News - Plan My Fringe

June 17th 2024 - How Many Shows Can you see in 2024?

The final batch of Fringe shows were released last week, and as usual we have now run the algorithm and calculated that you can see 320 In-Person shows in 2024 - one less than we could make in 2019 (which was 321) but an incredibly busy schedule nonetheless. See the proof here.

The 320 shows would cost £2650! But if you wanted to visit free shows only you could squeeze in 210 shows, see the proof here.

Note: As in previous years, the algorithm that performed these calculations was set to allow a walking speed of 4mph, a minimum of 5 minutes gap between shows, and at least 10 minutes for lunch and dinner each day. But these can all be set on the app by advanced users. All shows were rated equally.

The linked PDFs show the results of the calculations to prove that the claims made are possible. Henson IT Solutions make no recommendation as to the standards of the shows that are included on these lists, we rated every show equally then asked the app to fit in as many shows as possible. During normal usage of Plan My Fringe, users express a preference for the shows they wish to see, and the algorithm will adjust to ensure they don’t miss out on their favourites.

February 2024 - Plan My Fringe returns for 2024!

All the features introduced in 2023 are available, and we should have more by the full Fringe programme release.

August 4th 2023 - The 2023 Fringe Starts

And we have a new version of Plan My Fringe. The web-site is now available, and the mobile apps will follow in the next few days. Some of the changes are:

UI Improvements (especially on mobile apps, but the web-site menus are also now in sections)
Light and Dark mode support for mobile apps
Show or Hide provisional shows from your calendar
View All Upcoming Shows, or select a date and time to view shows from
Search Venues, view performance spaces at each venue and view performances at each venue or performance space
Additional information displayed on mobile apps
General improvements

July 7th 2023 - How Many Shows Can you see in 2023!

The final batch of Fringe shows were released last month, although the Plan My Fringe team were busy on other non-Fringe projects - we have to pay the bills somehow!

But we have now run the algorithm and calculated that you can see 319 In-Person shows in 2023 - not quite as many as we could make in 2019 (which was 321) but an incredibly busy schedule nonetheless. See the proof here.

The 319 shows would cost £2420! But if you wanted to visit free shows only you could squeeze in 224 shows, see the proof here.

February 22nd 2023 - Plan My Fringe Returns for 2023!

The first batch of shows have been released, which means Plan My Fringe is available now to access these shows. The iOS and Android versions of Plan My Fringe are being updated and will be available later this month.

More shows are due to be released by the Fringe on Thursday 30th March and Thursday 11th May, with the remainder of the shows being launched along with the full programme on Thursday 8th June. As soon as they are available they will be added to Plan My Fringe.

And we will have many new features available in 2023 based on last year's feedback, so watch this space!

August 30th 2022 - The Fringe is over for another year

The team from Plan My Fringe were there during the very hot first full week of the Fringe, the first time we have been able to visit since the first year of Plan My Fringe in 2017.

Despite the problems and costs of accomodation, we enjoyed ourselves immensely, and were able to see so many shows. It was also wonderful to be able to speak to so many people who were using Plan My Fringe, many with such great ideas about how Plan My Fringe could be made even better than it currently is.

We have a large list of enhancements and some really great suggestions, and we will be implementing as many of them as possible for 2023. And as always, if you have any ideas for improvement please let us know at enquiries@planmyfringe.co.uk

See you again in 2023!

August 5th 2022 - The Fringe has Started

And there is no official Fringe App again this year, so as with 2021 Plan My Fringe is the only app that has all the Fringe shows and performances.

You can use all the advanced functionality of Plan My Fringe to plan your visit, but if you prefer you can keep it simple and use the app and web-site simply to search for shows or find out those shows that are near to you at any time you are in Edinburgh during the Fringe.

And while there is nothing like live entertainment, if you can't make it to the Fringe, NextUp Comedy are Live Streaming several Fringe shows. Details are shown on Plan My Fringe where applicable, and you can get £5 off by registering with the Plan My Fringe discount code. Click here for more details.

July 11th 2022 - How Many Shows can you see in 2022

As the printed brochure is now available, we have run the calculations to see how many In-Person shows you can see in 2022. And the answer is: 311! See the proof here.

