“Went to see Stewart Lee with my friend (who assured me he was funny) but had to leave halfway through after tolerating an hour long rant about sharks. Never again. It was painful. But ironically we laughed about it after. Literally no idea why the man is so obsessed with sharks. Complete gibberish.” – Nicola Keaney, Deputy Director of Newsgathering CGTN, Forbes 30 Under 30, Senior Fellow John Schofield Trust

1) WOKE SO-CALLED ‘COMEDIAN’ T-SHIRT

There has never been a wokier time to own a wokely fabricated Stewart Lee ‘Woke so-called ‘comedian’’ leisure garment.
Woke so-called’ ‘comedian’ ‘Stewart Lee’ says – “As all alt right journalists know, the best way to invalidate a word is to put it in inverted commas.
But if I was Vladimir Putin I’d want my money back! Celebrate the paucity of traditional alt right arguments against woke comedy with this irksome ‘so-called’ comedian shirt, manufactured in the wokest way possible with the wokest materials available.”

Available from this link…
https://wax-face.com/stewart-lee

Made on Anthem Organic Tee Shirts who are a UK based ethical tee shirt manufacturer. They cost £20,00 each and will start shipping from 2022. Content Provider facemasks cost £15 each and are in stock and shipping now! Hoodies of Content Provider and All The Cheeses are also in stock and shipping now. They cost £35 each.

2. BASIC LEE

I will be launching a new Stand-up tour, BASIC LEE, in the Summer/Autumn of 2022, next year.
The London Autumn 2022 dates are on sale w national 2023, and Edinburgh Aug 22 work-in-prog, dates to follow

LEICESTER SQUARE THEATRE

Tues – Sat from Sept 20th to Dec 17th 2022

(EXCEPT Oct 18th – 29th and Nov 11^th)
7pm (4pm performance Saturday 12^th November

After a decade of ground-breaking high concept shows involving overarched interlinked narratives, massive sets and enormous comedy props, Lee enters the post-pandemic era in streamlined solo stand-up mode. One man, one microphone, and one microphone in the wings in case the one on stage breaks. Pure. Simple. Classic. Basic Lee. “The world’s greatest living stand-up comedian.” The Times

LEICESTER SQUARE SEPTEMBER – DECEMBER TICKETS HERE

First scheduled touring dates below. More to follow.

Monday 23rd January 2023 – Royal & Derngate, Northampton – TICKETS
Tuesday 24th January 2023 – St. David’s Hall, Cardiff – TICKETS
Wednesday 25th January 2023 – St. David’s Hall, Cardiff – TICKETS
Thursday 26th January 2023 – Symphony Hall, Birmingham – TICKETS
Friday 27th January 2023 – Symphony Hall, Birmingham – TICKETS
Monday 30th January 2023 – Playhouse, Oxford – TICKETS
Tuesday 31st January 2023 – Playhouse, Oxford – TICKETS
Wednesday 1st February 2023 – Playhouse, Oxford – TICKETS
Thursday 2nd February 2023 – Playhouse, Oxford – TICKETS
Friday 3rd February 2023 – Playhouse, Oxford – TICKETS
Saturday 4th February 2023 – Playhouse, Oxford – TICKETS
Monday 6th February 2023 – Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham – TICKETS
Tuesday 7th February 2023 – Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham – TICKETS
Wednesday 8th February 2023 – Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham – TICKETS
Thursday 9th February 2023 – DeMontfort Hall, Leicester – TICKETS
Friday 10th February 2023 – DeMontfort Hall, Leicester – TICKETS
Saturday 11th February 2023 – Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool – TICKETS
Sunday 12th February 2023 – Grand Theatre, Wolverhampton – TICKETS
Wednesday 22nd February 2023 – Belgrade Theatre, Coventry – TICKETS
Thursday 23rd February 2023 – Belgrade Theatre, Coventry – TICKETS
Friday 24th February 2023 – Wycombe Swan, High Wycombe – TICKETS
Saturday 25th February 2023 – Palace Theatre, Southend On Sea – TICKETS
Sunday 26th February 2023 – Palace Theatre, Southend On Sea – TICKETS
Friday 3rd March 2023 – Theatre Royal, Plymouth – TICKETS
Saturday 4th March 2023 – Theatre Royal, Plymouth – TICKETS
Wednesday 8th March 2023 – Milton Keynes Theatre, Milton Keynes – TICKETS
Thursday 9th March 2023 – Milton Keynes Theatre, Milton Keynes – TICKETS
Friday 24th March 2023 – Rose Theatre, Kingston – TICKETS
Saturday 25th March 2023 – Rose Theatre, Kingston – TICKETS
Monday 27th March 2023 – The Lowry, Salford Quays – TICKETS
Tuesday 28th March 2023 – The Lowry, Salford Quays – TICKETS
Wednesday 29th March 2023 – The Lowry, Salford Quays – TICKETS
Thursday 30th March 2023 – The Lowry, Salford Quays – TICKETS
Friday 31st March 2023 – The Lowry, Salford Quays – TICKETS
Saturday 1st April 2023 – The Lowry, Salford Quays – TICKETS
Thursday 4th May 2023 – Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford – TICKETS
Friday 5th May 2023 – Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford – TICKETS
Saturday 6th May 2023 – Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford – TICKETS
Friday 26th May 2023 – Playhouse, Nottingham – TICKETS
Saturday 27th May 2023 – Playhouse, Nottingham – TICKETS
Saturday 27th May 2023 – Playhouse, Nottingham – TICKETS
Sunday 28th May 2023 – Playhouse, Nottingham – TICKETS

