Essentially Edinburgh: dance, drag and plenty of drama at the 2024 festival – in pictures
Photographer Murdo MacLeod covers Scotland’s annual arts spectacular, from a musical Mexican seance to colourful juggling Continue reading…
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Edinburgh fringe comedy 2024 week two roundup: I’ve seen 50 shows but am I laughing?
Debuts rich in neurodiversity and self-analysis jostle for attention at this year’s festival with a beloved grandma, the Russian elite and a misguided attempt at an apologyWe’ve reached the halfway point at the Edinburgh fringe, where more than a third…
Continue ReadingEdinburgh unplugged: fire alarms and outages send fringe shows on to the streets
The art of improv is in the air as comedians have battled blackouts and other interruptions – with the result of rekindling the festival’s spiritWalking around Edinburgh this month, you might have noticed the unusual number of standup comedians perform…
Continue ReadingGarry Starr: Classic Penguins review – brilliantly ticklish riff on a stack of literary tomes
Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh Dressed as the publisher’s emblem, in orange flippers and not much else, the ingenious comic delivers a dizzy series of droll visual routinesSome shows have “Edinburgh fringe” scored through them as if through a stick of …
Continue ReadingSawdust Symphony review – a surreal circus where stagecraft meets woodcraft
Zoo Southside, EdinburghAcrobatics, juggling and carpentry are fixed together in a humorous and lightly unsettling production in the Made in Germany showcase Power drill? Check. Hammers? Present and correct. Chainsaw? Fully charged. But it’s best not t…
Continue ReadingWilly’s Candy Spectacular review – even the Sad Oompa Loompa can’t save this parody
Pleasance Dome, EdinburghThis unfunny spoof of Glasgow’s dismal Wonka-themed attraction is as short of ideas as the event that inspired itHow we laughed at Willy’s Chocolate Experience, a family attraction so bad it left children in tears. What nerve t…
Continue ReadingStevie Martin: Clout review – ingenious and silly tech-comedy
Monkey Barrel Comedy, EdinburghThe Massive Dad star riffs on the benefits of making comedy online, buoyed by arch good humour and high-quality gags within gagsStevie Martin’s show weighs up the differences between live and online comedy. Her career beg…
Continue ReadingBeyond the jokes: comedians switch to theatre at Edinburgh festival
Cancel culture, faltering fatherhood and the life of a tennis champ are dramatised as standups including Ivo Graham, Anna Morris and Adam Riches take a theatrical path this summerSam Kissajukian spent 10 years on the Australian standup circuit but incr…
Continue ReadingLou Wall: The Bisexual’s Lament review – diary of despair with a list of 69 things to laugh about
Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghThe Australian comedian’s rocky 2023 is explored in PowerPoint, SMS exchanges, rap, musical comedy and online videosThe year 2023 was the worst of Lou Wall’s life, they tell us, at the start of a set recently shortlisted f…
Continue ReadingAfter Baby Reindeer: how comedians are telling true stories of trauma and toxic relationships
There are benefits and perils in talking about your personal experiences – as Richard Gadd found after his TV show went viral. So how are Edinburgh acts handling it this year?‘If you’re not in an OK place, you’re just re-traumatising yourself,” says An…
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