The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

Claire Sullivan: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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© Nayt Housman

Who? Claire Sullivan
What? I Wish I Owned A Hotel For Dogs
Where? Gilded Balloon Teviot (venue 14)
When? 22:15

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you?

I have asked so many people, but like, woah!! I can’t quite imagine the size of the beast that is Edinburgh Fringe! This will be my first Edinburgh. And performing EVERY DAY is…  fuck me! I’ve never performed the same show 4 weeks straight, you know? I know I have to make sure I eat lots of veggies every day, yoga, meditation, not drink every night. Basically look after my body and mind because it’s a marathon.

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

Well, it’s a show about dogs and feminism, in short. I take the audience on a fast-paced surreal journey through my mind. So like, short stories, sketches, dogs, some absurd observations etc. It’s totally wack, and out of this world (off da leash hehehe). 

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

Hahaha Umm, LEARNING IT. I have actually have a bad memory and making sure I keep every little piece in my head in the correct order, and make it seem effortless… That is actually a huge obstacle for me. I have a hard time learning scripts when I go for auditions, and in my previous shows there’s been some sort of plot, so this happens therefore this etc. But with this show, there isn’t a plot, so I have to remember the bloody order. Other performers are like ‘CLAIRE WTF, it’s not hard to learn your show.’ But, it is for me.

Who would most enjoy your show?

Young women in their twenties and thirties love my show the most. Also members of the queer community seem to love and relate to my show. Which is interesting because although I am a young queer woman, this show does not necessarily touch on that at all! Maybe because it’s easy to make humour out of dating cishet men hahaha.

But really, people who love dogs, who are into the surreal/weird/out there, and who are into feminism and human rights. 

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

Oh my gosh, yes so many. I’d recommend Two Little Dickheads, The Travelling Sisters, any of the Fringe Wives Club whether in their show or solos, Clara Cupcakes, David McIver, Laura Davis, Alice Fraser, Garry Starr just to start with. But holy hell, you know, go see comedy by people you’ve never heard of. Especially Australian comedy. Australians are making some bloody amazing stuff now.

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

I have no idea, But I’m excited to find out!

What are your plans for after the festival?

I’m going to visit a friend in Italy, then going to a friend’s wedding in France and then I’m flying back to Australia in time for Melbourne Fringe. But after Melbourne Fringe I am going to recoup all the money I spent on Edinburgh by working in a pub in a very small coastal town in Tasmania for the summer.

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR CLAIRE SULLIVAN: ‘I WISH I OWNED A HOTEL FOR DOGS’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

Damian Clark: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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© Kymann Power

Who? Damian Clark
What? Extra Show
Where? Gilded Balloon Teviot (venue 14)
When? 22:00

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you?

Yep. Socks, jocks & a phone charger. Actually do you know anyone who has a spare bedroom, couch or floorspace? 

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

Since my last Fringe we’ve had a baby, moved house & I did some time in the clink (suspected car thief but I’m innocent I tells ya!). So funnies about all sorts & probably some of that.

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

Getting out of jail hahahahahahaaaa. But yeah probably that. 

Who would most enjoy your show?

All mammals except blue whales because of lack of water in the venue. Shame really. If you get 2 whales in the place is PACKED. 

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

Heidi Regan – Heidi vs Sharks 

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

How 3D it is. From any point in the city you can see a mountain, a castle, a laneway, a whisky bar & a dungeon. Feels like we should be riding around on horses, which would also make it easier to climb Arthur’s Seat after the whisky bar. 

What are your plans for after the festival?

A huge International Worldwide tour! Or at least Hull, Milton Keynes & Castlebar

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR DAMIAN CLARK: ‘EXTRA SHOW’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

Harry and Chris: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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© Avalon

Who? Harry and Chris
What? Harry and Chris Save The World
Where? Just the Tonic at The Mash House (venue 288)
When? 14:25

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you?

We hope so – last year one of us wet themselves after mis-timing a toilet break between shows so we think that was the last hurdle of things we weren’t expecting. Though it had happened before so we probably should’ve been ready. 

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

Last year we had a song about scientists trying to impregnate a panda in Edinburgh Zoo, then after playing it throughout August we found out that she had become pregnant! So we came to the only logical conclusion, that we have comedy-rap-jazz superpowers.

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

We’ve written a song putting our comedy-rap-jazz-powers to the test about England winning the world cup, which at the time of writing has worked surprisingly well and got us to the semi-finals, but we’re not sure if the show will end in tragedy or triumph until we definitely do or don’t win it which has made the previews fun… 

Who would most enjoy your show?

