Show 36: Alternative Comedy Memorial Society

Though not appearing in the edfringe website, it was listed on the Monkey Barrel site and thank goodness I found it, I was initially saddened at the thought of being bereft of this stalwart of showcasing alternative, daring acts (I'll never forget Joe Lycett's drag act Nigella Farage).

Highlights from this show included Ted Hill's love of presidents, a Fifer playing an Italian Opera singer singing the ingredients of a Penguin chocolate bar (I'd never have thought anyone can make singing 'milk' hilarious, thank you ACMS) and a mildly unsettling Scot playing a vaguely Eastern-European lady dancing with a Serbian audience member (an initial technical snafoo giving rise to a lovely moment of improvised singing followed by the actual dance compilation). A thoroughly enjoyable late night affair. I look forward to the traditional end-of-festival alternative awards show.

Score: 8/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel Comedy Club, Monkey Barrel 1
Dates: 28th August
Time: 00:00
Price: £8

Show 35: Fin Taylor: Daddy Self-Care

Fin Taylor is always sharply critical of the norm and mainstream, a refreshing voice that really challenges. This year's show looks at being a new father and the growing awareness of male mental health. He risks alienating the audience, though I think he's always been deliberate in pushing buttons, and a final routine playing out comedy caricatures of mental illnesses does prove funny, though it feels a bit of a sudden end with the show running shy of 50 minutes. The show feels incomplete and perhaps there will be further developments prior to an early 2023 tour. While there are multiple grains that bear fruit, I wonder if I caught the show before a full harvest. The half-filled QueenDome may also have distracted this joker.

Score: 6/10
Venue: Pleasance Dome, QueenDome
Dates: 28th August
Time: 20:30
Price: £13

Show 34: Phil Wang: The Real Hero in All This

Having known of Phil Wang for some years I don't think I've ever seen a full show of his, this was the year to rectify that.

Clearly an experienced performer now at ease with a large crowd, it's an hour of easy comedy with smart observations (I particularly enjoyed Wang's dismay at the Brits' aversion to reheating rice) and autobiographical material, guaranteed laughs in the hands of a skilled joker. Though varied in the material, it feels neatly woven together, even if there isn't any emotional heft or pathos. You can't go wrong with Wang, a safe bet moments of grand silliness.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Assembly at George Square, Gordon Aikman Lecture Theatre
Dates: run ended
Time: 21:00

Show 33: Alasdair Beckett-King: Nevermore

Having seen ABK's posters around the festival for a number of years and hearing his Comedian's Comedian episode I thought I'd check out this show.

A multimedia show though the bulk is from ABK's honed story-telling stand up material. The occasional short video and animation serve to be refreshing moments to compliment the story telling. Overall a charming and entertaining hour, puns a plenty and whimsical moments make for a worthwhile show.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Pleasance Dome, JackDome
Dates: 28th-29th August
Time: 19:00
Price: sold out

Show 32: Alice Cockayne: Attention Needed

Another show that caught my eye in the programme being billed as an absurdist piece, I've realised of late I've been drawn to the more absurdist shows, things to take you away from reality and to dazzle in rich, bewildering creations of the great comics, I've found such shows in the parts to be really inspirational.

This was not such a show.

Cockayne's character sketch does venture into the absurd for sure, but there really aren't any smart ideas or even good punchlines.

There's audience participation a plenty in this show. An opening sketch about finding a partner, going to bed and confronting an intruder by speaking in tongues is at most mildly bemusing (I was the plucky partner though Cockayne seemingly didn't fancy my banter - a moment where her electric toothbrush is flailed wildly underneath a bedsheet as we're both in bed led to me apologising for the coke I took, she retorted that her parents were at home, prompting me to ask her where she think I got it from; she quickly asked me to stop talking). Another skit involving a dysfunctional dog sitting agency was altogether tedious, even tragic, though I suspect unintentionally so. Indeed the laughter bleeding through from Ewin's excellent show next door was palpable throughout. I'm quite glad I didn't catch the 110% John Kearns and Pat Cahill show where she featured later in the festival.

Score: 1/10
Venue: Just the Tonic at The Caves, Just the Upstairs
Dates: 28th August
Time: 22:25
Price: £7

Show 31: Thom Tuck and Tim FitzHigham: Macbeth

Thom Tuck and frequent collaborator Tim Fitzhigham often bring quirky experimental comedy shows to the festival and this is no exception.

