Issue 662

House Cabaret

18 Aug 2010

Getting up close and personal has never been easier with a personalised performance from your house. Host your very own cabaret at your own venue with your own friends. For one night only, a small troupe of dedicated cabaret artists arrives at your…

Things to do in Scotland when it’s dead

12 Aug 2010

So, apparently there’s some sort of small gathering happening in Edinburgh, and that means the rest of the country is effectively closed for business? Er, wrong. Here’s our essential guide to getting yourself a festival experience without going to the…

Edinburgh Book Fringe - Elaine Henry interview

The owner of Word Power Books answers five questions

12 Aug 2010

Why did you set up the Edinburgh Book Fringe in the first place? To give local writers, small publishers and writers outwith the mainstream the sort of voice or platform they wouldn’t get access to during the festival period. Can you describe the…

Hi Fives for Diversity

Celebrate the International Year of Biodiversity

12 Aug 2010

It’s the kids’ last chance to take part in Our Dynamic Earth’s International Year of Biodiversity celebrations this week, with activities all over the centre. High five the Community Tree, learn about how Arctic animals have adapted to their harsh…

Profusion of painting at 2010 Edinburgh Art Festival

Richard Wright, Joan Mitchell and Julie Roberts head up painting programme

4 Aug 2010

Painting has inspired some epic declarations over the years. In the 1960s Donald Judd declared the medium dead. In 2005 Young British Artist Damien Hirst advised people that they were more important than paintings. And this year, in light of the…

Gyles Brandreth - middle-aged, ex-MP, author, and Fringe show stalwart

4 Aug 2010

British author-cum-broadcaster-cum-Fringe show stalwart Gyles Brandreth talks about the highs and lows of his festival fortunes. "Edinburgh is a parallel universe. We do things differently here. I was a middle-aged, ex-MP with a tragic comb-over and…

Taste returns to Edinburgh's reopened Liquid Room

The Liquid Room's Sunday regulars are back

4 Aug 2010

Here are some reasons to attend the 16-year-old Taste club night at the Liquid Room as the club re-opens in the middle of the of the Edinburgh Festivals

Piping Live!

4 Aug 2010

Bagpipes, it’s fair to say, have a bit of an image problem. But while the masses have been busy groaning and cringing at our national instrument, Piping Live! has spent the last seven years building up a vibrant, exciting and internationally-reaching…

David Benson's Unfinished Business

3 Aug 2010

Award-winning performer David Benson talks to Steve Cramer about a powerful new piece of theatre that explores the Lockerbie tragedy from the point of view of a grieving parent Politicians on both sides of the Atlantic froth at the mouth about the…

Headspin festival date to be its last

DJ Yoda date marks end of 12 years of clubbing

3 Aug 2010

As Headspin comes to an end, DJ/promoter Allan Dunbar talks to Henry Northmore about their final date and why they’ve booked DJ Yoda to play their last night.

Jack Bond's movies stand the test of time

3 Aug 2010

In 1965, Jack Bond, a young director freshly fired from the BBC for faking letters to Points of View, managed to persuade Salvador Dali to make a feature film with him. The result Dali In New York, screens on the art-house circuit to this day, and this…

Comedians you might know from TV at the Fringe 2010

Five faces from the telly making a beeline for the stage

3 Aug 2010

Alex Zane He’s the cheeky wee chappie from Rude Tube and a man described as a saviour to sensitive lads everywhere. Pleasance Dome, 556 6550, 7–30 Aug (not 16), 10pm, £10–£10.50 (£8.50–£9). Previews until 6 Aug, £5. Norman Lovett There will be…

The Sorcerer's Apprentice

3 Aug 2010

The combination of big-budget producer Jerry Bruckheimer and deep-pocketed studio Disney bore attractive if banal fruit with the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, but the muddle-headed fantasy The Sorcerer’s Apprentice is more likely to make audiences…

Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz star in Knight and Day

3 Aug 2010

‘I’m the guy!’ smirks madcap assassin Roy Miller (Tom Cruise) to mousey June Havens (Cameron Diaz) as he kidnaps her at gunpoint from a Boston cafe. Sadly, on the evidence of James Mangold’s pumped-up spy thriller, Cruise has little to be so cocky about…

