A record number of shows are to be staged at this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe, despite a clash with the London Olympics.
This year's programme features 2,695 shows - a rise of 6% on last year's total.
It had been feared that the Fringe could be affected by a 10-day overlap with the games in London.
A recent Edinburgh Festivals impact study suggested the Fringe generates about £142m for the Scottish economy.
This year's festival runs from 3 to 27 August.
Those taking the stage include comedians Mark Watson, Sean Hughes, Jason Byrne and Henning Wehn.
Rising Scottish star Daniel Sloss will also return to the festival after three years of sell-out shows.
This year's programme features a new Spoken Word category, which takes in poetry, oratory, storytelling and reportage.
Those featured in the category will include Scotland's Makar Liz Lochhead, poet Luke Wright and Mark Grist, Rogue Teacher - who became an internet sensation last year due to a video of a rap battle with one of his pupils.
Kath Mainland, chief executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, said: "This promises to be the most exciting and exhilarating Fringe yet."
She said: "The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is still the first choice for performers, producers, artists and creators to come and tell their story.
"We are proud that the Fringe is still the place to bring your work, with opportunities to amaze, enthral and excite audiences from both far away and close to home.
"We have a programme that will capture the attention of people all over the world and demonstrate why over the last 66 years the Fringe has grown into the greatest show on earth. "
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