Textual Healing PR Edinburgh Fringe roster 2024
Textual Healing PR has 15 acts going up this year, an exciting mix of brilliant newcomers and must-see breakthrough acts.
I’m delighted to be bringing back the award-winning and philosophy and pop culture-mixing Chelsea Birkby after her highly acclaimed 2022 debut, and Dave’s Joke of the Fringe winner and children’s author Olaf Falafel with shows for adults and for children, plus a number of acts who had a 4 and 5-star laden 2023: Dungeon Master and comedian Sasha Ellen, who is bringing a solo show about her own kind of MILFdom and the interactive D&D-style game show Character Building Experience; the hilariously self-hating, Chortle Award-nominated Alexander Bennett and globetrotting storyteller extraordinaire Ollie Horn.
Brainiac jokesmith Alex Kealy is also making a return after a celebrated 2022 run, meanwhile recently rostered clients are: bright new star of stage and screen Bella Hull, returning after a highly-regarded 2022 debut; one of comedy’s hardest-working polymaths (performer, writer and director) Stuart Laws and Milo Edwards, described as “one of the UK’s smartest, most vital stand-ups” by Chortle this year.
I’m also very pleased to be representing a raft of exciting newcomers: German-based Libyan comedian Mustafa Algiyadi; journalist and comedian Alfie Packham; viral superstar (with her Liz Truss parodies) Nerine Skinner; one of the brightest comedians of the new Bristol scene Alex Kitson, and actor, improviser and director Michael Kunze. Finally junior doctor, author and comedian Ed Patrick‘s Catch Your Breath enjoys a repeat run and he is bringing his successful podcast Comedian’s Surgery for a live outing.
Much, much more information below, including keywords!
Each act name is linked to their website, and show name links to the EdFringe listing info.
Alexander Bennett: Emotional Daredevil
Gilded Balloon @ Patter Hoose (Coorie) @ 6.20pm
31 July – 26 Aug (not 14)
After his critically-acclaimed 2023 Fringe show secured a run at Soho Theatre, the Chortle Award-nominated comedian and hilariously sentimental cynic Alexander Bennett is presenting a new show about risk that uses audience involvement in a unique and surprising way. Alexander (Born Yesterday podcast, Dan Vs Food, Comedian’s Comedian podcast) is making a big bet on this audience member’s untapped potential to be the heart of the show. Will they open up as he opens up about his experiences with trust, trauma and trans rights?
Keywords: risk, trust, relationships, connection, trauma, PTSD, trans rights.
‘A surprisingly powerful show that, even with a dark theme, manages to bring some light into the world.’
★★★★★ Broadway World
‘Balances hilarity with poignant themes, often taking unexpected turns’
★★★★ Edinburgh Festivals Magazine
‘Fun, funny, tremendously engaging and even frequently joyous. He holds the audience in the palm of his hand, pulling big laughs from every quadrant – His act doesn’t get the attention it should do.’
Chortle
DRAFT Press release here
Images here
Images credit:
Footage here.
Hive @ Monkey Barrel @ 4.15pm
29 July – 25 August (not 13)
Cerebral stand up and podcaster (Gig Pigs with Ivo Graham), Alex mixes smart political material with self-deprecation and relatable observations. In his first year of performing, he reached the final of the prestigious So You Think You’re Funny competition. He has since taken six hours of stand-up to the Edinburgh Fringe, including 2019’s ‘Rationale’, which made The Guardian’s Top 10 Jokes of the Fringe, meanwhile 2022’s Winner Takes All was acclaimed by The Telegraph () and The List (), among others. An in-demand joke writer, Alex regularly writes for shows including Mock The Week (BBC Two), The News Quiz and The Now Show (both BBC Radio 4). Alex’s show this year is called ‘The Fear’ and takes in developments in his personal life alongside the human need to procrastinate and our primal and unfounded fears.
Keywords: fear, anxiety, fear of death, fear of judgement, fear of the future
‘Sharply witty, almost sexily cerebral…Kealy is going places.’ ★★★★ Daily Telegraph
‘Breakneck pace with surprising turns in eloquent comic’s wonderful new hour.’ ★★★★ The List
DRAFT Press release here
Images here
Images credit: Matt Stronge
Footage here
Alex Kitson: Must I Paint You A Picture?
