As Monkey Barrel adds two new rooms

A mammoth batch of 1,236 shows have officially been added to the  Edinburgh Fringeprogramme today.

They join the 556 shows already revealed, bringing the total to 1,792  so far. More shows are set to be announced on Wednesday May 7 ahead of the  programme launch on June 3.

Among the new shows are a new family-friendly version of Chortle’s Fast Fringe showcase, featuring a dozen different clean acts on each bill, taking place at Gilded Balloon’s new Appleton Tower venue at 1.15pm (Tickets). The usual adult version returns to Pleasance Dome at 6.30pm daily. (Tickets)

Gilded Balloon's other offering include former MP Mhairi Black with her second comedy show, Scot Squad’s Jack Docherty (pictured), Aussie powerhouse Michelle Brasier,   Scottish comedy godfather  Fred MacAulay,  TikTok star Christopher Hall, and former EastEnders actress Michelle Collins making  her Fringe debut in new play Motorhome Marilyn. 

Meanwhile, Monkey Barrel will expand into Cabaret Voltaire, increasing its number of spaces from seven to nine.

As a permanent Edinburgh venue it welcomes a lot of Scottish talent, including Roscoe  McClelland, a Marc Jennings, Stephen Buchanan, and Stuart McPherson, Liam Withnail, Christopher MacArthur-Boyd, and Krystal Evans.

There will also be returning favourites such as Pierre Novellie, Vittorio Angelone, Helen Bauer, Olga Koch, and 2024 best show  nominees Josh Glanc and Chris Cantrill. The winners of the best newcomer awards in 2024 and 2023, respectively, Joe Kent-Walters and Urooj Ashfaq, are also playing the venue.

Meanwhile Gianmarco Soresi, Mike Rice, Diona Doherty, Laura Lexx, Jena Friedman, and Sindhu Vee, are among the newcomers to Monkey Barrel’s Fringe roster.

Yesterday The Pleasance venue and promoters Avalon announced their Fringe rosters.  

Pleasance unveiled 129 shows,  including the transfer of  Adam Riches and John Kearns’s show in which they portray Michael Ball and Alfie Boe. The show, which originally ran at Soho Theatre over Christmas, will play the Pleasance Grand for three nights only.

Other highlights from the comedy programme Emmanuel Sonubi’s stand-up show about a  near-death experience; Kieran Hodgson’s exploration of the American Dream;  Thanyia Moore’s debut hour  and  Glenn Moore promising to pack in  in 300 jokes in his hour.

Ivo Graham, shares the latest chaotic chapter of his career with Orange Crush; Jenny Ryan from The Chase hoes public with her theory of the Mamma Mia Multiverse, and musical meteor Jazz Emu presents his latest show.

Other acts include Julia Masli,  Lorna Rose Treen, Sam Nicoresti, Shaparak Khorsandi and Katie Norris, Mark Watson and more.

Meanwhile, Avalon’s roster includes  Matt Forde, Chloe Petts,  Pierre Novellie, Rob Auton, Tom Rosenthal, Americans Sam Jay, and Zainab Johnson, and more.

Lyndsey Jackson, deputy chief executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, said:  ‘It’s always exciting when a new batch of shows are announced, and it really does feel like August is just around the corner. I’m looking forward to discovering something new and exciting, as well as re-visiting old favourites. 

 The full list of shows so far can be found at edfringe.com.

Published: 2 Apr 2025