A retelling of MacBeth but with different directors everyday, essentially this is structured improvised comedy, always a risky endeavour for comedy except in skilled hands (thank goodness for Tuck's grounding at Edinburgh's Improverts) but today's show was sheer joy and silliness. Sunil Patel providing the direction (a very lacklustre and relatively unimaginative style, I couldn't tell if it was deliberate/a manifestation of his comedic persona (I confess I've never engaged with his material before)) Tuck and Fitzhigham did brilliantly to bring Shakespeare's tragic work to comedic life, starting with motorcycle riding witches to an inexplicable Mexican laird (get a funny accent just right and I'll double up in laughter) and excellent use of red cloth (you forget just how much death there is in MacBeth sometimes) this was a fabulous show. Vibrant, chaotic and downright stupid, this is the kind of show that makes the festival magical. I only wish I could have watched them again.

Score: 8/10
Venue: Underbelly at Cowgate, Belly Button
Dates: run ended
Time: 20:35

Show 30: Angela Barnes: Hot Mess

After many appearances on Mock the Week and various podcasts (namely Pappy's Flatshare Slamdown during a lockdown episode for me) it was finally time to see Barnes in person.

A hour of storytelling about her lockdown experience, becoming married and being there for a close comic friend undergoing cancer treatment, it's an overall feelgood show offering hope and belief in love filled with punchy jokes and a well-riffed (or was it meticulously planned) moment where technology ironically failed Barnes' set. A very well constructed hour from an engaging, confident, energetic performer, this was a very enjoyable show that has the right level of poignancy for an impactful Edinburg show. I look forward to watching Barnes again at future festivals and tours.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Pleasance courtyard, Cabaret Bar
Dates: 28th August
Time: 19:00
Price: £15

Show 29: Mr Chonkers by John Norris

A word of mouth affair following recommendations from a comedy aficionado friend and another friend's partner (unexpectedly up in Edinburgh leading to an initially very confusing and slightly unnerving whatsapp message from an unknown number) led to this being added to the schedule.

Norris enters as a faceless monk, high-fiving the audience to the tune of Gregorian chanting, leading to a call and response before revealing himself and taking us on a demonstration of his acting range. The show continues with a poetry section and the portrayal of an Italian-American family leading to a quirky meatball trick. Overall an hour of charming clowning and absurdity, certainly very playful and fun and an hit the right spot depending on the crowd. It'll be interesting to see what future fare brings.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel at Carnivore, Carnivore 2
Dates: 28th August
Time: 23:55
Price: £5

Show 28: John Robertson: The Dark Room

A return to this previously watched show and it was a raucous affair again. A range of off-kilter prizes, including the back of a CD case and an inordinate amount of Tesco baguettes and the famous "flamboyant potato" (i.e. a pineapple) alongside plucky audience players brought together by Robertson's enthusiastic and excellent hosting made for an excellent evening's entertainment. Some delightful riffing with an older audience player, a likely baffled Swedish audience member and some slightly risky banter with a young teenager ending with crowdsurfing of very questionable safety created a glorious show, it'll be sure to make a repeat addition to the Festival schedule again.

Score: 8/10
Venue: Gilded Balloon Teviot, Dining room
Dates: 27th - 28th August
Time: 22:00
Price: Sold out

Show 27: The Goldsmith and East Hour

An impromptu addition to the schedule to see Nick Kocher perform stand up, this was a showcase show also featuring Sami Abu Wardeh, Linus Karp.

The hosts, Ben Goldmith and Chris East, cut a truly amateur overly enthusiastic, almost student-like, feel of MCs coming up with tedious games to engage the audience and frankly banal hosting; it could have passed for satire or anti-comedy had the notion of meta-ness surfaced.

Nick Kocher gave a very amusing anecdote of being caught by his father in the middle of some self-pleasure, while Wardeh was surprisingly interesting as a cigarette-ed psychic guitar player. Karp's premise of dissecting the modern Cats the Musical film as a masterpiece of cinema sounds intriguing though had a similarly pained feel passable comedy as the hosts did.

Score: 2/10
Venue: Royal Mile Tavern, Annexe
Dates: run ended
Time: 18:00
Price: Free (pay what you want)

Show 26: Oliver Coleman: Sublime

Self described as an absurdist comedian, Oliver Coleman caught my eye in the programme so I thought I'd give him a go.

An eclectic hour of part absurdism, part straight up observational humour, at times it feels like Coleman's playing with the form and being a comedian's comedian. There was something exhilarating with trying to see what exactly was going on. A threatening 'shark' moves through the audience edging closer and closer to the stage throughout the show too. The hour seems incoherent but feels as if there is genius lurking beneath the shambles. An intriguing hour, tempting me to see what he comes up with next year.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel at Carnivore, Carnivore 2
Dates: 26th - 28th August
Time: 22:35

Price: £8

Show 25: Alfie Brown: Sensitive Man

You never quite what you'll get with Alfie Brown, whether you'll get an amicable charmer or a more prickly foe who seems to treat the audience with mild contempt, you'll nevertheless be thrilled by his energy. Luckily the show I watched had him in good spirits with some deft audience interaction and scintillating stand up.

