Edinburgh Festival

Bed – A playful and poignant 'pocket-sprung' musical. Instead of a honeymoon, newly-weds Ben and Alice buy a luxury divan. Twenty years of marriage milestones in 60 minutes – love, betrayal, loss and dirty linen. We spend a third of our lives in bed.... If only beds could talk!

Mad Ron: Crime School had me laughing from start to finish and, even though it was mostly built on one-liners, flew by. I may not have learned a lot about how to commit crimes, but I certainly did have a fantastic night out!

Chloe Petts is here and she’s ready to be mean. Or is she? Chloe Petts: If You Can’t Say Anything Nice is the second show for Petts at the Fringe, and instead of playing it nice like she did in her debut hour, she’s here to be rude.

The Vaults Tour is an insightful look into the lives of those who had no choice but to live in the darkness, hiding in the South Bridge Vaults. I appreciated the serious and respectful tone taken when speaking of those less fortunate but also the humour that Sid was able to incorporate when appropriate.

The Cambridge Footlights prove why they are one of the most acclaimed comedy groups in the UK.

Walking into Stamptown Comedy Night, you know you’re in for something . . . special.  The concept is simple, even if the actual execution is anything but. Jack Tucker (real name: Zach Zucker, the creator of Stamptown) MCs as different performers do sketches or bits, making for a night of cabaret acts in various forms.

Museum Late: Fringe Friday is a great concept and it is great to see snippets of different Fringe shows while exploring the Museum of Scotland at night, but it is a bit disappointing in its lack of organisation and small range of activities.

Rosalie Minnitt’s Clementine is an exhilarating one woman theatrical comedy show presenting a debut character with influences from Jane Austen, Bridgerton and absurdist humour.

What’s it really like to play the bagpipes? Should you ever meet your heroes? Thunderstruck is a dazzling one-man show where David Colvin retells the tale of a young piper from Fife, from when he picked up his first chanter to stumbling across, Gordon Duncan, a bin man from Pitlochry who was also a fellow piper, and pioneer in stretching the rules on what you could play on a set of bagpipes, who leaves an impact on the young piper forever.

It’s shows like this that are the epitome of the Fringe for me. In a small room deep in the Assembly George Square Studios, sketch comedians and filmmakers Joe and Rory are up to all sorts of mischief under the guise of keeping television history alive in their show TELEVISION 1.

Cambridge University Musical Theatre Society presents Palindrome: The Musical, an original piece. This engaging musical comes with assured performances, varied songs and a life-affirming message. 

The Leeds Tealights prove themselves as a talented group of writers and performers, offering a funny hour of comedy.

The Durham Revue prove they are one of the best student comedy groups in the UK.

Have you ever left your bag on the bus? What about leaving your passport at the airport? As the show fully begins, Pip highlights the relatability of ADHD struggles - as she points out, the symptoms are present in everyone, it’s just only some people that experience them to a level that significantly impacts their daily lives.

Shoot From The Hip craft an entertaining hour of comedy before our very eyes.

Sophie Zucker presents a beautifully messed up one woman show.

Embodying elite energy the 360 ALLSTARS create a special kind of show theatrics, exhibiting top level skills by champions of BMX, basketball, breakdancing, beatboxing, acrobatics and drumming. The cast of seven are incredibly impressive being World Champions, World Record-holding artists and athletes.

Almost every woman – and many men – will have felt the fear portrayed in Prickly Pear Production’s latest play, Walking Home. You know the one I mean: the fear that comes from hearing footsteps behind you on the street as you peer through the darkness.

Science Adventures: Deep Sea is a new show by Coppice Theatre, who return to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2023 with their third science themed storytelling show.

Magic Gareth: Level up! Is described as ‘kick-ass, eye-bending magic, and a whole load of nonsense!’ and this does not disappoint.

Mystery House is an interesting show that does a nice job connecting the lore of the Winchester Mystery House to a woman’s story of grief, using the pain of losing someone to explain the truth. While at times it went into unexpected territory, it is able to connect two women across time through a common thread of love and loss. 

Lindsey Santoro, is bright, audacious and not afraid to discuss the realities of women’s experiences. These are important topics, so she explores smear tests, speculums, childbirth and drugs. Santoro is bold in delivery, infectiously likable and has the quality of being naturally funny.

The brilliant Dead Ducks disappoint in their latest show but between the cracks are some good performers and ideas.

BFFs Kathy and Stella are Hull’s least successful true crime podcasters. When their favourite author is killed, they are thrust into a thrilling whodunnit of their own! Can they crack the case (and become global podcast superstars) before the killer strikes again…?

Aaron has been doing stand-up comedy without standing up for eight years now, and it's time for that to change! So he's attempting to do something he's never done before... Stand-up comedy, standing up.