The UK’s world-class arts festivals are in crisis. They need proper support in order to survive and flourish

At a press conference for the Sarajevo film festival in the early 1990s, its founder, the Bosnian director Haris Pašović, was asked why he set up such a festival during the war. His reply, he told the Los Angeles Times, was: “Why the war during the film festival?” Sarajevo under siege is an extreme example, but the point is that arts festivals matter, especially during times of crisis.

Covid, austerity and sponsorship issues have left even the most successful festivals in the UK struggling. This week Shona McCarthy, the outgoing chief executive of the Edinburgh festival fringe, argued that the fringe should be given the same support as major sporting events like the Olympics. This follows warnings from Nicola Benedetti, a classical violinist and director of the fringe’s parent, the international festival, that its world-class status is threatened by funding cuts.