Photography – Roberto Ricciuti Photography
The 2024 Edinburgh Fringe is almost upon us with a jam-packed program, featuring a wide array of well-known and brand new acts to dazzle Scotland and the visitors to the Capital this August. With so much to choose from, we have compiled a varied list of our top picks at this year’s Fringe.
Larry Dean – Dodger – Monkey Barrel Comedy (Aug 1-12, 14-25)
Larry’s been spending a lot of time with his granny lately. He wants to tell you about it.
Larry Dean is one of the biggest comedians to come out of Scotland in recent years with his progressive, hilarious and dark comedy. Having taken on the Fringe for several years, he is one of the names to look out for this year as he continues to leave audiences in stitches.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/larry-dean-dodger
Dear Billy (National Theatre of Scotland) – Assembly Rooms Music Hall (Aug 13, 15-20, 22-25)
Following on from a highly successful Scottish tour which gained a five-star review from us, National Theatre of Scotland’s ‘Dear Billy’ is coming to the Edinburgh Fringe.
The production is designed as a love letter to Scotland’s best-loved comedian, Billy Connolly. Using the people of Scotland’s perspective and stories to show the influence that the iconic comedian has had on their lives. Headed up by Gary McNair, this funny and community-driven performance serves as a joyous ode to the comedian’s impact on Scottish culture.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/dear-billy
Mary, Queen of Rock! (Pretty Knickers Productions) – Assembly Rooms Ballroom (Aug 1-6, 8-13, 15-20, 22-25)
Pretty Knickers Productions are a brilliant Scottish theatre company that have previously gained critical acclaim from Theatre Scotland with their Fringe triumph ‘Salamander’. This year they are bringing an all new production to the Fringe with ‘Mary, Queen of Rock!’.
The year is 1561. The Scottish Reformation has enforced an outright ban on rock’n’roll. Cue the arrival of Mary Stuart, one of the world’s biggest and most iconic musical artists… who happens to be the undisputed Queen of Rock! With the Scottish nobles and her cousin in England against her – can Mary get the country rocking? Or will heads roll?
This outlandish Rock ‘n’ Roll production is set to bring a vibrant take on a pinnacle part of Scotland’s history this August, ensure you’re there to rock out with Mary!
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/mary-queen-of-rock
Bellringers (Atticist, Ellie Keel Productions and Hampstead Theatre) – ROUNDABOUT @ Summerhall (Aug 1-5, 7-12, 14-19, 21-26)
The Stage Producer of the Year Ellie Keel Productions, and award-winning Atticist, return to ROUNDABOUT with a debut play about being young at the end of the world. Daisy Hall was also a finalist for The Women’s Prize for playwrighting 2024.
The mushrooms are encroaching, fish are falling from the sky, and in a bell tower Clement and Aspinall are waiting for lightning to strike. Superstition says that the ringing of church bells can dispel a storm. When it feels like the apocalypse is here, anything is worth a shot.
This dystopian play has much buzz and intrigue surrounding it, with an exciting rising creative team conceiving this debut performance at the Edinburgh Fringe.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/bellringers
Stupid Sexy Poem Show – Scottish Storytelling Centre – Netherbow Theatre (Aug 4-6, 10, 19)
RJ Hunter’s (Loud Poets Slam Champion 2023) ‘Stupid Sexy Poem Show’ debuted at the Scottish Storytelling Centre in February this year, gaining great critical acclaim. Now they are bringing the show back for this year’s Edinburgh Fringe!
A poetry show… but not as you know it. A poetic journey through their life as a trans, queer word-jester, exploring relationships to others, herself and the beauty of the utterly stupid and pointless. Responding to their experience as an emerging artist in the public eye, this award-winning poet is ready to give you a big fat smattering of their signature stupid, sexy style in this spoken-word comedy-cabaret!
This rising Scottish star is the crème de la crème of slam poetry and this performance is one not to miss!
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/stupid-sexy-poem-show
Margolyes & Dickens: The Best Bits – Pleasance at EICC – Pentland (Aug 7-15)
National treasure Miriam Margolyes is bringing a brand new show to the Edinburgh Fringe! Combining her infectious passion for Charles Dickens with her phenomenal versatility, Miriam brings to life the most colourful and iconic characters from his timeless novels. She then opens the floor to your unexpurgated burning questions, sharing the stories and life lessons.
