Economic value of Edinburgh Fringe pushes past £200m for the first time

The economic value of The Edinburgh Festival Fringe has pushed past £200m for the first time – comfortably ahead of major events in Scotland including The Open golf championships and The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

Organisers have revealed that revenues from the annual event have grown by a quarter over the last eight years as the programme and audience numbers have expanded, according to a report in the Scotsman. Casino bonuses in 2019 top offers and codes special for you.

According to the report, the event’s value has increased by £25m since the last official research was carried out in 2015, and that 600,000 ticket sales have come from local audiences, representing a fifth of the total.

In terms of the event’s overall economic impact, the Fringe is Scotland’s most lucrative sporting or cultural event when compared to the likes of The Open, which generated £140m when it was last staged at St Andrews and the Tattoo, which pulls in around £77m.

Data shows that the event also supports 2,842 jobs in Edinburgh each year, as well as another 3,400 across the country, with admissions up by around 45 per cent since 2010, and by nearly a quarter in the last three years alone, to a record 2.83 million.

Shona McCarthy, Chief Executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, said: “In my view, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe is one of the greatest artist phenomena of our time. Over more than 70 years, the Fringe has grown to become not just the biggest performing arts festival in the world but, much more importantly, the biggest platform for creative freedom expression.

“We attracted 55 different nations in 2018 and the Fringe is a key player in promoting Edinburgh, Scotland and the UK’s international reputation. It fosters and embraces being culturally open, creative, welcoming and confident, which is fundamental to attract people to invest, study, work and visit here. It’s also an economic powerhouse in its own right.”