Reviews & features: Edinburgh Festival Fringe
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Five Kids TV stars to catch at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2012
27 Jul 2012
Seen these folks on the box before? You must be a parent then
Dan Wright Fans of Big Cook, Little Cook might have difficulty recognising Mr Wright who played the latter given that he has shed his specs and is no longer three inches tall. Curiously, his Fringe show has a sort-of childlike theme given that it’s…
Unusual highlights from Edinburgh Festival 2012 programme
11 Jul 2012
Barges, a spoken word section, free shows from big names and more
Dip in for some watery goings-on at the Art Festival as Tania Kovats invites you on a canal boat trip on 3 August. The vessel sets sail from behind Cargo on Fountainbridge at 9am, making the return voyage from Jupiter Artland at 3pm. Call 01506 889 900…
Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2012: Dance highlights
11 Jul 2012
Flash Mob, Rhythmic Circus, What the Folk! and more
Anybody Waitin’? All those who saw Ponydance Theatre Company’s laugh-out-loud funny 2011 Fringe show, Where Did it All Go Right? will be hoping that the Irish troupe hit the spot again this year. Odds on, they will, so don’t miss it. Silk Nightclub…
Conway's Time of the Month
24 Aug 2011
Hardeep Singh Kohli, Andi Osho and Imran Yusuf guest at free Edinburgh show
London-based presenter and comedian Eleanor Conway brings her 5 star thighs, the news, and a host of comedy guests to Edinburgh's cosy Space 3 at the Voodoo Rooms. On the platter of entertainment are Hardeep Singh (BBC), Andi Osho (Stand up for the…
Henning Wehn / Otto Kuhnle: Das Very Best Of German Humour
17 Aug 2011
Tuetonic titters from two of the Fatherland’s finest
Let’s establish a fact: Germans are overly efficient. Bear in mind that this conceit is central to many of the jokes performed at this comedy double-header – if you find the cliché a little too well worn, this may not be the show for you. Indeed, the…
Slender Threads
11 Aug 2011
Sensitive portrayal of a woman’s experience of cancer
Chickenshed is not a company to shy away from difficult or painful subject matters. Previous shows have dealt with knife crime and the true story of a 19-year-old boy who was killed while fleeing a robbery scene. Here they lay bare a woman’s experience…
Fringe 2011 comedy blogs - Steve Pretty
10 Aug 2011
He of the Perfect Mixtape discusses music vs comedy and proper Fringe preparation
By 30th July, any sensible Fringe performer would either already be in Edinburgh getting some early promo done, or locked away in a rehearsal room, honing their show, perfecting that topical gag or getting that new set piece extra zingy. So why, last…
Uncharted Waters
8 Aug 2011
Homage to life on the waves told through aerial circus skills
The wayward charm of running away to sea is beautifully captured by aerial dance and roguish shanties, in this three-part collaboration between Strange Bird Zirkus and All or Nothing. Lucy Deacon and Jennifer Paterson lure us in with their parallels…
The Life Doctor
8 Aug 2011
Channelling of the most irksome of TV lifestyle gurus disappoints
Written by Adam Lawrence and Phil Wang, Lawrence channels the most irksome of TV lifestyle gurus. The premise quickly falls flat as jokes fail to land or are utterly baffling. A stand-out turn by George Potts and some surprisingly witty pre-recorded…
Dream Pill
8 Aug 2011
Poignant insight into the unsettling reality of sex work in the UK
Produced by Clean Break and based on real experiences, this minimalist performance focuses on two young girls trafficked from Nigeria. The two actresses adopt child-like language and mannerisms to provide a poignant insight into the unsettling reality…
Liberace: Live From Heaven
27 Jul 2011
Edinburgh Festival show features piano man playing at the Pearly Gates
In cabaret, what turns a concert into theatre is the hook that hangs the tunes together. Hanging squirming from this particular hook is Liberace (reincarnated in Bobby Crush) as he plays for his immortal soul. We join the sequined piano man after his…
Elis James - Do You Remember The First Time?