He's not a Mr Nice Guy, indeed he tears away the nicety of Britishness and shows us the Truth of the world with comedic deft that is frightfully entertaining. His final joke about Black Privilege shows us just how well Brown's able to wrangle with tricky concepts to get us on board with his ideas. He's always eloquent and articulate, cynical and at unease with the world, his show is a sheer delight in shaking up our comfortable ways and seeks to make us sit up and listen. A very well deserved Best Show nomination for this year too.

Score: 8/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel Comedy Club, Monkey Barrel 1
Dates: 24th - 28th August
Time: 21:00
Price: £10

Show 24: Olga Koch: Just Friends

Having seen Olga Koch on Mock the Week and heard her on some podcasts I've been really intrigued to check her out in person.

This is an excellent hour of comedy, sexuality, femininity and relationships, a really strong, engaging performance with fabulous storytelling. Her pursuit of a threesome with two guys takes us on a rollercoaster journey. Ultimately a thrilling hour of comedy that showcases a tremendous comedic performer, very much looking forward to seeing her again.

Score: 8/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel Comedy Club, Monkey Barrel 1
Dates: 25th - 28th August
Time: 19:35
Price: £10 weekends, £8 weekdays

Show 23: Ed Gamble: Electric

Ed Gamble seems to feature quite heavily in my life namely with the Off Menu Podcast and the Ed Gamble and Matthew Crosby Podcast being regular listening material for me. Having been amused by a previous show some years ago at the festival I thought he'd be worth checking out (even if the ticket was £17).

There's no denying Gamble's skill and experience, he's a slick stand up with easy audience engagement and nicely put together routines. The final 15 minutes about hotel breakfast buffets has some insightful observations, but for me he never quite hit's the outrageously funny spot. Certainly a safe pair of comedic hands and worthwhile if you're a mainstream comedy fan. He might stay to being a podcast presenter presence for me though.

Score: 6/10
Venue: Assembly George Square, Gordon Aikman Theatre
Dates: run ended
Time: 21:00

Chloe Petts: Transience

 This was meant to be show 23 but I left work late and missed the show.

Show 22: Mat Ewins: Danger Money

After a mildly dud 2019 show, I was keen to see what Ewins would bring for the return of the Fringe Festival. Thankfully he didn't disappoint.

Trying to make a name for himself, he's decided to become a game show host, bringing audience members up to play silly multimedia games (beer pong being particularly memorable) though most of the show is filled with Ewins' characteristic mad video based humour (the videos being projected onto massive cardboard cutout TV frames and projector screens) with moments of sheer ridiculousness (he starts the show with his head in a box with a camera, and a VR headset portion tries to turn the audience naked only for it to backfire on Ewins himself).

Though it doesn't have the cynical moment of poignancy that Adventureman had it's just as fun and it's a return to form for Ewins. I can't wait to see next year's buffet of madness.

Score: 8/10
Venue: Just the Tonic at The Caves, Just The Big Room
Dates: 24th - 28th August
Time: 22:30
Price: £10 weekdays, £12 weekends

Show 21: Police Cops: The Musical

After the success of their previous two Police Cops installments and their supernatural venture 'Badass Be Thy Name', Police Cops return with a musical number, focussing on Jimmy Johnson's first venture as a police cop, avenging his sister's death and finding the villainous Hernandez. Now with an expanded cast, Police Cops: The Musical is a riotous affair with, as ever, incredible choreography that dazzles and captivates, moving musical numbers and moments of comic genius (just who *is* 'the clapping man'?). An extraordinarily fun and inventive show, it may not have packed the same gag rate as previous offerings, and the plot may have got slightly lost in the middle, it's still a wonderful hour's entertainment.

Score: 8/10
Venue: Assembly George Square Studios, Studio One
Dates: 24th - 29th August (not 27th)
Time: 19:00
Price: £15 weekends (£14 concession), £12.50 weekdays (£11.50 concession)

Show 20: Avenue Q

Avenue Q's one of the few musicals I want to watch and was invited to join a group of friends to watch a small production of this so why not?

An overall charming and delightful musical with some surprisingly strong singers for a (presumably) amateur drama group, this was a very fun show about love, growing up and social harmony. The 'Bad Idea Bears' were particularly enjoyable. The set design and use of a relatively small space showed the company's creative inventiveness nicely, a very worthwhile show.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Edinburgh Little Theatre, 19 Hill Street
Dates: 24th - 28th
Time: 21:10
Price: £15 (£12 concession)

Show 19: The End of the Pier, at the End of the World

Discovered by chance looking at the Monkey Barrel website, Alfie Brown's work in progress show proved to be an intimate affair and an interesting insight into him workshopping ideas. A small crowd, seemingly half made of comics, in a haze of booze gave fertile ground for Brown riffing ideas and improvising some stunning bleak jokes. He's never been afraid to be controversial and cut through the miasma of pretense that UK culture creates, he's an ever refreshing breath, intelligent and at times a genius at comic ideas. It'll be interesting to see how this turns into next year's material.