Miriam is a sublime actress with an impressive career, yet within recent years she has become well known for her appearances on The Graham Norton Show and her two best-selling memoirs, ‘This Much is True’ and ‘Oh Miriam!’. With brutal (yet hysterically brilliant) honesty, the well-versed actress isn’t afraid to voice her opinion, much to the audience’s delight.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/margolyes-dickens-the-best-bits
Ten Thousand Hours (Gravity & Other Myths) – Assembly Hall (Aug 1-11, 13-18, 20-24)
Gravity & Other Myths return to Edinburgh with their new production ‘Ten Thousand Hours’. This family-friendly acrobatic visual feast is an ode to the dedication required to become a world-class acrobat. Eight acrobats investigate physical skill: how we obtain it, how we perfect it and how it can transform our lives.
This morning show is the perfect start to your day at the Fringe, with a large-scale production embedded with creativity and talent en-mass to present you with a physical theatre masterclass.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/ten-thousand-hours
Flo & Joan: The Joan & Flo Show – Assembly George Square Studios (Aug 12-25)
Sibling musical comedy duo Flo & Joan (Rosie and Nicola Dempsey) are back at the Edinburgh Fringe with a show featuring some classic hits and some new numbers.
The two sisters are well known for their virtual comedic musical numbers and their special on Amazon Prime, yet they have also been a renowned hot ticket at the Edinburgh Fringe over the last few years. With their continuing rise in notoriety and superb humour, it’s highly likely they’ll be a sell-out at this year’s festival.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/flo-joan-the-joan-flo-show
Wilford Wellman’s Wellbeing – Paradise in the Vault (Aug 3-10)
‘Wilford Wellman’s Wellbeing’ is a farcical absurdist play that has been four years in the making, finally making it’s way to the Edinburgh Fringe. This exciting new play is a debut production from a group of Scottish emerging artists and creatives, pretty much the epitome of the Edinburgh Fringe’s roots.
Wilford Wellman is unwell. He does not know what it is or how to get better. And to top it all off his family are acting… strange. Clocks, commodes and card games do little to ease his struggle as he fights to hold onto some sense of normality and get better. Fancy a grape?
This is an intriguing, bold and experimental piece of theatre, which is sure to entertain audiences.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/wilford-wellman-s-wellbeing
The Fifth Step (National Theatre of Scotland & Edinburgh International Festival) – Lyceum Theatre (Aug 21 – 25)
Our top pick for the Edinburgh International Festival 2024 is David Ireland newest play ‘The Fifth Step’, a dark comedy exploring the difficult journey to sobriety. David’s previous work includes the critically acclaimed ‘Cyprus Avenue’ which returned for a tour earlier this year. This new production features rising star and leading man of the hit Apple TV show ‘Slow Horses’, Jack Lowden.
The story follows Luka, as he has recently joined Alcoholics Anonymous and is searching for a sponsor. He finds James, an older man who has been in the programme for years. From the outset, James looks like the ideal man to shepherd Luka through each of the twelve steps. However, the road to recovery isn’t that simple, and will force both Luka and James to closely examine their pasts and face their own transgressions.
This story raises important issues that are facing many in Scotland, penned by one of the UK’s best playwrights and starring one of the UK’s biggest rising stars.
Get your tickets here – https://www.eif.co.uk/events/the-fifth-step
Same Team (TravFest 24) – Traverse Theatre (Jul 30 – Aug 25)
Following last year’s debut performance of ‘Same Team’ at the Traverse Theatre (which gained the play five-stars from us), the story exploring the bond of women’s football and the importance it has for different communities is making it’s Fringe debut.
Five women have come together with one goal, one dream. Coming from very different backgrounds in life they have to work together as a team if they want to do what no one from Scotland has ever done before. To win the Homeless World Cup, and bring the trophy home.
This is a brilliant play that explores the sport and the women behind it so beautifully, this is not one to miss.