One thing we love is that we’ve had parents bring their kids and kids bring their parents so it really is an all-age audience. This year people would particularly enjoy the show if they have any interest in our own survival as a species, pandas, spicy potatoes or indeed Teletubbies.

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

Flo and Joan are just like us except they’re women and sisters, which is two things we aren’t, and also they play piano instead of guitar, which is like a guitar but flat and on a stand, and also they are on at a different time to us this year so t’s possible to come to both and see if you can spot any other differences.

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

There’s a really nice room called ‘The Cask Room’ in a pub called ‘The Mash House’, and our favourite thing at the Fringe is there at 14:25 every day (apart from the 13th) for an hour. 

What are your plans for after the festival?

We’re going straight from the fringe to Greenbelt Festival, which we do most years and we love. Then we’re taking September off to see our wives and wash our clothes (we’ll wash them ourselves actually PATRIARCHY), then we’re heading off on a nice big UK tour from October to December. Please come along if you can! Tickets are at www.harryandchris.com

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR ‘HARRY AND CHRIS SAVE THE WORLD’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

Carl Donnelly: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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© Avalon

Who? Carl Donnelly
What? Strictly Carl Donnelly!
Where? Laughing Horse @ The Counting House, Ballroom (venue 170)
When? 18:45

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you?

I’m always prepared. This is my tenth year of doing solo shows so I’m a hardened veteran these days. I’m like Tom Berenger in the film ‘Platoon’. I have a thousand yard stare that suggests I’ve seen a lot of comedians die over the years. 

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

It’s quite a simple show to be honest. It’s about how I’ve changed in my decade of coming to the Fringe. When I first came up I was a mid-twenties working class South London lad who was more interested in getting drunk than anything else. Now I’m a 36 year old vegan who goes to a farmers market every Sunday and spends almost £5 on a loaf of sourdough bread. I think the show is me trying to work out what I’ve become. 

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

The only real obstacle was that I wrote a version at the start of the year and did some previews. Then I went to Australia, got married and did the Melbourne Comedy Festival where I was performing my show from last year’s Fringe. When I came back to start back to work on the new show, I didn’t like it. I then decided to re-write the show which meant I’ve only really had a couple of months to get it together but I’m much happier with it.

Who would most enjoy your show?

People who like really good stand up comedy.

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

An Australian friend of mine Daniel Connell is coming over for his first ever fringe. He’s very funny and I recommend you check him out.

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

I love the layout of Edinburgh. If you stand on North Bridge you are ten minutes away from so much. If you walk one direction you’re in the heart of New Town but if you’d gone the other way you’d be nearing Arthur’s Seat. It’s a perfect city for exploring.

What are your plans for after the festival?

I always go somewhere very quiet for a week to decompress. Last year me and my wife went and stayed in a hut in South Portugal with no electricity or phone signal. It was exactly what I needed after a month surrounded by so many people. We’re still planning this year’s trip. I’ve got my eye on a cottage in the west of Ireland.

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR CARL DONNELLY: ‘STRICTLY CARL DONNELLY!’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

Sleeping Trees: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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Who? James Dunnell-Smith
What? Sleeping Trees: World Tour
Where? Assembly George Square Studios (venue 17)
When? 21:40

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you?

We hope so! This is our ninth consecutive Fringe so we like to think that we know what to expect these days. That being said we seem to learn something new every year like; ‘I wish we’d known we were going to exclusively eat food from a deep fat fryer all month’ or ‘I wish we’d prepared for incessant bagpipe playing outside our flat’.

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

It’s called Sleeping Trees: World Tour and it is a sketch show with a story. The premise is the three of us have taken the last 12 months off to go travelling around the world, and the show is what happened to us on our travels. It’s probably our most surreal show to date as we’ve tried to combine action, music and physical comedy into one big beautiful mess.

© Mark Dawson

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

It’s the first show we’ve made that isn’t a straight ‘comic play’, it’s a story within a sketch show so the process has been completely different for us this year and that’s been a real challenge. It’s our ninth show but we’ve definitely been suffering from second album syndrome!

Who would most enjoy your show?

We’ve always had quite a broad appeal, and this show is no different. We appeal to fans of surreal left-field humour as well as more traditional comedy fans who prefer stand-up or slapstick; there is something for everyone in this show. But if we had to choose which demographic would MOST enjoy it, it would probably be the 20-40 age group, largely due to the number of slightly outdated references.

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

We do indeed! We’re looking forward to seeing new shows from The Pin, Jordan Brookes, The Delightful Sausage and John Robertson.

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

The macaroni cheese pies. I mean come on. Macaroni cheese, encased in pastry. What’s not to love?

What are your plans for after the festival?