Hoots Potterrow (Yurt 2) @ 10.55pm
2-25 August
Devon’s finest, and now one of Bristol’s top comedians, Alex Kitson has conquered his native West Country and is setting his sights on the Edinburgh Fringe with a debut hour of rip-roaring standup. Fresh from supporting Vittorio Angelone, Tom Ward and Tom Houghton on their UK tours, the founder of Chortle Award-winning White Bear Comedy Club is getting real about two events, six years apart, that have had a massive impact on his life – one involved a double whammy of being dumped by “the one” on the same night as a devastating career moment, the other was being sexually assaulted in the US. Forging something positive from these stories, Alex paints a surprising picture of hope and of facing adversity together, and with humour.
Keywords: debut show, storytelling, political, Gen Z/Milleninal, mental health, teaching, unhealthy relationships, trauma, America, sexual assault, stoicism, countryside and city divide.
‘A natural performer.’ Epigram
‘The Best of Bristol’s rising comics.’ Bristol 24/7
‘Bristol Comedy Legend.’ The Kettle
DRAFT Press release here
Footage here
Underbelly Bristo Square (Dexter)
31 July – 26 August (not 12) @ 2.45pm
31 July – 26 August
Alfie has been twice nominated for the BBC New Comedy Award nominee and is winner of 2022’s Max Turner Comedy Prize. He is a writer for The Guardian and BBC Radio 4’s The Now Show and The News Quiz. His debut Fringe show centres around his mum who lived for eight years with terminal cancer and still taught Alfie a lesson in how to seize upon life – by carrying on as normal. My Gift To You is about gifts, grief and attempting to live in the present. (And less thematic stuff like football, the countryside, and shoplifting).
Keywords: gifts, grief, death, skydiving, getting older, football, the countryside, shoplifters.
‘A talented writer who is going places.’ BBC Comedy
DRAFT Press release here
Images credit: Rebecca Need-Menear
Footage here
Bella Hull: Piggie
Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker) @ 9.45pm
31 July – 25 August
Returning to the Fringe after a triumphant debut, Bella Hull (BBC’s Stand Up for Live Comedy, ITV’s The Stand Up Sketch Show and Comedy Central Live) brings a show about appetites, our lack of control over them, and authenticity.
Confronting the endless banquet of dopamine that has intellectually stupefied her generation, Bella will ask questions such as ‘What’s your name again?’ ‘Are you going to finish that?’ and ‘Sorry, are you going to finish that?’
Keywords: self-control, addiction, appetite, self-perception, society, endometriosis
‘Hull is clearly a very talented writer and performer.’
★★★★ The Arts Desk
‘Hull is an excellent writer, perceptive on twenty-something angst and patriarchal oppression…with a wickedly dark undercurrent.’
The Scotsman
DRAFT Press release here
Images credit: The Other Richard
Footage
Chelsea Birkby: This Is Life, Cheeky Cheeky
Just The Tonic – Just Out of the Box @ 9.20pm
1 – 25 August (not 12)
Following her highly acclaimed debut (10 x 4 and 4.5 star reviews, Winner Best Debut Amused Moose, Nominee Best Show Comedian’s Choice) and sell-out Soho Theatre transfer, Chelsea’s back with her second hour – This is Life, Cheek Cheeky – a smart, silly, surprising show about lust for life. And also ass. With some help from TikTok, Top Trumps and Camus, Kant and Tolle, Chelsea mixes high and low brow to unpack the big questions, like: how do we embrace our object selves? Is suffering just part of the glorious indignity of being alive? And, why does ass mean so much in today’s society?
Chelsea has written for The Independent, and her jokes have appeared in Best Jokes of the Fringe collections in The Times and The Telegraph. Last summer she was featured in an episode of Radio 4’s Sideways with Matthew Syed, here.
Keywords: objectification, beauty, the body, wellbeing, mindfulness, tiktok, art, women, therapy, philosophy, Camus, the absurd, pop culture.
‘A hugely promising and already accomplished stand-up, surely destined for greater things.’
★★★★ The Scotsman
‘There’s a sharp mind behind the sweet exterior… Birkby wins the audience’s affection so thoroughly. As her writing credits on Mock the Week suggest, she knows how to craft a well-made one-liner.’
★★★★ The Telegraph
DRAFT Press release here
Images credit: Esme Buxton
Comedian’s Surgery
Comedian, author and anaesthetist, Ed Patrick brings back Catch Your Breath, a gut-punch hilarious show about becoming a junior doctor, the NHS, the pitfalls of modern medicine and the power of questioning it. He is also bringing his Comedian’s Surgery podcast up for some live shows. In it, he speaks to guests about their health stories and experiences. Previous guests have included Joe Lycett, Rose Matafeo and Reginald D Hunter.
Keywords: NHS, junior doctor, anaesthetist, strike, government, PPE healthcare
DRAFT Press release here.
Images here.
