I’ve been under the weather somewhat since the end of Fringe. First my throat, then after what seemed like a full recovery, bam, my sinuses mutinied, usually the two run alongside a wee while before passing the baton. Not this time, just far enough apart for some false hope, but also a chance to the Scat Rats on Wednesday midnight at Whistlebinkies; by seven the following evening I was in no fit state to see the Rats again in Stramash, boo. At least I had the immense pleasure of a spur of the moment rendition of Fantastic Man (a song by William Onyeabor that Logan’s Close made a cover video of during one of the lockdowns), I do hope they play it again sometime.
The last couple of days Facebook memories have reminded me that it’s the time when I’ve previously announced the Brucies. What’s the Brucies? They’re the Bruce on the Fringe Fringe Awards, I was inspired after attending the ACMS Awards in 2022 (a silly, nonsensical, absurd event hosted by the Tuck); so just a light-hearted look back at my Fringe (it didn’t happen last year, those reading my blog at the time know why). And so without further ado…
Mesdames et monsieurs, ceux entre et ceux au-delà, bienvenue! The awards that nobody asked for, and mean absolutely nothing to anyone (except the little mooselets in my head), I give you the Bruce on the Fringe Fringe Awards 2025. Ta-dar!!
The Sublime: The Other Mozart
Most August: Thom Tuck
Best Veg-Rom-Dram: Tale of a Potato
Best Supporting Sidekick: Swimothy
Best Evening in an Afternoon: An Evening with Dame Granny Smith
Best Badge: Will & Noah: Too Much Time on Their Phones
Most Suave and he knows it: Troy Hawke
Best Musical Moments (all the nominations and the winner): Rob Kemp (Beatlesjuice and The Elvis Dead)
Best Use of a Building Since it was Public Swimming Baths: Finlay and Joe: Pretend It’s Fine
The Inevitable Award: Bad Clowns: Long Live the King
The Gromit Trophy: Iago in Iago Speaks up until Iago spoke
Oddest thing on the Cowgate: The Mothman Cometh-ing towards me
The Stuff of Nightmares: Aidan Pittman dressed as The Childcatcher
The Ridiculous: God’s Longest
And there you go, from the sublime, through to the ridiculous.
The line of giant posters down the side of the Pleasance was taken down today, there’s still a few boards fastened around streetlights and traffic signs, not noticeable unless you look directly at one. Instagram posts have shown Fringe folk leaving Edinburgh, returning home. Was it a farewell hug that left me with a sneaky little present? … my throat has been threatening me for the last three days, it may be winning. It really started niggling late Tuesday night but I wasn’t going to not see The Scat Rats at Binkies at midnight, a nice final bookend to my Fringe. Hell, I hadn’t seen them all August! It was right at the start of the Fringe when I saw them in Stramash (hence bookends).
My Fringe proper finished with two class acts, that wonderful class antipodean Dame Granny Smith followed by Mr Tuck’s sublime Scaramouche Jones. Hahaha, can’t believe I didn’t spot that before, Smith and Jones, in the same afternoon (certain age groups will put Alas and Alias before those two names to make a couple of great tv series from once upon a time). Both shows had full audiences, marvellous, fringing to the very end.
An Evening with Dame Granny Smith was so so lovely and bittersweet, almost nostalgic for something past. And DavidSalter, such a lovely, talented guy, a saint for putting up with her! Mind, it’s easy to get swept up in the Dame’s aura, the afternoon’s participating audience member really got into the role and I think went over and beyond what Salter was expecting (from his reaction, anyway). I’m very glad I caught the show, that early afternoon time had a lot going on that I fancied this year, too many annoying five, ten minute overlaps (oh, to have Hermione’s watch).
I managed to grab a quick pic with the Dame, before heading over to the Big Yurt (I’m not sure if she was all agog to meet me or silently screaming in fear of being eaten)
As I walked through the Potterow Underpass I heard a hearty laugh ahead, oh yay! I’d know that laugh anywhere, Will Seaward was in the queue for Scaramouche Jones; how marvellous to bump into him again! (Had to get a pic, of course) The old clown himself, Scaramouche Jones, was mingling wordlessly with the milling crowd (I fancied to ask for a quick photo with him, but time was short, and I felt a tad unworthy).
