Is Edinburgh's Fringe still fringe, or has it

Is Edinburgh's Fringe still fringe, or has it — gasp — gone mainstream?

Lauren Frayer

August 25, 2025 / 8:42 am

EDINBURGH, Scotland — For decades, devotees repeated rumors in hushed reverence about starving artists sleeping in bathtubs, out of dedication to the Fringe — one of the world's biggest theater and comedy festivals.

Now they deride corporate sponsors and local residents for cashing in and renting out those mythical bathtubs.

Fringe dates back to 1947 , when eight theater groups turned up at the Edinburgh International Festival uninvited. They staged their shows on the fringe – the edgy margins – of that more rarefied festival. Their vibe was alternative, weird, experimental — anything goes.

It's since become where eccentric theater kids find kindred spirits — and some