Not as high as 2019's record 321, but still an incredible number. The 311 shows would cost you £2352.50. We could beat the record by including Online-On-Demand shows, but this would feel like cheating!

And for those of you not so wealthy, you could see 209 in-person free shows during the 2022 Fringe - see the proof here.

March 3rd 2022 - Plan My Fringe Returns for 2022

The first batch of shows have been released by the Fringe, so Plan My Fringe returns again to help you plan your Fringe visit!

As each batch are added (currently scheduled for 7th April, 5th May and 9th June) they will automatically become available on Plan My Fringe.

August 12th 2021 - Video Help Now Available

Although this is a long (14 minutes) video, watching and understanding this video may save you a lot of time by allowing you to use the full power of Plan My Fringe!

Please turn the sound up and make the window full-screen for the best results.

August 6th 2021 - How many shows can you see in 2021?

It's that time of year again! Normally we run the calculations when the brochure is printed, but this year is obviously not a usual year.

But we have dutifully have run the calculations again. We calculated you could see 321 shows in 2019 (see the proof here), or 256 Free shows (here).

The calculations for 2021 illustrate that Covid-19 has still severely limited the 2021 Fringe, as there are only a fraction of the shows and performances available that there were in 2019.

However Plan My Fringe has proved that you could still see an incredible:

208 in-person shows

during the 2021 Fringe - see the proof here. This would cost you £1585.75. This still means an average of over 8 shows a day could be fitted in every single day.

Due to Covid-19 there are fewer free shows, but you could still fit in 110 free shows during the 2021 Fringe - see the proof here.

Being realistic, for online shows we have restricted the algorithm to only schedule performances on the hour or half-hour between 10:00 and 20:30. But squeezing in Online shows during these time periods (while still prioritising in-person shows) above means we could reach 234 Shows for £1704.75 (view them here), or 148 Free shows (view them here).

But if you want to binge, use Plan My Fringe! We have prioritised in-person shows above online shows for this calculation, but you can prioritise each individual show however you like! So if you want to watch all the Online On-Demand Shows (see the Fringe Stats for how many) one after the other then you can do so.

Will anyone take the Plan My Fringe challenge and see all these shows?

July 23rd 2021 - Mobile Apps Now Available

The mobile apps for Plan My Fringe have been approved today by the Apple AppStore and Google Play Store. Just search for "Plan My Fringe" to find it.

Also if you can't make it to Edinburgh this year or want to keep the Fringe experience going outside of your visit, you can View Upcoming Online-Scheduled shows during the Fringe. This is available as a separate option on the mobile app, or as part of the "Nearby" screen on the web-site.

July 13th 2021 - Return of Plan My Fringe!

We now have the data available, so Plan My Fringe is back! The iPhone and Android versions will follow shortly.

For 2021, there are 3 types of show, "In-Person" (which will follow Covid guidelines), "Online-Live" and "Online-On-Demand"

Plan My Fringe will display which of these types each show is, and many screens will allow you to filter for any combination of these types.

In-Person shows will be treated the same way as before, and you can plan your fringe as normal with these.
Online-Scheduled shows can also be added to your Wishlist, and Plan My Fringe will schedule them in as usual. It will schedule these outside your stay in Edinburgh if you select this under "My Details" (this is the default), as these can be viewed from anywhere.
Online-On-Demand shows can be added to your Wishlist as usual, but you will then have other options. You can choose just to keep these out of your schedule (the default) which allows you to just view them when you want. Or you can allow Plan My Fringe to schedule them at any time (fitting them automatically around fixed shows), or choose the date and time you want to schedule it manually (within the times when it is available).

iPhone, iPad and Android apps will be updated shortly for 2021 and to include these options.

June 2021 - Return of the Fringe

The Edinburgh Fringe confirmed early in 2021 that it would return from 6th to 30th August 2021, and in June confirmed the format.

Some shows will be live in-person shows that meet government safety guidelines, some will be scheduled or as-live online performances, and some will be online on demand.

Shows will be released from the 1st July, as soon as we have the data we will make the shows available in Plan My Fringe 2021!

