > :28:34.sometimes they get nervous because I say hello too early. 300 minutes
:28:34. > :28:39.before we get. It gets sucked in your voice, because where are you
:28:39. > :28:49.supposed to look when you get close enough. This is why it is auck ward,
:28:49. > :28:53.you have to talk to each other and nod, 600 yards. Is the novelty of a
:28:53. > :28:57.comedian performing in another language enough to sustain an hour-
:28:57. > :29:02.long show for audience. Reviewers and jourp lists might have an
:29:02. > :29:08.interest, the fact it is my second language, the audience want a good
:29:09. > :29:13.show, so they don't care. # Darling why don't you make a face
:29:13. > :29:20.operation # A trip to Switzerland fix it all
:29:20. > :29:27.# It would be nice consolation # And then we could put the mirror
:29:27. > :29:32.on the wall # You are not yourself any more
:29:32. > :29:36.# I'm sure, not after our last visit to the circus #
:29:36. > :29:43.So then we've had the Scandinavian writers and then we have the wave,
:29:43. > :29:48.the Vikings have arrived. But you know, there's nothing particularly
:29:48. > :29:54.Scandinavian about them, because they've the second language, it is
:29:54. > :30:01.not Tommy Cooper, and Billy Connolly, there's no Swedish humour
:30:01. > :30:05.is there? Melen cholic streak. Laura Bechtolsheimer has a very,
:30:05. > :30:10.bleak side to him which I like. That's what I was always trying to
:30:10. > :30:14.dox when I walked in, and saw this man, who was so wilfully taking
:30:14. > :30:23.liberal audience who share his views, and just disquieting them,
:30:23. > :30:28.which is out of malice, it made me go, the Fringe is Safe.
:30:28. > :30:33.Be back there in Sweden, facing charges? I thought he was thrilling,
:30:33. > :30:37.I wouldn't recommend him to everybody, because he would be an
:30:37. > :30:45.aqaird taste or specific taste, but he was my favourite. I thought he
:30:45. > :30:51.was wonderful. What did you make of him? Beck Magnus Betner I liked, I
:30:51. > :30:56.couldn't, Carl-Einar Haeckner the magician. He comes across as a
:30:56. > :31:03.personable young man, but it was confusing, he was confused, where
:31:03. > :31:08.he a fool, a standup. A magician. But it was far too adolescent for
:31:08. > :31:13.me. I came out screaming, thinking someone has stolen an hour of my
:31:13. > :31:18.life and I want it back. He is sweet but I want to see him perform.
:31:18. > :31:22.He is good at tricks. He is very clearly a clown, and he's great, I
:31:22. > :31:28.really enjoyed it. He plays with the audience, he has a sense of
:31:28. > :31:32.vulnerability and fun, and he comes, when he does the mouth organ in his
:31:32. > :31:42.mouth, and gets a member of the audience, not only does he play,
:31:42. > :31:42.
:31:42. > :31:47.but gets a member to remove it with a spat Tula, that's clowning,
:31:47. > :31:52.toured all over the world, he is not a random favourite, he is
:31:52. > :31:58.proper good. The thing about there, the Scandinavian invasion is
:31:58. > :32:05.happening, is a PR thing. They're a load of people from Noriega way and
:32:05. > :32:11.Sweden, and then it ties in. Magnus shows the globalised comic, he
:32:11. > :32:15.works in New York, he works in America, and travels around. He is
:32:15. > :32:19.topical. But he tells the story of travelling and being in Japan. If
:32:19. > :32:24.you look, you can do festivals in Melbourne and go to Montreal and
:32:25. > :32:29.America, and Europe. So, really, he is an example of globalised comic,
:32:29. > :32:33.than actually a Swedish come I can. What about the young boy then?
