Fringe By The Sea brings a welcome break from TV sport - Fiona Duff
I know that this is a bit like shouting at the wind – but why is there so much sport on television? The World Cup football/soccer tournament seemed to go on for ages, so much so that Andy Burnham went from Manchester Mayor to Prime Minister in the time it took a bunch of blokes to kick a ball around and 11 of them pick up a gold trophy at the end.
Of course, during this time there was Wimbledon, the Scottish and British Open golf competitions as well as some rugby matches. And it ain’t going to stop soon. Last night Him Outdoors (who should be renamed after so much screen time) announced that the UEFA championships are about to start – indeed that may have already happened.
Then there are the Commonwealth games in Glasgow with that speedy chap from Edinburgh, Josh Kerr, no doubt heading for glory somewhere. So thank goodness for not only the good weather but all the outdoor festivals taking place.
Sitting out in a park, or hanging about with a bunch of people eating cheese toasties and drinking overpriced beer while awaiting some music is quite a relief.
I personally will be heading to North Berwick a week on Friday for Fringe By The Sea. I shall start my time there with a parade through the town, at which I shall be at the back not the front, to celebrate their Love of Life launch.
The following day I shall be going to see Rianne Downey – a Scottish singer who is now working with my favourite singer/songwriter Paul Heaton. I spent last Sunday sitting in the garden belonging to friends who live in this lovely East Lothian town where we all discussed what shows we would be going to see.
Let’s face it, there are so many to choose from and a couple of years ago I discovered the best cheese toastie ever while loitering around the Lodge Grounds where most of the action takes place.
If you ate one of these every day it would be like taking the fast train to the coronary unit at the ERI, but a couple in August shouldn’t put too much strain on one’s ticker.
Did I mention that it is also dog friendly, so the spaniel can come with me and have my crusts as a treat. Best of all, it will be a break from Sky Sports.