We have a little time off to recover after Edinburgh this year, then we’re back on tour with this show before we crack on with our brand new Christmas sketch show, The Sleeping Trees Nativity!

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR SLEEPING TREES: ‘WORLD TOUR’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

Owen Roberts: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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© Ben Carpenter

Who? Owen Roberts
What? I Let A Six Year Old Write My Show
Where? Pleasance Courtyard, Pleasance This (venue 33)
When? 16:45

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you?

In a word… no. I don’t think anyone is ever truly prepared for Edinburgh, you never know how the show is going to be received. On top of that this is my first Fringe as a solo artist so who knows what that’s going to be like.

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year? 

The show is called ‘I Let A Six Year Old Write My Show’ Because that’s what I’ve done. She writes the material and I have to somehow perform the rambling gibberish she’s written. 

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

My Co-writer, she can’t sit still, she can’t concentrate for more than 30 seconds, and she insists we change the name of the show to ‘The Clumsy Police’. To say it has been challenging would be an understatement, it’s been chaos.

Who would most enjoy your show?

Anyone who has to put up with kids and their bullshit. 

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

Yup, I’m doing a sketch show 16-19 Aug ‘Best of Beasts’ and also my sketch Buddy Ciaran Dowd is also doing his first solo show ‘Don Rodolfo’. Both promise to be a lot of fun.

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

It’s bloody beautiful, and there’s lots of cheap whiskey. 

What are your plans for after the festival?

Go on holiday, preferably somewhere where they do cocktails served in a coconut.

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR OWEN ROBERTS: ‘I LET A SIX YEAR OLD WRITE MY SHOW’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

Sisters: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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© James Deacon

Who? Sisters
What? Sisters: On Demand
Where? Pleasance Courtyard, Pleasance That (venue 33)
When? 20:15

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you?

Yes. We’re living with stand up comedian, Ben Pope, and two university students who are welcome in advance for the torrential punchlines that are going to shake that flat to its very foundations. 

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

Sisters: On Demand is our follow up show to last year’s surprise runaway success: White Noise. It’s the product launch of our own sketch On Demand service, in which we attempt to hand over control of the show to the audience. If all goes to plan then it should run in a different order each day. 

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

We’re pretty big tech users and this year we’ve tried to push that even further than our first show. Trying to create our own functioning On Demand system has proved a mammoth task but we think we’re getting there. There’s a VR bit this year. 

Who would most enjoy your show?

Everyone who can’t get tickets to Mr. Swallow which is on at the same time.

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

Some of our favourite sketch acts are returning to the Fringe this year like Sheeps, The Pin, Beard and Lazy Susan as well as new double-act Moon, so sketch fans will be spoiled for choice this year. Other than sketch, Ben Pope’s debut stand-up show is a must. 

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

Probably that everything is within walking distance but we still get ubers most days. Very humorous and ironic! 

What are your plans for after the festival?

We only got to perform our first show outside of London a couple of times, so we’d love to take this new show as far afield as possible. Maybe like, Reading?

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR SISTERS: ‘ON DEMAND’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

David McIver: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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© Sam Nicoresti

Who? David McIver
What? David McIver Is A Nice Little Man
Where? Opium, Upstairs (venue 96)
When? 14:30

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you?

I think so! I am trying to spend the preceding weeks exercising regularly, and eating lots of fruit and vegetables, that way I am starting at a position of strength, in order to counteract my body’s inevitable decay. 

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

Every day the audience throw me a surprise birthday party, and, through the medium of silly character comedy, I play a few of the different guests that arrive. I’ve realised in the making of the show that all of the guests are flawed male authority figures, so I think it’s about a shy little man trying to find his place in a world dominated by confident masculinity. But it’s fun!

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

I did a run of shows at the Prague Fringe, and I was staying in this AirBnB that turned out to be a kind of hippy commune. While the idea of this was lovely, my room was being used as a yoga studio most of the time and there weren’t any curtains on the windows, so I was getting back at 3am and waking up with the sunlight every day. I’m all for thriftiness when it comes to decoration, but a man needs his 8 hours. I still gave them a 5 star review out of politeness though, which is an important lesson for all reviewers. 

Who would most enjoy your show?

My target demographic tends to be nerdy millennial losers, like me. The show this year is about masculinity and shyness, so I’m really aiming for that ‘hates the patriarchy, has social anxiety and enjoys stupid absurdist comedy’ Venn diagram intersection. 

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

Crizards are great, they do low-energy deadpan sketch comedy. I also love Loose Brie, who do big, fun and silly sketch comedy. Two good double acts who are unlike anyone else. 