:32:33. > :32:39.Jiefplt there are moments which are interesting when he was auck yard
:32:39. > :32:43.and sweet as outsider. I think, that he's probably got some good
:32:43. > :32:46.material that's about 20 minutes long and it is an hour-long set and
:32:46. > :32:53.it is a little thing. He started the set from behind the curtain,
:32:53. > :32:59.for three or four minutes, which was very, very funny the way he
:32:59. > :33:04.handled it. He is classic Tommy Cooper. I liked him, I found him
:33:04. > :33:09.personable and I found some material was brilliant. I lieblgd
:33:09. > :33:15.the fact he is neurotic, he has the evil voice that talks to him. He
:33:15. > :33:19.has maybe 0 minutes, widely, given the room is a pit, it is so
:33:19. > :33:26.incredibly hot, he ran it short. Because people were probably going
:33:26. > :33:32.to pass out otherwise. He may have run it short for two reasons, if
:33:32. > :33:39.you live with girls and they didn't clean the toilet - that won't do.
:33:39. > :33:43.He is self-effaceing and self- confessed geeck. He comes over with
:33:43. > :33:49.the shyness. Don't you have to work harder. You have to have your
:33:49. > :33:52.material in good shape. In the old days of the Fringe, come up with 20
:33:52. > :33:59.minutes with the start and you then have a hour, the particular Celts
:33:59. > :34:06.are expense I have and you have to have it ready. There are incredible,
:34:06. > :34:11.and amazing too comics, David Trent, and Ellis James, amazing good
:34:11. > :34:17.comics. You say they're not particularly Swedish, but we had
:34:17. > :34:23.the Tetra pack guy, the Ikea stuff as well? To be fair, no-one can
:34:23. > :34:29.deny his props. I don't go for prop comedy, because it makes me tense,
:34:30. > :34:37.that everything will be cleared up. He has the best collapsing props
:34:37. > :34:44.I've ever seen. The geetar, falls apart, and administerable prop work.
:34:44. > :34:50.He said of wards, there's a follow spot, so the whole stage. I think
:34:50. > :34:53.maybe I would be calmer then. three comedians are on for ten days.
:34:53. > :34:56.The fact performers come from owl ever on the world would suggest the
:34:56. > :35:02.Edinburgh Fringe has unique to offer. But this year, more loudly
:35:02. > :35:10.than before, the cry has gone up that things ain't what they used to
:35:10. > :35:20.be. The 66th Edinburgh Fringe is the biggest yet with 2,695 shows
:35:20. > :35:20.
:35:20. > :35:24.and 279 venues, delivered by 0,000 performers. As usual as it mix,
:35:24. > :35:30.everything from a theatre company of injured soldiers to Brazilian
:35:30. > :35:37.drans troops and on the surface the Fringe appears to be riding high.
:35:37. > :35:42.But this year the clash with the Olympics hit take nnks the first
:35:42. > :35:48.week and the strive tarnished the image. Veteran owners has been
:35:48. > :35:53.fighting over the name, the Assembly Rooms which are now under
:35:53. > :35:57.new management. Comedians, Stuart Lee, claimed the alliance of the
:35:57. > :36:02.four biggest rein news, led to increased commercialisation and
:36:02. > :36:07.betrayal of the experimental ethos that originally defined the Fringe.
:36:07. > :36:11.The Big Four hit back, highlighting their track record and finding and
:36:11. > :36:16.promoting new talent. But there's a threat from outside
:36:16. > :36:20.too, with fringe festivals popping up in Brighton, Bath, Buxton and
:36:20. > :36:26.elsewhere, that doesn't begin with a B. Is Edinburgh's preEminence
:36:26. > :36:29.under threat or the mother of all fringes, fit and flexible enough to
:36:30. > :36:34.see of challengers? I feel it is right to come to you, because
:36:34. > :36:39.you've been at the Fringe in one capacity for more than 30 years?