Javier Fuente - León's Undertow

3 Aug 2010

Talk about having your cake and eating it. Impossibly good looking Peruvian fisherman Miguel (Cristian Mercado) has an adoring pregnant wife (Tatiana Astengo) and a hot male lover in the shape of visiting artist Santiago (Manolo Cardona). It’s all…

Edinburgh Festivals’ Cavalcade

3 Aug 2010

With floats from all aspects of the Edinburgh Festivals, as well as community groups and commercial ventures and the entire cast of the Edinburgh Military Tattoo, the cavalcade returns to Holyrood Park to kick-start yer official Edinburgh Crazy Season.

Farm Boy wins this week's best bribe by sending a miniature tractor

2 Aug 2010

This week’s best bribe was this charming miniature 1922 Fordson Tractor, sent by the folk behind Michael Morpurgo’s Farm Boy (adapted by Daniel Buckroyd). The play is a sequel to War Horse, which focused on a young boy and his horse on a journey through…

Quartet of notable U.S. comics stand-up for America

Jennifer Coolidge, Bo Burnham, Caroline Rhea and Charlyne Yi hit Fringe 2010

30 Jul 2010

Jennifer Coolidge is having trouble describing her own stand-up show. She asks a friend who is within shouting distance for help. ‘Michael?’ she calls, in a sugary purr. ‘I have Scotland on the line. What’s my show like?’ After a pause an answer booms…

Fringe 2010 cabaret offerings are as colourful as ever

Smoke & Mirrors, Alan Cumming and The Crack

30 Jul 2010

From pared down to jazz-hands up, this year’s variety and cabaret offerings are as colourful as ever. Anna Millar meets the makers to find out why we just can’t get enough It’s a certain man who can shimmy from club door whore to straight-talking…

Fringe show Willy Wonka Explained tracks down the original Veruca Salt

Matthew Hardy and Julie Dawn bring a pinch of Salt to Edinburgh

30 Jul 2010

Everyone reaches a low point in their lives, when it feels natural to seek solace in objects that remind us of happier, perhaps more innocent times. When Matthew Hardy was dumped by two girlfriends (years and continents apart), he couldn’t stop sticking…

The Rizla Riverboat Shuffle on the Waverley Steamer

Optimo and Melting Pot DJs play second set on board landmark Glasgow landmark boat

30 Jul 2010

David Pollock climbs aboard the Waverley Steamer as Melting Pot and Optimo set sail on another Rizla Riverboat Shuffle It wasn’t meant to be more than a one-off party in a unique location, but the DJs from Glasgow’s Optimo and Melting Pot nights had…

Toby Williams brings Dr George Ryegold back to Fringe

Applying surgery to a subtle character creation

30 Jul 2010

For someone who has suffered crippling stage fright, it seems extraordinary that we have even heard of Dr George Ryegold. Having heard from his agent that a parting of the ways might have to come, Toby Williams (the actor behind the maverick medic) told…

Kids show Tall Storrie & Wee Godley at this year's Fringe

The Glasgow comedy queen Jane Godley answer 5 questions

30 Jul 2010

Glasgow comedy queen Janey Godley has pushed all her blue material aside to team up with daughter Ashley Storrie for their kids show Tall Storrie & Wee Godley. She tells us why we should go along. Give five reasons why people should come and see…

Singles and downloads - July 2010

This month's batch of songs to look out for

30 Jul 2010

Mercury Prize nominee Corinne Bailey Rae takes a sassy new direction in ‘Closer’ (Parlophone) ●●●● – from her new album The Sea – a smoother, more soulful, more kick-ass effort than the sugary rom-com soundtrack stuff she seems to have, mercifully, left…

Tuck into the Fringe - five shows you can watch while you eat

See it all without missing a meal

30 Jul 2010

We have compiled a list of shows that you can watch while also being served some delicious shows. Don't miss your dinner without also seeing a show!

Five new faces in British comedy to watch in Edinburgh

A quintet of bright and shiny debutants from the UK

30 Jul 2010

Joe Rowntree Hindsight is a great thing, but who knows where this guy would be now had his planned collaboration with Laura Solon in 2005 arrived in Edinburgh. She only went and won the Perrier on her tod and half a decade later, he’s making his…

Futuristic Retro Champions play in Glasgow's Mono

And here are five reasons for you to go and see them...

