Jenny Ryan – Bjorn Yesterday 3.5***

Jenny Ryan is a huge ABBA fan! Or is she? Do they even exist? In this one woman show, Ms Ryan explores the legends, the myths, the Gods, these Swedish phenomena.

There’s no question that these pop icons have built … Read More

Always, Sometimes, Maybe – 3.5***

Always, Sometimes, Maybe is an ambitious solo show that blends sweet humour, physical theatre, and moments of audience participation to explore loneliness and the difficulty of forming connections.

The protagonist, a janitor, begins with a light-hearted routine of turning lights … Read More

Monsterrrr! with Trygve Wakenshaw – 5*****

Monsterrrr! with Trygve Wakenshaw combines mime, physical comedy, childlike chaos, and occasional tenderness, but it is never long before a fart joke or audience participation elicits giggles that are infectious.

Wakenshaw is best known for his award-winning physical theatre work, … Read More

Mario the Maker Magician 5*****

Mario the Maker Magician is such a beautifully crafted show that blends magic, storytelling, and a constant buzz of energy with screaming in an almost constant call-and-response routine that never ends.

The real magic here is how planned everything is, … Read More

Vlad Ilich – The Immortal Game 4.5****

Do you play chess? Can you remember what all the pieces are called and how they move? Vlad Ilich, North Macedonias most famous export, after Alexander the Great and Mother Theresa, will take you on a checkerboard journey on how … Read More

Deage Paxton – Inappropriate 4****

Brazen, bizarre, and at times brilliant — imagine Adam Sandler transplanted into a Geordie vessel and set loose on a stage.

Newcastle’s Deage Paxton is one of this year’s surprise packages. If you don’t know him yet, you should. He … Read More

KC Shornima: Detachment Style 4****

There’s something bubbling at the Pleasance this year. A sense that you’re watching a comic not just arriving, but arriving fully formed. KC Shornima—29, currently writing for SNL, and making her Fringe debut—is not just doing stand-up. She’s doing it … Read More

Stephen Buchanan: Cold Meat 4****

Scotland’s quiet king of crafted comedy returns smarter and sharper.

There’s a likeable precision to Stephen Buchanan that sets him apart from the moment he walks onstage. No flailing, no mugging, no filler theatrics — just calm command and the … Read More

Grace Mulvey: Did You Hear We’re All Going to Die? – 4****

Irish gallows humour for the beaten generation.

Grace Mulvey blends millennial existential dread with stand-up that never feels preachy or performative — a rare feat in the age of overshare comedy. She bounds onstage like a warm hug in good … Read More

Ayo Adenekan – Black Mediocrity 4****

File under: charisma, craft, and the comedy of considered belonging.

At just 23, Edinburgh-based Ayo Adenekan doesn’t so much step onstage as arrive — statuesque at 6ft 3in, effortlessly composed, and instantly magnetic. And within minutes, it becomes clear that … Read More