July 2020 - More from the team behind "Plan My Fringe"

A brand new development started during lockdown was Anonyvoter (https://anonyvoter.com).

Anonyvoter allows secure online ballots for organisations, societies, clubs and political parties to take place remotely and cheaply.

But although we now have 2 very successful public projects, as well as work behind the scenes for many other companies, Plan My Fringe will never be abandoned, and as soon as we are able to return we will!

May 5th 2020 - What are the team behind "Plan My Fringe" doing now?

All of us at "Plan My Fringe" will continue to support the Edinburgh Fringe, and we have a bit more time now that the 2020 Fringe has been cancelled to to make sure that the "Plan My Fringe" web-site and apps have all the features we want for 2021! There were quite a few suggestions from 2019, many of which we have already developed and are waiting to go, and we hope to have an Apple Watch version available for 2021. But as always, we are always open to suggestions so if there is anything you'd like to see for 2021, please let us know at enquiries@planmyfringe.co.uk

And if there are any plans to have a "virtual fringe" this year, we will be keen to support this in any way we can.

We are always busy on other projects, "Plan My Fringe" is free (we do it for the love of the Fringe), so doesn't pay any bills. Most of our developments are internal systems for clients we work with, but the latest public-facing system the "Plan My Fringe" team has developed is Group Cards, and this is keeping us busy during the lockdown.

Group Cards is a system that organises the creation of greeting cards filled with messages (and optionally contributions for a collection). Rather than passing a card around a group of people, Group Cards simplifies the process by doing it all online. Cards won't get lost, and messages can be added quickly and easily. And in the current climate it is perfect for remote workers to contribute to the same card. E-Cards with up to 35 messages are free! Try it now - https://groupcards.co.uk/

April 1st 2020 - 2020 Edinburgh Fringe Cancelled

It is with a heavy heart that we at Plan My Fringe pass on this announcement - the 2020 Fringe has been cancelled. But given the situation this is the right decision. Read the official announcement from the Fringe here.

From everyone at Plan My Fringe, stay safe, and see you in 2021.

March 21st 2020 - COVID-19 Update from the Fringe Society Chief Executive

Read it here.

The Plan My Fringe Team will support whatever difficult decisions that the Fringe Society take. The most important thing is to stop the spread of the virus and save lives, only once things are under control can we consider other aspects of our lives.

We will continue to leave the Plan My Fringe web-site and mobile apps available receiving updates on available shows and performances from the Fringe, and you can still build your schedules as usual. If any shows on your schedule or wishlist get cancelled, you will be informed when you next log on. And if the Fringe does not go ahead in 2020 we will be back in 2021 with our planned enhancements.

Stay safe,

From all of us at Plan My Fringe

February 2020 - Plan My Fringe Returns for 4th Year

Plan My Fringe is back for 2020! The first batch of shows have been released by the Edinburgh Fringe Team, and they will release more shows on 27th February, 19th March, 16th April and 14th May, with the full programme launch taking place on 10th June.

Plan My Fringe will be updated with any new shows released as soon as these are available. In the meantime you can browse the shows currently available, and add any you like to your WishList.

Press Release August 2019 - A Better Fringe for Everyone!

An interview with Maddie Henson, Sales Director of Henson IT Solutions, about Plan My Fringe. Read the Press Release here.

June 2019 - Fringe Full Programme Available, and new Plan My Fringe features

The official Fringe Programme was released on 5th June, and these have all been included in Plan My Fringe automatically for you to browse and add to your WishList and/or Schedule.

We have also introduced a few more features that may help enhance your Fringe experience:

Random option - just click this and you will view a totally random Fringe show. You can add it to your WishList if you like it.
FAQ option - a list of Frequently Asked Questions about the Edinburgh Fringe itself, with answers based on the experiences of the Plan My Fringe team.
Map option - an interactive map showing all Fringe Venues, along with their postcode, address, and number of Fringe shows and performances taking place there.
Stats option - some interesting stats and graphs about the Fringe, dynamically updated based on the latest Fringe show and performance data available.

