Gilded Balloon has a basement full of laughs

IT has long been Karen Koren's dream that her Fringe venue The Gilded Balloon would become an all year round provider of entertainment for the Capital.

Comedian Fred MacAulay

With the success of her first winter season on Rose Street over the past couple of months, and with the announcement of the venue’s first Spring Season, it appears that dream might finally be a reality.

The Gilded Balloon has unveiled a bumper spring programme for its Basement Theatre, kicking off on 11 January.

Following the success of its festive debut, The Gilded Balloon are set to bring the likes of Desiree Burch, Elf Lyons, Richard Gadd, Dive Queer Party, a literary rave, bad movies and more stovies and stories to the West End.

This spring, the very best comedy shows of 2017 return in a star-studded programme that also features Tom Stade, Fin Taylor, Jay Lafferty, Damian Clark and Sarah Callaghan.

Also appearing are Eleanor Tiernan, Patrick Monahan, Edd Hedges, Catherine Bohart, Michael Redmond, Gráinne Maguire and Adam Rowe.

Completing the line-up are Chris Forbes, Scott Agnew, Ray Bradshaw, Mat Ewins, Alasdair Beckett-King, Lisa Gornick, Charlie Baker, Danny McLaughlin, and Angus Gordon & Aaron Chen.

All will perform their critically-acclaimed, solo Fringe hours.

“Launching the Basement Theatre last season was a lot of hard work and we’ve been thrilled with the response,” says Karen.

“We are incredibly grateful for the continued opportunity to establish ourselves year-round, and to present exciting, diverse and new work in the city’s West End.”

Brand-new work launching the season includes Katie Mulgrew’s Mum’s the Word, a series of relaxed comedy gigs for new parents who like adult material, where audience members will be encouraged to feed, change and nurse their baby whilst watching the show.

The Basement Theatre will also continue to host popular monthly residencies such as Fred MacAulay’s In Conversation, which featured Ian Rankin in December and is lining up even more high calibre guests, Short Attention Span, the monthly scratch night for new writing, and Stephen Frost with his uproarious, immersive Murder Mystery Party, where the audience turns sleuth to unravel an irreverent whodunit.

Finally, The Comedy Show, the Basement’s flagship line-up night, returns every Friday and Saturday night.

Tickets available from 0131-622 6552 or www.gildedballoon.co.uk