:36:39. > :36:44.Good Lord no, where did you get that information. It is time passes
:36:44. > :36:47.so quickly. So, do you think the whole thing, now the fringe
:36:47. > :36:51.programme is like a telephone directory? It is but I believe you
:36:51. > :36:57.will still always get something very special and something unusual
:36:57. > :37:05.and exciting every Fringe. But it is getting difficult because of the
:37:05. > :37:10.costs involved. If you take the venue, I'm performing in the
:37:10. > :37:13.Assembly Rooms, including publicity to book that for three weeks, is
:37:13. > :37:17.�26,000. I was asked to appear there, the management are paying
:37:17. > :37:23.that money, but I had to sign a contract if I drop out of this, I
:37:23. > :37:28.would have to pay them �6,000. That's a hell of price. Would that
:37:28. > :37:33.scare the life out of performers would, but there are venues, you
:37:33. > :37:38.could pay less for thax you get enormous young comics that come up,
:37:38. > :37:44.that's probably where part of the idea that there's an idea that the
:37:44. > :37:49.fringe is losing the edge. I don't think that's true. There's amazing
:37:49. > :37:56.venues, their programmeer is inventive and exciting. When you
:37:56. > :38:00.take the Stuart Lee argument that The Big Four conglomerate is trying
:38:00. > :38:05.to control everything and that the true festival is on the old
:38:05. > :38:09.Assembly Rooms, do you hold with that? I revere Stuart everything,
:38:09. > :38:14.and everything he says to get more tickets for his show I agree,
:38:14. > :38:17.because that's more people will enjoy the spirit of Stuart Lee. I
:38:17. > :38:22.agree with him. The co- operationisation of the comedy bit
:38:22. > :38:26.particular shri not very beautiful. Now the good thing is as that's
:38:26. > :38:31.progressed of the last few years, things like the Free Fringe have
:38:31. > :38:36.sprung up. So the fringe has its own fringe. And you could do a week,
:38:36. > :38:41.you don't have to sign for three- and-a-half weeks of the Free Fringe
:38:41. > :38:45.shows hand around a bucket and they're getting �50 a show, that's
:38:45. > :38:50.not too bad. They're paying more than that on accommodation, because
:38:50. > :38:55.it is not cheap to live. With you you could do it for less, than
:38:55. > :39:00.�6,000 but there's no doubt, when I was doing solo shows, if I
:39:00. > :39:03.helicopter had a sponsor, I wouldn't have afforded to do them.
:39:03. > :39:08.There's a tendency for new comics to come up, management company to
:39:09. > :39:18.put the show on, and then they're endentureed for the rest of the
:39:19. > :39:23.
:39:23. > :39:28.year. It was two years ago, Bridges played massively, he went from to
:39:28. > :39:32.zero quickly. They're looking to launch young comics career careers
:39:32. > :39:35.and not so much as getting the money but changing the positioning
:39:35. > :39:38.where comics are in regards with their pierce and within the
:39:38. > :39:43.industry. That's what they're looking for. His career was built
:39:44. > :39:48.by doing TV, not the Fringe, whereas there are comics, Richard
:39:48. > :39:53.Harg, who comes up every year, he does a show here, and absolutely,
:39:53. > :39:57.his career is kemented. I know he did do television, but he cemented
:39:57. > :40:01.a live show every year, for how many decades it is now.
:40:01. > :40:05.economy's tough. The first week was down because of the Olympics, when
:40:05. > :40:10.things cost more than they used to, relatively, you can't take a punt
:40:10. > :40:20.all the time. You have to have guise. It is funny, it is big money
:40:20. > :40:25.for tickets, you're talking �15-20 for tickets The stand does �7-8.
:40:25. > :40:29.The stand has a brilliant set of clubs, with great performers on,
:40:29. > :40:33.relatively cheap ticket prices. I argue against that. Something for
:40:33. > :40:41.everybody and it is in rude health, no matter mow haen have around the
:40:41. > :40:46.country. I make a plea, don't buy all the tickets, because you've
:40:46. > :40:51.bought tickets you've heard of. Go to the someone you don't know.
:40:51. > :40:56.Others will tell you what to see, it is word of mouth. That's about
:40:56. > :41:03.all we've time for, thanks to Dave, mark and Natelie. You will find out
:41:03. > :41:11.about all the shows we've discussed on our website. Toinjoin us for a
:41:11. > :41:16.next week, I will be talking about Ian quenquen, we end with music
:41:16. > :41:21.from one of the stars of Brave, admittedly, you won't see animation