Spirits of the fringe

Written by: Nicholas Thompson
Published: Thursday 4th September 2025

Nicholas Thompson is a writer who's been attending the Edinburgh Fringe for so long that he remembers when the licensing laws were different in Scotland. The years of attendance certainly mean he has seen some things... Despite these events, or maybe because of them, he keeps on returning to Scotland in August for one more dram.

"Back in black I hit the sack I've been too long, I'm glad to be back"

Edinburgh? Yeah completed it mate

This is not a definitive list - It's simply what I was able to do within the three days in one of the finest cities in the world. I will not be 'reviewing' anything in this diary. Some of the shows I saw are going on tour, and I don't want to step on any jokes or themes, however I do plan on some more in-depth interviews in future.

Laugh! In this economy?

Life in the United Kingdom and on a global scale is not currently 'a bag of laughs'. The ability to turn off from hideous geopolitical events for fifty minutes of comedy is not frivolity, but a necessity to ensure our collective sanity. It's not hard to make someone miserable. It is hard to make someone laugh.

I believe in comedy and arts made for everyone by everyone. I've read lazy journalism that regards Edinburgh and the fringe as a playground for the middle-classes. To do so is to dismiss it and the talented army of people that make it the pre-eminent arts festivals of the world. The reason why these lazy attitudes are damaging is because they can prevent people from attending and performing, feeling that they are not welcome. Which will actually lead to cultural death and the blandification of the whole enterprise.

Fringe benefits

Any notions of being a Fringe completist are ridiculous, previously I have seen far too much - which leaves you with a sense of fatigue, as one show blends into another - you're able to sense broad themes of the current cultural milieux, but crucially not hone into the work itself. Much like decent wine, comedy needs some time to breathe so you can consider and appreciate it.

A £6 mini bottle of Tempranillo Cabernet El Cabanero from Spain was how I started my fringe journey on the Caledonian Sleeper. While I would have dearly loved a berth and pretended that I was in Poirot, £90 got me a single seat some earplugs and an eye mask - which I thought was decent considering our inflation nation.

How to choose a show with so many choices...

The old Argos catalogue was known as the 'Big Book of Dreams' but there is another... The Edinburgh Fringe Guide, the big old Yellow Pages style monster that has all of the shows in it. I find it useful to flick through as you can see the shows in situ - rather than the app which can be difficult to navigate. The PBH Free Fringe Guide is great. I love to take a punt and this guide is always full of interesting shows.

Flyers: I don't usually see a show via a flyer, however sometimes it's the comic themselves giving them out, and if that's the case you can get a vibe about the show and if you think you will like it. At least one act this year got me via flyer...

Posters: The posters are everywhere - but a good poster with a clear message will get me, and this year was not an exception.

Social Media: If people like you online they may well see you in real life...

Word of Mouth: It's as simple as seeing something that you have enjoyed and telling people about it.

'The Theme'

One of the conversations that is had by wags in the early hours: What is this year's theme of the fringe?

I'm noticing the effect of social media on audiences. Comics that have baked in audiences - who are coming to the fringe to see a specific act. When Daisy Doris May was doing a scene change and the audience knew the character Steve Porter was next, there was palpable excitement in the room. When the character appears on stage the place went absolutely nuts, later when a member of the crowd was pulled on stage they took off a jacket to reveal a Steve Porter t-shirt. That's a level of fandom that I have not seen at the fringe before, and it was lovely to see.

The reason that I saw Roger O'Sullivan was because of his retro styled glitchy social posts - I had no idea what to expect but his videos have been making me laugh before August so I thought he deserved some of my cash. He turned up to the Fringe without an agent and a room that had to swiftly re-arranged and walked away with a Comedians' Choice Award and Edinburgh Comedy Award nomination. Which proves 'if you build it, they will come'.

There was a time when a big que meant a big established name, but that's no longer the case with TikTok magicians keeping the punters happy to queue in the rain.

It's a long way to the top if you want to rock 'n roll

At every awards event I have ever been to in my life a variation of the following sentence is thrown around: "The standard has been particularly high this year - it was incredibly hard to pick a winner." I have never known if these are bland platitudes or genuine. However, I have noticed a shift where people are being recognised in a way that they previously were not, and the proliferation of awards is going some way to recognise this. On one end of the scale this year two separate awards offered a 10k prize and, at the other, the Pegasus Awards were handing out 1p.