Score: no score for work in progress
Venue: Monkey Barrel Comedy Club, monkey barrel 4
Dates: run ended
Time: 23:59

Show 18: Jordan Gray: Is It a Bird?

Having been recommended by Stu Goldsmith and BriTANicK I thought I ought to check this show out.

Gray is a trans female musical comedian, with a show about being trans and songs celebrating the human body. There's plenty of bravura and confidence, she's certainly not shy about herself nor is she apologetic for her confidence, but though there's plenty of style I didn't feel there was any real substance to the material. There's nothing particularly smart or interesting in the material, just hot energy that tries to carry the show through. At the end when Gray changes into her superhero costume (spoiler alert, she's just naked) certainly makes a strong point. It's a laudable hour but at ultimately I felt more bemused than amused.

Score: 2/10
Venue: Assembly George Square, The Box
Dates: 23rd - 28th August
Time: 22:25
Price: Sold Out

Show 17: Drunk Women Solving Crime

Having heard other comedians mention this podcast on their own podcasts, I thought I'd see what this was like.

The title says it all; three women (Hannah George, Catie Wilkins and Taylor Glenn) get drunk and solve a crime, with special guest appearances, on today's show it was Bilal Zafar.

Seemingly the three of them take it in turns to research a crime and lead the others to figure out how the crime or crimes were committed, on this show it was US born Taylor's turn to lead the show. 

This was a thoroughly delightful hour of great fun and energy, the free flowing prosecco (and pepsi for Zafar) giving a buzz to the show, with quick wittedness and some great audience interaction moments (including a rather cute alarm stopping proceeding momentarily). This was a really joyous hour of banter and riffs, I can't wait to download their back catalogue.

Score: 8/10
Venue: Underbelly at Bristo Square - Fresian
Dates: Run ended
Time: 20:20

Show 16: Lou Sanders: One Word: Wow

This year's Lou Sanders seems slightly more tame, and not as provocative, though she's still as brash and self-confident as ever.

A strong hour covering relationships, her journey to being a skater (who'd have thought?), and befriending one of the younger skaters in the park. The show's punctuated by charming diary entries and ends with a 'you've been framed' style compilation of prat falls while skating with moments of success at the end. Overall a very entertaining hour's comedy.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel Comedy, Monkey Barrel 3
Dates: 14th - 28th August (not 14th or 22nd)
Time: 17:40
Price: £10 

Show 15: John-Luke Roberts: A World Just Like Our Own, But...

It's always interesting to see how John-Luke Roberts is going to fill an hour, there'll be a left-field idea somewhere, and he's always one of the more refreshing acts in the festival.

A rejigged washing machine on stage sets the scene, and from it JLR emerges to take us on a fantastical set of ideas, multiple worlds where little things are just off or different. Throughout this, a phone hidden in the washing machine connects Roberts to other alternate reality JLRs each with their own issues, and through this all our own Roberts is trying to escape reality, but it isn't to be in the end. Nevertheless an intriguing hour with delightful absurdist ideas.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel Comedy, Monkey Barrel 4
Dates: 23rd - 28th August
Time: 15:35
Price: £9 weekends, £8 weekdays

Show 14: Eleanor Morton Has Peaked

Having vaguely heard of Eleanor Morton from I don't know where (turns out she became a viral hit with her internet videos over lockdowns) I thought I'd check her act out.

A seasoned professional at the game (some 13 years in comedy) her experience shows with confident energy that captivates her audience. She's got some strong material and quite the incredible family background (who'd thought that as a stand up comedian she's the most successful of her siblings, with one being an artist and another doing a a PhD on Jack the Ripper). A really strong hour of story telling and observations peppered with light whimsy (she's really good at telling you the average size of any bird species!), this was a very pleasant surprise, a shame I hadn't discovered her before. I'll be sure to check her shows again in future.

Score: 8/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel Comedy at Carnivore
Dates: 24th - 28th August (not 11th or 16th)
Time: 12:40
Price: £8

Show 13: Jordan Brookes: This Is Just What Happens

Jordan Brookes returns to Monkey Barrel for his latest hour. He's seemingly doing better than previous years, it's a less angsty, less tense hour, though there are still threats of self-implosion that keep us on our toes.

Brookes tells us he's not bothered about being called a 'slimeball', though he returns to this throughout, considering how others see him and how his behaviours impact on others. Minor distraction with an audience member taking photos of him and another being distracted by his sweatiness makes for fun asides.

