London riots: Camden Fringe on the front line

It's been a weird old week at the Camden Fringe. The 6th annual Camden Fringe kicked off on the 1st of August and the first week was great - healthy audiences, good shows and some nice reviews. And then the riots happened.

 

We're obviously we're pleased that no-one involved in the Fringe was hurt, stolen from or lost their homes, and that all the venues went undamaged. It's self-indulgent to talk about how this affected us, but I think it's interesting to reflect on the difference it made to business and how people reacted in general.

 

The most immediate impact the riots had was on Monday night, when trouble hit Camden. On instruction from the police, pubs on the High Street & Chalk Farm Road started to close early, whilst we had a show going on upstairs. Executive decisions were made to let the show finish, as we are tough and brave. Up at the Roundhouse, stragglers after James Mullinger's performance found themselves locked into the venue as police wouldn't allow them to leave because the area outside was unsafe. Around midnight the coast was clear enough for them to make their way home.

 

About half the performances at the Fringe were cancelled on Tuesday - with venues being advised to close early and some acts opting not to go ahead. It was, of course, the stand-ups who proved most prepared to carry on. They were also the acts most able to respond and comment on what was happening around them.

 

Comedian Geoff Norcott had the claims of his new show title - Geoff Norcott is Good in A Crisis - tested to the full when he found himself caught up in the disturbances around the Camden area on Monday night. With reports of further trouble forecast for the Tuesday night, 

Norcott had to make a decision on whether to go ahead with the show. "It would have seemed a total abdication of the show title if I were to have cancelled," Norcott explained. The High Street was eerily quiet by7pm but 13 hardy souls turned out for the performance. Kent Valentine had a similar experience at the Camden Head and decided to use the opportunity to teach the audience about how to make napalm. You know, just in case.

 

By Wednesday, panic was over and venues stayed open. Audiences, however, were not as plentiful as they had been before. Lots of people were put off coming out at all, due to all the rumour-mongering and Chinese whispers that went on around the riots.

 

Later in the week, Adrian Poynton started his 3 night run by deciding to let in anyone affected by the problems in to his show for free. £160 was raised on Thursday for riot clean-up funds with a simple rattling bucket after his show. Adrian's show was hastily rethought and focussed on his love of London, trying to bolster everyone's feelings about their home city. He'd also managed to get caught up in riots in Hackney AND Manchester, so had quite a story to tell.

 

I'm happy to report things seem to be getting back to normal this weekend - the High Street is full of tourists, the Oxford Arms (above which lives the Etcetera Theatre HQ for the Camden Fringe) is full of meat heads bellowing at screens showing sport and people are coming out to see shows again.

 

Hurrah! There is plenty to look forward to in the second half of the fringe including shows by Hal Cruttenden, The Trap and Bec Hill.