30 Jul 2010

1. Futuristic Retro Champions Yep, like we said above. After all, this is the Glasgow-based (aside from the one who lives in Edinburgh), all-girl (aside from the one who’s a boy) electro-pop quartet’s launch party for their single ‘May the Forth’, and…

Festival Briefing 2010

Some things we think might help you at this year's festivals

30 Jul 2010

Here's a short briefing about some things to look forward to during the Book Festival, the Fringe, in Music events, and Shopping opportunities in Edinburgh

Addy Van Der Borgh brings Advanced Mumbo Jumbo to Fringe

Five words and their more honest definitions

30 Jul 2010

‘The pen is mightier than the sword’ is not strictly true, especially in a fight, but there is some truth in it. Words, as we know, can be very powerful, especially when put together in the right order. Here are five words and their more honest and thus…

Five of the best improvised comedy shows at the Fringe 2010

Edinburgh shows making it up as they go along

30 Jul 2010

The Noise Next Door Five slightly posh Brighton-based blokes don shirts and colourful ties before transforming your daft ideas into blindingly witty songs and sketches. Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, 7–30 Aug (not 11, 18), 7pm, £11–£12 (£9.50–£11).

Lady Carol - Malady

We asked the singing, ukelele playing, dark-humorist five questions

30 Jul 2010

This ukelele lady has an inky-black sense of humour, and can turn the sweetest of love songs into a creepy stalker anthem. Just, please, keep her away from bright light and cakes. Five words you’d use to describe your show Sad songs, silly…

Mitchell Museum at the Edge Festival

Jangly, indie-pop by Weegie flatmates

30 Jul 2010

Mitchell Museum, so legend has it, live, write and record together in a flat in the centre of Glasgow, Monkees-style. ‘It’s true,’ reveals their singer, Cammy MacFarlane. ‘It’s on Sauchiehall Street, just above Nice ‘n’ Sleazy. Well, above and to the…

Lach’s Antihoot - anti-folk night imported from NYC

Birthplace of Beck, Regina Spekto and Jeffrey Lewis comes to Fringe

30 Jul 2010

‘The Antihoot is the heartbeat of the anti-folk revolution,’ explains its infamous founder, Lach. ‘It produced US acts like Regina Spektor, Beck and Jeffrey Lewis, and inspired UK practitioners like Kate Nash and Laura Marling.’ It also prompted…

Villagers at the Edge Festival

Tender, poetic pop, now with added Mercury nomination

30 Jul 2010

‘I usually have a picture or a colour in my head as I’m making a song,’ says Dublin’s Conor O’Brien – the dulcet bard and multi-instrumentalist behind Villagers’ picturesque rock. And so it was with Becoming a Jackal (Domino), the dramatic…

NeWt play Led Zeppelin at the Jazz Bar

Hyper-imaginative and unconvential jazz trio

30 Jul 2010

What Is It? A hyper-imaginative and unconventional jazz trio formed by Australian trombonist Chris Greive, Aberdonian guitarist Graeme Stephens and American drummer Chris Wallace, all Edinburgh residents. Who are these guys? Three of the best…

Edinburgh Mela 2010

An international and ceremonial start to the Festivals

30 Jul 2010

These days the Mela is just as much of a ceremonial start to Edinburgh’s Festivals as the (often far less exciting) Fringe Cavalcade. This year, alongside Bollywood dance shows, multi-artform companies from China, traditional Sufi music from Rizwan…

Sleigh Bells' Treats

30 Jul 2010

From the moment ‘Tell ‘Em’s machine-gun beats and bombastic guitars pummel your ears into stunned submission, Treats struts up and down before you like some aggressively flirtatious hipster girl, just daring you not to fall for its fuck-you…

Vladimir McTavish - The Idiot's Guide to Whisky

The first in a series of whiteboard show introductions

30 Jul 2010

In the first of a regular festival series we’ve asked a comedian to draw the essence of his or her festival show on our List festival wipeboard. This summer Vladimir McTavish is teaching the world about whisky. Well, kinda. In a show originally called…

Holly Burn back at Fringe with 'renegade' character-sketch show

Living and Dying follows site-specific show of 2009

30 Jul 2010

For her previous Fringe shows, Holly Burn has tunnelled into the mind of the Angel of the North and invited people into the flat she was living in last August for a site-specific experience, which our reviewer described as ‘torturously exasperating but…

Arcade Fire releases their all-important third album

The Suburbs is a rewarding and solid LP.