At the end, we realise that all may not be what it seems when we find out just who called Brookes a slimeball (a twist almost reminiscent of Kitson's 'After The Beginning, Before The End' show). It doesn't quite match to previous offerings but his skill in pulling us into his slightly twisted thoughts makes for an overall intriguing hour from this former Best Show winner.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel Comedy, Monkey Barrel 3
Dates: 14th - 28th August (not 14th or 22nd)
Time: 21:55
Price: £10 

Show 12: BriTANicK

Sketch duo Nick Kocher and Brian McElhaney have been going at it since the early days of youtube, becoming early viral hits. Now some 14 years later they've eared writing credits on Saturday Night Live and worked the live comedy scene of LA amongst a host of other credits. Now they bring their debut hour to Edinburgh under the direction of former Best Newcomer winner, Alex Edelman.

Starting off with some conventional well placed sketches the hour builds to a feverish meta narrative with inspired physical comedy/mime and tight writing and acting. Memorable moments include the Addiction sketch and the multiple character driven sketch about a marriage proposal is particularly delightful. Mixed in with some semi-nudity and pent up sexual rage and some very self-knowing exposition that lets these cis-het guys play gay altogether makes for one of the best sketch shows I've seen for a long time. It's a damn near perfect hour of comedy and thoroughly deserves at least a Best Newcomer nomination, if not the win.

Score: 9.5/10
Venue: Assembly George Square - The Box
Dates: 15th - 28th August (not 17th)
Time: 19:45
Price: £12 weekends (£11 concession), £11 weekdays (£10 concession)

Show 11: Lloyd Langford: DILF

Now based out in Australia, Lloyd Langford returns after being stuck on the other side of the world for nearly 3 years. Now a father, it's an hour of stories about conceiving (including a tale of an austere sperm clinic), parenting and generally failing at being an adult. Langford ends on a charming tale of trying to be a good neighbour, but instead creeping out a young girl and failing to establish dominance over a family pet dog. All in all a entertaining hour in the hands of a seasoned pro, you can't go too wrong.

Score: 6/10
Venue: PBH's Free Fringe at Legends - upstairs
Dates: 14th - 18th
Time: 18:05
Price: Free (pay what you want)

Show 10: Amy Gledhill: The Girl Before The Girl You Marry

One half of The Delightful Sausage, this is Gledhill's debut hour at Edinburgh. A show about how all her previous relationships ended with the men subsequently going on to marry their next partners, it's a surprisingly conventional hour given the bizarre material The Delightful Sausage usually come up with.

While engaging and bright, the material doesn't quite land for me. Though technically adept, the show left me wanting for laughter.

Score: 4/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel at Carnivore
Dates: 14th - 28th August (not 17th)
Time: 15:30
Price: £8

Show 9: Stuart Goldsmith: A Shared Illusion (WIP)

A strong work in progress show from The Comedian's Comedian Podcast host, he even handily projected the set on to the wall behind him so we could keep track of the show. Overall it's a nice exploration of facing up the the realisation of humanity's effect on the climate and what the future holds for the immediate coming generations, though it may sound bleak there's moments of joy and all in all is making for a promising hour.

Score: no score for work in progress
Venue: Monkey barrel Comedy Club, Monkey Barrel 3
Dates: 8th-11th August
Time: 13:25
Price: £6.50

Show 8: Tony Law: A Now Begin in Again

You'll never get a straight stand-up show from Tony Law. A man of chaos and non-sequiturs, his shows have the potential to be brilliant. Starting off with getting his 13-year-old son to introduce him, we have an hour of amusing ideas and wonderings with some quite cute insights into the family life he has rounded off with a horse race involving multiple audience members. The skill in keeping our attention and threading everything together is what draws us in, underneath the tangents there's a semblance of control, that tightrope walking is ever intriguing. Even if it doesn't give you a belly laugh, you've got to admire the man's skill.

Score: 7/10
Venue: Monkey Barrel Comedy, Monkey Barrel 3
Dates: 8th - 28th August (not 11th or 16th)
Time: 12:00
Price: £10 weekends, £9 weekdays

Show 7: Alex Franklin: Dinosaurusesuses

A chance discovery while perusing the Fringe Programme, with my tastes seemingly wandering towards absurdism of late I thought I'd check out this show.

A frenetic energy brings together a tale of a resurrected triceratops, a dying planet and the coming together of Michael Morpurgo and Macklemore into Mackle-Morpurgo resulting in an overall quite entertaining hour of comedy. There's definitely an amateur, strongly Fringe feel to the whole show and certainly some sets could do with tightening but there are moments of genuinely good jokes that come from nowhere and gave me a belly laugh, interestingly it wasn't the whimsical absurdist jokes that landed best in the night.

