It was also the first time I had been to the Usher Hall since it was refurbished and it’s looking rather swanky inside the stage area, but the unfinished corridor paintwork and photocopied signs to the stalls need to be corrected.

Billy really is a larger-than-life manic Glaswegian who opened his 2009 tour this evening by bursting onto the stage in some fetching black and white breeks.  He was warmly welcomed with clapping and cheering but due to some microphone malfunction, we couldn’t hear a thing he was saying.  It was soon sorted with improvised comedy to keep us amused.

The Big Yin did not disappoint his audience and I feel that my stomach has done a full work out from laughing throughout and I had to gasp for air several times.  To say he went off on tangents was an understatement, but always came back to the original story.

All topics were covered, huge theme of Scottishness throughout but I don’t really want to give any more of the show away for those that will be reading this clutching a ticket for an upcoming date.  Of course, that’s on the assumption that there is some kind of plan to his routine, I have a feeling it could be different every night.

My only criticism of the Big Yin tonight was his laughing.  I felt it sometimes spoilt the stories he was telling and that I didn’t pay to see him laugh at his own jokes.  I know comedians use this technique from time to time, but felt Billy took it a little too far. 

There was definately Billy Connolly gold as the show progressed and it was well worth the money.  The 2 hour non-stop show meant that people were in and out their seats the whole performance going to the toilet (why are the ones those seated in the stalls use so far far awy ??).  Also, there didn’t seem to be a ban on photographs, therefore there were also non stop flashes from the audiences’ phones and cameras.

You could also stock up on Billy Connolly merchandise if you so desired, but £15 for a black t shirt and £5 for a fridge magnet was a little steep.  Will keep my ticket as a souvenir instead.

His Usher Hall run is officially sold out, but if you are desperate for a ticket, try ebay, gumtree or hang about outside, people had spares this evening (genuine, not touts).

Not quite Billy Connolly, but The Stand at York Place has a lot of good comedians coming up over the next few weeks, the link takes you to the what’s on page.  Reginald D Hunter is on my hit list as I missed him at the festival.

Sy and Simon were witty, hair conscious men.  The show is based around the set up of their shared flat in London.  They let the audience into their lives a little, by showing  dvd collections, games they play and pranks they pull on each other.

Both of them are extremely talented and their interaction with each other was really well paced and natural.   They were charming and captivating entertainers.  Most of the show was banter between them, but the audience were in on the jokes.

It was different in that the show was broken up with small sections of standup as well as video clips and that really kept the audience engaged.  Who wouldn’t want to go round to their flat for a cup of tea ??

Playing till Sunday, so grab a ticket before they disappear, well worth the five pounds

4 stars  - refreshingly good and they get a bonus point for handing out badges at the end

Her home is 22A  Albany Street, a short walk from Queen street and well signposted.  You are warmly welcomed by her flat mate Sam who is in charge of tickets and shown into the house and the show begins.

I don’t want to give any spoilers away so just go with the flow and allow her to show you around her home with all that’s involved    It’s quirky, it’s crazy, it’s interactive (without embarassment) and had everyone laughing.  The end of the show has the most unique, random ending I have ever seen that left audience members chuckling as they walked away.    Bonkers but brilliant !

You would be silly to miss this completely unique show and I have no doubt that Holly Burn will be a very well known name in the future due to her talent.  At £5 full price, this is an absolute steal and a great way to spend an hour in the afternoon.  Buy your tickets NOW.

5 stars from me, highly recommended

Holly first came to my attention as part of Mark Watson’s cast in The Hotel and had me in stitches in her well excuted role.

All the websites that you will need and they all open in a new window.

The Fringe      International Festival        Five Pound Fringe        Assembly Festival 

The Pleasance (comedy)    The Edge Festival (music)    Jazz Festival

Book Festival      Underbelly        Fringe By The Sea (North Berwick)  

Military Tattoo        Free Festival (Laughing Horse)     The Stand

Spiritual Festival        Edinburgh Mela       Art Festival     Comedy Festival

All my festival photos will be added  here - Alison’ Festival 2009 Photos which will be taken over the next few weeks, but for some professional shots of the Edinburgh Festivals, then head to Keith  at  Fourth Eye Photography / his blog or follow him on twitter.  This guy is the real deal !

I could do a whole guide on what to expect from the festival, things to do, how get to get information but there are so may websites out there already.  My pick of the bunch has to be http://www.fringeguru.com/  who has interesting articles on things like how to get fringe tickets  and the handy guide on how to plan a day.  I will of course be recommending shows as I go to them, but the Fringe Guru has a great guide on how to choose a show.   Big thanks to Fringe Guru from I Love Edinburgh !!

