Thursday night saw the opening night of the Ferry Fringe. All the usual last-minute changes and setbacks, all admirably dealt with by the team. The performances were very good, and there was a wave of love and pride for a local councillor who has become the Lord Provost of Edinburgh, making his first visit to Queensferry since taking office. Bruce Fummey was a warm and engaging MC. The audience was disappointingly small, however, and continuity damaged by the insistence by one of the acts of pretending to gatecrash, instead of using their alloted slot; what this amounted to was in fact gatecrashing pure and simple, and by making the first half too long and forcing an over-extended break, I didn’t feel the rest of the night recovered. They themselves did not stay around so could not see the consequences of their actions.
For me, the high point was the debut of my Ivor Cutler tribute act, Ivor Cutlery. I managed, with difficulty, to maintain an Ivor Cutler glower under my large flower-decked hat, as the audience chuckled at all the right places. It was an affectionate tribute and I hope Ivor would have approved.