Where? Just the Tonic at The Charteris Centre – Just the Crypt (Venue 393)
When? 13:20
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
A little nervy but pumped as hell. All the preparation is making me look forward to just getting there and it happening.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
The tagline is: I was a married, 21-year-old monogamous Evangelical, then I became the opposite. It’s a true solo comedy show about faith, non-monogamy and KFC.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
Translating the experience I went through into a show that’s well-paced, honest and funny. I didn’t realize when I started how much that was going to involve me working through more of my feelings and ideas to better understand how I feel about it and figure out what’s worth including in the show.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
This is my debut, so there’s still a lot of attitude to change – but having attended last year’s I’m still in awe of the size and extent of it.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
Jamie Loftus, Molly Brenner and Mike Lemme; Sean Patton is also crazy good.
Where would you like to be in a year’s time?
I’ll have JUST finished filming Poly-Theist the feature film in time to head to Fringe for a three-show double-act run with Phil Nichol.
Where? Just the Tonic at The Caves – Just the Big Room (Venue 88)
When? 13:30
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
There’s definitely some fear and excitement bubbling under the surface, but I’m pretty chilled out about it. I’ve got a strong show, I get to go catch up with loads of friends, and I’m on nice and early everyday (1.30pm, that’s a comedian’s morning!) so I don’t have to spend all day stressing about my show.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
I set out to convince everyone that Spain is the greatest country at everything (which it is). The show celebrates differences in cultures and nationalities but ultimately I’m looking to prove we’re all the same. Despite this lofty ambition and dull description, I’m definitely a ‘punchlines over premise’ guy. I tackle some pretty serious stuff from history and modern day but rest assured there are HILARIOUS gags throughout. There are a lot of surprises, I couldn’t decide if I wanted the show to be farcical or historical, and nobody expects the Spanish indecision.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
Probably Brexit. It’s changed audiences attitude to some jokes and it’s constantly looming over every comedy night. Thankfully I’ve performed my material to the most ardent leavers and the biggest advocates for remain and they all find it funny. I’m not 100% sure how I get away with a lot of what I say, sheer confidence I’m guessing. I barely mention it in the show but I have to address the elephant in room if just so everyone can breathe out and relax.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
Absolutely. I first went to the Fringe in 2011 with a split show and we all put so much pressure on ourselves. We thought Edinburgh was going to have a lasting impact on our stand-up for the rest of the year, everyones talking about reviews and agents and television and other ‘industry’ nonsense. Over time you realise that it’s not important or healthy to think about it that way.
Do what you feel comfortable doing, have fun, build an audience. The best feeling is having people return to see your show the next year, and the next. Do something you’re proud of. Ultimately none of it matters. It doesn’t make a difference if you skip a year. The Fringe is like bootcamp mixed with mardi gras. It’s a big old mess and I love it.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
If there are any tickets left for it by the time this goes out, definitely go see Bec Hill’s new show. Her shows are always amazing and inventive but this year she’s putting on something truly huge that you will want to have seen.
Also, I’m directing Phil Cooper’s show. Phil is one of the most naturally funny people I’ve ever known and it’s been great working on HamstersInColour with him. He’s inherited a house in the Welsh Valleys from his grandfather, who was a hoarder, so the house is filled with decades worth of hilarity. It’s like a comedy time-capsule and Phil navigates it brilliantly.
Definitely take some risks though. Go see someone you’ve never heard of, if someone’s flyering their own show, be nice, take a flyer, if it sounds like something you might enjoy, give it a shot.
Where would you like to be in a year’s time?
I’d like to get some stand-up out on the radio, gig in places I haven’t been yet. I’ll keep putting out sketches with BBC Sesh. I think I’m going to put out an album of my comedy songs. Ultimately, just doing what I’m doing now. Despite the often miserable weather, the depressing politics and the terrible pay, there is nowhere I’d rather be than in the UK performing comedy. There’s no getting rid of me now.