30 Jul 2010

History dictates that many rock greats affirm their credentials upon their third album: Radiohead’s OK Computer, U2’s War and Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run all follow this pattern, and Montreal’s six-strong Arcade Fire aren’t so far from these ranks…

FOUND play at Electric Circus

30 Jul 2010

This experimental pop outfit have been putting out records since 2006, after Tommy, Kev and Ziggy (pictured) met at Gray’s School of Art, Aberdeen. They won a BAFTA round about this time last year for their slightly fame-obsessed…

Piping Live! Glasgow's International Piping Festival

8000 pipers and 30,000 visitors descend on Glasgow

30 Jul 2010

This is always a huge deal in the world of traditional music – when 30,000 visitors, and 8000 pipers from around the globe descend on Glasgow for the annual International Piping Festival. This year’s highlights include evening concerts by…

Norrington to step in for EIF concert

Conductor to replace Sir Charles Mackeras for Idommeneo performance

30 Jul 2010

Following the sad news last month that Sir Charles Mackerras had passed away, the Edinburgh International Festival has announced that Sir Roger Norrington will now conduct the performance of Idomeneo with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra on Fri 20 Aug.

Piping Live! Family Fun Day

Try your hand at piping, or other musical instruments

30 Jul 2010

If you’ve ever fancied a shot at Tenor Drumming or a wee blow on the pipes, then the Piping Live! Family Fun Day is the perfect opportunity to try out a musical instrument, safe in the knowledge that everyone around you will probably sound just as bad.

Rhythm Drum & Dance

High-energy show comes to the Edinburgh International Conference Centre

30 Jul 2010

We needed a lie down just after watching the YouTube trailer for this one. A high-energy, high drama drum show which began as a 20-minute show in Berlin (and has since expanded to tour around Europe) – this is a celebration of rhythms. And the RD&D…

RM Hubbert performs solo show

The acoustic guitarist supports Dananananaykroyd

30 Jul 2010

Fans of Sparklehorse (RIP, VIP) may care to check out Glasgow acoustic guitarist RM Hubbert’s moving cover of ‘Spirit Ditch’. Hubbert was a big Mark Linkous fan, and his recording is part of a series of covers (Elliott Smith and Vic Chestnutt have also…

Depthcharge teams up with Massimo DaCosta

Expect a night of underground Chicago and New York house

30 Jul 2010

Massimo DaCosta Depthcharge is joined by Belgian DJ Massimo DaCosta who will be demonstrating his profound love of underground Chicago and New York house. He started DJing at 17 and has now played across the globe but moved into production in 2000…

Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival

Promising line-up in an absolutely stunning setting.

30 Jul 2010

All festivals have their own unique selling point. Be it the buffalo burger stall, the grass sledges, the giant headliners, or a Ferris wheel. Here, besides the performances from Harper Simon, Badly Drawn Boy, The Divine Comedy, Erland & The Carnival…

Meow Meow – Feline Intimate

The post modern showgirl delivers a unique type of cabaret

30 Jul 2010

With more purr than a panther, divine diva Meow Meow slinks back to this year’s Fringe with her unique brand of kamikaze cabaret kitsch. With sell-out shows around the world and the likes of David Bowie on her fan list, Meow Meow’s hypnotic performance…

Ali McGregor – Jazz Cigarette

A sexy soulful rendition of songs that inspire

30 Jul 2010

It’s a fine woman who can wrap her vocal chords round Ella, Billie and, er, Britney, with suitable pizzazz. This is sexy soulfulness at its finest, with a harp thrown in. Having warmed up with stints in La Clique and Variety-Nite, here she keeps it real…

Lucy Porter to do a one night only show in Glasgow

Worth a trip to the West Coast as Ms. Porter skips out on Fringe Festival

30 Jul 2010

The Fringe is having to do without lil Lucy for this year, but she clearly can’t keep away from this part of the globe as she pops up for one night only. Her bloke will be here for the month, though, all dressed up and with somewhere to go as Jeremy…