26 Jul 2011
Starstruck Welsh comedian divulges secrets
Beguiling storyteller Elis James returns to the Fringe this year with a show about his earliest experiences, borrowing its title from the iconic Pulp song for Do You Remember the First Time? ‘The first time I did a few of the formative things everyone…
Lounge Room Confabulators perform 2011 Fringe show in your home
20 Jul 2011
Edinburgh Festival Fringe duo bring their cabaret show to your house
Lounge Room Confabulators have hit on a wonderful idea in performing their show only in punters’ homes. List editor Jonny Ensall invites them to appraise his flat as a performance space
The National - Matt Berninger interview
20 Jul 2011
US band set for Edinburgh gig as part of 2011 UK tour
The National‘s Matt Berninger has a way with a tear-jerking lyric. However, as he tells David Pollock, the release of album High Violet has ushered in good times for the Ohioan band. That, and Obama getting elected.
Nakedness and nudity at the 2011 Edinburgh Festival Fringe
20 Jul 2011
The Naked Busker and lap dancing photography exhibition among highlights
It may get the moral minority’s g-string in a twist, but nudity and Edinburgh go hand in hand. Here are some naked highlights. Pot of Dreams - Jannica Honey & Holly Davidson Photographic Exhibition. The multifaceted human aspects of Edinburgh’s lap…
Tales from a House of No Windows
18 Aug 2010
Why you definitely shouldn't get stuck in a lift
'Prepare to be bewildered' warns the Fringe programme entry for the show from Alchemy Troupe. Never have truer words been written. In this circular, opaque tale about missing bodies and erotic fixation, the actors from London's Goldsmiths College offer…
The Nelson Twins
17 Aug 2010
More groans than laughs
God love them, but these ‘garden gnome’ resembling identical twins from New South Wales really struggle to spin the gimmick out long enough for an entire show. It’s only 45 minutes long, and it has its own warm-up act – the expressionless stoner, Luke…
Seann Walsh
16 Aug 2010
Making the humdrum hilarious
If you were to sit down and read a full synopsis of Seann Walsh’s debut hour, it might come across as the dullest thing ever. The subjects he takes as his inspiration for comedy would make Michael McIntyre seem like the merged resurrection of Bill Hicks…
The Three Englishmen
16 Aug 2010
This might be as good as it gets
First off, there’s actually four of them, though they do all appear to be all of an Anglo bent. Kicking off with a deftly wordless piece about four Brazilians watching the World Cup, the quartet rattle through scenes about accidental infant-theft and an…
Courtyard Readings
12 Aug 2010
Read and listen to poetry at these outdoor readings
One of the loveliest annual events of the Festival season, these outdoor readings (don’t worry, they go indoors if/when it rains) hosted by the School of Poets are open to all poetry lovers. Come and read your own work, or a personal favourite poem, in…
Jarred Christmas
11 Aug 2010
Personal set from personable stand-up
With a surname like Christmas, it’s a no-brainer that this Kiwi had to grow up defending himself. And defend himself he does, about his penchant for dance, Michael Jackson fandom and less-than-svelte physique. The jokes come quickly and easily, and…
'Pedantic overlord' Stephen Carlin draws out the details of his show
7 Aug 2010
Board Meeting: Stephen Carlin
Stephen Carlin took 25 minutes to draw his whiteboard. It's not a criticism, but symptomatic of a show born from the brain of (and we're quoting) "a pedantic overlord" which has won him high favour on the comedy circuit with its invention and picked…
Martin Bell discusses lack of faith in politicians in Edinburgh visit
6 Aug 2010
Festival of Politics and Book Festival appearances scheduled
The man in the white suit is in town for an event at the Festival of Politics but he’s also kindly dropping by to charm the punters in Charlotte Square. Here, he will be discussing the lack of faith we now have in our elected representatives, mainly due…
Doc Brown: Rapper turned stand-up hits Edinburgh
16 Jul 2010
Unfamous rapper turned on to comedy by big sister Zadie Smith
Rapper geek turned stand-up Doc Brown has always felt like an outcast despite moving in some rarefied media circles. Claire Sawers discovers that he’s fine talking about his famous author sister. For now …
Up and Over It!
23 Aug 2009
Irish dance finds a new direction
Just as shows such as Riverdance sought to release Irish dancing from the steely grip of the competitive circuit, this entertaining hour seeks to liberate the form yet further. Dancers Suzanne Cleary and Peter Harding have toured the world, won every…
