Neil McIntosh Editor of The Scotsman

Good morning Voornaam,

It's been a pleasure being around Edinburgh this week: the weather has warmed, and even if the rain hasn't entirely stayed away there have been enough clear evenings for people to enjoy a post-show drink or two outside the venues, and create that vibrant Festival street scene we all know and (mostly) love.

It's also a time of year when I take a great deal of pride in The Scotsman's festival coverage: it's an extraordinary run of serious arts journalism, with our expert reviewers' verdicts being proudly shared on social media (and sometimes more privately mourned) by performers.

We've seen our largest-ever surge in subscriptions to The Scotsman this month, so if you're receiving this email for the first - maybe second - time, then I'd like to extend a warm welcome to the title. We've been at the heart of the Edinburgh festivals since the very start, and aside from the huge critical coverage in August we report on them all year round - from artistic announcements to the politics that inevitably surround such huge events.

We also provide comprehensive coverage of Edinburgh's winter festivals, and the entire Scottish arts scene - most of our reviewers are with us all year round. In short, our commitment to the arts is total and quite unique, and we are delighted so many people want to enjoy it.

Speaking of politics, our politics team don't get August off these days - they may feel aggrieved to note that the festival period is getting as busy as a parliamentary term, such are the number of politicians sitting down for the candid, long-form interviews they appear quite allergic to the rest of the year. Thus, we had Nicola Sturgeon sitting down with Iain Dale yesterday for her first long-form interview since her arrest as part of a wide-ranging investigation into the SNP's finances.

She said she remains convinced of her innocence and has to "have faith" in the ongoing police investigation.

Joanna Cherry MP - an SNP figure from a different wing of the party to Sturgeon - was speaking yesterday too, and branded the Scottish Greens, with whom the SNP is in coalition in Holyrood, "totalitarian", saying some of their parliamentarians had behaved in a "disgraceful way" towards women over the gender recognition issue.

Ms Cherry's appearance was notable not least because the venue, The Stand, had tried to cancel the show earlier in the year because staff disagreed with Cherry's stance on gender. It was in keeping with the Fringe festival's spirit that it was un-cancelled.

But theatre, music, comedy and dance are what really lie at the heart of the festivals, and there will be plenty to enjoy this weekend. All our festivals coverage appears first online, but if you want to enjoy it in print then don't forget we have our brilliant Festival supplement running Monday-Saturday in The Scotsman, and Sundays in Scotland on Sunday.

You'll find our expert reviews, features and an hour-by-hour guide to what's on. And we have the first batch of The Scotsman's prestigious Festival First awards out today - you might get some ideas on what to see from there.

But whatever you're planning, and wherever you are, I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Neil McIntosh

Editor, The Scotsman