Fringe Review: Jack Docherty in The Chief – No Apologies

There was not a dry eye in the house, says Richard Bath.  ★★★★ If you love Scot Squad, then this is the show for you. Docherty reprises his role as Scotland’s favourite and least self-aware cop to non-stop howls of laughter from an audience which is willing him on as if he’s the best man…

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Fringe Review: Kyle Dolan No Place Like Home

Richard Bath on Kyle Dolan’s solo-show debut at the Fringe. ★ The Fringe jungle drums are obviously working because just three of us turned up to watch this painful hour of confessional stand-up, and I’d brought one of them with me. Dolan, a twentysomething born in Scotland and raised in Australia, comes across as a…

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Fringe Review: Bark Bark

Bark Bark is a technically difficult production which serves up a wonderful story, says Jeremy Welch. ★★★ This is technically an ambitious production. Bark Bark tells the tale of two house sitters rekindling their love affair through the eyes of a bird killing dog called ‘It’. Although the dog is a bird killer ‘It’ charms…

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Fringe Review: Margolyes & Dickens The Best Bits

Ailsa Bath enjoys this ‘brilliant’ performance from Miriam Margolyes. ★★★★   Knowing Miriam mainly from her salacious chat shows, Harry Potter cameo and regular appearances with Graham Norton, I wasn’t prepared for the incredible acting skills she brought to the stage in this bravura one-woman show. Despite being a solo performance, this enthralling show truly…

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Fringe Review: Apricity

Apricity is much more than acrobatic circus with acts of seemingly impossible feats of bravery, says Jeremy Welch. ★★★★ Apricity is defined as ‘the warmth of sun in winter’ and the show is advertised as dance, physical theatre and circus. This show is all it’s advertised to be and more. The opening sequence of candle…

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Fringe Review: The Dreamer

Fiona Tenneb praises James Phelan’s awe-inspiring show. ★★★★ ‘Surround yourself with the dreamers. The doers, the believers and the thinkers. But most of all surround yourself with those that see the greatness within you, even when you don’t see it yourself.’ Unlikely but beautiful words to start a thought provoking magic show that got my…

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Fringe Review: It’s Not My Body/This Is

Megan Amato enjoys this titillating duo of performances. ★★★★ A tale of two contrasting shows, one that moved quickly and involved virtually every muscle in the human body and the second that paced itself, drawing from our consciousness. It’s Not My Body Chapter 3.5 came out with a bang. The simple stage with a singular…

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Fringe Review: PALS

This production is ‘a wonderful way to be entertained and laugh’, says Jeremy Welch. ★★★ This is a funny, slightly chaotic play that will leave you uplifted. PALS is the tale of four Edinburgh girlfriends. Their natural milieu is nail bars, All Bar One and nightclubs so a camping trip organised by the protagonist, Sadie,…

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Fringe Review: Gamble

A bittersweet multimedia show about addiction and its effect on families, friends and communities, says Jeremy Welch. ★★★ This play is dealing with a weighty matter, the consequences of gambling. Not the Grand National once a year flutter gamble but the compulsive, corrosive and ultimately destructive result of gambling addiction. It’s difficult to get the…

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Fringe Review: 1984

Jeremy Welch praises Sofia Barvsevich’s near sell-out production as ‘brave, brutal, disturbing and absolutely relevant’. ★★★★★ ‘War is peace, freedom is slavery and ignorance is strength.’ George Orwell. Almost everyone knows this dyspotian quote from Big Brother. This production is quite remarkable as in one hour it condenses Orwell’s 1984 novel perfectly. There is almost…

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