Camille O’Sullivan – Chameleon

Dramatic re-imagining of Nick Cave, Tom Waits and David Bowie

30 Jul 2010

Not for nothing has this Irish charmer’s raunchy raw set and dramatic performances led to sell-out shows since she first took to the Fringe in 2004. Nick Cave, Tom Waits, Radiohead and David Bowie are all dramatically re-imagined here in showstopping…

Lady Carol – Malady

Comedy singer returns to festival after sell-out shows in Sydney

30 Jul 2010

With her dark vocals and unimaginable covers this intoxicating comedy singer returns to the festival following a sell-out show in Sydney. Expect possibly some of the most enjoyable renditions of Love is a Battlefield and Running up that Hill and you…

Kong plays at Captain's Rest in Glasgow

Loud, abrasive, and possibly naked bellies

30 Jul 2010

Loud, creepy and fond of wearing Y-fronts onstage (and nothing else except a plastic kid’s mask, or Sellotape on their faces). If that’s how you like your music, then this Fugazi-echoing Manc trio are most definitely for you. Expect abrasive punk, and…

The Edinburgh Fringe shows taking human trafficking as a theme

Roadkill and Lost Boy amongst Fringe shows telling refugees' stories

29 Jul 2010

A celebrity endorsement works wonders for your box office and all power to Shatterbox for getting Emma Thompson to put her name to its production of Fair Trade. But that show is only the most high profile in an unprecedented wave of Fringe productions…

Jim Jefferies brings new show Alcoholocaust to Edinburgh Fringe

29 Jul 2010

Having moved to sunny California, Jim Jefferies is basking in his stand-up success. But the Aussie comic tells Julian Hall that all he fears is becoming boring

Ventriloquist Nina Conti brings new show to Fringe

Talk to the Hand brings chat-show format to puppetry

29 Jul 2010

Once a reluctant ventriloquist, Nina Conti is now exploring the possibilities of the form. Brian Donaldson hears about weird gigs and strange road trips

Sketch team Delete the Banjax return after success of 2009

Word-of-mouth comedy hit of 2009 return for more

29 Jul 2010

‘We came up with a bit of a reputation and it just went off!’ recalls Sam Champion, in a pub similar to the Free Fringe Royal Mile watering hole where Delete the Banjax established themselves last year. ‘We loved doing the Free Fringe and agreed with…

Kevin Eldon prepares for some Titting About at the Fringe

Ubiquitous comic brings strong views and extra pants to Edinburgh

29 Jul 2010

With strong views on the comedy scene, Kevin Eldon arrives in Edinburgh as something of a national institution. But he tells Julian Hall that he’ll still need an extra pair of pants

Little Black Bastard deals with horrific Australian childhood

Noel Tovey puts disturbing past of poverty and crime on stage

29 Jul 2010

It is the ultimate rags to riches story. Yet the tale Noel Tovey tells about himself is more distressing than any version of Cinderella. It is a narrative that shocked even his closest friends when he chose to tell it to the world in Little Black…

Des Bishop tells his father's near miss story at Fringe 2010

Irish-American comic presents My Dad Was Nearly James Bond

29 Jul 2010

Des Bishop has wanted to tell his father’s story for a long time. The former model and actor, who had bit parts in Zulu and Day of the Triffids, narrowly lost out to George Lazenby for the role of James Bond in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. After…

Master of brutal deadpan Arj Barker returns to Fringe

US comic backs recent Flight of the Conchords role with Edinburgh show

29 Jul 2010

This will be San Francisco comedian Arj Barker’s first working visit to Edinburgh in a decade, and he promises to pull out the stops for an audience which might only recently have become familiar with his work. ‘The show covers a range of topics, from…

Andi Osho bring Fringe debut Afroblighty to Edinburgh

Multi-talented comedian has fingers in many pies

29 Jul 2010

We’re hoping that Andi Osho isn’t going to be spotted twiddling her thumbs on the Royal Mile as she’s only performing the one show at the Fringe. Outside of the festival she has her fingers poked in more pie varieties than a Greggs bake. Osho’s a…

