A top comedian has accused the Edinburgh Fringe Festival of becoming a Scottish version of Munich’s beer-fuelled Oktoberfest.
German comedian Henning Wehn said artists and shows were becoming “superfluous” with thousands flocking to the city to drink.
The Fringe, which began on Friday and runs until August 26, helped launch the careers of dozens of comedy stars including Rowan Atkinson, Billy Connolly and Steve Coogan.
But Wehn, 50, who appears regularly on Radio 4, told fans in his online newsletter: “The main difference to the Fringe 20 years ago is that every little open space these days has been turned into a giant temporary beer garden with a late-night licence and a little gig hut in the corner as exercise for meeting requirements.”
Wehn, a former Fringe favourite who calls himself “the ambassador of German comedy”, will not be appearing at this year’s festival.
German comedian Henning Wehn said performers and shows at the Edinburgh Fringe were becoming “superfluous” with thousands of revellers flocking to the city to drink.
Life on the Royal Mile during the Edinburgh Festival with crowds of tourists and artists promoting their shows
Artists perform on the Royal Mile during the opening weekend of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe on August 3.
Oktoberfest: Waitresses carry beer mugs in a beer tent on the opening day of the 2018 festival
Edinburgh: Performers before their performance at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Pictured: The 188th Oktoberfest in Munich in October last year
Festival posters in the city centre ahead of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Instead, he began a nine-month British tour with a sold-out performance in Hastings on Sunday night.
Wehn said: ‘I won’t be taking part again after having enjoyed it so much last year not being there for the first time since 2004.
‘There are a lot of opinion pieces these days about how the festival has become too crowded and unaffordable for emerging artists who don’t have a trust fund to support them.
‘I always laugh when I see yet another grant scheme set up to level the playing field by handing out a few bucks to artists from working-class backgrounds, especially when it comes from one of the big Fringe venues like Underbelly or Assembly Rooms.
‘From what I’ve seen, they are the ones on the front line of the problem!
‘That artists are superfluous in the current version of the Fringe was never more obvious than during the 2021 Covid Fringe, when I was one of only a handful of artists in the city but the beer gardens were the same size as ever.
‘The fact that these beer merchants managed to access generous emergency funding for the arts made the situation even more grotesque.
The performers pose for photographs as they return to the Edinburgh Fringe this year
A crowd moves through the grounds on the final day of the Oktoberfest in Munich last year.
Coach Thomas Tuchel with FC Bayern Munich president Jan-Christian Dreesen at the Oktoberfest
Festival posters in the city centre ahead of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Beer-goers drink beer from traditional mugs in the Hofbraeu tent on the opening day of the 2023 Munich Oktoberfest
Edinburgh: Ginger Johnson performs at the Pleasance Theatre’s opening night gala on 3 August
‘The local council could reduce overcrowding in a heartbeat if it stopped allowing the whole of Edinburgh to be transformed into Oktoberfest.
‘The hotel’s capacity will not be occupied by bachelor or bachelorette parties if they cannot go for a walk in the beer gardens.’
Wehn has previously complained about the cost of accommodation in Edinburgh during the Fringe.
He said he had been quoted £9,000 for a “standard two-bedroom flat” for the month, and £7,000 to stay in “a caravan on someone’s driveway”.
Almost 4,000 shows are expected to be performed at this year’s Fringe.
Acclaimed television series such as Baby Reindeer and Fleabag originated at the festival.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe has been contacted for comment.
