With this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe just two months away, we’ve taken a look at the household names heading to the world’s largest arts festival in August.
Among the big names coming to Edinburgh this year are some big Scottish stars, TV presenter and former 90s poster girl Gail Porter, Rab C Nesbitt and Only Child actor Gregor Fisher, former politician Mhairi Black, Travis frontman Fran Healy, and Fife stand-up Daniel Sloss.
From further afield, American actress, presenter and comedian Ruby Wax and hilarious ventriloquist Nina Conti will be here. As well as a host of comedy legends including Julian Clary, Jack Dee, Frank Skinner, Sara Pascoe and Phil Wang.
1. Gail Porter: Portergeist
Household name and Edinburgh's very own - Gail Porter returns to the Fringe with a one-hour stand-up comedy, talking about her time delving into the paranormal as Scotland’s favourite Ghost Hunter, and getting hit on by the ghost of The Doors’ frontman Jim Morrison. Gail Porter: Portergeist, at Assembly Rooms (Drawing Room), August 6-30 (not 11,18,25), at 6.25pm. | iProductions
2. Nina Conti
Virtuoso ventriloquist, BAFTA nominee and British Comedy Award winning Nina Conti is returning to this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe with her brand-new show ‘Nina’s C*nti Cabaret’, in which she’ll perform with Monkey and her infamous masks whilst also showcasing some of her favourite acts from across the Fringe. The acclaimed festival favourite will be at Underbelly’s McEwan Hall for a limited run of seven shows only, from August 17-24, 7.15pm, no performance. | stevebest.com
3. Fran Healy
Travis frontman Fran Healy has teamed up with Dexter actor David Magidoff for Fringe show 'Making Love with David Magidoff'. The pair will be joined by comedians Mike Wozniak, Mark Watson, and BAFTA-nominee Rosie Jones, with more guests to be announced. Hot off the 'Netflix is a Joke' Festival and midway through a three-year sold-out “tour-de-force” run at Los Angeles’ iconic Elysian Theater, the show sees Magidoff interview a celebrity guest about a real wild love story from their life. He and his cast of world-renowned improvisers including Stephanie Courtney (Mad Men), Kimberly Condict (Shrinking), alongside Grammy-nominated rapper Propaganda, Josh Cake and Karen Hall, turn the story into a fully madcap improvised musical performed live on stage. Making Love with David Magidoff, Assembly George Square:, Studio 2, August 7-23, 8:05pm. Tickets £17 weekends / £15 mid-week. | Gaby Jerrard PR
4. Gregor Fisher
Following a hugely successful tour, Scottish acting legend Gregor Fisher invites audiences at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe to an intimate hour of memories, laughter and the kind of behind-the-scenes tales you won’t find on IMDb. Far from a formal retrospective, this is Fisher at his best: candid, sharp and effortlessly funny. A night where the stories come with a pint’s warmth, the humour lands close to home and the man himself reminds us why he remains one of Britain’s most beloved and enduring screen personalities. The Only Child and Rab C Nesbitt star will host 'An (Early) Evening with Gregor Fisher', at Gilded Balloon Teviot: Debating Hall, August 15-30, at 4pm. | Graeme Hunter Pictures