a fringe
for everyone
our mission
We believe the Edinburgh Fringe Festivals should belong to everyone – not just audiences who can afford premium ticket prices and artists who can cover high venue hire fees.
Our mission is to create a number of bespoke low impact spaces that encourage participation and attendance withoutexcessive financial risk.
John & Rick
The Hoots Fringe Guys
John Millar
John founded Monkey Barrel Comedy and created what is now regarded as the home of alternative comedy at the Fringe. Under John’s guidance, Monkey Barrel grew from an above a pub weekly gig into the cultural hub of comedy at Fringe. After selling his share of Monkey Barrel Comedy and taking time away, John returned to the Fringe when he founded Hoots Fringe with Rick.
Rick Molland
Rick, has been a comedian and promoter for over 15 years. He runs the Scottish Comedy Festival, a champion of Scottish based comedians in the Fringe. In 2024 he left his role as in-house MC at Monkey Barrel Comedy to create Hoots Fringe with John.
You can also catch rick every week end at his comedy club The Comedy Attic in the heart of Edinburgh.
/ Approach
pAY WHAT YOU CAN
We do not tell artists and producres what they can and can’t do in our spaces. It is there slot and they can do as they wish. However, we are big proponents of the Pay What You Can Model (PWYC).
We would encourage all artists to look into using PWYC. In this model; audience members can reserve a seat through Ed Fringe on a Pay What You Can basis or walk up, take any unresreved seats and pay what they can on the way out.
- Lower-income audiences can attend without financial risk.
- Audiences value the experience based on what it meant to them.
- People try unknown or experimental work when price is not a barrier.
- PWYC often attracts more diverse audiences than fixed-price models.
- Builds goodwill and a deeper connection with audiences.
- When audiences love a show, they often pay more than a standard ticket price.
- Encourages participation from a broader range of artists and audiences.
- Matches the spirit of open access and creative experimentation.
- Lower risk leads to fuller rooms and buzz, especially helpful for emerging acts.