Oh, Scaramouche Jones is a most marvellous tale. ThomTuck holds the audience in the palm of his hand, entranced, as he recounts Scaramouche’s one hundred years. Truly it could have been written for him, Tuck is so brilliant in the part, and I say this having seen him play it ten years ago, a performance that has stuck in my mind since (I look forward to seeing it again in 2035). It would be a marvellous thing if one performance had been filmed each decade passed, how wonderful to see the progression 💛
I also paid another visit to the final performance of Finlay and Joe: Pretend It’s Fine at Dovecot Studios on the Sunday afternoon. Now I could be wrong but I think one of the guys from Crybabies was in the audience; such a shame they couldn’t make it up with their new production. This time round I saw the overall arc better over the sketches; I must say, those two have amazing voice control for the length of their woahs between bits (that probably reads really weird, but if you ever get to see Finlay and Joe: Pretend It’s Fine you’ll know what I mean). Sometimes shows can seem to overally point out their own cleverness, Finlay and Joe don’t do that, the funny flows naturally and abundantly with these two – and they were lovely when I asked for a photo with them!
While I’m on a roll here (the Chilean Gewürztraminer I opened is helping somewhat!) I’ll mention The Mothman Cometh, that I saw in the final week. It was amongst my cuttings and then I noticed him on a few occasions flitting madly around the Cowgate early evening, odd and kinda sweet, and occasionally on the Half Price Hut list. I hadn’t been in The Subway in donkeys (for many years), some bits were very familiar, like the stage area (back last century it was a place to go after an evening shift in Pizza Hut, with tips enough for a couple of drinks).
I’d vaguely heard of the Mothman myth, and my sightings of this strange creature, well, I had to go find out more. It was very dark in there! A lot of the time we could just see two red circles and hear his voice, only a mere hint of his body shape in the misty darkness. He was troubled by odd glitches when pop songs would burst out of him, and a strange Void was always close by, but despite these troubles the Mothman was actually a benign, humorous creature that just wanted friends that understood him. Oh, that sounds a tad maundling, TheMothman Cometh was very funny with plenty of audience participation, you just had to be willing to embrace the surreality.
It’s very late, again! Edinburgh Farmers Market in the morning, I must to sleep. Next time I’ll wrap up this year’s Fringe, oo, maybe even some awards! It will be my 499th blog post, who’d have thunk it!
Time to look through the cut-outs I’ve gathered from Cabaret and Variety before the behemoth that is Comedy at the Edinburgh Fringe. There’s only a few, and three of them are for the same chap! Yes, he’s back, the busiest magician on the Fringe.
David Alnwick is performing three shows everyday from Saturday 2nd until Sunday 24th August, no rest days! The first is at the Liquid Room Studio, I love the title Objectively the Best Magician, haha, well he is rather excellent. From there it’s along to the Banshee Labyrinth for Occult Illusionist; he does like a sense of theatre, I suspect there’ll be plenty in this one. From the supernatural to horror (with plenty of dark humour, no doubt), The Dare Witch Project in the Voodoo Rooms. All three are under the PBH’S Free Fringe banner but be warned, there will be queues.
Another magician now, oh, there’s plenty of them at the Fringe, The Great Mysterio has piqued my curiosity. Another with PBH’s Free Fringe down at Uno Mas on Picardy Place (I’ve been in during a previous incarnation of the place). I do like a spot of magic, you know, preferably with humour rather than shiny pizzazz; with a natural lustre rather than a polished gleam.
Of course, shiny pizzazz does have it’s place, especially in cabaret; sparkles and sequins and accordions, darling. Well, one accordion, yes, he’s here again after wow-ing audiences in Australia, New Zealand and Glastonbury, Accordion Ryan is back with his Pop Bangers, yay! This time he’s bringing the joy to Gilded Balloon at Appleton Tower. I wonder what this year’s selection of bangers will be, and he was asking for suggestions of Scottish and gaelic songs on Instagram, he does love a challenge (Ryan makes a point of finding songs from the local culture wherever he travels, quite the musical linguist!)
