Scotland

Every August, alongside the familiar faces returning with their tenth solo show, there&#8217;s a smaller, scrappier crowd taking to an Edinburgh stage for the very first time. Some arrive with genuine pedigree (Radio 4 credits, sold-out work-in-progress runs, the odd Netflix voiceover). Others are simply extraordinary storytellers who&#8217;ve never had a reason to stand in front of a Fringe audience before now. Here are Muddy&#8217;s ones to watch.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-comedy">Comedy</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dom-mcgovern-prize-hog">Dom McGovern: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/dom-mcgovern-prize-hog" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Prize Hog</a> </h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1250" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/DOMM_Maisy_Banks_EDIT1-300dpi_5459.jpg" alt="Prize Hog" class="wp-image-5016" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/DOMM_Maisy_Banks_EDIT1-300dpi_5459.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/DOMM_Maisy_Banks_EDIT1-300dpi_5459-240x300.jpg 240w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/DOMM_Maisy_Banks_EDIT1-300dpi_5459-819x1024.jpg 819w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/DOMM_Maisy_Banks_EDIT1-300dpi_5459-768x960.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photograph: Maisy Banks</figcaption></figure>



What: Dom McGovern makes his debut with an hour of sardonic observations on growing up gay in the early 2000s, unpacking everything from Catholic guilt to eating disorder group therapy with real bite.&nbsp;



Why he&#8217;s one to watch: Dom&#8217;s a co-writer of Chicken Shop Date and a BBC New Comedy Award nominee.&nbsp;



When: 8.30pm, 5 to 30 August (not 18), Bunker One at Pleasance Courtyard



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-maia-tassalini-i-was-22-and-stunning">Maia Tassalini: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/maia-tassalini-i-was-22-and-stunning" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">I Was 22 and Stunning</a> </h3>



What: A witty debut about body image, beauty standards and internet cruelty, using Monica Lewinsky as both muse and mirror, filtered through her own experience as a former plus-size model.&nbsp;



Why she&#8217;s one to watch: Maia is a BBC New Comedian of the Year finalist – Shaparak Khorsandi called her &#8220;born to do it.&#8221;&nbsp;



When: 6pm, 5 to 30 August (not 18), Bunker Three at Pleasance Courtyard



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-maxx-eddy-bi-meets-world">Maxx Eddy: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/maxx-eddy-bi-meets-world" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bi Meets World</a> </h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/7T1A5533.jpg" alt="Maxx Eddy" class="wp-image-5020" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/7T1A5533.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/7T1A5533-200x300.jpg 200w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/7T1A5533-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/7T1A5533-768x1152.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



What: Unpacks bisexuality, masculinity and the exhausting performance of being &#8220;a real man,&#8221; via a long-distance relationship and an accidental panic attack on a Brazilian beach. 



Why he&#8217;s one to watch: Maxx was named New Face of Comedy at Montreal’s Just For Laughs festival.



When: 5pm, 5 to 31 August, Blether at Gilded Balloon Patter House



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sasha-nezlobin-i-m-fine">Sasha Nezlobin: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/sasha-nezlobin-i-m-fine" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">I&#8217;m Fine</a> </h3>



What: Sasha was one of Russia&#8217;s most famous arena comedians before fleeing Moscow in 2022 over his public opposition to the invasion of Ukraine. His show explores emigration, fatherhood and rebuilding a life and career from scratch.&nbsp;



Why he&#8217;s one to watch: Sasha is the creator of hit Russian TV shows and films, now starting over in the West.



When: 9.30pm, 5 to 31 August (not 15, 16, 17, 18), 10 Dome at Pleasance Dome



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-jonno-here-comes-mr-funny">Jonno: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/jonno-here-comes-mr-funny" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Here Comes Mr Funny </a></h3>



What: Jonno goes solo with a joyful, gag-heavy hour about ambition, friendship and watching your peers succeed while you sit it out.&nbsp;



Why he&#8217;s one to watch: Sixteen years into the Fringe as one-third of cult sketch favourites Sheeps, Jonno’s coming this year fresh off a stint as head writer for SNL UK.&nbsp;



When: 7.10pm, 3 to 30 August (not 17), Monkey Barrel 2



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-harriet-richardson-creep">Harriet Richardson: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/harriet-richardson-creep" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Creep</a> </h3>



What: A darkly funny hour about obsession, parasocial desire and where the performer ends and the real person begins.&nbsp;



Why she&#8217;s one to watch: A performance artist best known for her viral &#8220;100 dates&#8221; project, in which she dated 100 people back to back on Valentine&#8217;s Day.&nbsp;



When: 7pm, 5 to 30 August (not 17), Below at Pleasance Courtyard



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-guy-branum-be-fruitful">Guy Branum: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/guy-branum-be-fruitful" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Be Fruitful</a> </h3>



What: A provocative, deeply personal hour using philosophy, science and autobiography to examine purpose, religion and queer identity.&nbsp;



Why he&#8217;s one to watch: Guy is the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning writer behind Hacks and The Other Two.&nbsp;



When: 8.30pm, 5 to 30 August (except 17), Billiard Room at Gilded Balloon



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-jonathan-rudge-stay-at-home-son">Jonathan Rudge: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/jonathan-rudge-stay-at-home-son" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stay At Home Son</a> </h3>



What: Jonathan takes a sharp, self-deprecating look at divorce, moving back in with family and the chaos of starting over in midlife, directed by Bobby Mair.&nbsp;



