Newsreel

The Brighton Festival Fringe is predicting that its online ticket sales will rise from 10% of total sales last year to more than one-third this year, following the development of a web strategy created by new media specialists NVisage. A sponsors web package, new for 2006, has seen the Fringe grow its sponsor numbers to more than 40, and new online functionality integrated with the Fringes back office systems is increasing logistical efficiencies.
w: http://www.brightonfestivalfringe.org.uk

The Plays the Thing, the Channel 4 reality series designed to discover a new first-time British playwright, will be screened in June, with the play which is ultimately selected being previewed at the New Ambassadors Theatre from 12 June. The four-part series attracted submissions from more than 2,000 previously un-produced writers.

Events are taking place around the country as part of Museums and Galleries Month on the theme Making Connections: Past, present and future. An estimated 1,000 museums, galleries and heritage attractions are taking part with specific events including a weekend long Focus on Art on 19 and 20 May, and Museums at Night  a special Europe-wide museum celebration on Saturday 20 May.
w: http://www.mgm.org.uk

Registration has opened for events to be included in this Octobers Big Draw, the seventh annual celebration of drawing. The Campaign for Drawing has launched a free online database offering registration packs with drawing strategies, practical advice, funding guidance and publicity materials, as well as a booklet illustrating last years Drawing Inspiration Award winners. In 2005, 1,400 events took place at 1,200 venues across the country, from palaces to parks, museums to hospitals, and universities to nursery schools.
w: http://www.thebigdraw.org.uk

EUCLID has launched a new website as the first port-of-call for information about deadlines for European Union and UK funding.
w: http://deadline.culture.info