Just now, as I sat to write this post the heavens opened, it’s bucketing down outside! Such a change from yesterday with blazing hot sun and a balmy breeze, that’s Fringe weather for you.

It’s the middle Thursday, some shows only have a few performances left as they finish this weekend. Some shows only come to the Fringe for a week, some for two weeks; there seem to be a lot more finishing this weekend than last weekend – is the third week pricier than the other two? Mind, the third week happens to coincide with the Edinburgh TV Festival, maybe some shows only want to bother doing the third week so’s to catch the attention of all the TV people up.

Ironing Board Man is one that finishes on Saturday. Oh, not just one ironing board, he has eight of the things (including two small ones as his children). The manoeuvring of so many ironing board characters did seem a bit clunky to me, but that will have gotten slicker as the show progressed (I saw it on the 3rd) and it gives a certain rough’n’ready charm, though some of the front row looked a tad alarmed at times at the proximity of the moving objects with their faces (they were very close to the action, it’s on in The Crate).

Ironing Board Man has a plot like a nineties movie, and the soundtrack to match. When the hero puts on the red jacket you know arses are gonna get kicked. It’s all great fun, hats off to Jody Kamali for such a wonderful creation; whilst anyone will enjoy this, I reckon a certain generation will embrace it a little more (and wonder that they didn’t see the original with Bruce Willis, on a rented video). ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Saturday is also your last chance to spend An Evening with Dame Granny Smith a wonderful feisty old antipodean, oh, and her assistant David Salter (I can’t be the only to have thought there’s a shade of Dame Edna in there). Those who’ve followed me a while will know my love of all things antipodean, well that now includes talking apples!

What a lovely, lovely show! Sweet but with plenty bite, old but still sassy, hilarity and bittersweet poignancy. The mention of Dame Maggie Smith was an utter joy, had me in stitches. Oo, now that would be fun An Evening with two Dames called Smith! I’d definitely go to that! Having written this, I’m actually tempted to go see her one more time, she’s worth it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½

Time will also stop for The Whirligig of Time on Saturday. I caught this yesterday with a Half Price Hut ticket, bought because the one man in this show is Robin Leetham who was excellent as Shakespeare’s Fool. This time he plays Malvolio, a few months after the events of Twelfth Night; remember how he swore revenge on all?

This tells how he did it – and how eloquently he tells the tale! The wordplay is a treat, sharp and droll; I wish I had a brain capable of recalling swathes of great lines (like that friend who can blithely quote from films seen just once!) I shall count this as part of my Shakespeare for this Fringe, I’m sure the bard wouldn’t mind ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The sun is now vaguely out, though the traffic outside sounds like the roads are still pretty wet. I should step out and see what delights are on offer today, or, first just check the Half Price Hut tickets online in case there’s something there. Wow, so many shows on the list, Dame Granny Smith is on there, but at the same time Aidan Sadler: Melody is also a HPH in the Voodoo Rooms. Or, I am intrigued by Bad Clowns: Hostage, another overlap. Decisions, decisions.

Toodle pip!