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Underbelly

Underbelly is Fringe venue number 61 , part of the Underbelly venue chain.  Read more about this venue chain.

Its address is 56 Cowgate (entrances on Cowgate and Victoria Street), Edinburgh EH1 1EG, which is in the Grassmarket and Cowgate area of the city.  See a map of this area.

The venue's website is www.underbelly.co.uk, and you can book tickets online through this website.

The box office telephone number is 08445 458 252.  The Fringe central box offices can also sell tickets for this venue from a limited allocation.  Scroll down to see all ticket purchasing options on a map.

FringeGuru's review of this venue

The Underbelly's chain's main venue, known simply as the Underbelly, is not a place for the faint-hearted. Built into a warren of disused cellars underneath Edinburgh Central Library, there's an air of cheerful chaos about the undertaking: where other venues have an orderly queue, the Underbelly has a general hubbub around the bar. The whole place is damp, a few of the walls are mouldy, and - let's be honest about this - it smells.

Some visitors delight in this rediscovery of the Fringe's less polished, seedier side; others hold their noses and hope they won't need to use the bathroom. But whichever side you're on, the Underbelly must rate as the most character-filled of the Fringe's major venues.

The performance spaces

In keeping with the venue's rough-and-ready feel, most of the Underbelly's performance spaces have you perched on chairs laid out on the floor round a stage. The Big Belly, White Belly and Iron Belly are the largest rooms, and the ones where the venue's origins become most clear: built into the arches which hold up the buildings above, they're atmospheric if slightly disconcerting places to see a comedy or play.

The Delhi Belly and stand-up-friendly Belly Laugh are more intimate spaces, while the Belly Button, also on the diminutive side, is the one room with theatre-style raked seating. Down on the ground floor, the Belly Dancer is the venue's answer to Jeckyll and Hyde: during the day it's popular for theatre, but by night the floor's cleared for dancing and trembles to the beat of a live band.

Thanks to Edinburgh's weirdly 3D geography, the four-storey venue has two entrances: one at the bottom (on the Cowgate), and one at the top (just off George IV Bridge on Victoria Street). As well as being handy if you're coming from that direction, the upper entrance has a much quieter box office.

Eating and drinking at this venue

Neither of the Underbelly's two bars is particularly special, though we can't deny they're popular and that the party goes on until late into the night. For the more practically-minded, there's also free wi-fi Internet access in both of them.

Down on the Cowgate level, the Beer Belly is one of very few Fringe bars to accommodate smokers (in a courtyard out the back, of course). Otherwise, the Jelly Belly bar on the second floor is usually the better choice. Don't plan to eat here - there's not much on offer, though you can grab a pre-packed sandwich if you're short on time before shows.

Where to get tickets for this venue

Here's where you can buy tickets for this venue.  See below the map for a key.

Understanding ticket purchasing options

You have different options at different locations shown on this map.

This venue:  You can buy tickets in person, or pick up tickets you've pre-booked through the venue's telephone line (08445 458 252) or website (www.underbelly.co.uk).  You cannot collect tickets you booked through the Fringe box office at the venue.

Other venues in this venue chain:  You have the same options as you do at the venue itself.

Venues in allied chains:  You can buy tickets in person.  Under some circumstances you can also buy tickets from allied venues over the phone, but FringeGuru recommends it is simpler to make telephone bookings directly with the venue itself.

Fringe central box offices:  You can buy tickets in person at the Fringe box office, or using free self-service Internet terminals at the e-ticket tent.  At either location, you can also pick up tickets you've pre-booked from the Fringe box office (0131 226 0000) or website (www.edfringe.com).  Tickets booked through the Fringe box office or website cannot be collected from the venue - only from the central box offices shown.  WARNING: FringeGuru currently recommends you DO NOT BUY from the central box office - click here to find out why.
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