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
You remember that feeling when you’re all lining up outside the exam hall? And everyone’s bricking it and there’s one arsehole there who claims they haven’t even read the book and then they later get an A? I’m not that one; I’m the one who really didn’t read the book.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
The British Witchcraft Act was only repealed in 1951; the act that makes it illegal to practice magic. Up until then, we’d had a lovely time murdering women for a thing that is literally impossible. When Trump, arch misogynist and the world’s most dangerous clown since John Wayne Gacy (google it, cautiously), started tweeting about ‘the witch hunt’ against him, I realised that the patriarchy was still using smoke and mirrors to get away with wide-scale human rights abuses. Sounds a hoot doesn’t it? But I like digging into serious subject matter with my comedy and finding the ridiculousness in it. I’ve blended in musical impressions of singers such as Amy Winehouse and Kate Bush who were labelled ‘kooky’ or ‘weird’ and used their voices for some of the famous witches. Basically, I’ve made an hour of comedy to justify doing a Stevie Nicks finale.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
It’s pretty hard to make jokes about the estimated deaths of 45,000 women across Europe. But the way that women were literally burned for perceived crimes then is what happens now with online trolling, tabloid muck raking and even the nasty shit that we say to each other because we’ve been socially conditioned not to value ourselves as women. It’s a joyous thing to be a ‘nasty woman’ and find the comedic parallels across hundreds of years.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
Oh my god definitely. I used to come up as a student and essentially treated it like an all you can eat buffet – instead of sausage rolls it was insecure stand-up comics. It’s much, much harder when you give a shit.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
My favourite bit! Katie Arnstein’s SexyLamp, James Rowland’s SongsofFriendship, Lucy Farrett’s Lois, Matt Winning, Anna and Helen, Jonny and the Baptists, Josie Long, Droll, Lucy Roslyn’s Orlando, Byron Lane’s Tilda Swinton Answers An Ad On Craigslist.
Where would you like to be in a year’s time?
My husband plays my ‘familiar’ in this show – because nothing says ‘smash the patriarchy!’ like marrying a straight, white man and fitting him into your feminist stand up. We have a telly script which we’re hoping/ have everything riding on being made next year. And now I’m worried I’ve jinxed it so I better nip off and do a small blood sacrifice.
Where? Just the Tonic at The Caves – Just Out of the Box (Venue 88)
When? 16:40
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Season?
I Cannot. Bloody. Wait. I’m very excited. And nervous. And a little bit scared but I’m really just looking forward to diving right in. I took a break from Edinburgh last year for personal and family reasons, and although it felt sad at the time, I think it was the best thing I could have done for myself and my comedy. Now, I’ve actually had time to miss the craziness of the Fringe and just can’t wait to get back to it. It’s going to be a bit of a different Fringe for me this time around – it’s my second solo show so I’m used to the perils of going alone but I’ve never sacrificed so much to do the Fringe before. I think there’s a big leap up between taking your student sketch show up to Edinburgh in your summer off University and trying to do it as a fully-functioning professional adult in trousers. Like, I’ve actually quit my job to do this. So, I guess that could be seen as an added pressure, or just an affirmation that I do think the show is worth that and that there’s no place I’d rather be but the Fringe come August!
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
Haha, the premise is that I, Eleanor, struggling to write my show, follow a WikiHow link and create an AI Robot that uses a deep learning algorithm to write the best show ever. It uses all my online data to generate material, so retracing my own digital footprint of Facebook feeds, YouTube comments and google search histories I create a whole host of characters. It’s basically me googling myself, investigating my dependency to ask the internet the questions I’m too scared to ask anyone else. It’s a funny but true story of what it’s like growing up as a millennial in the digital age of big, scary data and looks at the relationship between social media and mental health.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
Time and money. Not even joking. I don’t understand how artists are meant to do the Fringe or even commit to theatre or the arts in general without having super wealthy parents and it makes me very sad. I don’t have the luxury of living with my parents, I moved to London and work full time just to afford my rent. I’ve found I’ve had to be super disciplined to write my show and gig in my spare time and I’m still struggling. I think something really has to change because it is just so unfair the risk associated with following a career in the arts for someone from a low-socio economic background compared to the risk faced by an individual from a high socio-economic background. Which is a real failure because then you just get very homogenized shows which is boring for everyone.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
Yes. I think more needs to be done to make the Fringe more accessible. At the moment it feels like the artists are the customers and not the other way around. Having said that, I still think the energy and buzz of the Fringe is incredible and I can’t think of a comparison where you get (especially in comedy) people at the top of their game socialising and hanging out with newbies. I think I’m going to try approach this Edinburgh more like work. I say that now, you’ll still find me hungover on a Tuesday morning flyering in the rain and cradling a toastie.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
Yes! That’s the other amazing thing about taking a show to the Fringe – you have a month to see other people’s great work! High on my hit list are Raph Wakefield’s Wengerball and Archie Henderson’s JazzEmu. Ken Cheng always kills it and I’m excited to see Ben Pope and Moon’s show. I’m also looking forward to all the shows from people I don’t know! I love Rose Matefeo too. And if anyone can get their mitts on Daniel Kitson, omg.
