Edinburgh Roundup!

This week I take a break from concentrating on the London/> theatre scene as I fly North to the capital of Scotland/> – Edinburgh/>/>. The Fringe Festival is an annual August event where the capital is swarmed with hundreds of venues and thousands of performers. The list of shows is endless – there is theatre to cater for everyone's desire.

There's one show on the Edinburgh Fringe which would have been really hard to get tickets for. However, throw in the fact that it's pre-West End, got a stellar cast and has the Hollywood/> actor Christian Slater in and it becomes impossible to get tickets for. Therefore sitting in the Assembly Room's huge Music Hall venue I feel incredibly lucky to even be there. The play is, of course, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Does it live up to the hype? Yes, and more so. It's a well crafted, perfectly acted production with a cast that will knock you out. From the moment Christian Slater bursts through the doors, his charisma, emotion and depth doesn't lapse for a second. Frances Barber as the Nurse gives a memorable performance that will hopefully be recognised come award season.

The other big sell-out hit of the Fringe (though there are many once word of mouth spreads) is Nancy Cartwright: My Life as a Ten Year Old Boy. Does the name ring a bell? If not, try listening to her voice - she's the actress, or 'voice-artiste', behind Bart Simpson and many other Simpsons characters. I felt the show was really cashing in on who she was; her show came across as a poor retelling of her life – very stagy and, at times, forced. Name-dropping, self-loving and sentimental stories ('Mom had cancer') all feature in this 80 minute outing. But there's no denying that this is unmissable for avid Simpsons fans; nothing compares to seeing the voice of Bart come out of a blonde 40-something, even if she is a little hyper.

An unmissable experience is to catch one of the radio recordings at the Pleasance Courtyard. BBC Radio 4 send up a selection on their shows, which are immensely popular, and I managed to see my favourite show Just a Minute. Contestants, here including regulars Paul Merton and Clement Freud, have a minute to talk about a subject without hesitation, repetition or deviation. It's a light-hearted, entertaining hour that is sure to sell out every year, so next time get in quick.

Whatever you may choose to see, no Fringe is complete without comedy. Whether you want to be the first to see small up-coming stars or the big names like Jenny Éclair, Jimmy Carr or The Office creator Ricky Gervais, stand-up is big business. Rob Brydon's new creation The Keith Barret Show was a personal favourite - though perhaps because he picked on me lots throughout! Brydon's alter ego Keith is a Welsh relationship guru (which has just finished a successful run on BBC TV) and his Fringe show focuses lots on the audience and their relationships. Funny stuff, especially considering how fast he must think on his feet.

And finally the Fringe is about recognising new writing talents. Winners of the 'Fringe First' awards may find their careers advanced overnight (ticket sales certainly do), so I decided to check out the latest works at the Traverse Theatre, Scotland's major new writing theatre. Anyone looking for drama of the highest quality is sure to be in the right place; The Pull of Negative Gravity tells of a soldier wounded in Iraq/>, with devastating consequences for himself and his family, and Take Me Away is about the secrets of three brothers in contemporary Dublin/>/>. Both are brilliant yet completely different in style.

So overall, if you're planning a trip to the Edinburgh Fringe keep an eye out for the shows doing big business (the Assembly Rooms and the Pleasance Courtyard are two of the major venues), plan a few shows in advance but leave room for surprises (people will always try and sell you their show, some more convincing than others!) and just have fun – that's what it's all about.

Check out the Fringe site at www.EdFringe.com 

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