If you're looking for a worthwhile 'out-there' show you'd do well to check out this show, charming, silly and sweet in good measure, and maybe you'll be smitten by the cute fluffy dinosaur hat.

Score: 6/10
Venue: Just The Tonic At The Caves, Just The Wee Room
Dates: 7th - 28th August (not 15th)
Time: 22:50
Price: £5 (or pay what you want)

Show 6: Eli Matthewson: Daddy Short-Legs

Kiwi comedian, Eli Matthewson, returns to the festival fresh from winning the New Zealand International Comedy Festival's Best Show.

He had vowed to not make any gay jokes but he just can't help it, but he's a skilled, witty, intelligent comic who can take jokes about being gay and make them genuinely original and fresh. Far from hack, Matthewson handles the storytelling and joke interweaving deftly. A very engaging and charming hour looking at the challenges of a long-distance relationship, family tensions and experiencing lockdown in New Zealand, a strong performance and well worth checking out. I hope the borders don't close again next year!

Score: 8/10
Venue: Assembly George Square Gardens, The Wee Coo
Dates: 7th - 28th August (not 17th)
Time: 20:50
Price: £11 (£10 concessions) weekends, £10 (£9) weekdays

Show 5: Sheeps: Ten Years, Ten Laughs

Harking from Cambridge Footlights, sketch trio, Sheeps, can't resist having clever layers of irony and meta-comedy in their shows. Their 2014 show 'Wembley Previews' was a genius of sketch comedy though I fear they may not match that dizzy height of narrative sketch shows.

This show, a retrospective, pulls together highlights of the previous ten years with some knowing commentary in between. A highlight of the show for me came from a presumed walkout as the trio made light ironic jibes at the 'woke' movement, with Liam suggesting the innocent punters were 'snowflakes' and Darren breaking character and quite rightly pointing out they could have been on either side of the argument with the irony being 'wafer thin'. They're certainly self-aware.

At times the meta-comedy threatens to be overly-clever and pretentious though the trio manage to tread the line to keep it entertaining.

The final 'three cowboys' sketch does well to play on Al's absence after a falling out and the subsequent substitution by a hapless audience member, overall it's an entertaining hour.

 
Score: 7/10
Venue: Pleasance Courtyard, Forth
Dates: 7th - 14th August
Time: 19:00

Price: £14 (£11 concessions) weekends, £12.50 (£10) weekdays

Show 4: Foil Arms and Hog – Hogwash

Festival veterans Foils, Arms and Hog return once more and the 3 year absence has done nothing to dent their clowning abilities.

Some light audience banter and (hopefully) consensual borrowing of various garments starts off the show with gusto. It's a show of swift daftness and moments of playful audience interaction. The suitcase sketch and the opening séance sketch being personal favourites of the night, it's a flawless show that can't fail to delight everyone.

Score: 9/10
Venue: McEwan Hall, Bristo Square
Dates:  7th - 28th August
Time: 21:15
Price: £18 (£17 concessions) weekends, £16 (£15) weekdays

Show 3: Ivo Graham: My Future My Clutter

Last time I watched Ivo Graham he was in the Pleasance Courtyard, Cabaret Bar, and unfortunately the show was cut short by a fire alarm. Thankfully this year's show wasn't so rudely interrupted.

This is a stunning, deft, brilliant performance, arguably his best show yet. Tightly written pieces bringing together the past couple of years of being a father, dealing with a break up and facing the clutter of his past stored in his childhood home. The joke rate is high and the energy never drops in this show, there's even a moment of audience interaction which was expertly handled without dropping the momentum. Articulate, witty and smart without being pretentious, this is an outstanding hour of comedy which surely begs for at least a Best Show nomination.

Just a shame there weren't any crisps at the end, like 2019's offering.

Score: 9/10
Venue: Pleasance Courtyard, Pleasance One
Dates: 7th - 28th August
Time: 19:30
Price: £15 (£13 concessions) weekends, £13 (£12) weekdays

Show 2: Mark Watson: This Can't Be It

Mark Watson's nervous, excitable energy effuses through with an almost infectious quality. He's got a lot to cover, including a divorce, trying to be a good parent, and grappling with his own mortality, triggered by a 'predict when you'll die' app he downloaded during the lockdowns.

Watson's verging-on-chaotic navigation of his material could be quite charming but it doesn't quite hit during this performance. There are some entertaining moments and an in-depth exchange with an audience member whose Twitter profile Watson had checked out before the show. Nevertheless the show left me wanting for something more cohesive and tighter, but maybe that's just not Watson's style.

