The Edinburgh Festivals: Culture and Society in Post-war Britain

This book deals with post-war culture and society and the Edinburgh Festivals. The Edinburgh Festival is the world’s largest arts festival. It has also been the site of numerous ‘culture wars’ since it began in 1947. Key debates that took place across the western world about the place of culture in society, the practice and significance of the arts, censorship, the role of organised religion, and meanings of morality were all reflected in contest over culture in the Festival City. This book explores the ‘culture wars’ of 1945-1970 and is the first major study of the origins and development of this leading annual arts extravaganza. This is the first critical history of the first 25 years of the world’s biggest arts festival. It uses festivals (and key theatre ventures) in Edinburgh as a lens for understanding wider social and cultural change in post-war Britain. It draws upon a range of archival sources, including original oral history interviews with key players in the arts scene of Edinburgh and beyond.

Reviews of The Edinburgh Festivals: Culture and Society in Post-war Britain

…makes a valuable contribution to our understanding of a critical time. – Christopher Hilliard, University of Sydney, Journal of British Studies 53.3