Fun fact: the tectonic plates beneath Edinburgh shift ten times faster during Festival season thanks to the seismic vibrations of tourist footfall, stomping circus acts and the heavy weight of theatre pieces based on family trauma. Within the next 20 years, such monumental geographic disturbance will lead the Old Town and New Town to merge, creating a catastrophic collision of novelty kilt shops and highfalutin art galleries in what one can only describe as a Lovecraftian-style tartan horror. 

The above paragraph is a flagrant and disturbed lie, and yet the Edinburgh Festival is still facing existential threats from many sides. There’s rising rent and the dominance of holiday lets suffocating affordable accommodation for performers, and the likes of Gail Porter and Jason Manford decrying a ‘greedy’ festival mentality, alongside the bigger problem of funding cuts to culture across the UK. 

We’ll be gesturing towards these vital topics in this year’s regular column rounding up Festival news, but we’ll also be focusing on the amazing performers, exciting events and reasons to love the Festival (positives that often get lost in the hand-wringing surrounding the capital’s busiest period). 

And there are plenty of positives to focus on in our first entry, including a revolutionary stand-up’s glorious return to Edinburgh, the International Book Festival’s top tier line-up, and the latest show from an act we've rated highly at previous Festivals. Read on and get excited for August. 

Hannah Gadsby returns to Edinburgh…

… in their first appearance at the Festival in seven years. The comic nabbed the Edinburgh Comedy Award in 2017 for their groundbreaking hour, Nanette, a dissection of the form that gained them worldwide fame when it hit Netflix in 2018. 

They’ll visit the Fringe for a mere eight days with new show Woof! from Sunday 18–Sunday 25 August at the 1000-seater McEwan Hall. 

They said of the show, ‘Since Nanette, my life has become demonstrably better whilst the world has become demonically worse. I don’t think it’s my fault, but I do think we should talk about it.’ 

Edinburgh International Book Festival unveils The Front List…

… featuring a host of popular authors from the world of literature and entertainment. The Front List strand of this year’s literary blowout will feature a conversation with Salman Rushdie about his new memoir Knife, Richard Osman discussing his new mystery series, YA favourite Sarah Crossan talking about her novel Where The Heart Should Be, and more. Read about the full programme here. 

Sara Pascoe, Amy Gledhill and Glenn Moore to hit The Monkey Barrel…

… in what looks to be the comedy venue’s starriest Fringe line-up yet. Taking place from Wednesday 31 July–Monday 26 August, it follows last year’s blistering run which included five Edinburgh Comedy Award nominees and a second consecutive win, Ahir Shah: Ends. Read about the full programme here. 

Four stars or more 

Marjolein Robertson is another of the acts setting out her stall at Monkey Barrel this year, with O. The blurb for this one claims that the show is about blood, ‘which everyone knows is the most hilarious fluid known to man’. We’ve been raving about Robertson’s work for years, but particularly loved last year’s outing Marj. Our reviewer Jo Laidlaw gave it five stars, claiming Marj was ‘an achievement many talented playwrights would be proud of.’ Read the full review here.

Robertson also stormed into the number three spot of the 2023 edition of our Hot 100. We wrote, ‘Despite being a BBC New Comedy Award and Funny Woman finalist last year, Robertson is currently below the radar of most of the UK comedy press. Don’t expect that to last.’ Read the full piece here. 

Anyway, time to hop off the Robertson Praise Train and let you know that O will be performed from Tuesday 30 July–Sunday 25 August at Monkey Barrel’s Hive venue. Grab a ticket and bathe in some glorious gore. 

Main Picture: Mia Mala McDonald.