The term – Edinburgh Festival – is used for the collection of various festivals in August and early September of each year in Edinburgh, Scotland. There are about ten major festivals in Edinburgh during August – September.
Some of the Edinburgh Festivals include Edinburgh International Festival, Edinburgh Fringe, Edinburgh International Film Festival, Edinburgh International Book Festival, Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival, Edinburgh International Television Festival, Edinburgh Interactive Entertainment Festival, Edinburgh People's Festival, Edinburgh Art Festival, Edinburgh International Internet Festival, and iFest.
The Edinburgh International Festival is the most notable of the Edinburgh Festivals. It is the festival of performing arts that takes place in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, over three weeks from around the middle of August. The Edinburgh International Festival fetches top class performers of opera, theatre, classical music, and dance from around the world to perform at the invitation of the General Director.
The first Edinburgh International Festival took place in 1947, in the wake of the Second World War. The festival was aimed at boosting the spirits of optimism and enhancing the cultural spirit of Scotland, Britain and Europe. The Edinburgh International Festival has become the world's largest arts festival. About 335,000 people attended the Edinburgh International Festival in 2004; 60% of these were Scottish, 26% came from the rest of Britain, and 14% came from overseas.
The principal venues of the Festival include Usher Hall (Capacity 2,300), Festival Theatre (Capacity 1,800), The Edinburgh Playhouse (Capacity 2,900), Royal Lyceum Theatre (Capacity 650), The Queen’s Hall (Capacity 920), and The Hub (Capacity 420). The dates for the next few International Festivals are; 10 August - 2 September in 2007, 8 August - 31 August in 2008; 14 August - 6 September in 2009, and 13 August – 5 September in 2010.
Taking place in August every year, the Edinburgh International Film Festival is part of the Edinburgh Festival, started in 1947. It is the longest continually running film festival in the world. The festival screens and awards a range of films from around the world, which include feature length films, documentaries, short films, animations, and music videos. Sir Sean Connery and Tilda Swinton are the honorary patrons of the film festivals.
The principal venues of the Edinburgh International Film Festival include the Filmhouse, Cameo, Fountainpark Cineworld and The Dominion. Some of the events also take place in The Sheraton Hotel, the Glasgow Film Theatre, and Renfrew St Cineworld. There are proposals for a new Filmhouse named Sean Connery Filmhouse, designed by architect Richard Murphy. The Festival Square in front of the Sheraton Hotel is the current location favored by Filmhouse.
Orson Johnson writes for Holiday Velvet, a website providing listings for apartments, bed and breakfasts, Edinburgh short-term rental apartments hotels and Edinburgh B&Bs
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