5 questions: Kids show Tall Storrie and Wee Godley

Mother and daughter duo Ashley Storrie and Janey Godley

29 Jul 2010

Glasgow comedy queen Janey Godley has pushed all her blue material aside to team up with daughter Ashley Storrie for their kids show Tall Storrie & Wee Godley. She tells us why we should go along. Give five reasons why people should come and see…

Helen Arney delivers Songs of Modern Loving on the ukulele

Ukulele-wielding comic with one eye on the future

29 Jul 2010

When comic musician Helen Arney debuted at the 2009 Fringe with 81/2 Songs About Love (and other myths), she’d already named her 2010 follow-up. ‘Songs for Modern Loving sounds like a lot of things,’ she says. ‘A David Bowie song, a Jonathan Richman…

Five of the best interactive musical shows at the Fringe

29 Jul 2010

Baby Wants Candy: The Full Band Improvised Musical A veteran of four sell-out seasons at the Fringe Baby Wants Candy returns to show the young musical pretenders how it’s done. The premise is simple: the audience shout out potential titles and the…

Tall Stories' Twinkle Twonkle secretly teaching kids

Mixing nursery rhymes and adventure with astronomy and science

29 Jul 2010

Known for their respectful and highly entertaining adaptations of popular picture books The Gruffalo and Room on the Broom, sometimes Tall Stories just like to do their own thing. And, as shows like The Snow Dragon and Them with Tails demonstrated…

Lin Anderson - The Reborn

29 Jul 2010

(Hodder) A baby sliced from the womb in a fairground hall of mirrors; Jeff Coulter, a charming psychopath luring girls into a pact of sex and murder while he creates baby dolls from his prison cell for bereaved parents; dark, disturbing rituals; the…

Prints of Darkness

Playful compendium of new work exploring record cover art

29 Jul 2010

If a record is the ultimate mass-produced multiple, the mainstream music industry’s demise has seen a reclaiming of vinyl as a more bespoke medium whereby one work of art (musical) is packaged inside another (visual). This compendium lines up 13…

Colin Hoult's follow up to 2009's Carnival of Monsters

From monsters to villains in one fell swoop

29 Jul 2010

‘What we have is a cabaret from hell, of lost souls; they’re all there for wicked crimes they’ve done in real life.’ No, it’s not Nick Clegg describing a Cabinet meeting, this is Colin Hoult (formerly of Colin and Fergus) chatting about his follow-up to…

Five of the best free Comedy shows at the Fringe 2010

We count the pennies and decide it’s time to get some laughs for nowt

29 Jul 2010

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A Romantic Comedy Back in 1948, two people(s) met at a convention in Geneva and fell in love. But they’ve been at each other’s throats for some time now. Will they ever learn to get along? Perhaps only in a two-person…

Nat Luurtsema to deliver cerebral stand-up on her 'messy past'

A tea-obsessed daydreamer gets heroic with In My Head I'm A Hero

29 Jul 2010

‘I remember eating my second battered haggis of the day in the dark so it ‘wasn’t really happening’,’ confesses Nat Luurtsema, recalling last year’s Fringe experience, at which she starred in sketch hit Superclump. This London-based, self-proclaimed…

Stick Man Live on Stage

29 Jul 2010

Based on the hugely successful children’s book by Julia Donaldson, Stick Man is the story of a loveable anti-hero who lives in the family tree ‘with his Stick Lady Love and their stick children three’. But when a dog whisks an unsuspecting Stick Man…

The Last Miner gives children a history lesson

Underground puppetry tells story from the coal era

29 Jul 2010

Once a vibrant industry, British coal mining has been relegated to museum shelves and miner’s memories. But through its atmospheric new show, Tortoise in a Nutshell aims to evoke the feeling of life underground. ‘There’s something almost mythical in…

Penguin brings interactive puppetry to the Fringe

Polly Dunbar's children books translate easily to stage

29 Jul 2010

When writer and puppeteer Polly Dunbar creates her picture books, she’s got one eye on the page – and the other on the stage. ‘Although I’m not directly thinking of puppets whilst writing,’ she says, ‘I do keep performance in mind. Picture books are…

