Siân Bevan

RE

Strong performances and an over-ambitious script

26 Aug 2009

Frustrating piece about three people trapped with each other and the ghosts of their pasts. Confusion arises from a script trying to do too much in such a limited time frame, but the show is saved by beautiful staging and strong performances, which keep…

Jason Byrne

Life-affirming offbeat madness

24 Aug 2009

The Fringe just wouldn't be the same without our favourite angry Irishman. This year's offering is more hysterical rantings, more rubbish magic and the heart-warming wonderment of a hyperactive child. At times the energy seems to dip below his normal…

Shed Simove

Intriguing subject, awkward performance

24 Aug 2009

This is, if nothing else, unique. In Ideas Man, the nerdy Simove discusses his novelty products and occasional Gorman-esque stunt with an ungainly arrogance. There are some truly funny gems but the slick PowerPoint and overbearing posters make this a…

Ben Dover

Penetrating tales of filth with dodgy jokes

20 Aug 2009

Everyone in the room knows what to expect from this chirpy pornography pioneer. His show is unashamed filth, packed with glorious details of the fascinating world of the professional shagger. In a Festival full of sex tales, it’s intriguing to hear the…

Patch Hyde & Adam Tempest

A sweet way to spend an hour

19 Aug 2009

The Fudge Kitchen certainly makes for a kooky venue. With scrummy smells, free fudge and very limited audience squeezed in, this feels like an exciting Fringe experience. The comedy, courtesy of charming daytime fudge-makers Hyde and Tempest, remains at…

The Muffia

Uncomfortable, unplanned and best avoided

19 Aug 2009

Tight Women is a baffling little number, telling the tale of two market traders fantasising about their own telly show. However, the action is overshadowed by the awkward silence of an audience desperately trying to like and understand the two stars…

Elvis McGonagall

Poetically charming tartan chappie

14 Aug 2009

There’s something very reassuring about Elvis McGonagall. It might be the tartan jacket or the golden Scottish tones which drip over the audience. It could be the older demographic this poet-comedian attracts, or the hypnotic rhythms of his accomplished…

Paddy Lennox

Tackling this family tree isn't as interesting as Who Do You Think You Are?

12 Aug 2009

Lennox is tackling his ancestry, using it as a springboard for a gentle hour musing his genetic make-up. Poignancy points are awarded for the worthy message and sweet home movies, but the fuzzy warmth far outweighs the laughs. He’s a charming, highly…

A Big Trout in a Small Pond

Sketch show for the Skins generation lacks a wider outlook

11 Aug 2009

Z Theatre Company is ablaze with youthful enthusiasm and fling themselves into this fast-paced sketch show. There are some cracking moments, such as the Barry Scott number, but their young outlook is also their downfall, with too many obvious sketches…

Pete Johansson

A perfomer comfortable in his skin

11 Aug 2009

In Naked Pictures of My Life , the affable Johansson marches through swathes of familiar territory, from differences between the sexes to the bodily transformations of age, and he tackles it all with a solid, dependable laughter-fest. Although…

Marcus Brigstocke

Preaching to the converted

10 Aug 2009

In God Collar, Marcus Brigstocke treads the well-worn path of questioning religion, albeit with wistful curiosity rather than a Dawkins-style damnation of all things spiritual. Brigstocke wants something to fill an empty space in his soul, which lends…

The Kosh in The Storeroom

Bending from the beautiful to the absurd

8 Aug 2009

The Kosh, aka Siân Williams and Michael Merwitzer, have worked hard to create an atmospheric piece telling this tale of a dancing girl done wrong. Using props found in a storeroom they take us from her childhood to downfall at the hands of the ever…

Edinburgh Festival comedy highlights for a fiver

15 Jul 2009

Ooh, a Fringe in a credit crunch. It’ll be interesting times for all this year, but if you get in quick you can catch some of the best acts in exchange for a mere fiver. We’ve selected fifty of the finest shows you can see for the price of a…

Mark Borkowski - The Fame Formula

7 Aug 2008

ENTERTAINMENT HISTORY (Sidgwick & Jackson) Behind every great celebrity is a brilliant publicist. It’s this remarkable breed which is examined by Mark Borkowski, an experienced PR man himself, as he takes us back through the modern history of fame…

The Real Daniel O'Donnell Show

Sketch stuff which will cheerily upset fans of the crooning Irish icon

31 Jul 2008

The festival is, as always, packed full of worthy messages with comedy addressing everything from politics to love via environmental disasters. When asked about his Fringe sketch show, comedian Michael Legge replies gleefully ‘oh, it’s childishly…

Will & Greg: A Sketch Show

3 Jul 2008

SKETCH SHOW The Stand, Glasgow, Sun 6 Jul Before the Fringe kicks in along with the attendant confusion of flyers, here’s your chance to take a sneak peak at one of its prime sketch shows. Fresh from some of the minds who brought you last year’s…

Cecil Castellucci & Jim Rugg - The Plain Janes

4 Jan 2008

DRAMA (Minx) The latest entry in the new Minx range captures almost every chick lit cliché. High school setting? Check. Geeky girls save the day? Check. And, of course, there’s a moody pretty boy for those raging hormones. And yet it’s not terrible…

Various - Boxwars: The Album

13 Dec 2007

CARDBOARD BASHING PUNK ROCK (Boxwars UK) Boxwars combines punk and well-behaved fighting. ‘Warriors’ make cardboard armour then launch themselves into a mauling mosh pit until a winner’s declared. The gladiatorial combat is powered by energetic…

Singles & Downloads

29 Nov 2007

As it’s all a bit gloomy outside at the moment, here’s a mellow selection of singles to wrap your freezing fingers round. Starting off the collection is the latest offering from Kate Walsh ‘Tonight’ (Mercury - 3 stars), with vocals so warm and lovely…

Eirlys Bellin

16 Aug 2007

Bellin performs entirely in the guise of Rhian Davies, a fame-hungry Welsh girl prepared to do anything to get on the telly. Draped in this character, Bellin actually auditioned for Big Brother, and secretly filmed her adventure. There’s so much…

Men of Steel

16 Aug 2007

There are three feisty cookie cutters on the prowl, storming around having adventures and getting up to mischief. They’re powered by a trio of talented young puppeteers, a creative bunch who’ve already found success with the piece in their native…

Rick Shapiro

16 Aug 2007

Rick Shapiro is a five star comedian in a two star show. If you want structure, well thought-out lines, or even the assurance of sanity then look elsewhere. If, however, you’re prepared to sit through ten minutes of shambolic mutterings as our hero…

Talking Pants

16 Aug 2007

Ian Billings, the exuberant star of Talking Pants is a writer for Chucklevision. But don’t let this influence your decision about his one-man show – there are no visual gags involving ladders, although the well-meaning energy he exudes as he bounds…

The Boy and the Dog Who Walked to the Moon

16 Aug 2007

This beautiful story follows the adventures of Tomas and his dog Don Alfonso as they travel to the moon, where Tomas hopes to find his mother. Along the way they encounter vibrant characters, such as the very grumpy eagle in the mountains, all depicted…

Away

(Granta)

9 Aug 2007

SOCIAL DRAMA Amy Bloom’s latest novel follows the journey of Lillian, a Russian woman who watches her family being brutally killed and then travels to America to escape those memories and her country. Once there, the plot rockets through a number of…