Drag queen role is Cherry on the cake for Edinburgh’s Sam Carlin

Teenage Edinburgh drag queen, Sam Carlin, is to play the lead role in Forth Children’s Theatre’s 2024 Fringe production “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie – Teen Edition”.

The original hit West End musical is based on the true story of Jamie Campbell, famously featured in the BBC Three documentary “Jamie: Drag Queen at 16”.

Uncertain about his future, Jamie knows one thing for sure – he’s going to be a sensation -and instead of pursuing a traditional career, he pursues his dream of becoming a drag queen.

Sam Carlin, better known as Cherry West, is one of Scotland’s youngest drag queens and his flamboyant career as a drag artist began after stumbling across the drag scene while on holiday with his parents Sam and Karen in Lanzarote.

He immediately connected with the joy of performing on stage as a woman, and before taking to the stage he perfected his act at home and was cheered on by his supportive family.

Sam said: “I really wanted to be in this FCT production of Jamie. As a young drag queen, I fell in love with the story, I related to it and I wanted to show how I would do Jamie if I was cast. This musical has always had such a special place in my heart so to be able to play the lead role with an incredible cast and team is insane.”

FCT’s Creative Advisor, Lewis C. Baird, said: “Forth Children’s Theatre has always taken pride in commissioning shows which not only give a fun experience to our cast but also delivers a brilliant show to our audiences.

“Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is such an exciting show for us to be bringing to the Fringe, with a superb creative team and a stellar cast, this is going to be one of the best productions in the company’s history.

“After last year’s critically acclaimed and sold out run of ‘The Addam’s Family’, Forth Children’s Theatre are ecstatic to be returning to the Edinburgh Fringe with this brilliant true story of strength in the face of adversity.”

The cast features some of the most talented performers in Edinburgh. Joining Sam is a band of enthusiastic and diverse performers – Maia Baxter as Margaret New, Mysha Parasar as Pritti Pasha, Corin Wake as Hugo, Eva Sutherland as Ray, Ollie Perren as Wayne, Harry Aspinall as Dean, Mhairi Smith as Miss Hedge, Sam Hunter as Sandra Bollock, Olly Freeman Ferguson as Tray Sophisticay and Sean Tomassi as Laika Virgin.

Production director, Debs Anderson, added: “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is such an important story, and it’s only right it’s told by the young people that it resonates with so strongly. This fantastic cast are working hard to bring a bright, hopeful and fun production to the Fringe this year. You don’t want to miss it.”

Venue – Broughton High School, Sat 3-10 August (except Monday 5 Aug),

Tickets – https://www.forthchildrenstheatre.org/upcoming-shows