3. EDINBLUR 2022

32nd fringe, 44th, 45th and 46th shows.

Two shows. A w-i-p at 10 am and a final go on the Snowflake half of Snowflake/Tornado at 1.50pm

STEWART LEE: Basic Lee (Work In Progress)

Stand 1, 10am (10.00hrs) – 3^rd – 27^th August (days off 15^th & 16^th Aug)

BASIC LEE (Work In Progress) TICKETS HERE

STEWART LEE: Snowflake

The Stand’s New Town Theatre (Grand Hall), 1.50pm (13.50hrs) – 3^rd – 28 August (days off 15^th & 16^th Aug)

SNOWFLAKE TICKETS HERE

4. THE SNOWFLAKE TORNADO TV/DVD

This was filmed in York in May and will be on BBC2 in autumn as 2 separate shows. Enjoy an hour long rant about sharks.

5. KING ROCKER DVD/SCREENINGS

Our critically acclaimed doc KING ROCKER is available on DVD, and the s/track is out on various formats too, w 90 mins of extras and bonus audio cd.

https://www.firerecords.com/product/king-rocker-ost/

I will be co-hosting screenings of the film in Edinbue with dir Michael Cumming at the Cameo on the 24th and 26th at 4pm TICKETS

Michael is also hosting screenings of his Brass Eye doc Oxide Ghosts at the same venue, same time, 25th and 27th TICKETS

6. I ARROGANTLY RECOMMEND SOME 2022 HAPPENINGS/THINGS

Daniel Kitson. The elusive comedy wunderkind AUGUST 21st –Regents Park Open Air Theatre – London

THE FALLEN LEAVES Top punk-mod gentlemen entertainers. AUGUST 21^st London Putney Half Moon, SEPT 10^TH London Camden Dublin Castle, 17^th Lewes Con Club

ALASDAIR ROBERTS Scottish troubadour SEPT 3rd Cardiff Chapter.

ELIZA CARTHY English folk godhead back in active service NOV 28TH Birmingham Glee, 30th Cardiff Glee. DEC 5th Cambridge Junction

EARL OKIN The mouth trumpeteer runs amok. SEPTEMBER 2022 11th – Charity Jazz/Cabaret Show, Norwich Playhouse, 42 – 58 St George’s Street, Norwich, Norfolk, NR3 1AB, Booking line: 01603.63000

ACID MOTHERS’ TEMPLE Japanese acid all-fathers OCTOBER 9th Birmingham Norton’s, 10th York Crescent, 11th Glasgow Hug & Pint, 12th Newcastle Star and Shadow, 13th Salford White Hotel, 16th Preston Continental, 19th Bristol Lanes, 20th Brighton Komedia, 21st London Studio 9294

DREAM SYNDICATE Blue collar paisley underground psychedelic explorers in imperial career phase. OCTOBER 18TH London Lafayette

RECC’D INTERNETS, YOUTUBES AND PODCASTS

Rosie Holt’s Youtube characters *****
Ogmios School of Zen Motoring *****
Limmy’s review of After Life *****
The Exploding Heads
Alasdair Beckett-King’s various things *****
Sooz Kempner as Nadine Dorries on Twitter

