Here’s how rich kids like Benedict Cumberbatch killed off culture’s working class heroes.

The approach of the August annual Edinburgh arts festivals is as good as reminder as any that the creative industries have become ever more a bastion of the middle and upper-classes.

Covering pretty much all components of culture bar popular music, there are the International, Book, Film, Fringe, and Television festivals.

On this occasion, band of ‘low-brow’ culture, Oasis, play during them at Murrayfield for three nights. Of course, that has nothing to do with the festivals themselves. As many – over 200,000 people – will watch Oasis as attend the festivals.

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To perform in Edinburgh has become a major financial undertaking, costing thousands, with venues and promoters taking their cuts while performers incur most of the costs without knowing how much revenue they will generate in ticket sales.

Quite a few performers are not coming as the costs are prohibitive while quite a few will leave Edinburgh in serious debt. Those that do not leave in debt are already successful or are bailed out by the ‘bank of mum and dad’.

Even to partake has become very expensive, whether in terms of ticket prices, travel, food, drink and accommodation.

None of this is the griping of a gallus Glaswegian, having a go at the Burghers for being the bohemian bourgeoise. The ordinary Burghers are themselves priced out of performing and partaking.

But it does speak to the exclusion of working-class people from the arts and culture in two ways.

The first is that the working-class is not much represented in the arts and culture.........

© Herald Scotland