Edinburgh Fringe round up
The Edinburgh Fringe Festival is a celebration of creativity and talent. It has a huge economic impact on the city and has launched the careers of many a TV favourite. Here is my rundown of three days and twelve stand-up and improv shows – with ratings from my whistle-stop tour.
Kevin James Doyle – After the End Game *****
A stand up routine about chess? How is that going to work?
I have tried to play chess and I was hopeless, but if I’d had Kevin James Doyle as my chess tutor things could have been very different. Kevin is an actor and a chess tutor as well as a stand up comedian. The jury is not out for me on which one he does best. A master storyteller, he evokes real emotions with his incredible story of how teaching chess using stories changed his life for the better. It also took him on an unbelievable adventure.
Flown first class to Singapore at the behest of a mysterious investor to finance an ambitious start-up, New Yorker Kevin finds himself teaching chess to some of the world’s wealthiest individuals. But the deal goes sour and the repercussions from this teach Kevin a few tough life lessons. Told with humour, humility and authenticity, this is as engaging and moving hour as I’ve spent in a theatre. An original topic, he makes it relevant to everyone – incidentally also the real key to his chess teaching methods. But remember, although chess is war – always let the kids win. So good he earned a hug on the way out. DO NOT MISS.
Viv Ford -New Kids on the block chain *****
Californian Viv Ford is a powerful and accomplished storyteller. Her polished, succinct delivery had me hooked from the get go. Viv lands in San Francisco to work in tech and needs a place to live. She takes the only room she can afford – in the Crypto Castle. This is a five bed town house populated by young tech entrepreneurs who are in the throes of discovering the world of Bit coin. She absorbs their energy and their ideas and wants to be just like them. She witnesses firsthand the very male world of treating everything like a game, which you just have to win. Viv is an accomplished story teller and actress and her shrewd funny observations resonate with the small but appreciative audience. She now works in Bit coin herself and although I kind of understand the principles, don’t ask me to explain block chain anytime soon.
Nina Gilligan – Goldfish *****
Nina is what’s known in the North as ‘proper funny.’ She skates through topics such as menopause, memory loss, health anxiety and goldfish related drama with practised ease. Nina has some great one liners – ‘stop lamp shading me!’ and some lovely cameo scenes where she and her husband compete about who is going to be first to end up in a care home, sitting in a wing backed chair, sucking their dinner through a straw.
She also does Voice Overs including one for Foxy Bingo which I heard on the radio only yesterday. Her Northern tones are much in demand and she claims she once got a marketing executive very excited with her ‘two for one on pulled pork,’ line.
Her mum actually worked with Dr Harold Shipman when he was a hospital doctor. When her assessment of him as ‘a wonderful man with a fabulous bedside manner was queried’ she replied ‘Do you know how stressful it is working for the NHS?’
With a dash of Sarah Millican’s Northern warmth and comic timing Nina is indisputably very funny. A top three pick.
Jo Prendergast – Cool Mum ****
Jo channels a witty and prescient spoof of a personal development seminar for mums who want to be cool. Psychiatrist Jo takes you into the world of deciphering the communications of the teenage animal and what to say and do to be an ultra cool mum.
There is audience participation which works perfectly as there are two teenage boys in the audience. They find her depictions of teenage mannerisms and vocalisation issues – i.e grunts – entirely side splitting and chortal all the way through. Bright and funny, tackling a different subject from a place of experience, Dr Jo is a delightful and pretty cool option to try at the Fringe.
Murder She didn’t Write – Degrees of Error theatre ****
A fast paced romp through an improvised version of a classic murder mystery, with subject matter provided by the audience. The Bristol based cast are returning for the 10th year to the Fringe and their experience shows. They were performing at the largest venue at the Fringe, the Gordon Aikman Theatre – often to sell out houses. It’s a whodunit with lots of improbable characters. Lady Violet, Madam Gold, Miss Scarlet, Mr Green – all very Cluedoesque. Peter Baker playing Mr Green was super funny, even when he didn’t say anything – a master of physical comedy, I really enjoyed his performance. The whole show was either absolutely raucously hilarious or jolly amusing indeed, depending on how much alcohol you had consumed beforehand. All good though!
Showstopper ****
Another practised improv show, this time based on the musical genre. This hit has been in the West End and is back for an incredible 15th year! Again the audience choose the setting (in our case a puppet making factory) and the title of the show – this time – ‘No Strings Attached!’ The talented cast then weave random suggestions into an entertaining and slick musical performance in the style of a number of different musical composers. Busy and popular this is a sure fire hit for the Fringe.
Stephen Mullan – Rascal ****
Stephen was our last show of our Fringe Fest. Performing in a container crate dubbed ‘the box’ he is another Irishman in the crowded comedy world. He didn’t take long to warm up and launched himself with his rather sweet childhood memories and his quest for true love. His tales of growing up with a Latino Mother and an Irish Christian father were quirky and amusing. Some good physical comedy too. A non-stop Duracell bunny of a performer – he’s got potential.
