Tips for punters

The Stage’s Edinburgh Guide editor and reviewer Jeremy Austin explains how to get the best out of the fest.

Get orientated - Your first priority upon arrival in Edinburgh is to work out where everything is - the ticket office, the venues, the bagpipers (in order to avoid them) and the drama students (ditto). When you book for shows, make sure you’ve enough time to get from venue to venue. No one wants to share a wooden bench with a sweaty, panting punter. Not unless it’s that sort of show.

Try to see shows as cheaply as possible - Edinburgh is expensive. Sure, the individual shows might seem initially like a bargain, but it soon adds up.

Check for 2-for-1 deals, preview nights and other special offers. Performers, your company pass might get you into other shows in the venue. But remember - actors need to eat.

Pace yourself - This is particularly important if you are attending the fringe for the full three weeks. This is the world’s greatest arts festival, not Magaluf.

And the the Scots are brilliant at drinking, so it’s no contest. Remember this simple formula: pace = (nights x alcohol)/age and you should be fine.

Bring a pin - A pin is useful for two reasons. One - there is a bewildering number of shows on offer and sometimes the only way to pick what you are going to see is to stick a pin in the official brochure. Two - if you pick unwisely, you can always stick the pin in your eyes.

Say ‘Hello’ to celebs - Edinburgh isn’t Soho. Celebs here aren’t scurrying incognito from drug-fuelled party to drug-fuelled party. They are celebrating ‘art’ as much as anyone. Find Ricky Gervais and say “You’re having a laugh. Is he having a laugh?” to him. He loves it.