Aideen McQueen Brings Hilarious New Play ‘Waiting for Texto’ to Edinburgh Fringe

Written by McQueen in collaboration with her sister Aoife Darmody—and, as she jokes, her mother, a woman she met in a Liverpool nightclub toilet in 2016, and every woman they've ever known—Waiting for Texto is a comic exploration of a universal modern experience: waiting for a reply to a WhatsApp message.

“If men are such visual creatures, why can’t they see my texts?” asks Lucy, the central character played by McQueen herself, as she dives headlong into a tangle of co-dependence, loneliness, and emoji-laden desperation. It’s Bridget Jones meets Baby Reindeer, full of real-time texting, social media spirals, and heartbreak wrapped in razor-sharp humour.

McQueen, already recognised as one of Irish comedy’s rising stars, has crafted a story packed with laughs and laced with heartfelt pathos. Lucy’s journey through digital romance becomes increasingly chaotic, including a doomed entanglement with a man “who seems barely alive.” In a world of hyper-connectivity, Lucy finds herself feeling more isolated than ever—an experience many will find all too familiar.

(c) STEVE ULLATHORNE

Aideen McQueen is no stranger to the comedy scene. A regular on RTE, TG4 and BBC Northern Ireland, and with credits on BBC Radio 4, she’s performed at top festivals including The Vodafone Comedy Festival, The Electric Picnic, and the Prague Comedy Festival. She's also shared the stage with comedy heavyweights like Dylan Moran, Frankie Boyle, and Ardal O’Hanlon. Described as “sassy, sexy, saucy and side-splittingly funny,” McQueen brings her signature spontaneity (the “losing-my-keys” kind, not the kitesurfing kind) to this unmissable one-woman show.

‘Waiting For Texto’ will be at the Gilded Balloon Patter House Nip at 2.20pm for the entire fringe for tickets go to www.edfringe.com