Leader comment: What Edinburgh really thinks about its many festivals

There are sometimes vociferous complaints about effects of Edinburgh's many festivals, the noise, the proliferation of '˜tourist tat' on the Royal Mile, the increasing number of hotels and short-term holiday lets in the city centre, the over-enthusiastic student street actors and so on.

Edinburgh loves its festivals really (Picture: Getty Images)

But, before anyone runs away with the wrong idea, they should consider the quieter expression of opinion revealed by the ticket sales. Seventy per cent of the International Festival’s audience comes from Edinburgh or the rest of Scotland, while 71 per cent of the Jazz and Blues Festival’s crowd and 54 per cent of the Book Festival-goers are from Edinburgh alone.

These are essentially Scottish events. One might have expected the appeal of the amateur dramatics and stand-up comedy of the Festival Fringe to have waned over the years. And yet 22 per cent of its 2.7 million ticket sales come from Edinburgh, with more than 16 per cent from the rest of Scotland.

Complaints should be taken seriously, problems should be sorted where possible, but never forget: Edinburgh loves its festivals.