12. IN OUR COVID ERA LAMENTATIONS 2022

Sydney Poitier – woke actor (1927)
Magwa – woke Cambodian landmine hunting rat (2013)
Burke Shelley – bass Budgie (1950)
Ronnie Spector – woke Ronette (1943)
Rachel Nagy – Detroit Cobra (1975)
Robin Le Mesurier – Womble (1954)
Andy Ross – Disco Zombie/nice man of Britpop (1956)
Barry Cryer – King Of Comedy (1935)
Norma Waterson – Mighty Folk Matriarch (1939)
John Nolan – man Behind The Magnolia Curtain (1966)
Betty Davis – She Might Get Picked Up! (1944)
Ivan Reitman – He was not afraid of no ghost! (1946)
Mark Lanegan – Screaming Tree rehabilitee (1964)
Bruce Anderson – MX-80 man (1950)
Anna Karen – ‘70s public transport icon (1936)
Sam Lay – Howlin’ Wolf/Butterfield/Dylan drums (1935)
Mikey Chung – Reggae session regular (1950)
Fred Van Hove – Belgian free-jazz stringbender (1937)
Ian McDonald – Crimson saxophonist King (1949)
Gary Brooker – Synesthesiac Hackney musician (1945)
Nicky Tesco – Suburban soundman/comedy fan (1956)
Dallas Good – Sadies guitar slinger (1974)
Philip Jeck – Art Noiseman (1952)
Margaret Curtis – Callanish visionary (1942)
Jordan – punk fashionista (1955)
David McKee – Then the shopkeeper appeared (1935)
Chris Bailey – Lordly protopunk, wit, raconteur (1957)
Gilbert Gottfried – That ‘Too Soon’ guy (1955)
Audrey Henshall – Scottish Neolithic expert (1927)
Eric Chappell – Rising Damp (1933)
Klaus Schultze – Tangerine Joker (1947)
Neal Adams – Woke progressive comics creator (1941)
Judy Henske – Greenwich psych-folkstress (1936)
George Perez – Best Avengers artist ever (1954)
Don Craine – deerstalking Downliner (1945)
Richard Polodor – acid rock engineer (1936)
Gavin Martin – music rag wit (1962)
Fred Ward – Worm Warrior (1942)
Vangelis – Apocalypso-Maestro (1943)
Bob Neuwirth – Gelb/Dylan adjacent beatnik (1939)
Cathal Coughlan – Microdisney Man (1960)
Rick Price – Move bassist (1944)
Ric Parnell – Tap/Rooster drummer & gardener
Alan White – Ono drums (1949)
Ray Liotta – has let himself go (1954)
Ronnie Hawkins – Canadian rock wellspring (1935)
Harrison Birtwistle – When Things Fall Over (1934)
Grachan Moncur – Jazz trombonius (1937)
Ray Hill – anti-Nazi mole (1939)
Paula Rego – pastel radical (1935)
Julee Cruise – Peak voice (1956)
Bruce Kent – God’s peacenik (1929)
Jean-Louis Trintignant – mute spaghetti hero (1930)
James Caan – Rollerballbearing and Elf-father (1940)
Barbara Thompson – saxophonist whose time I wasted (1944)

8) EDINBRECOMMENDATIONS AUGUST 22

Here are my tips for August in Edinburgh. Bear in mind, although I did 34 Fringes between 1987 and this year, appearing in over 50 different shows, it’s ten years since I knew who the hot new people were in comedy, and fifteen since I had a handle on Fringe theatre. My choices below are based on nostalgia for the old, curiosity the new, and a desire to see again people who have been brilliant before. Or they’re things people told me to see for various random reasons.

I always say it’s better to support smaller venues and Free Fringe if you can, but this is often deliberately misconstrued as an attempt to disenfranchise other acts, rather than to level the playing field for people who can’t afford the losses incurred at larger venues through well known comedy promoters. Social access to the arts based on class and wealth is in the worse state it’s been in my lifetime, with some attempts to disbar diverse voices from having a platform seeming to me like evidence of a deliberate political agenda to consolidate the power and profile or The Rich and The Right. Edinburgh landlords in 2022 are guilty of consolidating this imbalance through ignorance and greed, The Fringe Society through neglect. So, buying a ticket to see Kunt and The Gang at the Free Fringe is actually political act akin to manning an ‘80s miners’ strike picket line or setting fire to a massive ‘70s bra. I expect the Monkey Barrel will be where comedy coalesces into something new this year, but only a fool, or a Sunday supplement Arts Journalist, makes firm pre-Fringe predictions. Before I had kids I used to aim to see 100 shows a year, and this year I reckon I may make that target again. And the beauty of the Fringe is you always find something superb that you never heard of before, and never would have imagined. So ignore this list of recommendations as a matter of principle. And remember, official coverage of the fringe by informed critics on an accommodation budget is at an all-time low due to the collapse of ‘legacy’ media, so do your best to spread the word of genuine finds by whatever means necessary.

SOME CAVEATS

1) PHIL MCINTYRE.