We have also already challenged the "Plan My Fringe" algorithm to beat the 2018 record, and it has beat the record by 1! We have proved it is theoretically possible to see 321 shows in the 25 days of the full Fringe programme, see our proof here.

February 2019 - Plan My Fringe Returns!

Plan My Fringe has returned for 2019! The first batch of shows have been released by the Edinburgh Fringe Team, and they will release more shows on 28th February, 21st March, 18th April, 16th May, with the full programme launch taking place on 5th June.

Plan My Fringe will be updated with any new shows released as soon as these are available. In the meantime you can browse the shows currently available, and add any you like to your WishList.

Press Release - August 2018

Devoted Fringe-Goers Could See 320 Shows at the 2018 Edinburgh Fringe!

Click Here to see the Press Release

2 new ways to Plan Your Fringe!

We have introduced 2 new ways to Plan Your Fringe! We have kept the original way of allowing you to rate shows, and our algorithm will schedule them. But you can also use a more manual "Fringe Trail" planning scheme to cram shows into a day, or a more automatic "Recommendations" section that allows you to very quickly plan a Fringe Schedule with our system automatically recommending shows for you, based on your preferences, keywords and / or shows already on your wishlist

And the good news is you don't have to choose which method to Plan Your Fringe, you can any or all of these methods together to get the best Fringe Experience!

More Information - you have to be logged on to use these options

Classic Plan My Fringe - see slideshow here

Browse Shows, or search for Shows identified from the brochure, flyers or other means
Select the Show
Add the Show to your WishList
Give the Show a Rating (1-100) based on how much you want to see it - this is optional but higher rated shows are scheduled in preference to lower rated shows
Repeat for as many shows as you want
Select Your Schedule
Click Calculate

Plan My Fringe will automatically schedule the shows for you. You can then confirm which ones you book tickets for or definitely want to see, and these will never be moved. If you find any other shows you want to see, you can repeat the process to see if they can be scheduled in.

Fringe Trail - see slideshow here

Select the Fringe Trail option
Select your starting venue or postcode and date/time (or alternatively another show on your schedule that you want to start after)
See what shows are on nearby after that date/time or show has finished
Pick one of the shows you want to see and confirm it
Select the Nearby After option
Repeat until you have scheduled as many shows as you want on that date
You can also repeat this whole process for any other dates you want to plan in this way.

Any confirmed shows will not be moved by any other planning process available

Recommendations - see slideshow here

Select the Recommendations option
Enter any keywords you want to search for (optional if you already have shows on your WishList)
Describe the sorts of shows you want to see (optional)
If you have shows on your WishList and want to use these to base recommendations on, leave this tick-box ticked. If you only want to base recommendations on your keywords and description, untick this box.
Click Show Recommendations. Recommendations will be listed with the most appropriate at the top
Tick any recommended shows you want to add to your WishList
Click Add Selected Shows to WishList
On your Schedule, click Calculate

Plan My Fringe will automatically schedule the recommended shows for you. Any shows you have manually added to your WishList will take priority over recommendations, unless you go into the recommendation and give it a rating.

Also, for Events and Shows that last over 2 hours, you may not want to see the full show (e.g. some exhibitions are scheduled for most of the day). Plan My Fringe now allows you to see only part of these shows. When adding one of these shows to your WishList, you can choose how long you want to spend there, and select just the first part, last part, any part or specify when you would like to attend. The automatic scheduler will Calculate when you can visit accordingly.

Note: this additional functionality is currently only available via the web-site (although the mobile versions will still show the results of anything planned in this way). The mobile versions will be upgraded shortly to include this functionality.

iPhone/iPad App Upgraded for 2018

The iPhone and iPad application has now been updated for 2018, upgrade your apps now!. More features to come

Plan My Fringe Returns for 2018

Following a successful debut at the 2017 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Plan My Fringe returns for 2018 better than ever. The iPhone app will be updated shortly, and there will also be an Android version. We have improved the algorithm, and will make some other enhancements ahead of the Fringe start date, come back to this page for more details!

Press Release - August 2017

Devoted Fringe-Goers Could See 314 Shows at the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe!

Click Here to see the Press Release