edinburgh fringe

The Edinburgh Fringe Archives – James Seager and Les Enfants Terribles (Vaudevillans, 2016)

December 1, 2022

Season 18

Episode 13

00:12:44

Everyone at the Fringe is inventive, but one group is very much associated with that in my mind, Les Enfant Terribles. Formed in 2002 by James Seager and Oliver Lansley, they have brought many shows to the Fringe over the years, from psychological World War One horror, through Piratosaurs, to 2016’s vaudevillans;a classic murder caper mixed with a variety show.

James Seager popped into our studio that year to explain it… although that year the studio was a shed next to a double decker bus that had been renovated to be a theatre on wheels. Oh and Lucy Evans joined me from Edinburgh Student Radio Fresh Air FM as well.

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The Edinburgh Fringe Archives – Jeff Innocent (Eco-Worrier, 2006)

November 17, 2022

Season 18

Episode 12

00:16:34

An artist at heart with a long and varied list of interests, Jeff Innocent went on a stand-up comedy course in 1996 – led by alt-comedy legend Tony Allen – and he’s not stopped since then. Jeff has carved out a place in the UK stand-up scene like no other, as well as working as a writer and actor.

In 2006 he brought the show Eco-worrier to the Edinburgh Fringe – environmentalism remains a strong part of his ethos to this day – and it’s interesting to be reminded of how the path looked some 16 years ago.

So we return to the Stand, with Jeff Innocent, and listen to 2006’s Eco-Worrier.

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The Edinburgh Fringe Archive – Little Soldier Productions (The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha, 2014)

October 20, 2022

Season 18

Episode 8

00:16:21

The Fringe is not just a recruiting vehicle for Live at the Apollo, there’s more to comedy, more to the fringe, than that. You can have theatrical performances that bring the art of clowning and farce to the stage alongside pathos and examination of the human condition.

In 2014, Little Soldier Productions brought its first production to the Fringe, the aforementioned Don Quixote show, which took massive liberties with the story, twisted reality and fantasy, and ignored any semblance of structure… in other words did a Don Quixote to the classic Don Quixote structure.

And it paid off. At the Fringe, it was awarded The Stage’s Award for Acting Excellence, and since then it has seen over 130 performances in 5 different countries. Little Soldier has gone on online talks, presentations, workshops, and five more shows, including “Nothing Happens (Twice)” which graced the stage at London’s Soho Theatre this summer.

Once the podcast team stumbled over the show, we couldn’t wait to get everyone from the show into the studio and on to the podcast. In 2014 we were broadcasting live on community radio as well as publishing the podcast, which meant rather more energy in the room from myself and co-host Dan Lentell from the Edinburgh49 website.

So let’s go back to the Zoo Southside, to the cellar of the Zoo, in 2014, and find a tiny windmill from Little Soldier’s “The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha”.

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The Edinburgh Fringe Archive – Tim Fitzhigham (Flanders And Swann, At The Drop Of A Hippopotamus, 2016)

October 13, 2022

Season 18

Episode 7

00:19:04

There are Fringe performers, there are Fringe stalwarts, and then there is Tim FitzHigham

This Gentleman Explorer has spent decades at the Fringe, bringing shows about his madcap activities that he has attempted in the previous twelve months…most notably he was the first person to row across the English Channel in a bathtub, held the British and European record for the longest Washing Line, and was part of an obscure show called “Alex Horne: The Taskmaster” in 2010. I wonder what happened to that?

Anyway, 2016 saw a much calmer FitzHigham in Edinburgh. Although not quite ready to present his latest daredevil moment, he once more joined with Duncan Walsh Atkins to bring their loving tribute to Flanders and Swann to the Fringe for its tenth show.

Part tribute, part let’s do some funny song, part ‘let’s not forget about these titanic comedians’, FitzHigham and Atkins continue to present their showcase of the comedic music from Michael Flanders and Donald Swann at the Fringe,

Tim joined myself, and co-host Paul Levy from FringeReview, in 2016’s Podcast Studio to talk about the show, his love of Flanders and Swann, and their importance to the cultural landscape.

So let’s go back to The Cabaret Bar, to 2016, and enjoy At The Drop Of A Hippopotamus.

