With so much fiction being enacted across the Fringe, it’s nice to see something based on reality. Or as Norman Bowman and Frances Ruffelle put it, ‘true(ish)’. The musical theatre stalwarts first met 24 years ago during a chance encounter at Edinburgh’s Waverley Station. And while the set-list may not reflect their relationship exactly, at least we know these love songs are being sung by actual lovers.

Bowman has played the lead role in many a West End musical, Ruffelle most notably was the original Eponine in Les Misérables, both have a packed CV and fine musical theatre pedigree. So we know they can deliver a tune with character and flair, injecting humour or pathos as required. What The Scot And The Showgirl needed to do to keep things interesting was curate a song list with a sense of flow, without treading a well-worn path. 

Happily, it does both. Some numbers will be more recognisable than others to the average person on the street, but chances are musical theatre die-hards will recognise every line. Cleverly charting a relationship from first meeting to rocky patch to falling back in love, we bounce from Stephen Sondheim to Cole Porter, Burt Bacharach to Ira Gershwin, and even The Proclaimers. There’s little in the way of anecdotes (although these two must have more than a few juicy tales to tell), but enough humour in the between-song banter to keep the room lively. And a chance to see Ruffelle sing her Les Mis classic ‘On My Own’ is not to be sniffed at.

The Scot And The Showgirl, Pleasance Dome, until 26 August, 3.50pm.