Blues!

4 stars

****

Well, 5 stars for the band, they are simply awesome. Superb music for an hour with genuinely interesting facts and a brief history of blues music and its development.

It lost a star because of the … Read More

Five Alive! The Musical

2 stars

**

In interesting premise but ultimately bland and boring. Two men, rather than the five you might expect, ‘act’ through this piece and sing the bands ‘hits’ which are instantantly forgettable and all so repetitive. The last … Read More

Jason Cook: In Search of Happiness

5 Stars *****

Jason Cook is a comic who is now reaping the rewards he justly deserves having been a Fringe veteran of a number of years now, and every show I have seen he has certainly brightened up … Read More

Phys Ed

4 Stars

****

In sporting competition the difference between success and failure is at its most acute in a Cup Final – elation for the winners and disappointment for the losers. Simon Carter’s play successfully catches this atmosphere. For … Read More

Pip Utton is Charles Dickens

5 Stars

*****

Pip Utton is a storyteller who can keep an audience spellbound with his skills to inform, amuse and move. His style in his portrayal of Dickens is conversational and witty. He opens with Dickens’ death in … Read More

Set List: Stand Up without a Net

4 Stars ****

Ever wondered when you watched a Stand up show how much rehearsal, re-writing and hours of work have gone into preparing it? I know I have. But this is something different.

A series of top comics literally … Read More

Paul McCaffrey : Saying Something Stupid

4 Stars ****

Paul McCaffery was a comic I was unaware of until recently and although this is his thirdEdinburgh, this was the first full length show.

Taking to his stage like a duck to water, or should that be … Read More

Foursome: Purple Panda Theatre

3 Stars ***

John and Chloe have been together for two years. They share a flat with Ben a fairly straight up pharmacist and the rather more scruffy Jack, a buffoon of a Welshman, who likes rugby play stations … Read More

Tim FitzHigham: Gambler

4 Stars

****

Tim FitzHigham’s brand of witty comedy derives from his skills as a raconteur and his passion for unearthing the most curious historical facts from the 18th & 19th centuries. Not satisfied with giving us the information … Read More

The Prodigals

4 Stars

****

The Prodigals by Joe Harmston and Ray Goudie is a big production musical being premiered at this year’s Fringe. The well-known biblical story is given a contemporary setting. The two sons have been brought up by … Read More