More music of a very different texture in The Ballroom at The Voodoo Rooms. The gloriously charismatic Aidan Sadler presents Moonage Rhapsody, a love letter to Freddie Mercury and David Bowie; Aidan certainly has the pipes for it, I expect nothing short of fabulous. Dammit, how am I meant to shorten my list of possibilities with all these treats before me?! How can I make a decision against going to An Evening with Dame Granny Smith? Yes, I saw her last year, should I pass her up for something new? But it was such a wonderful hour spent with her.
Ho hum, I’d be absolutely crap at choosing my Desert Island Discs. Time is marching on, only ten days to go. Honestly, after tea I’ll get on my Comedy cut-outs. Y’know, it does actually help, talking through my options with you. Thanks for listening. Toodle pip!
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.
I’ve probably asked this before, Cabaret & Variety and Comedy – what’s the deciding factor which category a show is marketed in when there’s elements of both? And is a music show with traces of humour and pazzazz automatically in Cabaret & Variety? Then there’s magic, and boy, there’s a lot of magic at the Edinburgh Fringe these days! Magic shows are mainly in Cabaret & Variety even the really funny ones, which to my mind could be in Comedy. It wouldn’t surprise me if magic got it’s own category one year.
Yes, I’ve had time to have a look through the first category in the Fringe programme, well, it’s only seventeen pages. So what caught my eye? Which shows have already been snipped from my cut-outs programme?
Top of the second page there’s Accordion Ryan’s Pop Bangers back again at the slightly earlier time of 10pm; I’ll definitely be popping in there at some point. Also back again, a few pages along is David Alnwick with two shows this year, oh yeah, magic shows, he’s rather good at it! Both with PBH’s Free Fringe but one is comedic, the other horror; Alnwick is a skilled storyteller weaving his magic into his tales, Necromancer may not be for those with a nervous disposition.
Over the page and An Evening with Dame Granny Smith made me laugh out loud. Ah, ventriloquism, so not a magic talking apple, then? Have to say, the picture has managed to hook me, possibly a preview ticket. From the E’s I perused right throught to the S’s til another picture winked at me, that of Surreal: The Mind-Reading Show From Berlin! Intriguing blurb, but it does say, interactive, hmmm, and it’s pricey; maybe if there’s Half Price Hut tickets?
I’m thinking that fifty minutes of Tarting About with Blues and Burlesque one afternoon could be quite fun! Part of PBH’s Free Fringe in Uno Mas, a bar I’ve never visited. Even shorter, there’s a forty-five minute show by The Unluckiest Magician, who happens to be antipodean (I have a strange weakness for anything from down under). Umm, tempted!
The final entry in Cabaret & Variety is the wonderfully titled AYoung Man Dressed as a Gorilla Dressed as an Old Man Sits Rocking in a Rocking Chair for Fifty-Six Minutes and Then Leaves… 15. Yes, this is the fifteenth time it’s been performed!! I say performed, erm, I’ve never actually seen it. It’s obviously very popular as it’s in the Liquid Room Annexe/Warehouse, that’s a big venue. This year may be the year!
And, saving the best ’til last? Well, certainly amongst the best for this moose, the star that is Aidan Sadler is bringing their self-penned show Melody back again, this time to the Ballroom at TheVoodoo Rooms (a better venue than last year). Flamboyant, funny, sharp, mouthy, self-deprecating, I knew all that from bumping into them regularly the last three Fringes, then I went to see the show, and wow, what a voice! There’s a distinct possibility of me seeing Aidan Sadler: Melody a second time.
So there’s some that have grabbed my eyeballs so far; oh, the importance of that tiny pic and show title! Next time, a skip through Musicals and opera and Music. Not that I’m sure whether I’ll be here all August or partly down in Yorkshireland, the matriarch is still stuck in the woods and will need a lot of tlc when she gets out. But I’ll deal with that when it happens.
Bruce on the Fringe 