While it's easy for people to dismiss awards as an excuse for a 'boozy do', it's important to acknowledge how bloody hard it is to put on a show, and that you are being recognised. The Elf Lyons prize at the ISH Awards for 'an innovative technician and operator who creates for, and aids the vision of, performers through dynamic lighting and sound' acknowledges a vital but unseen role that a decent tech can play. If a tech misses the que then the act can fluff a joke. Congrats Alice Rebecca-Greening, Eddie Fenton-Jones, Jake Wood and Josie Shipp.

Dirty deeds done dirt cheap?

It's not enough to say 'art is for all, comedy for all' if you don't provide the resources to ensure that, and enable people to find them. A few years ago, comedian Siân Docksey provided a full breakdown of what it cost to put on a show at the fringe, highlighting the economic reality of performing. Attending the Edinburgh Fringe as a member of the public can be expensive. Performing prohibitively so, with the cost of a run coming in at 10k+ when all is said and done. I have noticed more of a collegiate spirit between acts and I hope this continues, to ensure space for all.

Venues / times

I've seen shows in karaoke booths / caves / lecture theatres. This benefits your perspective not just at the fringe but for life. Some comics will tell you to strap in and they mean it. This year I saw an act casually get a towel to mop themselves as the dripping water pipe plopped on them on que with such nonchalance that I thought it was part of the act. Personally I don't care where I sit - I care about what I watch. I'm also seeing the times slot more evenly spread - you can now see a quality show at any time of the day.

Boo👎

Internet connection: Edinburgh's populace increases by 500,000 daily during the fringe and this obviously has an effect on the internet speed and the official app and website. Which meant I had to revert to the festival favourite of 'I will meet you here at this time'.

The official app: While I understand the need for modernity, I mourn the paper ticket - it was physically tangible, I knew where and when I needed to be and it didn't run out of battery.

£2.50 booking fees for every transaction on the app: The very nature of the fringe should be that you can nip into a show when you have a gap - charging £2.50 every time I book is taking the pish.

Boo urns 👍

I didn't run into the silent disco - which allowed me a safer journey to navigate around the city. May it never return to the streets of Edinburgh.

Bar staff: Excellent, polite and prompt. Getting served at a bar in London currently is like paying £10 for the privilege of being punched in the face. Not the case in Auld Reekie.

Venue staff: Trying to navigate around the Pleasance Courtyard is like trying to navigate around a painting by MC Esher. It's above - it's below - it's the undercroft - it's a parallel universe - it's in the 17th century. Thank you for everyone in the yellow lanyard who always points me in the right direction.

Summary

It's always a pleasure to see friends old and new and to bond with a group of strangers in a room sharing communal laughter. Despite the news telling us how divided the country is, I had lots of pleasant chants with audience members in queues. I want to see the Edinburgh Fringe and the ecosystem that surrounds it thrive, but for that to happen acts have to have the ability to perform year on year improve and grow their audience, which is becoming increasingly untenable without considerable financial backing. I have already heard acts say they are not interested in television because it doesn't represent decent money or reach, viewers numbers not being what they were. I would hate for the fringe to go the same way; it's called live comedy for a reason.

I watched: 100% Badgers with Matt Hobs / Joz Norris: You Wait. Time Passes / Gobby Girls: The 11% Club / FELLA: Show Us Ur Fruitcake / Lil Wenker: Bangtail / Daisy Doris May: Big Night Out / Elliot Steel: Guard / Roger O'Sullivan: Fekken.

I attended: The Comedians' Choice Awards, The Ish Comedy Awards, The Edinburgh Comedy Awards, The Pegasus Comedy Awards.

I dined: Mammas Pizza in Grassmarket & Mosque Kitchen.

Thank you to all of the comics/ volunteers / bar and venue staff at Edinburgh; and everyone who was able to swiftly and politely answer my emails - I know you were swamped. Thank you to lady at Mosque Kitchen who gave me a literal mountain of curry - it was all I got a chance to eat that day, and it kept me going. Thank you to the bar staff who gave me pints of water and had the courtesy to ask if I would like ice. Edinburgh, until next time. Cheers!