one4review | On 08, Aug 2025

Gary McNair’s ‘A Gambler’s Guide to Dying’ returns to the Fringe to a sell-out crowd and a standing ovation, marking its tenth anniversary with the energy of a story that still feels alive. It all begins in the Gorbals in July 1966, 400 miles north of Wembley and a world away from the celebrations in London’s pubs. McNair paints the scene vividly, introducing his grandfather – a man of charisma, conviction, and more than a little creative licence.

The love he feels is clear, but McNair never hides all of his grandfather’s flaws, especially his tendency to spin stories, sometimes the same story but with a different ending. In gambling, as in life, his grandfather believed it had to be all or nothing. That philosophy underpins the show’s central question – in the biggest bet of his life, could he outlive a terminal cancer diagnosis and make it to the millennium?

McNair’s performance is captivating throughout. With nothing more than his voice, movement, and a knack for timing, he holds the audience in the palm of his hand. The humour lands effortlessly, but it’s the sincerity beneath the story telling that gives the piece its emotional intensity.

There are moments where the pace slows slightly, but these shifts allow space for reflection before the next wave of laughter or tension. McNair’s skill as a storyteller is unquestionable – blending Glaswegian wit, affection and poignancy into a heartfelt tribute to chance, family ties, and the stories we choose to believe.

****1/2

Reviewed by Howard

Traverse Theatre

Various times (1hr 10mins)

Until 24 Aug (not 11 or 18)