Wee Willie Gray brings musical storytelling to the Fringe

Andy Cannon's homage to Scotland's Robert Burns

29 Jul 2010

As his witty homage to Robert Burns, Oor Rabbie and re-working of Tam O’Shanter ably proved, Andy Cannon knows a thing or two about Scotland’s bard. Teaming up once again with musician Wendy Weatherby, Cannon is taking on yet another Burns poem, Wee…

White brings a show for toddlers to the festival

Understanding how childrens' minds work

29 Jul 2010

White is a show borne out of an understanding of, and fascination with, the way toddlers’ minds work. Co-creators and performers Andy Manley and Ian Cameron have kept the story and language simple, while the set has been built with award-winning…

Bobby & The Graverobbers - the alternative story of Greyfriars Bobby

Scottish history panto-style tale twists the classic legend

29 Jul 2010

It’s a little known fact that Greyfriars Bobby was not a cute wee Scottie with ‘a Morningside accent and a tartan tammy who ran a couple of Edinburgh marathons and was always carrying old people’s bags’, Bob Skeldon tells us. Oh no, he was a much more…

The List Operators for Kids prepare for the Edinburgh Fringe

Aussie comic duo out for fun without the moral lesson

29 Jul 2010

The List Operators for Kids have taken Australia by storm and are now preparing to face the Fringe with a show that dares to be funny, energetic, rude and absolutely 100% not educational in the slightest. Double act Matt Kelly and Richard Higgins…

Howard Jacobson - The Finkler Question

29 Jul 2010

(Bloomsbury) Fans of Howard Jacobson’s skilfully constructed storytelling will not be surprised to hear that his latest work seems to centre around male-female relationships, a theme the London-based writer has explored often. But as The Finkler…

Cindy Blackman - Another Lifetime

29 Jul 2010

(Four Quarters) Although she has worked in many jazz contexts, American drummer Cindy Blackman’s widest exposure has come as a long-standing member of Lenny Kravitz’s band. Tony Williams was the first drummer she ever saw, and this outing is a…

Hairy Maclary and Friends brings classic children's book to the stage

Musical doggy mayhem based on Lynley Dodd's book

29 Jul 2010

With their cast of colourful canines, Lynley Dodd’s Hairy Maclary books have garnered many fans the world over. Having secured the rights to perform them, Nonsenseroom Productions have been hard at work bringing the eponymous scruffy mutt and his…

Jeff Lemire - Sweet Tooth

29 Jul 2010

(Titan/Vertigo) It’s hardly surprising that Jeff Lemire’s current ongoing series (the first five issues of which are collected here) should be a bleak, post-apocalyptic yarn that recalls, among other precedents, Cormac McCarthy’s The Road. Lemire…

Louise Dean - The Old Romantic

29 Jul 2010

(Fig Tree) There’s plenty of mileage to be had, both in terms of pathos and comedy, from the subject matter of death. Sadly, this tepid novel fails to capitalise on its dark premise, being neither moving nor funny, despite trying for both. Ken is an…

Jerry Della Femina - From Those Wonderful Folks Who Gave You Pearl Harbor

29 Jul 2010

(Canongate) ‘I know guys who would make you fly Nazi Airlines in a minute or get you to pack your voodoo kit for a little trip to Haiti,’ declares self-styled mad man Jerry Della Femina, in this re-release of the rambling 1970s cult classic. Although…

Ronna and Beverly's most embarrassing moments in chat

We ask the Edinburgh Fringe sofa beasts: What’s the chat?

29 Jul 2010

1: After situating herself firmly on his lap, Beverly pronounced to the audience that Mad Men’s Don Draper (Jon Hamm) smells like ‘scotch and testicles’. 2: Bombing at the International Jewish Men’s Softball tournament banquet in St. Louis. They…

Phil Nichol gives us a warm welcome to Crazytown

Comic's 2010 Fringe show promises 'dark poetic theatrical jazz silliness'

29 Jul 2010

What five words best describe your show this year? Dark poetic theatrical jazz silliness. Which comic should be more famous by the end of August? Carey Marx is consistently one of the most progressive-thinking, hardest-working and under-rated…

Menomena - Mines

29 Jul 2010

(City Slang) Portland’s Menomena have always been the kind of band that reward repeated listens. Unfortunately, Mines, their fourth release, lacks the immediacy that drew listeners into the whirlpool ingenuity of 2007’s Friend And Foe. With three…