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The Edinburgh Fringe Archive – Adam Kay (Bum Notes, 2012)

October 6, 2022

Season 18

Episode 6

00:14:50

I’ve talked before about the podcast archive giving us a window into the past when the recognisable names of today were still figuring their artistic life out. That’s very much the case with Adam Kay. With ‘The London Underground’ song becoming the breakout viral hit of 2005 (or at least as viral as you could manage in 2005) he started his appearances at the Edinburgh Fringe.

We join his story in 2012, where his mix of songs and storytelling settled into the ‘Fringe Favourite’ list, with multiple years of sell-out shows in Edinburgh and across the United Kingdom.

It was his first book, ‘This Is Going To Hurt’, that started this new period in his career. It was a Sunday times bestseller, sold over one million copies, and won numerous Book of the Year’ awards. Kay adapted the book for the recent seven-part BBC Series, with Ben Whishaw taking on the now fictional role of Dr Adam Kay. His third book, ‘The Story of a Medic Who Ran Out Of Patients’, was published this year, following on from 2019’s ‘Twas The Nightshift Before Christmas’.

Back in 2012, much of this was ahead of Kay. It’s August and his job is to get through the Fringe. In this interview we talk a bit about his life as a Doctor in the NHS and the move into performing, when going with a ‘big four’ venue was the right choice for him, and how the Fringe can benefit him for the whole year.

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The Edinburgh Fringe Archive – Kate Smurthwaite (The News At Kate: Leftie Cockwomble, 2014)

September 29, 2022

Season 16

Episode 5

00:15:53

2014 is our destination this week, for that year’s ‘News At Kate’ from Kate Smurthwaite.

Smurthwaite’s TV writing credits include ‘Have I Got News For You’ and ‘The Revolution Will be Televised’ her words have appeared in The Guardian, New Statesman, Cosmopolitan, and more; and she has made countless appearances discussing politics over the years. 2022 saw the award-winning Smurthwaite bring “The News At Kate: Humanity’s Last Hope” to the Edinburgh Fringe.

“The News At Kate” is a lynchpin of the Fringe, and it’s been part of August for as long as I can remember. 2014 saw “The News” with the delightful tagline of “Lefty Cockwomble”.

The tag came about following her appearance on the BBC’s Question Time. With so many people asking her about her experience, this highly visible foray into political debate was the starting point for that year’s show that examined the definitions of freedom of speech.

There have been countless political whirlwinds since 2014. Yet some of the points raised remain just as pertinent, if not more, in 2022’s devastating landscape.

So let’s head back to 2014, to the Free Fringe stage in Viva Mexico, to the ‘News At Kate’.

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The Edinburgh Fringe Archive – Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag, 2013)

September 1, 2022

Season 18

Episode 1

00:11:59

In our first trip into the archive, we start with Fleabag. Directed by Vicky Wood, written and performed by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, this small show from 2013 took place in the depths of the Underbelly. It remains the gold standard of Fringe legends… from a theatrical dare, to a short stand-up like ten minutes, to a ‘that’s so Fringe’ run in Edinburgh, and then onwards into the zeitgeist Phoebe and Vicky joined Ewan Spence in the podcast studio to talk about the origins of Fleabag, highlight the importance of the subject matter, and try to remember how much of the script was cut before it reached the stage.

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Introducing The Edinburgh Fringe Archives

August 29, 2022

Season 18

00:02:20

As we prepare to explore nearly twenty years of Fringe coverage, Ewan Spence offers a quick audio glance into the archives to give you a taste of what’s to come with some Fringe moments from Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Arthur Smith, and Tiff Stevenson.

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The Edinburgh Fringe Show 2022 – Making The Fringe Accessible

August 20, 2022

Season 17

Episode 20

00:17:48

Ewan talks to live captioner Claire Hill (Claire Hill Realtime) and Jonnny Patton (producer and programmer for The Pleasance) about the various accessible shows at The Pleasance; including audio described, captioned, signed, relaxed shows and touch tours, as part of the Fringe.

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The Edinburgh Fringe Show 2022 – This Week’s Fringe Review And Recommendations

August 20, 2022

Season 17

Episode 19

00:21:30

Fin Ross and Ewan sit down together after another week of The Fringe to talk about the shows they have seen, the marathon of performing in Edinburgh, and to discuss the big news stories from the biggest Arts Festival in the world. They also pick out four shows to recommend for this weekend in the Capital.

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