Where would you like to be in a year’s time?
In a year’s time I would like to be on a beach sipping a piña colada from an obnoxiously large straw. Haha. I don’t know. I’d like to be going to the Fringe again if I can afford it, I’d like to have found a way to be able to dedicate more time to writing new stuff and I would like to have written a play.
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
Paralysed with shakes but also aching to just get up there and start.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
It’s set in a focus group where I play the facilitators and the participants. There are too many wigs to be honest. It’s too much. It’s very wig reliant.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
My own chaotic brain just wanting to put everything I’ve ever thought about into one hour. And also time, because I started quite late.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
I’ve never been this scared of it before now. But it’s important not to take it too seriously.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
My improv friends Flora Anderson, Theo McCabe, Nick Everritt and really looking forward to Johnny White Really-Really and Lola & Jo’s shows too.
Where? Assembly George Square Studios – Five (Venue 17)
When? 17:30
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
Fright. Uncertainty. Looming bankruptcy.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
I once wrote a film review about a Bollywood movie titled Disco Dancer, that almost had me arrested and only when I could prove I was a Disco Dancer, was I freed. Which is also I suppose a study of The Indian democracy. So the show has Democracy and Disco Dancing.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
Almost having to go to jail to get a good story.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
Yes. I think of it now more as writing a play. With me acting in the play.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
Yes. Loyiso Gola, Nish Kumar, David O Doherty, others.
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
Very excited for the opportunity to get so much stage time in such a short amount of time, and in one place! My show also starts 11pm though so I’m sure I’ll be forced to deal with some drunken revelers.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
The premise of my Edinburgh show is me hosting a rotating mixed bill of some of the best comedians at the Fringe (who happen to be free at 11pm).
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
Although I have been gigging a fair bit since November I haven’t done much MC’ing before so trying to reconcile my act with the role of compere has been a challenge to get my head around but I think I am slowly getting there and it has definitely been really good for me as a comedian.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
I studied up at Edinburgh and so have been attending the Fringe as audience member for many years, but coming back as a performer has given me a whole new perspective on things and I am very excited to do a full month of shows and gigs. It feels a bit like going back to University in more ways than one.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
Too many to name but all of the comedians performing in Francis Boulle & Friends have fantastic shows on at the Fringe so I highly recommend going to see all of them. You won’t regret it!
Where would you like to be in a year’s time?
In one years time I would love to have my first 45 mins ready to perform at The Edinburgh Fringe 2020 – and hopefully people will be laughing.
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
Trepidation. This show started as a fun, mad (expensive), experiment and it has rapidly got out of hand and evolved into something pretty ambitious. If you can call dying ten mop heads black ambition, we are.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
Premise shmemise. Which loosely translates as it doesn’t really have one because we don’t know what the show will be before we start. The audience picks the tarot cards and reads our fortune – we don’t know what cards they will pick, or in what order. You can never see the same show twice. Oh god what have we done.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
Having five members that live in two different places isn’t easy. It’s been like trying to organise a hen do but instead of doing a cocktail making class and then getting a stripper we’ve been buying blood capsules and trying to cut down on the amount of nudity in the show
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
I think I speak for everyone when I say: depends if we have a good run or not. At the moment we think if you work hard you’ll have a good run but if this show plays to empty rooms then we’ll adopt the standard party line that the Fringe is broken and probably loosely blame the Tories for it.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
Lots, and helpfully none of them clash with us: Will Duggan, Rachel Fairburn, Jessica Fostekew, Sophie Duker, Maisie Adam, George Foreacres, Rosie Jones and out of grinding sense of obligation; Goose.
Where would you like to be in a year’s time?
Panicking that we haven’t written enough for our show just like every other year, we wouldn’t have it any other way.
