My Shows
News on your favorite shows, specials & more!

THE MERMAID to Make Edinburgh Fringe Debut with Eleanor Morton

THE MERMAID explores mythology, beauty standards, and womanhood, following Morton's BBC Radio 4 special.

By:
THE MERMAID to Make Edinburgh Fringe Debut with Eleanor Morton

Following her BBC Radio 4 show 'Eleanor & Pals', award-winning comedian Eleanor Morton returns to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with a stand up show all about mermaids and why she wants to be one, even though she can't swim.

The Mermaid is a thoughtful, funny and personal show that uses mythology to explore how we're taught to be women, wanting to be beautiful, 2000s magazine sex tips, rat boyfriends, and James Cameron's submarine. Blending history and folklore with her own experiences, Eleanor plunges into the murky depths of fear-based sex education, medical gender bias, beauty standards and society's confusion around what it means to be a woman. Ultimately, The Mermaid is about claiming control over your own body and story, and finding freedom not in fantasy, but in refusing to suffer quietly.

Eleanor Morton is a stand-up, writer and actor from Edinburgh. She is well known for her online sketch characters like Craig the Tourguide, which have amassed nearly half a million followers, boast millions of likes and have gained her fans such as Patton Oswalt, Michael McKean and Taika Waititi.

Having started performing stand up aged 18, Eleanor now performs at clubs and festivals all over the UK and has provided tour support for Josie Long, Tony Law, Frankie Boyle, Stewart Francis and Lost Voice Guy. She has enjoyed sell-out runs and rave reviews at the Edinburgh Fringe since 2014, with three of her shows now available to watch on NextUp Comedy and her most recent show Haunted House being awarded The Terrier Award. She is also a performer with the award-winning alternative comedy group Weirdos Comedy.

Eleanor's BBC Radio 4 special 'Eleanor & Pals' was broadcast in February 2026 and she has her own podcast Eleanor & Alasdair Read That revisiting kids books with Alasdair Beckett-King. She's appeared as a panellist on BBC Radio Scotland's Breaking the News and recorded a BBC Radio 4 stand up special, The Rest of Us about over-looked figures in UK history. Eleanor has also been heard on BBC Podcast You're Dead to Me and has written for The Newsquiz, The Now Show, Newsjack, Hypothetical and The Beano among other projects. Her first book Life Lessons from Historical Women, described as 'Maddeningly Funny' by Dawn French, was published in August 2024.

LISTINGS INFORMATION

VENUE: Monkey Barrel Comedy, Cabaret Voltaire 1, 36-38 Blair St, Edinburgh, EH1 1QR

DATES: 6th - 30th August (except Mondays and Tuesdays)

TIME: 1pm (55mins)

AGE GUIDANCE: 16+ (Restriction)

TICKET PRICES: £8 - £15

BOX OFFICE: edfringe.com








Don't Miss a Scotland News Story
Sign up for all the news on the Spring season, discounts & more...


Videos


Target Audience in Scotland Target Audience
Pleasance Courtyard (Above) (8/05-8/30)
Jerk Off! in Scotland Jerk Off!
Underbelly (Dairy Room) (8/05-8/30)
Furniture Boys in Scotland Furniture Boys
Underbelly (Jersey) (8/05-8/30)
Mark Thomas: 40 In Stand Up Years in Scotland Mark Thomas: 40 In Stand Up Years
The Stand 1 (9/23-9/23)
Rollers Forever in Scotland Rollers Forever
King's Theatre (10/27-10/31)
One Hour Wedding in Scotland One Hour Wedding
Underbelly (The Friesian) (8/05-8/23)
You Are What You Eat in Scotland You Are What You Eat
theSpace on the mile (8/07-8/22) PHOTOS
How Not to Make it in America in Scotland How Not to Make it in America
Summerhall (Former Gent’s Locker Room) (8/06-8/31)
100 Years of Magic in Scotland 100 Years of Magic
Aberdeen Arts Centre (9/04-9/05) PHOTOS
Baby Wants Candy in Scotland Baby Wants Candy
Assembly George Square Studios - One (8/05-8/30)