Almost 2.5 million tickets sold for 2016 Edinburgh Fringe
It's as performances draw to a close.
The Edinburgh Fringe and International festivals have been hailed a spectacular success'' as performances draw to a close.
Millions of people have visited the capital throughout August to watch comedy, theatre and music shows as well as a number of free outdoor performances which mark the peak of the city's year-round festivals calendar and the height of its tourist season.
Almost 2.5 million tickets have been issued for 50,266 Fringe events, an increase of 7.7% on last year, while the Edinburgh International Festival (EIF) has generated £4 million in ticket sales, surpassing last year's record.
This year marked Shona McCarthy's first Fringe as chief executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe society.
Ms McCarthy said: In 2016, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe has once again been a spectacular success, welcoming performers and audiences from across the globe, and issuing an estimated 2,475,143 tickets.
We hope that all those who attended ticketed shows, as well as the thousands of people who attended the 643 free shows in the programme, truly enjoyed their Fringe experience.
The Fringe plays an essential role in the global arts community, providing a platform for artists from around the UK and the rest of the world to showcase their work and make new connections. With 48 countries represented in this year's programme, the breadth and diversity of talent on offer has been astounding.
We are now looking forward to our 70th anniversary celebrations in 2017 and hope that as many people as possible will join us to mark this fantastic milestone in the history of Edinburgh's festivals.''
The curtain will come down on Edinburgh's festival season tonight with a display of hundreds of thousands of fireworks lighting up Edinburgh Castle. It is expected that 250,000 people will turn up at Princes Street Gardens and other vantage points across the city for what is the largest annual fireworks concert in the world.
The annual Virgin Money Fireworks Concert will provide the finale to the Edinburgh International Festival with over 400,000 fireworks lighting up the sky against the backdrop of Edinburgh Castle.
We're broadcasting it live on Forth 1 from 9pm.