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Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media

News, interviews and coverage from the Edinburgh Festival

The Festival Cafe: 08/08/2012

Festival Café: 08 August 2012

08/08/2012

BBC Radio Scotland - The Festival Cafe, 08/08/2012

Clare English talks to Edinburgh's Makar Ron Butlin.

Clare English talks to Edinburgh's Makar Ron Butlin and hears from music sensations The Magnets.

On today's Festival Café Edinburgh's Makar, Ron Butlin, treats us to some of the wonderful poetry in his new collection "The Magicians of Edinburgh" which he'll be performing at the Edinburgh Fringe and Book Festival.

A new chamber opera tells the touching story of Farquar Quimpugh, world-renowned expert in rare disorders of the mind. Old and unwell, he revisits the bizarre cases upon which his mighty reputation was built. But will these ghosts of patients past, including a spectacularly jumpy Welshman and a woman with an alien hand, convince the doctor that his celebrated discoveries amount to a life well spent. Librettist, Phil Porter's on hand to answer those questions.

We catch up with award winning South African actress, Sandra Prinsloo who's in Edinburgh to perform in the one -woman play "The Sewing Machine". It's a rich and sometimes funny monologue set in a retirement home in present day South Africa where 81 year old Magdaleen now lives. It's part of the 2012 Fringe South African Season and Sandra explains how the play fits in to the season.

And Festival a capella maestros, The Magnets, bring us some great sounds from their new show.

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