PVT - Church With No Magic

29 Jul 2010

(Warp) After threats of legal action from an American band of the same name, Australian trio Pivot eventually became simply ‘PVT’. Thankfully, however, their first release since the change, Church With No Magic, still demonstrates the kind of…

Caitlin Rose - Own Side Now

29 Jul 2010

(Names) Only a few short years out of her teens, this Nashville singer-songwriter belies her youth. Rose’s debut album proper (following the ‘Dead Flowers’ EP) is loaded with songs about heartbreak, delivered with a wry drawl reminiscent of Patsy…

Charlie and Lola’s Best Bestest Play

Lauren Child’s sibling adventures hit the stage

29 Jul 2010

Lauren Child’s hugely popular brother and sister duo burst off the page, out of the TV screen, and onto the stage! It had to happen sometime, and Watershed Productions seem to have done an interesting job with the whole 2D/3D challenge. Featuring some…

Anywhere On This Road - Sound of the World

29 Jul 2010

(Warner Classic) Pioneer DJ Charlie Gillett became the world music guru. His wacky annual compilations are a veritable Who’s Who of contemporary music from all known parts. This selection of 34 artists from 36 countries is his last, as he died…

Cabaret set to take Edinburgh Fringe 2010 by storm

28 Jul 2010

Variety show fever is sweeping the capital for the 2010 Edinburgh Fringe and cabaret is back with a vengeance. Steering its way back into mainstream entertainment culture by popular demand, the all-singing, all-dancing performances on offer this year…

Sitting & Looking

Innovative group show offers comfortable, close examination of 21st century objects

28 Jul 2010

At first glance you might be forgiven for thinking you have wandered into an upmarket furniture store. Upon closer inspection it becomes apparent that there are wonders here that far outweigh the trappings of consumerism. Taking a seat to peruse the…

Reel-to-Real: The Movies Musical aims for a spectacular show of the best of the genre

Show promises intense live multi-media entertainment

27 Jul 2010

Producer Simone Genatt Haft is utterly convincing in selling Reel-to-Real, the show she and business partner Marc Routh are bringing to this year’s Fringe, and it sounds like she has every reason to be. ‘This is probably the most intense live…

Celebrity Autobiography satirises stars using their own words

Eugene Pack and Phill Jupitus target Tiger Woods and Miley Cyrus

27 Jul 2010

Whether it’s Ugly Betty’s Michael Urie waxing lyrical as Miley Cyrus or Eugene Pack ‘stroking his putter’ à la Tiger Woods, few things can raise a smile like celebrities getting their come-uppance. And award-winning show-cum-comedy book club, Celebrity…

Edinburgh Art Festival surrealist exhibition Another World leaves potential unfulfilled

Impressive, if surprisingly straightforward, collection of surrealist works

27 Jul 2010

For a source so rich in departures for radical flights of enquiry, this presentation of surrealist paintings, objects, journals and sculptures is alarmingly straightforward. By marrying a host of mesmerising works by the likes of Dali and Magritte to a…

Derevo bring 'real theatre' back to Edinburgh Fringe with Harlekin

Fringe favourites return – and this time it’s war!

27 Jul 2010

‘We just enjoy being in a city where there are more street artists than pedestrians,’ says Anton Adasinskiy, director, performer and founder member of Derevo, one of the most lauded companies to come to the Fringe in the last decade, on his decision to…

The All-Powerful Jimmy McGhie revels in being un-mighty - and long show titles

Having a good old moan about life

27 Jul 2010

The All-Powerful Warrior Who with His Endurance and Inflexible Will to Win Goes from Conquest to Conquest Leaving Fire in His Wake is surely the longest Fringe show title this year. How did Jimmy McGhie get it in the brochure? ‘My title did use up the…

Operation Greenfield examines the complications of being a teenager

Risky theatre from Little Bulb’s latest Fringe show

27 Jul 2010

It may sound counter-intuitive, but in an environment like the Fringe, where envelopes are being pushed and boundaries broken in every second venue, a degree of restraint can be the best way to stand out. Little Bulb don’t claim that their folksy tales…