Images credit: Chris W R Cox and Karla Gowlett
Footage to follow.
Michael Kunze: Infinity Mirror
Underbelly Cowgate – Delhi Belly @ 12:55 pm
1 – 25 August (not 12)
Award-winning comic performer, writer and director Michael Kunze makes his eagerly anticipated Fringe solo debut as super-flawed Hollywood film superstar Mitch Coony in a one-man sketch directed by Lee Griffiths.
Michael’s work has been performed at the Soho Theatre, Pleasance, Southwark Playhouse, Kings Head Theatre, and the National Theatre of Ireland. He is a member of the Torino Film Comedy Lab and an alumnus of Soho Theatre’s Comedy Plus lab.
Keywords: failure, celebrity, fame, sacrificing for your dreams, Hollywood, gossip / secrets, comebacks, ambition.
‘Michael Kunze is a comedy master.’
Reviews Hub
‘A masterclass in comedic storytelling.’
★★★★★ EdFringeReview
DRAFT Press release here
Milo Edwards: How Revolting! Sorry To Offend.
Monkey Barrel 2 @ 5:45pm
31 July – 25 August (not 12)
Described by Chortle this year as ‘one of the UK’s smartest, most vital stand-ups’, Milo Edwards has had one of the most varied careers in comedy – going from student comedy to Russian TV stand-up, to becoming one of the UK’s most successful indie podcasters (with Trashfuture) and having three hit solo shows at the Fringe. This year’s show is about Britain, class and how it all really works – as told through his own personal experience and the broader political landscape and involving Danny Dyer, Boris Johnson and the Falklands War.
Keywords: Class, Britain, Politics, Offence, spite as a motivating force!
‘Edwards has quietly become one of the UK’s smartest, most vital stand-ups.’
Chortle, February 2024
‘Arguably the most joke-dense hour you’ll see…Near perfect.’
The Wee Review ★★★★★
DRAFT Press release here
Images credit: Joshua Perot
Mustafa Algiyadi: Almost Legal Alien
Just The Tonic – Just Out of the Box @ 9.20pm
1 – 25 August (not 12)
For his debut Edinburgh Fringe solo hour, Libyan Arab stand-up, Mustafa Algiyadi explores how moving to Europe messed with his concept of belonging and identity. Discovering that the cultural differences between the two “worlds” are bigger than he thought, Mustafa finds himself dealing with some absurd and uncomfortable situations. Mustafa’s credits include opening for Reggie Watts, touring across Europe, and selling out Brighton Fringe shows after founding the first weekly English comedy night in Munich.
Keywords: Belonging, Integration, Cultural differences, Spirituality/Religion, Relationships, Privilege.
‘Blends topical humour and whimsical commentary with light-hearted ease.’
★★★★ The Voice
‘The finest traditions of compering… a demeanour which effortlessly endears him to his audience.’
Chortle
DRAFT Press release here
Nerine Skinner: The Exorcism of Liz Truss
Just The Tonic, The Caves @ 2:40pm
2 – 26 Aug (not 12th)
After her viral success with her Liz Truss parodies, receiving millions of views on YouTube, Britain’s Got Talent Semi-Finalist (The Dots) and Funny Women Content Creator Runner Up, Nerine Skinner debuts at Edinburgh this year.
In 2022, politically unaware Nerine Skinner went viral overnight as Liv Struss, aka the politically hapless Liz Truss. Outlasted in Downing Street by a lettuce, Liz Truss’s political relevance faded, and the country moved on. But Nerine didn’t. Through hilarious, original oddball characters, award nominated political parodies and heartfelt storytelling, this is the story of Nerine trying to let go. Examining how holding onto the past and her unconventional upbringing led to an unhealthy co-dependency with the former Prime Minister.
Keywords: satire, politics, mental health, character comedy, abstract comedy, stand up
‘This comedian’s parody of Liz Truss is hilariously accurate.’
Sophie Thompson – Indy100
‘Liv Struss sketches have been taking the internet by storm.’
Oonagh Keating – The Poke
DRAFT Press release here.
Images credit: Steve Ullathorne and Karla Gowlett
Olaf Falafel: Has Anyone Actually Ever Woven A Sigourney?
