Fringe
The Edinburgh Fringe is over but not the reviews. Beyond The Joke was seeing shows until the very last day so here is another round-up of the best and the rest.
Freddie Meredith (Pleasance, four stars) picked up an Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer nomination for his full length debut. In Need A Light? Meredith created a character that was part Will from Inbetweeners, part Mr Bean and full cringe.
Dust off those earplugs, Dan Tiernan (Monkey Barrel, four stars) is back in town. The comedian with the most ear-piercing scream in the business returns with his latest life update. He thinks he may have found the secret of contentment. The answer is crystals, which he now avidly collects. Not that this new hobby stops him from shouting at the audience like a banshee when the mood takes him.
Tiernan hasn't entirely changed then.
Scottish scalliwag Larry Dean is one of a number of performers at the Edinburgh Fringe involved in the success of SNL UK. As his TV appearances have underlined, Dean is an all-round talent but this latest show doesn't feel quite as fully formed as previous outings.
I love Ele McKenzie’s poster for her show. Based on the 1965 Bob Dylan album cover for Bringing It All Back Home, it features Ele, lounging in bohemian splendour, in the place previously occupied by Sally Grossman.
Ele herself takes the stage peering from behind octagonal glasses, between curtains of long dark hair and begins her introduction.
With a measured droning voice, she tells us she’s thrilled to be here at the Fringe, doing her debut show.
There’s a lot of comics on the Fringe talking about not having any money. And it’s true, the cost of living is affecting all of us. Tamsyn Kelly, who first came to the Fringe as part of the Best in Class programme, is pretty upfront about the particular financial obstacles she has faced.
This is her comedy origin story, which takes in drama school scholarship, tap dancing classes, flirting with OnlyFans and growing up poor. The lure of the Blue Peter badge is a big motif in this show.
Alfie Brown is smart enough to know what the inherent problem is with his latest show. In 2024 he delivered a groundbreaking tour de force, Open Hearted Human Enquiry, which tackled family bereavement and being cancelled when old texts were unearthed and taken out of context. Follow that. As he says himself at the start, "I've had my coming out party, now I'm just gay."
His response is The Entertainer (Underbelly, four stars).
Comedians can't resist the lure of the Edinburgh Fringe. Just as they are out they get pulled back in. Whether it's for the money, the acclaim or just getting a warm hand on their entrance a number of previous Edinburgh Comedy Award winners are back this year. Over the last couple of days, almost by accident, I realised I'd seen four previous award winners.
Ania Magliano (Monkey Barrel, five stars) has the full set. She has been on Taskmaster, she is one of the breakout stars of SNL UK and now she has a superb stand-up show under her belt (although, I should add, her previous shows have all been pretty good). In Peach Fuzz she explores body image, in particular her own body image.
The longlists have been announced for The List’s Edinburgh Festival Awards. For the third year, The List Festival Awards will recognise achievements spanning visual art, literature, film, theatre, comedy, dance and cabaret. The incredible line-up of artists and works highlighted in the longlists showcases the strong quality and power of work on offer in Edinburgh during August.
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