John Meagher – Blether ***
Having a Northern Irish accent gives all comedians from that part of the world an unfair advantage and John has a head start here. He proceeds through his set at top speed with barely a pause for breath. John is at his his best when deep in his tales of growing up in Northern Ireland with a Father he suspected of being a member of the IRA . His father encourages him to squash feelings of fear at all times and to develop an iron clad poker face even in the face of violence. These were dangerous times in Ireland and must have impacted the lives of many generations of children. Indeed his foray into therapy marks the next chapter of his set. He was less impressive as he detailed his love affair with a beautiful Muslim woman converting to Islam for love and hammering home his political credentials.
Jazz Matthu – Returns **
This show was labelled as ‘absurdist’ comedy. Jazz Matthu, a tall good looking Indian only had the two of us in the audience along with his girlfriend. At least I think it was his girlfriend. The show was based around having to go back to live at home with his Dad at the age of 35 due to financial constraints. This is not a bad idea in itself but, despite trying extremely hard with videos and robots and singing (not great) and role play and audience participation, it just wasn’t cutting the mustard for me. I do think his matinee idol looks would be best utilised taking a role as some kind of doctor in an episode of casualty. Could do do better.
Alison Larkin – Grief a Comedy **
This English American writer/comedian brought her grief to the stage in a whimsical combination of songs, music and comedy. Finding true love late in life, she then lost her partner in tragic circumstances. I enjoyed the singing and the voices (she’s very good at voices.) She is entertaining, but the show needs more changes of tone and a little more fire to keep the audience totally engaged. Grief is such a strong raw emotion and this was a little too sleepy for me.
Spring Day – X Vangelical **
This is not a time of the year, but our first performer’s actual name. An ironically happy name for someone who has had to live through some terrible experiences. Spring’s life begins as she is born with cerebral palsy and her twin dies at birth due to the midwife not believing in caesarean sections. Things don’t lighten up much after that. A difficult childhood with abusive parents, followed by recruitment into a Christian cult, brain washing and then stark realisation as she finally escapes from its manipulative clutches. Spring does have a story to tell (albeit a sad one) and she was super smiley and sometimes amusing in a dark way, but it was a little hard going for the audience. She has been on at Live at the Apollo though.
Natasha Pearl Hansen **The right amount of wrong
Pearl is one of those edgy, sweary comedians which don’t immediately put me at my ease. The show was ostensibly about how her wedding was cancelled and her ex getting together (and even reproducing) with her best friend. Bummer. She then goes off on a long ramble about doing inadvisable things when young, including lots of risk taking with drugs and men in strange countries. She does have some funny moments and then she transforms into a fully fledged entrepreneur emerging triumphant by turning ideas into profitable businesses. I would have liked to have heard a lot more about the latter.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe
The Fringe is one of the greatest celebrations of arts and culture on the planet and takes place every August in Edinburgh, Scotland’s capital city. For three weeks in August, the city of Edinburgh welcomes an explosion of creative energy from around the globe. Artists and performers take to hundreds of stages all over the city, presenting shows for every taste. Venues can be anywhere, from existing theatres and concert halls to repurposed spaces like bars, parks, buses and shipping containers. The Fringe street events bring colour, excitement and vibrancy to outdoor areas, free of charge.
From big names in the world of entertainment to unknown artists looking to build their careers, the festival spans every genre of live performance, including theatre, comedy, dance, physical theatre, circus, cabaret, children’s
History of the Edinburgh Fringe
Its story dates back to 1947, when eight theatre groups turned up uninvited to perform at the Edinburgh International Festival. The Edinburgh International Festival was an initiative created to celebrate and enrich European cultural life in the wake of the Second World War.
Not being part of the official programme of the International Festival didn’t stop these performers; they just went ahead and staged their shows on the fringe of the Festival anyway, coining the phrase and our name – the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Since the dawn of this spontaneous artistic movement, millions have flocked to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe to produce, and to enjoy art of every genre.
Year on year more and more performers followed their example and in 1958 the Festival Fringe Society was created in response to the success of this growing trend. The Society formalised the existence of this collective of performances, provided information to artists, published the Fringe programme and created a central box office. The ethos that brought these theatre companies to Edinburgh back in 1947; meant that Society was to take no part in vetting the festival’s programme. To this day that policy stands and anyone with a story to tell and a venue willing to host them can perform here.
The Economic impact of the Fringe
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe generates over £300m annually to Scotland and the UK. Some say that this is even more due to the multiplier effect on accommodation food and other attractions.
It has grown to encompass 3,000 venues and thousands of performers. It represents a growing micro economy moving away from oil and finance to tourism, arts and whisky. I was there many years ago and it has grown exponentially since that time. Venues are created made out of absolutely anything, including containers called imaginatively things ‘the Box,’ and ‘the Crate.’ There was no street food culture back when I first visited but now it’s everywhere. It will cost you about £36k to set up your burger van here but with projected earnings of £100k over the three weeks it could be a sound financial decision. It is still worth a visit though, there’s nothing quite like catching the buzz of the event itself and you just just might spot the stars of tomorrow. Don’t forget to take your coat.
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