Score: 6/10
Venue: Pleasance courtyard, Pleasance One
Dates: 7th - 28th August (not 15th, 16th, 22nd, 23rd)
Time: 21:00
Price: £16 (£14.50 concessions) weekends, £14.50 (£13) weekdays

Show 1: David O'Doherty: whoa is me

Despite a 20 minute late start to the show (apparently a puppet malfunction in the morning causing a knock-on effect for the rest of the day) the DoD isn't fazed, he's just glad to be back at the festival performing again.

It's a joyous hour of whimsy, charming ditties and a quintessentially DoD impression of a bat being eaten (who can forget about the past 3 years - it's sure to be a common theme throughout the whole Fringe). 8 months of isolation on Achill island with his elderly parents may not sound like great comedy fodder but DoD finds moments of bizarre circumstances and humour in amongst the desolation (you'd be surprised what you can find on the beach at Achill!).

As ever DoD's relaxed, assured performance marks him as one of the really great comics of modern times. A terrific return to the Fringe.

Score: 9/10

Venue: Assembly George Square, Gordon Aikman lecture theatre

Dates: 7th - 29th August (not 15th)

Time: 19:30

Price: £17 (£16 concessions) weekends, £16 (£15) weekdays

Edinburgh Fringe 2022

Who'd have predicted that we'd have to wait 3 years for the Fringe Festival to pick up again proper? In the mean time we've had a global pandemic with covid-19 (arguably still ongoing), a new threat with monkeypox, I've finally finished my specialty training and I'm in the midst of multiple slightly stressful life maneouvres (starting a year-long job in Leeds, finding a flat in leeds, finding a lodger in Edinburgh, applying for a consultant job in Edinburgh for next year, anxiously awaiting my keys to my flat after accidentally leaving them back home in Manchester and getting my mother to post them back to me, having my 125cc motorbike stolen and dealing with insurance, and doing the paperwork for finishing training...now that I write it all down, it does sound like a pretty busy 2 months).

Whilst all that's going on, we've had yet more omnishambles from BoJo so much so that he's finally resigned, and what the great British public have in store is one of two quite remarkably out of touch people that I really despair at the state of British (read English) politics currently. And with the Scottish Independence referendum threatening to occur once again in 2023, who know what will happen with the UK.

But to dstract us from the doom and gloom of reality, we have the delights of the Edinburgh Festival running again. Having been detached from the comedy scene for the past two and a half years (save for the occasional Pappy's zoom flatshare slamdown) I've no sense of who's hot in the comedy circuit new acts these. If I manage to watch at least one nominated show I'll be happy.

Given my previous inability to keep up with my pre-determined schedule and actually write about all the shows I've seen, here's a list of the shows I've booked for posterity:

 

Wed 03 Aug 2022

David O'Doherty: whoa is me 19:30

Gordon Aikman Theatre at Assembly George Square

 

Mark Watson: This Can't Be It 21:00

Pleasance One at Pleasance Courtyard

 

Thu 04 Aug 2022  

Ivo Graham: My Future My Clutter 19:30

Pleasance One at Pleasance Courtyard 

 

Foil, Arms and Hog: Hogwash 21:15

McEwan Hall, Bristo Square

 

Fri 05 Aug 2022  

Sheeps: Ten Years, Ten Laughs 19:00

Forth at Pleasance Courtyard

 

Eli Matthewson: Daddy Short-Legs 20:50

The Wee Coo at Underbelly George Square

 

Alex Franklin: Dinosaurusesuses 22:50

Just The Wee One at Just The Tonic at the Caves 

 

Sat 06 Aug 2022

Tony Law: A Now Begin in Again 12:00

Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Stuart Goldsmith: A Shared Illusion (WIP) 13:25

Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Amy Gledhill: The Girl Before The Girl You Marry 15:30

Carnivore 2 at Monkey Barrel Comedy (Carnivore)

(Venue No. 180) 208 Cowgate, EH1 1LL

 

BriTANicK 19:45

The Box at Assembly George Square  

 

Jordan Brookes: This Is Just What Happens 21:55

Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Sun 07 Aug 2022  

Eleanor Morton Has Peaked 12:40

Carnivore 2 at Monkey Barrel Comedy (Carnivore)

(Venue No. 180) 208 Cowgate, EH1 1LL

 

John-Luke Roberts: A World Just Like Our Own, But... 15:35

Monkey Barrel 4 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Lou Sanders: One Word: Wow 17:40

Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR 

 

Drunk Women Solving Crime 20:20

Friesian at Underbelly Bristo Square

 

Jordan Gray: Is It A Bird? 22:25

The Box at Assembly George Square  

 

The End of the Pier, at the End of the World 23:59

Monkey Barrel 1 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR 

 

Mon 08 Aug 2022

Avenue Q 20:10

Alba Theatre at Hill Street Theatre (Venue No. 41) 19 Hill Street, EH2 3JP

 