Before lockdown Phil McIntyre promotions were promoting live dates by Neo-conservative author Douglas Murray, so if you see any of their shows, in order to balance his promoters’ role in Murray’s creeping normalization, you must see two shows by black or Asian comedians, or four by people of mixed-race in which one of the races is Caucasian. Or one by a fully black or Asian comedian, and two by comedians of mixed race, in which, in each case, one of the races is Caucasian.

2) AVALON.

Avalon spearheaded the pay-to-play ethos of the Fringe in the ‘90s and ‘00s, ruining many young people’s lives for ever and stamping their dreams into the dirt, though the Free Fringe has helped to offset this issue. Due to their historical guilt, if you see anyone promoted by Avalon you must see two Free Fringe shows and put twice what you paid for your Avalon show ticket into the bucket. Unless the Free Fringe show is being performed by an Avalon act, in which case you must take money from the bucket and give it to a waif in the lane outside.

COMEDY

Aboriginal Comedy All Stars – Assembly George Sq I don’t know anything about this but it’s sort of the point of what the Fringe is actually for, isn’t it? The Coloured Stone of comedy! 5.20PM

Rob Auton – The Crowd Show – Assembly George Sq Auton is a great alternative comedian/poet/artist in the lineage of John Hegley, Daniel Kitson, Bruce Lacey and Simon Munnery. The Nestene Consciousness of Stand-Up. WARNING – AVALON SHOW – REPARATIONS RULES APPLY. 2.50PM

Alasdair Beckett-King – Nevermore – Pleasance Dome ABK is one of the comedians who, during lockdown, made me reassess whether it was possible to generate really good comedy for the internet, by meeting the limitations of the form head-on. 7PM

Jason Byrne – The Paddy Lama – Underbelly Bristo Sq, Jersey (8th – 28th) & Unblocked – Underbelly, Bristo Sq, McEwan Hall (3rd-28th) Neo-conservative author Douglas Murray’s live promoters, Phil MacIntyre, bring us two helpings of high-octane in-the-moment madness from the reliably nuts Irish funnyman and heart condition sufferer, currently entering the ‘Legend’ phase of his career. The Caoimhín Breathnach of comedy. 2.30PM/7.30PM

Jo Caulfield – Here Comes Trouble – Stand 1 – Ageless and effortless, Caulfield is the act you send Fringe-bewildered visiting relatives to to prove to them that loads of the comedians that aren’t on the TV all the time are much better at the business of stand-up than all the ones they have heard of. Once upon a time, I sent them to John Bishop. I wonder what happened to him? Jo Cauldfield is the Stevie Nicks of stand-up. A young Deborah Vance if she was real. 8.20PM

John Cooper Clarke – I Wanna Be Yours – Playhouse (24th only) The poet laureate of punk celebrates himself w special guests including me. 7.30PM

Paul Currie – The Chorus of Ghosts Living in My Skull Keep Telling Me to Take a Shit in the Fruit Salad – Just The Tonic @ Caves – Properly joyously deranged surrealist clown comedy in the tradition of Phil Kay, pre-ayahuasca Jim Carrey, and prime Paul Currie. Let Paul Currie curry your f(l)avour today! With garlic naan!! The Reverend Joseph Garvan Digges of comedy! 9PM

Omid Djalili – The Good Times – Stand’s New Town Theatre (4th-20th) reliably hilarious stand-up with a political edge from the Wellesley Tudor Pole of comedy. 5.20PM

An Evening Without Kate Bush – Assembly George Sq Gardens Lots of people tell me this is great, and it was written before Bush resurfaced via Strange Things. 5.55PM

Fascinating Aida – Assembly George Square Three glamorous dames of a certain age swear with unexpected foulness through musical parodies that despite their apparent gentility often take extreme leftist political positions. Knocks young stand-up boys in t-shirts into the piss-filled urinal where they belong. Hips! Lips! Tits! Power! The Pigface of middle class liberal musical comedy. 6PM

Peter Fleming’s Woefully Inaccurate History of The BBC – Laughing Horse at Counting House (22nd only!) I saw this character at Machfest and it was a comic love letter to a lost world of Reithian values. 7PM

Paul Foot – Swan Power – Underbelly Cowgate Sinister, surreal and lascivious, like Christopher Lee’s Dracula or a strange fly, Foot handed a generation the keys to a door he himself then bricked up, walling himself into an airless tomb of hermetic hermit hilarity. Paul Foot is the Eustache Dauger of comedy! 7.20PM

Janeane Garofolo – Pardon My Tangent – Gilded Balloon – Former enfant terrible now grande dame of US Alt Com. The Alice Bag of stand-up. You owe her so much, kids. 7.15PM

