Hour-long festivals special for BBC Two

Jack Whitehall is to host a TV celebration marking 70 years of the Edinburgh festivals.

Festival Tales: Edinburgh At 70 will feature contributions from Sir Ian McKellen, Daniel Radcliffe, Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Stephen Fry, as it investigates the cultural impact of the events.

The BBC says the hour-long programme will cover all arts, including the birth of satire with Beyond The Fringe and the comedy explosion of the 1980s when stand-up comedians began to dominate.

Festival Tales: Edinburgh At 70 special will air on BBC Two on the last Saturday of the Fringe, August 26, at 9pm.

News of the programme comes as the BBC confirms its full coverage of Edinburgh’s festivals, which kick off next week.

The announcements include:

• Kirsty Wark will present Welcome To Edinburgh on BBC Two on August 19, and an hour long chat show on BBC Two Scotland on August 13.

• Charlie Stayt will anchor a special BBC Breakfast broadcast in Edinburgh next Friday, August 4.

• The Radio 2 Arts Show with Jonathan Ross will be linking up to the Fringe on Thursdays August 10, 17 and 24 from 10pm to midnight.

• Two episode of Just A Minute will be recorded on August 8, chaired by Nicholas Parson and featuring Paul Merton, Susan Calman, Josie Lawrence, Fred MacAulay, Paul Sinha and Mark Watson. The Now Show will also record at Edinburgh on Wednesday August 23.

• The Funny From The Fringe daily podcast is back after its debut in 2016, again hosted by Phil Ellis.

• Radio 4 arts show Front Row will also be based in Edinburgh for the festivals, while Clive Anderson, and co-hosts Arthur Smith and Tom Allen, will record two episodes of Loose Ends on Friday August 18 and Tuesday August 22.

• Mark Watson hosts the final of the BBC New Comedy Award, which will be broadcast live on BBC Radio 4 at 6.15pm on August 13 and filmed for BBC iPlayer. It follows two semi-finals held on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 August (broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra on Tuesday 8 and Wednesday 9 August at 10.30pm)
  • Radio 4’s Fresh From The Fringe, offering the highlights from the best comedy performers, will be recorded Monday August 14; and 4 Extra Stands Up At The Fringe will be recording on Saturday 19 and Wednesday 23 August.
  • The Asian Network will showcase new talent with their comedy night on August 11, which will also be available to view on the Red Button. The line-up includes Patrick Monahan, India’s first female stand-up Aditi Mittal and British-Kurdish comedian Kae Kurd.
  • A Night of International Comedy on the World Service will feature Germany’s Henning Wehn; English-Nigerian comedian Nabil Abdul Rashid; former BBC new Comedy Award finalsist Athena Kugblenu; Australia’sHannah Gadsby; Malawian Daliso Chaponda and Chinese-Swedish Evelyn Mok
  • BBC Comedy’s Lee Dalloway will host daily Facebook Live sessions with up-and-coming comedians
  • Radio Scotland’s topical quiz Breaking The News will be recording episodes at the Fringe, hosted by Des Clarke. Matt Forde, Catriona Shearer, Fred MacAulay and Zoe Lyons are guests on August 10; Andrew Maxwell, Lucy Porter, Val McDermid and Rory Bremner on August 17; and Angela Barnes, Raymond Mearns, Martell Maxwell and Richard Herring on August 24. Stop The Press, featuring team captain Jo Caulfield, also kicks off its new second series on BBC Radio Scotland with two shows taping in Edinburgh
  • Even BBC Radio Wales is in on the act, with Edinburgh edition of The Leak, recorded on Thursday August 24 with host Tom Price; while comedian Tudur Owen will be presenting his BBC Radio Cymru show from the festival.
  • BBC News’s Ouch: Disability Talks will be recording a podcast with comedian Sofie Hagen introducing funny stories told by disabled people and those with mental health difficulties.

  The BBC will again be setting up its base in the grounds of George Heriot’s School, said to have been JK Rowling’s Inspiration for Hogwarts.

  Donalda MacKinnon, director of BBC Scotland, said: ‘This is a special year for the Edinburgh Festivals. Its enduring vivacity as an international event in Scotland enjoys a cultural reputation of extraordinary magnitude and I’m delighted that the BBC is at its heart.

  STV will be airing an hour-long programme from the Fringe every weekday from Wednesday August 2 at 5pm,with additional shows on Mondays and Fridays at 8pm. The programmes will from The Dome in the city's New Town. Also Ewen Cameron will host the Edinburgh Festival Late Show at 10.30pm on weeknights to STV2, featuring interviews with Fringe stars.

  Published: 24 Jul 2017