BETH WANTS THE D to Make London Debut at Pleasance Theatre
Beth May's autobiographical dark comedy earned the Mental Health Foundation Fringe Award at Edinburgh.
Following a run at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2025, autobiographical dark comedy Beth Wants the D will make its London debut this October. Presenting insight into her inner psyche, the show uses writer and performer Beth May's (Dungeons & Daddies, International Tour; We're All Gonna Die, SXSW) own struggle with bipolar disorder to unpack the extreme highs and lows of living with mental illness. Performances will run Friday 23rd – Saturday 24th October 2026.
Performed and written by renowned American podcast host and actor Beth May, this insightful one-woman show begins with her standing on the edge of a bridge, contemplating ending her life. Beth proceeds to take the audience on an episodic journey through key points in her life. From her teenage years to the present, Beth Wants the D follows the reality of taking medication, treatments, hospitalisation and the profound effect this can have on the relationships with the people around you.
Following a sell-out Edinburgh Fringe run in 2025, Beth Wants the D was awarded the Mental Health Foundation Fringe Award which recognises new creative work that challenges mental health stigma and opens up more difficult conversations. After its London performances, the show will return to Edinburgh for a performance at the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival on Thursday 29th October. This vulnerable comedy questions the stigma behind mental illness, where people living with bipolar are often vilified or feared. Ultimately Beth Wants the D is a life affirming contemplation on the fragility of living with psychosis.
Writer and performer Beth May comments, 'Last year I had the time of my life bringing Beth Wants the D to Edinburgh Fringe, and I'm beyond excited to share a dark, silly, and hopefully very important story with more people. My hope is that audiences will see that my humanity is not diminished or negated by my mental illness and find a better understanding of what serious mental illness can look like. I think this show makes the case that even when things are so bleak and even when you feel like you're completely nuts, you can come back from this. Call me crazy…but I think that's a message worth spreading.'
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