Edinburgh People's Festival
The Edinburgh People's Festival is inspired by the 1945 Labour Government which established the Edinburgh Festival to be a celebration of the arts 'for the people, by the people'. It looks to showcase indigenous talent and provide high quality cultural entertainment at venues across the city, especially in the outer schemes at prices everyone can afford.
It carries on the tradition of the original Edinburgh People's Festival 1951–54 and acknowledge the cultural contribution made by Hamish Henderson, Ewan MacColl, Joan Littlewood, Norman Buchan, Joe Corrie and Councillor Jack Kane.
The festival was re-established in 2002 by the Scottish Socialist Party MSP, Colin Fox who still heads up the organising committee.
Since 2002 the People's Festival has presented shows in Saughton Prison, Edinburgh's Royal Infirmary, the Scottish Parliament, The Stand Comedy Club, Woodburn Miners Welfare, the BMC Club in Gorgie, Artspace in Craigmillar and the North Edinburgh Arts Centre as well as community centres in the North, South, East and West of the city.
The People's Festivals award winning exhibition was constructed by the inmates of HMP Edinburgh and tells the story of the organisation from its origins in 1951 to the present day and was the centrepiece of last years Radical Book Fair.
The 2009 August programme included the Hamish Henderson Memorial lecture, the launch of a new book entitled 'What Robert Burns means to me' to celebrate the bards 250th anniversary, a walking tour of 'Radical Edinburgh', a concert 'Songs of the People' and a tour of Rebus' Edinburgh endorsed by Ian Rankin himself.