Laughing Horse at the Pear Tree @ 3.45pm
1 – 25 August (not 14) @ 3:45pm
Kid’s show – Olaf Falafel Stupidest Super Stupid Show So Far
Laughing Horse @ The Counting House
1 – 25 August (not 14, 20, 21) @ 11.30am
Olaf Falafel is an author, illustrator and a stand-up comedian. His stupidly named comedy shows, including Olaf Falafel and the Cheese Of Truth, have been packed with sublime gags, including the ones that won him Dave’s Joke of the Fringe and that have repeatedly been featured in best joke selections in broadsheet newspapers. This year, Olaf brings his “adult” show, Has Anyone Ever Actually Woven A Sigourney?, and his kids show, Olaf Falafel’s Stupidest Super Stupid Show So Far. As well as trying to make people laugh on stage, Olaf writes and illustrates children’s books including Trixie Pickle Art Avenger and the picture book Blobfish (‘Fish it out, it’s blobby good.’ Alex O’Connell, The Times).
‘Absurdity so well-crafted that silly doesn’t do it justice.’
★★★★ Bruce Dessau, Evening Standard
‘A world of happy. A world with a laugh in every moment. This is a big, beautiful bearhug of a show.’
★★★★ Kate Copstick, The Scotsman
Press release here.
Images here.
Images credit: Alan Powdrill
Ollie Horn: Comedy for Toxic People (and their friends)
Hoots@Potterrow @ 9pm
2-24 August (not 5, 12, 19)
After achieving critical acclaim for his heartfelt, considered, and intelligent storytelling shows in 2019, 2021 and 2023 – 2024 is this year Ollie Horn becomes objectionable. Ollie is 32 years old this year (aka the business end of his late-20s), and he’s starting to wonder whether the reason he hasn’t yet found a long-term partner is because he isn’t toxic enough. Something of a TV personality in Japan, Ollie has appeared as a commentator on BBC R4, The Spectator Podcast, and NHK, and he is co-founder of RGB Monster, a comedy production company that develops technology-driven format comedy shows.
Keywords: Dating, vulnerability, love, marriage, flirting, toxic masculinity.
‘Delivers every joke with a cheeky little smile.’ ★★★★ EdFringe Review
‘One hell of a good show.’ ★★★★ ThreeWeeks
DRAFT Press release here. List of weird gigs here!
Images here.
Images credit: Gabrielle Boudville
Footage to follow.
Sasha Ellen: My MILF-shake Brings All the Boys to the Yard
Cabaret Voltaire @ 6.30pm
1 – 25 August (not 12)
Sasha Ellen is back with a brand new hour of jokes about her teenage old sibling, becoming a childfree MILF and the roadblocks of her thirties. Sasha has been nominated for Best Show at Leicester Comedy Festival, and her last stand-up show, When Life Gives You Ellens, Make Ellenade, was filmed by Next Up and will be released on the platform shortly. Sasha’s jokes have appeared in the Best Jokes of the Fringe collections of The Times and The Telegraph, and she has appeared on Times Radio and BBC Radio Scotland. She co-wrote a sitcom shortlisted for BAFTA’s Rocliffe Competition (TV Comedy) and has written material for BBC Radio 4 Extra.
Sasha is a professional Dungeon Master, whose Dungeons and Dragons style, comedy game show, Character Building Experience (CBE) was shortlisted for the Broadway World Comedy Award. CBE is back at the Fringe this year!
Keywords: millennial, coming of age, mental health, generation gap, Gen Z sibling
‘Incredibly clever.’ ★★★★ Broadway Baby
‘It is impossible not to fall in love with Ellen’s storytelling, quick wit, and vibrant energy.’ ★★★★ BroadwayWorld
DRAFT Press release here
Images
Images credit: Karla Gowlett
Stuart Laws: Stuart Laws Has To Be Joking?
Monkey Barrel Hive 2 @ 4.45pm
1 – 25 Aug (not 14)
Multiple award-nominated comedian and director Stuart Laws has worked with and on shows with some of the UK’s best comedians, including directing specials for Sindhu Vee, Nish Kumar, Rosie Jones, Suzi Ruffell, Paul Foot, Ivo Graham, Jess Fostekew, Jen Brister and Ian Smith. Stuart’s last show (Is The Guy Still Going?) was his most successful and has toured since. This year’s show is about Stuart’s recently diagnosed autism and is a truthful, open exploration of what relationships are like when you don’t have one with yourself. When you don’t know who you are, or what you want, how can anyone else connect with you in a way that you’d want? All this but, you know, with a laugh every 6 – 9 seconds.
Keywords: relationships, neurodivergence, autism, travel
‘Laws uses his unique comic mind to keep us laughing, and we might not even realise until afterwards what a profound and sophisticated show he’s created.’
★★★★.5 Chortle
‘You’ll struggle to find a comedian with a better jokes per minute rate… like a one man episode of Arrested Development.’
★★★★ Fest
DRAFT Press release here
Images credit: Ed Moore
Footage here