Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2024: Edinburgh play The Bookies is a gritty thought-provoking look at addiction

The Bookies, at Summerhall, centres on two employees and a customer in the shop who hatch a scheme to get back at the betting industry, ending with violent and gory scenes.

The play starts with customer Harry, played by Fraser Wood, who is addicted to one particular gambling machine. He tells the two shop workers John (Dayton Mungai) and Patrick (Ruaraidh Murray) how he is a former Everest explorer who is now out of work.

He blames a Sherpa for ending his career with a fall, after summiting the world’s tallest mountain three times, leaving him potless and wasting his life away in the bookies.

Edinburgh-set Fringe play The Bookies is on at Summerhall until April 26. | Submitted

Area manager Michelle, played by Francesca Hess, arrives to drop the bombshell that this bookies is to close, surprising manager Patrick who thought he was getting the employee of the year award at the company awards to be held that night.

Patrick is angry at the news, given that he and John had been busy setting up online accounts for the shop’s customers as directed by the company, which ultimately led to the closure, "this job is all I ken, I dinnae want another job".

Stars of The Bookies, left to right: Dayton Mungai (John), Francesca Hess (Michelle) and Ruaraidh Murray (Pat). | Submitted

Addiction and the betting industry in general are strong themes in this thought-provoking play written by Mikey Burnett from Bonnyrigg and Joe McCann from Edinburgh.

Hurt by the news, Patrick and John hatch a plan to rob the shop by stealing tens of thousands of pounds from the safe, "the answer to our prayers”, roping in Harry to carry out the theft.

However, Harry's attempt to rob the shop for the trio hit a bit of a bizarre problem involving Harry favourite gambling machine 

The next day, area manager Michelle accuses Patrick of the robbery. Her boss and husband David blames her. Michelle then reveals to Patrick she is has a drugs debt and has split up with David.

Dayton Mungai (John), Ruaraidh Murray (Pat) and Fraser Wood (Harry) in Fringe show The Bookies. | Submitted

The Bookies, directed by Eleanor Felton, is gritty with hints of black comedy, full of Edinburgh banter and the surreal. Although this play is often light-hearted, it quickly becomes heated and at times quite shocking with some violence and racism towards the end.

As with all hair-brained schemes, things go from bad to worse. When the four main characters are squabbling over the money, things take a sudden fatal turn with extreme violence and a quite shocking finale.

This Fringe performance is a thought-provoking gritty production not for the faint-hearted, with all four actors impressing throughout, and is certainly worth checking out if you are a fan of Irvine Welsh or Shane Meadows, given the ‘very real’ authenticity of this working-class play.

The Bookies, at Summerhall Cairns Lecture Theatre, until August 26, 7.35pm - 8.50pm, not on 12th and 19th. Tickets £14.50 and £17 on sale now.