Ciarán Dowd: ‘I’ve got a black leather bondage dog costume’ –

The comedian, actor and writer on the things that make him laugh the mostWhen I saw Hans Teeuwen in 2009 I had never seen anything like him. He spent five minutes telling an invisible dog to sit and fed a Mars Bar to a sock. Continue reading…

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Stage invaders: why indie musicians are rocking up at the Edinburgh fringe

Members of the Hoosiers, Maxïmo Park, Belle & Sebastian and Shed Seven talk about mental health, the pitfalls of the music biz and why they are swapping gigs for theatre audiencesFelix Scoot and Lee Delamere, from one-time chart-toppers Felix &…

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Sara Barron: Enemies Closer review – brassy, sassy standup

Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghParading her sex life, friendships and militant subjectivity, the triumphantly profane comedian takes a step into the big leagueThe men have gone sensitive, it’s been said of this year’s fringe comedy – while female standu…

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Tom Rosenthal: Manhood review – dick jokes, demons and diatribes

Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghThe standup, who was circumcised as an infant, gets het up in a show where the polemic overshadows the comedyDick jokes are as old as comedy, but few – Richard Herring with docu-comedy Talking Cock excepted – dedicate whol…

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The beat goes on: drummers crash the Edinburgh fringe

A trio of performances – Daniel Bellus in Beat, Alexander Fox in Snare and Mick Berry’s Keith Moon: The Real Me – put drums centre stage It must be something to do with being at the back all the time, but give a drummer their moment in the spotlight an…

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‘Coolest night in town’: the club where Phoebe Waller-Bridge created Fleabag

Once based in a rundown boozer, DryWrite nights encouraged risk and giddy game-playing – their spirit is felt in Killing Eve and across British theatre todayWhen Phoebe Waller-Bridge performed her script Fleabag at the Edinburgh fringe in 2013, it land…

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Tom Parry: Parryoke! review – bringer of comfort and joy

Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghThe best newcomer nominee of 2015 returns with a look at the funny side of weddings in this smart and satisfying showThat title, “Parryoke!”: the pun, the exclamation mark, the reference to karaoke. I must admit I went int…

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Anna and Helen review – self-care klutzes conjure comedic bliss

Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghMining the comedy of motivational seminars with a delectably clownish touch, this double act could make anything funnySelf-help and motivational speaking have provided rich pickings for comedy over the years, and do so aga…

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‘Whenever you have sex, it’s on your mind’: Tom Rosenthal on turning circumcision into comedy

The procedure left the comedian with sexual anxiety – and a tell-all show at the Edinburgh festivalJournalistic etiquette decrees that any delicate questions are usually saved until near the end of an interview. That doesn’t apply, however, when you ar…

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Did you hear the one about the comedians sharing a flat at Edinburgh festival?

Performing at the fringe can cost a fortune – little wonder so many comics bunk in together. We drop in on Jon Richardson, Rose Matafeo and Josie Long, among others, to see how they liveIt is the world’s biggest comedy festival, with jokes cracked all …

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