Edinburgh Festival Day 10 / Festival Eye

A SUSPICION of jiggery-pokery hangs over a new phone poll which lets the public choose their favourite acts on the Fringe. The Cellnet People's Choice 'reflects popular and unbiased public preference in music and comedy for the duration of the Festival'. The 'dedicated' phoneline opened on 9 August, and its first Top 10 Fringe Chart was released on Radio Festival FM on Monday.

The most peculiar entry was Stephane Grappelli, who was riding high at No 3. This was an outstanding achievement for the veteran jazz violinist considering that he is not appearing on the Fringe this year (although he did appear for one night only at the Usher Hall as part of the Edinburgh International Jazz Festival a week before the chart appeared).

Doing rather well at No 8 was a show at the Pleasance called Lord Hubert Rose Succeeds. Lord Hubert has done anything but succeed. According to the venue, his show has never sold more than 14 tickets a night. Despite this, in the updated chart which is to be announced today, he appears to have shot still higher up to No 7.