Rising stars of comedy to catch at the Edinburgh Fringe
Here’s what you need to know.
While there are plenty of household names and established heavyweights drawing crowds this year, the true magic of the festival has always been in the thrill of discovery. The Edinburgh Fringe is undeniably the perfect place to uncover fresh, exciting talent and catch new comedians right before they make their indelible mark on the UK comedy industry.
If you’re looking to earn those "I saw them before they were famous" bragging rights, here is your guide to the rising stars you need to catch this year.
Jake Baker: The Gentle Men’s Club
Taking the stage at Hoots @ The Apex at 1:15pm, Jake Baker delivers a hilarious, whimsical response to the toxic internet culture of hyper-masculine influencers. Baker, a three-time BBC New Comedy Award nominee, playfully dismantles the manosphere, celebrating the benefits of feminism and the quiet luxury of letting his girlfriend be the breadwinner. Book tickets for Jake Baker at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/jake-baker-the-gentle-men-s-club
Michael John Ciszewski: Mother, Superior
Over at the Bedlam Theatre at 2pm, NYC-based stand-up and storyteller Michael John Ciszewski attempts to petition the Vatican to canonize his living mother in a sacrilegious, interactive game-show hour. This performance, brought to you by a trained instructor with The Moth, beautifully processes millennial baggage and queer joy. Book tickets for Michael John Ciszewski at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/michael-john-ciszewski-mother-superior
Aarian Mehrabani: How’s Your Head?
Performing at Underbelly George Square at 4:45pm, Aarian Mehrabani makes his highly anticipated solo stand-up debut. As the award-winning co-creator of the smash-hit play IT’S A MOTHERFKING PLEASURE—and ahead of starring in David Baddiel’s upcoming Channel 4 thriller Hunting Alice Bell—Mehrabani weaves an irreverent, bold hour around his Persian heritage, being blind and bisexual, and his recent battle with brain cancer. Book tickets for Aarian Mehrabani at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/aarian-mehrabani-how-s-your-head
Harvey Cobb: Pink Boots and An Alcoholic Sock Puppet
Catch this high-energy, meta-theatrical circus comedy show at Underbelly Cowgate at 5pm. From the BNG Circus Prize winner Harvey Cobb, audiences can watch his facade as a "pretentious, serious contemporary artist" beautifully crumble into pink boot juggling and physical clowning alongside his tyrannical puppet, Mr. Sock. Book tickets for Harvey Cobb at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/harvey-cobb-pink-boots-and-an-alcoholic-sock-puppet
Steffan Alun: Windows
Steffan Alun brings his observational masterclass on imposter syndrome to Hoots @ The Apex at 6:15pm. The Pegasus Award-winning Welsh comedian and regular on BBC Wales, S4C, and Radio Cymru—who made his BBC Radio 4 debut on Live From the UK—explores identity and the hilarious lengths he went to to prove his mother was lying about their family home. Book tickets for Steffan Alun at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/steffan-alun-windows
Mothman: A Romance Musical
Also at Underbelly Cowgate, starting at 6:50pm, alternative comedy forces Alex Franklin (Channel 4, HBO Max) and Nikola McMurtrie (Funny Women Award winner and BBC Scotland Short Stuff creator) present the cryptid romantic comedy musical absolutely no one asked for. Expect a mutant super-soldier moth, B-movie tropes, and banging musical numbers. Book tickets for Mothman: A Romance Musical at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/mothman-a-romance-musical
Rob Preston: Amazing Global Solutions
Head to the Pleasance Courtyard at 8:20pm to catch Rob Preston, as seen in the fringe hit Brainsluts. Preston brings to life a bleak, bizarre gallery of modern grotesques. From toxic influencer-bros to corporate stooges, he delivers a razor-sharp satire of modern British isolation. Book tickets for Rob Preston at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/rob-preston-amazing-global-solutions
Fanny Bleach: The Nearly Naked Show
For late-night crowds, cult drag-thing Fanny Bleach (created by Emma Crowley-Bennett) makes her solo debut at the Assembly Roxy at 9:50pm. Prepare for a subversive freak show packed with grotesque characters, immersive monologues, and completely unhinged physical theatre. Book tickets for Fanny Bleach at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/fanny-bleach-the-nearly-naked-show
Hudson Hughes: At Your Service
Rounding out the night at Underbelly Cowgate at 11:10pm, Hudson Hughes delivers a spooky horror-comedy character hour following television’s favorite (and fading) vicar, Reverend Derek Gritt. Hughes, a two-time Sketch-Off Finalist, battles satanic powers, career obsolescence, and a crippling vaping addiction while trying to televise a fan's funeral. Book tickets for Hudson Hughes at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/hudson-hughes-at-your-service