Catch some of your favourite comedians working out new material!
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is a great place to see up-and-coming comedians alongside acts. Work-in-progress shows are where comedians usually do a shorter run to test out new material. Tickets are a little bit cheaper, the shows aren't there to be reviewed and in theory, it should be a more relaxed vibe for all involved. Here are my top tips for some of the best work-in-progress comedy shows to see in 2023!
The BAFTA-nominated comedian, The Mash Report (BBC2) star, Live at the Apollo (BBC1) star and viral sensation, presents a work-in-progress hour of her signature blend of stand-up and songs.
Comedian Kiri Pritchard-McLean (Live at the Apollo, Have I Got News for You) is coming to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe to do a work in progress of her 2024 tour show – yep, she's that much of a keeno. There'll be plenty of jokes, lots of revelations and a routine about First Aid.
Tiff Stevenson: WIP. The great thing about getting married in your 40s? No one thinks it’s a shotgun wedding. What is a second act anyway? Musings on age acceptance, science, celebrity culture wars, real wars, gout bracelets, slut drops and nature vs nurture from someone who the Sunday Herald said this about: 'it’s jaw-droppingly remarkable how much ground she covers, how funny she is, how intelligent her attacks are’
Jamali Maddix is working up a brand-new hour. Jamali is currently a series regular on Never Mind The Buzzcocks and has been seen on Taskmaster (Channel 4), Frankie Boyle’s New World Order (BBC Two) and his critically acclaimed series Hate Thy Neighbour for Vice.
Edinburgh Comedy Award winner and creator of hit sitcom Starstruck (BBC/HBO) Rose Matafeo returns with an hour of work-in-progress stand-up. Results will vary.
Multi international award-winning comedian Ray Bradshaw is back at the Fringe with a brand-new show after his hit UK 2023 tour, Deaf Com 1. He'll be trying out new material every day and some of it will be good. Ray has previously supported John Bishop on his 2022 UK arena tour and has also toured with Frankie Boyle. You might recognise his voice from the hit BBC Scotland radio show Off the Ball where he is a regular presenter, or you might just think he looks a bit like John Hartson. Either is fine.
Three-time Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee tries some new jokes. As seen and heard on Live at the Apollo, Mock the Week, Michael McIntyre's Big Show and Shared Baggage.
Stand-up Eleanor Morton presents new ideas as she works towards her next show. Come and bear witness to the rock face of creativity, i.e. a show that isn’t quite finished yet. The theme? Ghosts! After her sell-out show in 2022, Morton is having a chill one in her home town and making you laugh for slightly less money than a finished show. What’s not to like?
The giddy inner workings of a comedy show in its beginnings. Catherine Bohart (Live at the Apollo, The Mash Report, Mock the Week) brings her newest material as she gears up for a national tour. Watch the co-host of hit podcast, Trusty Hogs, try, fail and hopefully succeed to build a new show right in front of you! This is a work in progress, so don’t expect polish but, gosh, this perfectionist idiot will do her absolute best to make you laugh.
It's a Boy? is from the wildly creative comic mind of Ben Hodge, Liverpool Echo's Top 30 under 30 and winner of Into Film Documentary of the Year 2020. 'Ben is such an exciting act. Tonnes of charm and stage presence all topped off with killer jokes' (Kiri Pritchard-Mclean). 'Relatable and likeable yet infinitely self-aware' (Blizzard Comedy). Ben Hodge debuts his first live one-man show exploring themes of gender expression and trans masculinity in relation to growing up in a world where his transgender identity was sought out through Yorkie bars and Closer magazine.
Tickets are available at www.edfringe.com
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