Why he&#8217;s one to watch: A former daytime TV executive of 19 years, he worked behind the scenes at ITV&#8217;s This Morning.&nbsp;



When: 8.35pm, 6 to 30 August (except 18), Snifter Room at Just The Tonic, Mash House



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-theatre-and-solo-shows">Theatre and solo shows</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-matilde-vigna-a-dark-line-upstairs">Matilde Vigna: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/a-dark-line-upstairs" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">A Dark Line Upstairs</a> </h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/MATILDE-VIGNA_A-DARK-LINE-UPSTAIRS-photograh-Mario-Zanaria.jpg" alt="A dark line upstairs" class="wp-image-5018" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/MATILDE-VIGNA_A-DARK-LINE-UPSTAIRS-photograh-Mario-Zanaria.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/MATILDE-VIGNA_A-DARK-LINE-UPSTAIRS-photograh-Mario-Zanaria-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/MATILDE-VIGNA_A-DARK-LINE-UPSTAIRS-photograh-Mario-Zanaria-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/MATILDE-VIGNA_A-DARK-LINE-UPSTAIRS-photograh-Mario-Zanaria-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photograph: Mario Zanaria</figcaption></figure>



What: Matilde makes her Fringe debut with a poetic, sharply comic monologue intertwining the catastrophic 1951 Italian floods with the anxieties of modern flat-hunting, mortgages and heartbreak. 



Why she&#8217;s one to watch: She’s an Italian Ubu Award winner – Italy’s most prestigious theatrical honour.&nbsp;



When: 2.40pm, 7 to 30 August, ZOO Playground 3



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-keeley-hazell-everyone-s-seen-my-tits">Keeley Hazell: <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/keeley-hazell-everyone-s-seen-my-tits" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Everyone&#8217;s Seen My Tits</a> </h3>



What: Keeley adapts her own memoir into a darkly comic reckoning with class, fame, revenge porn and reclaiming ownership of a very publicly constructed image.&nbsp;



Why she&#8217;s one to watch: A former glamour model turned writer, Keeley is also a Ted Lasso actress.&nbsp;



When: 5.40pm, 5 to 29 August (except 17), Bunker Two at Pleasance Courtyard



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-betsi"><a href="http://betsi" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Betsi</a> </h3>



What: The story of Betsi Cadwaladr, the Welsh nurse who defied Florence Nightingale to become one of the first British nurses on the Crimean War front line, at the age of 65.&nbsp;



Why it&#8217;s one to watch: This is the debut Fringe production from newly formed Her Story Theatre Company – as lead actor Clare Drewett puts it, &#8220;we are probably among the oldest actors at Edinburgh Festival Fringe&#8221;. It shows in the confidence of the storytelling.&nbsp;



When: 1.45pm, 24 to 29 August, theSpace @ Surgeons&#8217; Hall



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-movement-and-physical-theatre-nbsp">Movement and physical theatre&nbsp;</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-elba"><a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/elba" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ELBA</a> </h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1415" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/Rhani-Mahabir-Stokes-Katie-Scott.png" alt="ELBA" class="wp-image-5019" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/Rhani-Mahabir-Stokes-Katie-Scott.png 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/Rhani-Mahabir-Stokes-Katie-Scott-212x300.png 212w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/Rhani-Mahabir-Stokes-Katie-Scott-724x1024.png 724w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/07/Rhani-Mahabir-Stokes-Katie-Scott-768x1087.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Image: Rhani Mahabir-Stokes &amp; Katie Scott</figcaption></figure>



What: A multi-media physical theatre satire set to Napoleon Bonaparte&#8217;s forgotten months of exile on the island of Elba, using movement, music and text to explore gentrification, pricing out locals and politicians&#8217; broken promises.&nbsp;



Why he&#8217;s one to watch: Ishan Mahabir-Stokes is a former Royal Ballet School student and Scottish Ballet dancer, drawing on his time at Scottish Ballet under Christopher Hampson and his own culturally diverse upbringing in Brixton.&nbsp;



When: 4.30pm, 7 to 30 August (not 18), The Sub-Atomic Room at Just The Tonic, Nucleus



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-louise-the-last-dance"><a href="https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/louise-the-last-dance" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Louise: The Last Dance</a> </h3>



What: A solo theatre and media arts piece about Louise Weber, the working-class woman who invented the cancan and became the first star of the Moulin Rouge, only to die selling peanuts on the street outside it.&nbsp;



Why it’s one to watch: Toronto-based multidisciplinary artist Stella Kulagowski fuses live performance, projection and dance in a show about who gets to tell their own story.&nbsp;



When: 4.20pm, 7 to 29 August (not 15, 22), Ivy Studio at Greenside, George Street



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-in-the-mood-for-more">IN THE MOOD FOR MORE?</h2>



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<li><a href="https://scotland.muddystilettos.co.uk/things-to-do/whats-on/catch-the-best-fringe-shows/">Edinburgh Fringe cheatsheet: 10 tips for catching the best shows</a></li>



<li><a href="https://scotland.muddystilettos.co.uk/things-to-do/edinburgh-festivals/weird-wonderful-fringe/">Weird, wonderful and gloriously unhinged Fringe shows for something a little extra</a></li>



<li><a href="https://scotland.muddystilettos.co.uk/things-to-do/latest-news/first-must-book-fringe-shows/">Big names for belly laughs: 33 must-book Fringe comedy shows</a></li>
</ul>

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