Edinburgh Festival

To the left of the Netherbow Theatre stage hangs an ancient stone from a trio of canes, to the right a chair and instrument stand – our programme tells us it was designed by Tim Vincent-Smith. This sets the scene for the first of three plays being presented by Mairi Campbell, this first chapter titled “Pulse” on its return to the festival alongside the two new works.

A new British musical based on the iconic TV series following the fall and rise of captain's wife Tanya Turner as she schemes to save her marriage and her husband's career. Rewind to 2002 when Premier League football was the new rock'n'roll – with the money, glamour and bad behaviour to match. Spoiler alert: Contains scenes of an adult nature, drug-taking, noughties fashion, attempted murder, offensive language, outmoded attitudes, sexual impropriety, drama, heartbreak, comedy, singing, dancing – and absolutely no football

To the left of the stage of the Netherbow Theatre sits an original leather Lothian Regional transport bus seat. Combined with a handful of props, we have everything we need to be transported around Edinburgh in Mark Hannah’s debut play 'Athens of the North'.

What happens to our plastic waste after we toss it in the recycling? Where does climate action fit into our messy lives? These are the questions Verity Mullen’s Single Use intends to explore.

One of Scotland's fastest-rising stars, Jack's highly anticipated debut combined the bizarre and the brilliantly relatable. Ranked fourth in the world in the Roast Battle League, Jack shares his best stories before he forgets. Jack's vibrant storytelling weaves the real and surreal, and his distinctive comedic style have led him to placing second in the Hot Water Comedy Club New Comedian of the Year, and Roast Battle's MVP in 2024.

Join BBC New Comedy Awards finalist Molly McGuinness for her highly anticipated debut show about what it means to be a slob. To Molly, life didn’t get any better than a good buffet and belting out Meatloaf down the pub karaoke. But when the Salford-born libertine was unexpectedly laid out by a life-threatening illness, Molly was forced to slob out whether she liked it or not...

Derry Freshers’ Week, closeted Bud is in for a rollercoaster of tequila, tiaras and transitioning. Lucky they have Rose keeping them on the not-so-straight and narrow. This hilarious double-act was described as the 'Queer Philadelphia, Here I Come' at Dublin Fringe. Witness this heartfelt and heartbreaking coming-of-age story about transitioning from Belfast's superstar Rose Coogan.

A love letter to people pleasers everywhere. Laura Benanti: Nobody Cares is a one-woman comedy show from the mind of Tony Award winner Laura Benanti. With her razor-sharp wit, the star of stage and screen blends side-splitting storytelling with original songs co-written with Todd Almond. The New York Times Critic's Pick Nobody Cares is a hilarious, heartfelt and sometimes brutally honest tribute to recovering ingenues, mothers and anybody working on themselves.

An all-true, two-hander beauty of gig theatre Forget-Me-Not celebrates the multitudes of womanhood, the beauty in reclaiming your voice and the lifeline that is the power of female friendship. 

Since Alfie's dad died, he's visited everyone's dreams but hers. Rude. Desperate to talk to him, she turns to AiR, an AI chatbot designed to connect the living with the lost. What starts as a comforting conversation between daddy and his little princess spirals into chaos. Each chat uncovers more about her dad's life – and death – than she ever bargained for. Was his death suspicious or is it just a glitch in the machine? A heartfelt and darkly funny dive into grief, technology and the consequences of talking to ghosts.

You're invited to Lachlan-Thomas' sixth birthday party hosted by your favourite children's party entertainer, Hannah Banana! Hannah is a writer, performer and most importantly, a children's birthday party entertainer... on the weekends that is! But what do you do when you realise your side hustle is no longer on the side? And maybe being a clown is the only thing you're truly good at? Have an existential crisis during the Cha Cha Slide of course! Expect prizes, games and Hannah asking herself, what the f*ck am I doing with my life?!

God won't give up on Cecilia Gentili. Unfortunately, neither will the devil. Follow a young trans girl as she navigates the hilarity of rural Argentina during the 1970s. Part stand-up, part camp and (almost) all true, Red Ink is an irreverent romp in searching for faith while trans.

Set in Edinburgh, Make It Happen sees legendary actor Brian Cox return to the Scottish stage for the first time in a decade as Adam Smith, the ghost of fiscal past.

Join Astronaut Indra on a nine-month mission to the moon... but not all missions are successful. A new autobiographical solo show by Indra Wilson about the lonely, turbulent journey of experiencing pregnancy loss as a queer young person

This is the story of one boy's grandad who won a fortune betting on the 1966 World Cup and, when diagnosed with cancer, gambles it all on living to see the year 2000. Gary McNair's intergenerational tale of what we live for and what we leave behind has toured the world since making its award-winning, sell-out world premiere at the Traverse in 2015.

Amy Mason is witty, unfiltered, and enjoyably coarse, diving right into how connection, intimacy, and the chaos of how modern life works in reality. Mason brings a refreshingly honest perspective to the hour, delivered in a deadpan yet inviting style which creates a sense of wonder at her candour, with every understated punchline.

A roundup of our coverage from the 2025 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Two brothers — one a progressive novelist, the other a convicted murderer and high-ranking member of a white supremacist prison gang — shared a traumatic childhood. Now adults, these men navigate the edges of their bond. Are they truly so different?

Joz Norris is an enthusiastic lover of fun, concerned with elevating joy and embracing his inner weird. With a blend of surreal storytelling, gentle earthy chaos and endearing self-awareness, Norris draws the audience into a world where logic is irrelevant. 

Ned Van Zandt was in the Chelsea Hotel the night of Nancy Spungen’s death, and he was with Sid and Nancy just before her sad demise. Ned was also an actor during the 1970s in Hollywood heyday and cavorted with Chaka Khan, Steely Dan, director Hal Ashby and others, he was away in San Francisco when a double murder occurred in his apartment in LA.

Following his sell-out 2023/24 runs, Stu returns to the Fringe with his highly anticipated new show about settling down, growing up and how he’s being controlled by his step-dog. Join the host of smash-hit podcast Some Laugh and star of BBC Scotland’s Scot Squad for another sensational hour in which he pokes fun at 30-something relationships, generational divides and why he doesn’t want to die surrounded by loved ones.

Our award-winning Cantonese opera adventure is back! Join Captain Dic Dic and Chang Chang at the Cantonese Opera Playground in Edinburgh, where the Cantonese Opera Fairy teaches them skills to outwit the Boring King. But they can't do it alone – they need you, the audience, to become secret agents in this interactive spectacle.

New production images have been releasedfor Karis Kelly’s dark comedy Consumed, a co-production with Belgrade Theatre, Sheffield Theatres and the Women’s Prize for Playwriting. See photos here!

Written by Justin Butcher. On Millenium Eve, a 100-year-old clown comes offstage after his final ever performance to tell the story of his life: epic, hilarious and tragic. Performed by Fringe legend Thom Tuck (Penny Dreadfuls, Horrible Histories, Play What I Wrote). Tuck presented this play at the Fringe 2005 and 2015, and plans to revive the piece every decade as he approaches the age of the character.

In 1423 Berlin, two peasants find themselves at the center of hysteria, hypocrisy and impending doom. How… fun! As the flames of persecution rise, they must decide: will they take a stand or simply watch? A darkly comedic dive into fear, guilt and the price of inaction. Wenches! blends historical absurdity with modern relevance, revealing how easy it is to mistake performance for purpose.