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
I love it. Love watching shows. Love doing shows. It’s the best. It feels like being a student going back to school after the long holidays and seeing all your friends again. But it’s also exam time and everyone is worried and excited about how their reviews will go. But I liked school by the time I was a teenager. Perhaps that’s why I became a teacher.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
It’s a defense of teaching philosophy in schools and democracy in the wider world.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
Balancing the silly with the serious is tricky over an hour. Too much silly and people get disinterested, but not enough silly and people don’t have enough fun. One review said, ‘the show is actually quite moving, especially considering it had so many penises in it’ so I think I’ve reached nailed it and reached a kind of golden mean with it.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
In my first year I camped in a tent on the outskirts of Edinburgh. My tent blew away (depositing my pants and flyers about the campsite). I upgraded to a camper van the next year which broke down a lot. In recent times I’ve treated myself to a bed in an actual house. It’s very expensive so please donate generously. I guess that reflects an attitude of being a bit kinder to myself while I am up there.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
Chelsea Birkby is excellent. Great punchlines but always with something more interesting going on underneath the jokes. I’m directing Matt Hobs who is doing a wonderful show about science and OCD. Both are highly recommended.
Where would you like to be in a year’s time?
Back at Fringe. I love it. If you’re reading this, you’ve probably been and are a keen comedy watcher and fan. If not, then really do go its so, so much fun. Wish I’d discovered it sooner.
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
I’m going to be in Edinburgh for the whole month, so I’m aware that this means being away from the family for longer than I’d like. I’ll miss them terribly, but they’ll come and visit, which will give me something to look forward to.
As for the show, Who’s the Daddy Pig? marks my debut solo hour, and I couldn’t prouder of it. I’ve worked really hard to create a show that is a good balance of solid comedy and thought-provoking narrative, which I’m confident the audience will enjoy and find interesting. I also think it’s the kind of show that the industry will enjoy, if I can just convince them to come and visit the Free Fringe. I’m not saying those who have said it’s going to win the Edinburgh Fringe Best Newcomer Award are definitely right, but I think it would nice to know it was at least in with a shot by the right people coming to see it.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
Before I started stand up comedy I was an actor and one of my bigger roles was playing Daddy Pig in the stage production of Peppa Pig. Fast forward a few years and I’m a dad for real, with no clue as to what to do. Thankfully I was able to look back at my time before being a Daddy, and who better to learn from than the expert himself? My show, Who’s the Daddy Pig? is a grown up comedy about raising boys with awareness of their unearned privilege in a world that needs more equality, gender awareness & feminism … oh & Peppa Pig!
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
I think the thing I found hardest was making my hour show different from my regular club set. It’s all very well doing joke-heavy sets at amazing clubs like The Comedy Store, The Stand, Top Secret and the like, but I think your Edinburgh show should have something deeper to say about you and your life. I knew the show I wanted to write, and the things I wanted to say about fatherhood, gender issues when raising boys in a post #MeToo world and male mental health as someone who didn’t take to parenting so naturally. The challenge was finding ways to make these topics as funny as the rest of the material. I’ll let you judge for yourselves, but I’m pretty happy with where the show’s at.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
I love the Fringe. I’ve been coming for the past eight years, but last year was my first time there for the whole month. As I said, it’s hard being away from the family, but that just makes me want to work even harder whilst I’m here. My show last year was a work in progress of the show I’m doing this year (FringeReview called it a ‘hidden gem of the Fringe’) and between that and the Jewish compilation show I co-run with my good friend, Aaron Levene, I had the best time.
The main change I’ve noticed is how expensive its is to go to Edinburgh. Travel and accommodation costs are preventing many people from attending the Fringe, either to perform or even to come for a short visit, meaning audiences are being priced out of the world’s biggest arts festival. Something’s got to change or there won’t be any Fringe Festival for people to come to. A huge number of artists will leave Edinburgh out of pocket, and in some cases, in debt to their producers and agents. When you take into account all the costs incurred, in some venues it’s literally impossible for the acts to walk away in profit; even if they sell out their entire run. Someone’s making money in Edinburgh, but it’s rarely the acts.
I guess what I’m saying is, come see my show! It’s free to come in, and then you can pay what you think it’s worth on the way out.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
Yes, loads…and I’ll tell you on the way out of my show, or my compilation show, Jew-O-Rama (5:15pm at Whistle Binkies on Niddry street – Free Entry)!
Where would you like to be in a year’s time?
I’m quite slow with DIY, so I imagine it will have taken me about a year to build the trophy cabinet for the Edinburgh Fringe Best Newcomer Award I’m going to be taking home shortly. Whether I’ll have used that procrastination time wisely to write another show remains to be seen, but other than that I’d like to have toured my show, and also still be doing what I’m doing; gigging around the world on the live comedy circuit, continuing to write for television and other comedians and perhaps have increased my profile just enough that people don’t still call me Simon.