Presenter defends political platform in Fringe line-up
A leading broadcaster has defended the platform of politicians at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe – as he revealed plans to quiz former Prime Minister Liz Truss at this year’s event.
Presenter and political commentator Iain Dale will be grilling First Minister Humza Yousaf, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar and Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves as part of the Pleasance’s Fringe programme this August.
The LBC host, who has been stagingalive show at the Fringe since 2019, will also be interviewing former First Minister Alex Salmond, Stephen Flynn, the SNP’S Westminster leader, former Scottish Conservatives leader Ruth Davidson, and the Labour MPS Labour MPS Wes Streeting and Jess Phillips at the EICC.
He has unveiled his latest line-up in the wake of growing debate last year over the growing number of politicians being given a platform at the Fringe.
Dale previously spoke out over the dangers of cancel culture at the event after The Stand Comedy Club pulled the plug on an “in conversation” event with Edinburgh MP Joanna Cherry after a number of staff members said they were unwilling to work at the event. The event went ahead after she launched a legal challenge against the venue.
The previous year the standup comedian Jerry Sadowitz had the second of two shows at the EICC cancelled after the Pleasance, which stages shows at the venue, said there had been a number of walkouts and complaints over the “extreme” nature of his material and his “unacceptable” language. Dale has previously interviewed former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, Penny Mordaunt, Leader of the House of Commons and former Government Minister Nadine Dorries at the Fringe.
The line-up for his “All Talk” show this year will also feature special General Election events with Conservative MP Andrew Bowie, and Ian Murray, Liberal Democrat MP Christine Jardine, election expert John Curtice, and the broadcasters Michael Crick and Brian Taylor.
Dale admitted he had been irritated by some of the commentary around the politics events that were part of last year’s Fringe, including a debate show hosted by Alex Salmond.
One commentator, Gerry Hassan, wrote: “The verdict must be that Edinburgh at festival time as a place for political conversation is neither healthy, enlightening or democratic.”
Dale said: “I got really p***ed off last year. I thought the coverage was absolutely outrageous.
“People were saying: ‘Politics is talking over the Fringe.’ But politics has always been part of the Fringe. The fact is, if people didn’t want to go to events to hear politicians they wouldn’t buy tickets.
“People were also saying: ‘You’re preventing comedians from getting venues.’ No we weren’t. There were plenty of venues available. I wasn’t taking anything away from anybody.
“We had thousands of people coming to our events. In an era when we decry the lack of reasoned political debate, it is pretty rich for anyone to think that shows like mine shouldn’t come to the Fringe.”