Welcome to the Pleasure Dome

Apparently this is the Famous Spiegeltent (Dutch for 'Mirror Tent') that currently sits astride George Street in Edinburgh for the duration of the Festival. According to Mr Wiki this lavishly decorated combination of wood, mirrors, stained glass and canvas was created in 1920 in Belgium (who said the Belgians were boring?). It is said that over the decades it has hosted some of the world's greatest performing artists, including Marlene Dietrich.

The current owner bought it from Scottish & Newcastle and it has appeared at festivals in Australia, New Zealand and England and can hold an audience of up to 350 people - if they can tear themselves away from the adjoining bar. I fail to see the attraction of sitting in the middle of the road drinking overpriced lager and attempting to look cosmopolitan and urbane and failing miserably at it - as the clientele here demonstrate.

I have now departed Edinburgh for two weeks and thankfully leave it to those poor souls who have to work there amidst all the wandering festival goers looking for an overpriced seat at a show with weird actors in the madness that is Festival Edinburgh.