Five hirsute gents tickling our fancies (and chins) this month

Look out for these bearded men at this year's Festivals

This article is from 2010.

Phil Kay makes four appearances this year

Phil Kay
Furry Fringe veteran Kay makes no fewer than four fuzzy-faced appearances this year. His kids’ show Gimme Your Left Shoe makes a welcome return; there’s a solo show in the evening called In Tweed; a late-night radio show titled RadioFree; and finally a collaboration with fellow hairy man and musician Cammy Sinclair called Cammy and Phil’s Late Night Nonsense.

Alex Horne
Shaggy showman Horne will be hosting three Fringe shows: Odds mixes up maths, science and Powerpoint projections; The Taskmaster is the result of a year-long project in which Horne challenged 20 comedians to complete one task a month; and The Horne Section is his late-night ‘comedy-infused jazz’ show, featuring special stand-up guests improvising with a full jazz ensemble.

Beardyman
One of only two bewhiskered performers to reference his beard in his name, Beardyman: Unshaved is the name of the UK Beatbox Champion’s two-night show at the Udderbelly. Accompanied by visuals creator Mr Hopkinson, Beardyman will improvise a lip-smacking, tongue-twisting beat performance. If you fancy joining in, here’s a beginner’s tip: boots’n’cats’n’boots’n’cats’n’...

Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip
Dan le Sac, the computer whizz-kid who puts the beats behind compadre Scroobius Pip’s spoken-word rhymes, may feel slightly over-shadowed (or should that be five o’clock-shadowed?) by the latter’s undeniably epic facial follicle furniture. He shouldn’t, though, as he has been known to sport an impressive set of mutton-chops himself.

Bluebeard
The infamous children’s bedtime tale of the bristly wife-killing villain is presented for one week only at theSpaces on the Mile: an energetic, music-filled adaptation that may not be suitable for the younger ones. Then again, in a story brimming with sexual undertones and marital murdering, it’s surprising that it was ever considered a kids’ story in the first place.