Classical Guitar in The Merchant's House Marlborough

The panelled walls and solid wooden floor of this extraordinary room made the guitar sound amazing. I was using the Carlevaro which meant I could hear the sound myself, The audience was keen to know how it was making any sound without a sound hole and it generated great interest when they realised there was a gap all around the edge. Quite a sizeable group came up in the interval to have a closer look.

It was very nice to find that there were also audience members present who  had been to see me, in past years, at the  Edinburgh Fringe.

Marlborough has a wide, spectacular, beautiful High Street and this 17th century house is  a gem, right in the middle of it.

The Merchant's House Trust is gradually restoring the whole building to its original condition, commissioning the best conservation experts and craftsmen. Several rooms are already finished and more are in the planning stage.
But look at that floor! The house is like a wooden ship inside, the floors go up and down and creak like anything but in a good way.

It was a lovely venue to play in and a privilege to contribute to the fundraising effort that is keeping the house in such fine order.

Half way through The Edinburgh Fringe - what shall I do on my day off?

I can hardly believe I've just done 12 consecutive days performing. The audiences have been lovely so far - keen, knowledgeable, appreciative and jolly and the sun has been shining too. Thank you to my C Too stewards and technicians for smoothing my path here at Fringe venue 4. The venue has theatre lighting this year and it brightens up the space and really shows off its elegant architecture. My friend whose camera also does videos has done a short clip or two from a  respectful distance (so these are a bit quiet) and I've met some new people also.


The Carlevaro attracts curiosity as usual and one enthusiastic audience member came up to tell me that the guitar was so interesting  I ought to do a little speech about it - '...even lose one of your pieces,' she said, 'maybe the Satie?' 'Oh NOT the Satie!' came the shocked tones of  a young man standing nearby. C Too has a secret garden tucked away behind the venue where they serve delicious hot food and cold beers and I frequently get waylaid there by my audiences after the show so people do have an opportunity to find out about the guitar. Plus I have to get out of the space the minute I finish, to make way for Umdumo Wesizwe, the wonderful choir from Zimbabwe, who are on straight after me. So what shall I do tomorrow? I have one whole day off. Hmm... I think I might well cycle in to the sports club, play squash, watch a bit of the athletics on the big screen (hurrah for Christine Ohuruogu!!), have a nice pint and then cycle back to my 'home' here in Edinburgh.