Tue 09 Aug 2022 

Police Cops: The Musical 19:00

Assembly Square Gardens Studios - Studio 1

 

Mat Ewins: Danger Money 22:30

Just The Big Room at Just The Tonic at the Caves

 

Wed 10 Aug 2022

Chloe Petts: Transience 18:00

Upstairs at Pleasance Courtyard

 

Ed Gamble: Electric 21:00

Gordon Aikman Theatre at Assembly George Square 

 

Thu 11 Aug 2022   

Olga Koch: Just Friends 19:35

Monkey Barrel 1 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Alfie Brown: Sensitive Man 21:00

 Monkey Barrel 1 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Oliver Coleman: Sublime 22:35

Carnivore 2 at Monkey Barrel Comedy (Carnivore)

(Venue No. 180) 208 Cowgate, EH1 1LL

 

Sun 14 Aug 2022

John Robertson: The Dark Room 22:00

Dining Room at Gilded Balloon Teviot

 

Tue 16 Aug 2022 

Angela Barnes: Hot Mess 19:00

Cabaret Bar at Pleasance Courtyard 

 

Thom Tuck and Tim FitzHigham: Macbeth 20:35

Belly Button at Underbelly Cowgate 

 

Alice Cockayne: Attention Needed 22:25

Just Up The Stairs at Just The Tonic at the Caves

 

Wed 17 Aug 2022 

Alasdair Beckett-King: Nevermore 19:00

Jack Dome at Pleasance Dome 

 

Phil Wang: The Real Hero in All This 21:00

Gordon Aikman Theatre at Assembly George Square 

 

Thu 18 Aug 2022 

Fin Taylor: Daddy Self-Care 20:30

Queen Dome at Pleasance Dome 

 

Mon 24 Aug 2022

Alternative Comedy Memorial Society 23:59

Monkey Barrel 1 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR 

 

Tue 23 Aug 2022 

Josie Long: Re-Enchantment 14:50

Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Sofie Hagen: Fat Jokes 16:15

Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Atsuko Okatsuka: The Intruder 18:00

Bunker Three at Pleasance Courtyard  

 

Nish Kumar: Your Power, Your Control 21:00

Gordon Aikman Theatre at Assembly George Square  

 

110% John Kearns and Pat Cahill23:20

Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Wed 24 Aug 2022  

Pat Cahill: Work in Progress 13:25

Carnivore 1 at Monkey Barrel Comedy (Carnivore)

(Venue No. 180) 208 Cowgate, EH1 1LL

 

Microscope: Live 16:15

Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Tim Vine: Breeeep! 18:00

Pleasance One at Pleasance Courtyard

 

Tim Key: Mulberry 22:00

Forth at Pleasance Courtyard

 

Sam Campbell: Comedy Show 00:05 (actually Thu 25 August)

Monkey Barrel 4 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Thu 25 Aug 2022

Lauren Pattison: It Is What It Is 12:30

Monkey Barrel 1 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Glenn Moore: Will You Still Need Me, Will You Still Feed Me, Glenn I'm Sixty Moore 16:05

Cabaret Bar at Pleasance Courtyard

 

Maisie Adam: Buzzed 17:30

Dining Room at Gilded Balloon Teviot 

 

Larry Dean: Fudnut 20:30

Monkey Barrel 3 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Norris and Parker: Sirens 21:15

Monkey Barrel 4 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Fri 26 Aug 2022 

The Delightful Sausage: Nowt but Sea 12:45

Monkey Barrel 4 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Olaf Falafel: STOAT 15:00

Main room at Laughing Horse @ The Pear Tree

(Venue No. 257) 36 West Nicholson Street, EH8 9DD

 

Paul Williams: In the Moonlight 16:30

Downstairs at Assembly Roxy

 

Chris Gethard: A Father and the Sun 18:00

Billiard Room at Gilded Balloon Teviot 

 

Elf Lyons: Raven 20:30

Dining Room at Gilded Balloon Teviot

 

Sat 27 Aug 2022

Catherine Bohart: This Isn't For You 15:20

Monkey Barrel 1 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR

 

Tom Rosenthal: Manhood 17:20

Forth at Pleasance Courtyard

 

Christopher Bliss: Captain Words Eye 18:40

Beneath at Pleasance Courtyard  

 

Joz Norris: Blink 20:20

Jack Dome at Pleasance Dome 

 

Ciarán Dowd: King Rodolfo 21:50

Queen Dome at Pleasance Dome 

 

Sun 28 Aug 2022

George Egg: Set Menu (The Best of George Egg) 16:25

Piccolo Tent at Assembly George Square Gardens 

 

Alternative Comedy Memorial Society 23:59

Monkey Barrel 1 at Monkey Barrel Comedy

(Venue No. 515) 9-12 Blair Street, EH1 1QR