Fringe 2023

Alan Turing was a brilliant mathematician, computer scientist and cryptanalyst.His work at Bletchley Park during World War Two is credited with having shortened the war by at least two years and saved the lives of 14 million people.In 1954, at the age of...

Upstart! Shakespeare’s Rebel Daughter Judith tells the story of the playwright’s younger daughter.Stuck at home in Stratford while her father enjoys life in London, expected to marry well and settle down to the business of childbearing, Judith has other ideas. What she makes of...

When you see a Michelle Brasier show you can be guaranteed of two things: you will laugh and you will feel.This is the unique talent of a comedian whose act is as much an examination of the human condition as it is an...

Breaking Open at theSpace @ Surgeons Hall is a powerful one-woman play that delves into the life of Oskar Saville, once the lead singer of the multi-platinum band, 10,000 Maniacs.Despite the modest audience turnout, including her supportive teenage kids who are wearing T-shirts...

This show, prompted by tragedy, is one of the 'underground' highlights of this year's Fringe. Arriving 45 mins before kick-off, it was clear that this show had built up a real buzz.Already, at least 30 people had gathered, keen to be part of...

Comic magician JezO aims for a Royal Variety Performance with his debut at Edinburgh Festival Fringe.JezO (Jez Bond), a member of The prestigious Magic Circle, is set to premiere his family-friendly Car-Crash Magic Show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this summer. Running from August...

This is an intensely personal story written, performed and composed by Brook Tate who was disfellowshipped from the Jehovah's Witnesses after coming out as gay, but it is also a very Fringe show.Tate has been unable to retain contact with his nieces and...

Colour. It plays a big part in our lives. But what if your skin colour means you don’t seem to fit in anywhere at all?In Tones, Gerel Falconer’s fast-paced Hip-Hop opera, Jerome (also played by Falconer) grows up in a happy Jamaican family in...

Mhairi Black has been MP for Paisley & Renfrewshire South since being elected in 2015, when she was just 20 years old.She took her final exam at Glasgow University after the election, and was awarded her degree in Politics and Public Policy with...

Alan Turing: A Musical Biography***** StarsWith well over three thousand performances on at the Edinburgh Fringe it is quite a feat for a show like Alan Turing being performed at before midday to sell out.It may well be simply because it is was such...

A clown show that has delighted adults and children from Mexico to China begins its international farewell tour at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe.Brotipo, by Quebec-based multiple international award-winners Les Foutoukours, is a laughter-filled celebration of life, friendship and the joy of being together.It’s also...

In After Shakespeare, Lexi Wolfe imagines the lives of four of the Bard's characters after their plays have ended.What happened to them? And why?If this all sounds a little Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, it’s not. Wolfe digs deep into each character, and what she...

If you remember the 1970s you will love this show. And if you don’t, you’ll probably love it anyway because it’s hilarious.In a hugely entertaining 50 minutes, Dermot Petty takes us back to his teenage life in Lisdoonvarna, North Clare‘a village cut off from...

Last Stand at Honey HillFour StarsLIZ Cotton’s Last Stand on Honey Hill really grew on us. When she started, we thought this was going to be an hour of songs in the style of Pam Ayres meets Jake Thackery.But as it progressed, her style,...

The line-up for Mervyn Stutter’s special charity gala on Monday 21 August has been announced. Mervyn’s gala celebrates three decades of Mervyn Stutter's Pick of the Fringe, the legendary showcase that presents a curated mix of Fringe picks, highlighting the Festival’s international acclaim.The choice of shows covers all genres of...

The show is something of a love letter to the Fringe and Edinburgh as a place of cultural adventure. Edward W. Feery has greatly enjoyed the Fringe  'as a performer' for the last few years, and as 'a punter' for over a decade.In...

At the Grand at Pleasance on Saturday there was a fabulous array of talent on display in the Opening Gala, and every show which performed this morning would be an excellent choice to add to your Fringe diary.Comedy of Operas opened the show...

Edinburgh musician Paul Chamberlain and his duo partner Michael Haywood are looking forward to making their return to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with a concert on Friday 11 August.Last year, Paul received a life-saving heart transplant at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle which he...

A Scots schoolgirl singer who wowed judges on TV's The Voice Kids UK is performing in TWO shows on the Fringe.Elyssa Tait, 13, reached the finale of the hit ITV show last month after stunning judges Pixie Lott, Will.i.am, Ronan Keating and Danny Jones...

The team of writer Joshua King and Jasmin Gleeson, the founders of Moon Rabbit theatre company, return to this year’s Fringe with another well-crafted and mesmerising one-woman show Victorine.Last year’s The Poetical Life of Philomena McGuinness told the poignant diaspora story of...

In composer-librettist Scott Eyerly’s new comedy opera My Life Online we meet Kay (Sarah Minns), an American woman who’s not left her apartment for a year. As she announces in her very first song, she’s‘Living my life online.’For why should she do her exercise...

The word legend might be overused in football but in the case of Steve Archibald, it’s entirely appropriate.His story is one of the most unique in world football and the former Scotland, Hibs, Barcelona, Spurs and Aberdeen player will arrive in the capital...

Picture yourself at a birthday party hosted by the twins from The Shining and a collection of aggressive ghosts, where you’re forced to play “pass away the parcel” as you try to get through the event without being murdered.This is the nightmarish premise...

The Queen of Hollywood arrived in Edinburgh this week, Elizabeth Taylor.Often described as the last movie star and certainly of a certain era. Kayla Boye brings the 1961 Elizabeth Taylor back to life discussing her life so far with a biographer. Boye delivers...

"You might know Michael Shafar from his debut special '(A)LIVE' on Amazon Prime, his YouTube special 'Alright, Next Joke' or perhaps you're one of the 80+ million people who have seen his videos online," the Melbourne stand-up comedian's flyer proclaims.I don't and I haven't,...

Scottish jazz guitarist and singer Aki Remally, who also performed in the Hendrix & Us show at this year’s Fringe, brings the music of black conscious American poet and author Gil Scott-Heron back to Edinburgh for a sell-out show.Along with Fraser Urquhart on...

Director of Pleasance venues, Anthony Alderson, wants Edinburgh to do more to welcome the Fringe.He feels the city is not doing enough to offer a collective welcome to reflect the money it makes from all the Fringe events which Pleasance of course is...

Arriving 15 minutes early, I was faced with a slightly concerning prospect that I might be the only person turning up for this show. I still have vivid memories of reviewing a show in 2019 when I was the only audience member. The performer...

An unlikely star takes the stage in witty new comedy at Edinburgh Festival Fringe.As summer heats up, so does the anticipation for the Fringe. The new play Ringer is a humorous dive into the complex world of overworked actors and is the debut work...

From King Charles to Keir Starmer, Prince Harry to Putin, Sunak to Strikes and Sleaze, no stone will be left unturned.Expect 100% brand-new material from this multi award-winning institution where much of the content is written by the preposterously talented cast and creative...