With the world’s largest arts festival returning to Edinburgh this August, we’ve taken a look at the hot new acts set to make their Fringe debut this August.
From stand-up comedian Alexandra Haddow, to Australian drag queens The Hairy Godmothers, pole dancing comedian Siân Docksey, musical comedian Matty Hutson and horror puppeteer Lachlan Werner, there are plenty of new exciting acts from all over the world making their way to Edinburgh this August.
5. Louise Atkinson: Mates
Stand up comedian, working class northerner Louise Atkinson, makes her Edinburgh Fringe debut in Mates - an hour of hilarious stories about her chosen family packed with jokes about all kinds of friendship, kebabs and even one about a hedgehog. A relatable raconteur all the way from the cultural delights of Hull, Louise has marked herself as one to watch, earning comparisons with Victoria Wood and winning The 99 Club bursary. 3:20pm, 2nd - 27th August at Gilded Balloon Teviot Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/louise-atkinson-mates Photo: Flick Morris PR
6. Alexandra Haddow Not My Finest Hour
Expertly treading the fine line between cheeky and outright smut, stand-up comedian Alexandra Haddow makes her hotly anticipated Edinburgh Fringe debut with an hour of jokes, revelations and speculation about all the wrong ways to do ‘being a woman’. Already nominated for Best Debut Show at Leicester Comedy Festival 2023, Not My Finest Hour sees Alexandra shamelessly detailing everything she’s ever done wrong - from having an affair to sexual politics, feminism, abortion, skincare regimes - even dancing. Writing a show about her transgressions might be the only thing she’s done right. 6:55pm, 2nd -25th August at the Pleasance Courtyard Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/alexandra-haddow-not-my-finest-hour Photo: Flick Morris PR
7. Siân Docksey: Pole Yourself Together
Pole dancing comedian Siân Docksey (as seen on BBC3’s Laugh Lessons) cheerfully ignores climate disaster, another recession and the steady creep of fascism to see if hanging off a stick can make you stop thinking about death. A genre-smashing philosophical dance-comedy party. Or just an upside-down woman having an existential crisis, probably. For (partly) tax reasons, Siân combines two of her greatest passions to create a hilarious absurdist feminist extravaganza in her debut hour at the Edinburgh Fringe. Pole Yourself Together uses surrealism to make effervescently weird comedy from political and personal dread, to answer the all-important question: Can pole dancing be funny? 7:10pm 2nd - 28th August (not 9th, 14th, 15th, 21st or 22nd) at the Pleasance Dome Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/sian-docksey-pole-yourself-together Photo: Flick Morris PR
8. Matty Hutson: Don’t Hold Back
Musical comedian Matty Hutson (as heard on BBC Radio 4’s The Now Show) bares his sensitive soul in his highly anticipated debut hour. Don’t Hold Back is a warm, honest and delightfully witty show all about Matty, the current chapter of his life and his over inflated sense of self-importance. Combining Matty’s delicate sensibilities with personal revelations and absurd speculations, this unmissable interactive musical comedy extravaganza will be packed with original comedy songs and a few parodies for good measure. 7:15pm, 2nd - 27th August (not 14th) at the Pleasance Courtyard Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/matty-hutson-don-t-hold-back Photo: Flick Morris PR