Get your tickets here – https://www.traverse.co.uk/whats-on/event/same-team-festival-24
‘Everybody’s Talking About Jamie – Teen Edition’ (Forth Children’s Theatre) – Broughton High School (Aug 3-4, 6-10)
Following five-star reviews of their 2023 Fringe production of ‘The Addams Family’, local charity Forth Children’s Theatre are returning for their 43rd production at the 2024 Edinburgh Fringe. This year they are bringing the hit West-End show ‘Everybody’s Talking About Jamie – Teen Edition’ to the Fringe for the first time, starring local young people from Edinburgh and the surrounding areas.
This two-act musical follows Jamie New, a 16-year-old, who doesn’t quite fit in. Instead of pursuing a traditional career, he dreams of becoming a drag queen. Uncertain about his future, Jamie knows one thing for sure – he’s going to be a sensation. Supported by his loving mother and amazing friends, Jamie overcomes discrimination and bullying to step out of the darkness – and into the spotlight.
Based on the true story of Jamie Campbell, this is a joyous celebration of being who you want to be. This production also features one of Scotland’s youngest drag queens, Cherry West, in the role of Jamie New.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/everybody-s-talking-about-jamie-teen-edition
Rob Madge: My Son’s a Queer (But What Can You Do) – Underbelly McEwan Hall (Aug 1-9, 11, 13-16)
Rob Madge is back at the Fringe with their hit show, ‘My Son’s a Queer (But what can you do?)’. This stunning, joyous, hilarious and emotional piece of theatre rightfully gained five stars from us when it visited the Fringe in 2022. Now Rob is touring the production, stopping off in Edinburgh for another run in McEwan Hall, Underbelly’s biggest venue.
When Rob Madge was 12, they attempted a full-blown Disney parade in their house for their grandma. As Rob donned wigs and played Mary Poppins, Ariel, Mickey Mouse and Belle, their dad doubled as stage manager, sound technician and Goofy. This production follows Rob as they set out to recreate that parade – and this time, nobody, no, nobody is gonna rain on it.
This production emerged as one of the real heroes of the Fringe in 2022 and it’s simply a delight to see it back in the programme for 2024.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/rob-madge-my-son-s-a-queer-but-what-can-you-do
Reuben Kaye: Live and Intimidating – Assembly George Square Gardens (Aug 1-4, 7-11, 14-18, 21-25)
Reuben Kaye and his band are back with the UK debut of his award-nominated show Live and Intimidating! Expect an explosion of high-camp energy and filthy humour. With musical direction by Shanon Whitelock and original compositions, this Swarovski-studded revolt is what happens when you tell your children they can be anything.
Reuben Kaye’s previous shows at the Edinburgh Fringe have scored five-star reviews across the board from Theatre Scotland. Reuben’s showmanship, humour, talent, and sheer charisma is something which audiences lap up each year. Usually his shows sell out quickly, so snap up your tickets whilst you can as you do not want to miss this incredible performer in this all new production.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/reuben-kaye-live-and-intimidating
Come Dine With Me: The Musical – Underbelly, Bristo Square – Cowbarn (Jul 31 Aug 1-12, 14-25)
The Fringe has been a hotbed for up and coming musicals within the last decade, and this year we have been looking into the programme to spot what production may be the next musical success story. ‘Come Dine With Me – The Musical’ is one of the competitors featuring a brilliant cast of seasoned and upcoming performers, with this who doesn’t want a satire of the iconic Channel 4 reality show?
Take a bunch of tuneful strangers. Mix in a dollop of behind-the-scenes skulduggery, a Sound Man playing detective, a sprinkling of star-crossed love, and plenty of juicy arpeggios. Marinade, cook for 60 minutes… and serve hot. The result is a mouth-watering fusion dish, combining the beloved TV show and a sumptuous original score to form Come Dine With Me: The Musical – a recipe that will delight even the pickiest palate! (Warning: May Contain Spice.)
This is an intriguing concept that could be a winner, either that or it could live a sad little life… like Jane. This is very doubtful following a great reception during it’s workshop at MTFest 2023.
Get your tickets here – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/come-dine-with-me-the-musical
Theatre Scotland 