I am an Edinburgh festival lover and has seen hundreds of shows over the years (mainly comedy and dance).   I have bought tickets for the following shows.    All are linked and will take you to the show description.

Reviews will be added to this page as soon as I see them.

Oor Tours  – Musical Tour of Edinburgh by Graeme Pearson.  Did the same tour in May – REVIEW  but it meets outside the blue police box at the Tron during the festival as the phone boxes are too busy.

Jason Byrne  Consistently funny, new material every year, includes a lot of swearing and don’t sit near the front !         REVIEW ADDED

Tom Tom Crew  Come highly recommended from a friend – can’t wait to see them.  REVIEW ADDED

Chris Cox  Have seen him at the festival in 2007 and am going back, so he’s obviously good !  REVIEW ADDED

Kevin Bridges   This guy is my MUST SEE of the fringe, he is a very funny Glaswegian comedian.  Have seen him 4 times and has never disappointed.  REVIEW ADDED 5th AUG

Micky Flanagan  Have seen him in previous years, always funny.    – Worth a look, review to follow

Richard Simms  Taking a gamble on this one, but should be fun since it’s an interactive show with breakfast included !!    REVIEW ADDED

Pythonesque  Will be a first for me   -     Have seen, very good, review to follow

Etch a Sketch  Another first – Have seen, review to follow, ok, but Superclump were far far better

Paul Zerdin   Have seen this ventriloquist on TV and was very impressed    REVIEW ADDED

Sarah Millican  very funny woman, saw her in last years Comedy Gala and want to see her full show this year

The Hotel  – Mark Watson in this bizarre but brilliant show    REVIEW ADDED

At Home With Holly – REVIEW ADDED

Gecko Theatre’s – The Overcoat,    REVIEW ADDED

Blow Up ! Credit Crunch the Musical   – REVIEW

Superclump  – REVIEW

Life of Si – REVIEW

Edinburgh Festival Theatre’s   Comedy Gala  in aid of Waverley care, best value show.  Money goes to charity and you see 10-12 comedians tell their funniest jokes.

Will be going to many more shows, but I like to see what I fancy on each day, word of mouth etc.

If you don’t like the look of what I am going to see then try  The Times Top 50      and Scotsman Top 100 recommended shows to see.  Other good fringe sites are Fringe Guru and for pictures Edinburgh Fringe Photographer.  Also,  Fourth Eye Photography writes a good Edinburgh Festival Blog

Along with the daily papers, you can get up to the minute reviews on the Ed Fringe website from real people who tell it like it is.  Don’t forget to visit the Half Price Hut at The Mound from 11th August for daily deals on shows and you’ve guessed – half price !    . 

Of course, if you don’t have a penny to your name, there are lots of free shows to go to.  The Free Festival is a good place to start, but of course there are all the street entertainers up and down the High Street.  They do depend on the generousity of the public to make their living in the form of donations and at least you get to see the show first before you pay !! 

And finally it is the Edinburgh festival, so always make sure you have an umbrella tucked away somewhere as the heavens will open sometime – it’s guaranteed.  I would also wear comfy shoes for all the walking about the city and a bottle of water as the venues can get quite hot if it’s a semi warm day.  Some venues allow you to take drinks in from their bar.

Most importantly have a wonderful festival 2009 !!

Watson for me, is one of the best performers of the Fringe / Festival over the last number of years and anything he produces for Edinburgh will have me in attendance immediately.

I resisted reading any reviews or what happens in The Hotel before meeting outside the Assembly Rooms ready to pay a visit.  We were given a map of where to go and once a rather fiddly ticket collection was over, we headed en mass down to ‘The Hotel’ where we were greeted warmly by a rather familiar looking bunch of staff (cast members from other festival shows such as Idiots of Ants and Superclump).

There are no spoilers in this review, it’s all about discovering the different parts of the hotel such as the dining room, the tv room, the wellness centre etc.  We started at on the top floor and worked out way down opening whatever door we could find and interacting with the staff members (cast).  Fellow audience members were perplexed as to what was going on, some just watching, some interacting like us – the whole experience is rather bizarre but also very funny and comes to an interesting end.

The attention to detail is immense – I can only imagine the weeks of painstaking work to put this show together.  It’s crazy, daft and generally bonkers, but then that’s what the festival is all about.

I would grab our ticket NOW because when the word gets out about this show, The Hotel will become fully booked 

5 stars from me – highly recommended