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

I love being able to travel the entirety of the city on foot. Every time I get back to London after Edinburgh, I remember how depressing it is to spend large portions of time shooting through an underground tunnel without any natural sunlight. 

What are your plans for after the festival?

I feel like I’ve been working so hard on my show that I haven’t read any books, or seen any movies or TV shows, for about six months. What are all the good TV shows now? I don’t even know. I’ve got nothing to talk about anymore. When I get back I’m going to spend a few months trying to consume some popular culture, so I’ve got a few good conversation starters on dates.

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR ‘DAVID MCIVER IS A NICE LITTLE MAN’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

Charlie Partridge: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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Who? Charlie Partridge
What? I Can Make You Feel Good. By Comparison
Where? Just the Tonic at The Caves (venue 88)
When? 16:50

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you?

Whatever lows it could have, it cannot possibly be more humiliating than handing out cereal bars for a living dressed in a skin coloured, lycra superhero onesie in a Derby shopping centre. And I have done that.

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

I’m not convinced that ‘being yourself’ is really the deep down spiritual fix it’s supposed to be. I’d rather be someone else, so I play a talented, absurdist, German beatboxer who lays down some fun tunes for dancing.

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

Finding the time to learn to beatbox between all my promo shifts. It takes a lot of hours of practise to even become mediocre.

© Ollie Harrop

Who would most enjoy your show?

People who enjoy crude stereotypes of Germans – so anyone who loved ‘Ello ‘Ello. I’ve also threaded through a whole story about falling in love. So that gets a bit sentimental, and is saved by more poorly researched caricatures and a orgy story.

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

Sugar Baby – a one man show about a Cardiff drug dealer. Theatre.

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

The very big windows in flats. So much light.

What are your plans for after the festival?

I also build immersive events and treasure hunts for a living. I will be designing and building an escape room for the launch of a new Playstation game.

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR CHARLIE PARTRIDGE: ‘I CAN MAKE YOU FEEL GOOD. BY COMPARISON’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

Leo Kearse: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

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© Will Thompson

Who? Leo Kearse
What? Right Wing Comedian
Where? Laughing Horse @ Espionage (venue 185)
When? 19:30

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you? 

Yeah totally! I was born ready. I reckon if I wasn’t doing Edinburgh I’d probably be a special forces marine getting sent into the jungle to find out why they keep finding bodies skinned and hanging from trees. I’m like a crocodile. 

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

I used to consider myself a lefty liberal, but I feel that the left has disappeared up its own arse, taking on the worst aspects of the right (discriminating against people based on their demographics; censoring speech; making crimes out of misspeaking). I believe everyone should be treated as an individual and identity politics are reductive and divisive. 

I take a scalpel to male feminists, Labour antisemites, fat activists, environmentalists, white male privilege and #MeToo. I present a robust defence of Donald Trump, celebrate consumerism, break down prejudice against the white working class and show the inherent immorality and impracticality of socialism. If you want to escape the liberal bubble of the Edinburgh Fringe and see a raw, hilariously antagonistic show from a man who can’t help speaking his mind, this is the show for you. 

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

I kept getting really fun well paid work which got in the way of me writing my show and doing previews. Gigging in Australia, Ibiza, Cyprus… Filming in Belarus, Glasgow, London. It was tough finding time to write the scintillating material I’m known for.

Who would most enjoy your show?

Last year I had people coming to my show because they knew they’d hate it. I don’t get that mentality. I had to turn away people who like comedy so that these fat blue-fringed fucks could come in and moan at me for triggering them or having too much white privilege, or whatever. Only come to my show if you like actual funny comedy like Chris Rock, not the crying and trauma-recounting that seems to pass for comedy at the Fringe these days. If you like anything that wins awards in Edinburgh it’s a safe bet that you’ll hate my show.

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

Hate ‘n’ Live – it’s a late night improvised show. The audience write down what they hate, then the suggestions are pulled out of a bucket and the comedians have to say why they hate it, no matter what the suggestion is. It’s a lot more fun and less hateful than it sounds – the atmosphere is electric as the audience waits to see how the comedian will walk the line.

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city? 

It feels really medieval. All these gnarly cobbled alleys and bridges winding over each other. If you squint your eyes you could be an assassin in the 6th century out for revenge against an evil noblelord who skinned everyone in your village and hung them from trees. Then you get him with an arrow right in the neck and he falls over his banquet table, blood squirting over his bodyguards and maidens.

What are your plans for after the festival?

I’m flying off to Ibiza to do a really fun gig for loads of money. Then I’ve got a run of shows in Europe. Then I’ll see if I can get on the telly more and get famous. Then everyone that doubted me will be sorry.

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR LEO KEARSE: ‘RIGHT WING COMEDIAN’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018