Will Hodgson – Barbicidal Tendancies – Just The Tonic @ The Caves Hodgson is an unaffected raconteur fascinated by the intricacies of life in the small market town of Chippenham. I always assumed one day they would be massively famous, but they ain’t, which is our gain really, as they are able to continue to give us a barber’s eye view of Chippenham uncompromised by being a celebrity. The Thomas ‘Mensi’ Mensforth of comedy. 2.10PM

Rosie Holt – The Woman’s Hour – Pleasance Courtyard Rosie Holt is one of the comedians who, during lockdown, made me reassess whether it was possible to generate really good comedy for the internet, by meeting the limitations of the form head-on. 6PM

David Johnson Emerging Talent Award – Assembly George Sq (28th Aug only) My late promoter is commemorated with a show and awards evening that is sure to be as memorable as it is worthwhile as it is hilarious. Cuntage a-plenty! Your trousers may go up as well as down. The Alan Wise of comedy! 6PM

Jonny & The Baptists – Dance Like It Never Happened – Assembly George Square Political musical satire that rocks like a rock and is as funny as the funniest thing there is. My go-to show. The most fun it’s possible to have on the Fringe. The Ian and Sylvia of politico-musical-satire. 4PM

David Kay – Garden Office Legend – Stand’s New Town Theatre (8th-14th) D Kay is a proper alternative comedian of the old deadpan-surreal school and MUST BE SEEN BY ALL!!!! The Old Man of Hoy of comedy. 2.50PM

Phil Kay – Quantity Street – Laughing Horse at Counting House To my generation the ever unpredictable P Kay was a legend, but his commitment to chaos baffles the gatekeepers of contemporary comedy, even as it inspired a phalanx of followers in the ‘90s. The Paul Rutherford (trombonist) of jazz stand-up. 10PM

John Kearns & Pat Cahill – Monkey Barrell 22nd/23rd only. See these two odd men’s special late night shows. Also, a good way to see Kearns without incurring the Avalon tax, although if you were to see Kearns’ Avalon promoted show you could also see this one as part of your reparations. 11.20PM

Kunt & The Gang – Shannon Matthews The Musical – Just The Tonic At The Caves. The Shannon Matthews story was made for Essex electro-punk-popster Kunt’s distinctive kitchen sink realist sensibility. I can’t wait. The Alecky Blythe & Adam Cork of Comedy! MIDNIGHT

Lloyd Langford – DILF – Free Fringe At Legends (6th – 18th) Lloyd was another one of my annual solo Fringe nights out. I liked being at the back of The White Horse on Cannongate, Guinessed up with a whisky chaser ready, and knowing I was in for a solid hour of low-status Welsh laughs. The Meic Stephens of stand-up. 6.05PM

Trevor Lock’s New Show – Bannerman’s South American hallucinogen-casualty Lock is the shamanic Syd Barret of stand-up, the death of his ego the only thing that ever stood between him and superstardom. 2.45PM

Josie Long – Re-enchantment – Monkey Barrel Former teenage wunderkind of stand-up returns, presumably as inspiring as ever. The Manda Rin of stand-up. 2.50PM

Mavelus – All The Marvel Movies … Kind Of! – Just The Tonic Caves – I have no idea what this will be like, but I expect I will enjoy it if I go with the right person (Ben Moor or some small children) The Mighty World of Icarus of comedy. 6.10PM

Ben Moor & Joanna Neary – Booktalkbooktalkbook – Pleasance Courtyard (26th & 27th ONLY!!!) I have seen this and it is brilliant. I don’t know why they are only doing it twice, the twats. It’s as if Jorge Luis Borges has written a parody of book festival events, a Russian Doll of a show that kaleidoscopes psychedelically into itself and then evaporates. The Max Ernst and Leonora Carrington of surrealist literary parody. 2.45PM

Eleanor Morton Has Peaked – Monkey Barrel (3rd – 28th)& Craig On Tour – – Stand (15th) Morton is one of the comedians who, during lockdown, made me reassess whether it was possible to generate really good comedy for the internet, by meeting the limitations of the form head-on. 12.40PM/10.20PM

Simon Munnery – Trials and Tribulations – Stand 1. Those of us that came of age as comedians in the 80s/90s know Simon is one of the all time great British stand-ups, the Peter Cook of his generation, but without the early massive success and subsequent squandered wealth. A must see!!! The Søren Kierkegaard of comedy. 3.15PM

Joanna Neary – Wasp In A Cardigan – Stand 2 More surgically precise strangeness from the Exene Cervenka of quirky character comedy. MIDDAY

David O’Doherty – Whoa Is Me! – Assembly George Sq Always brilliant practitioner of Very Low Energy Musical Whimsy. The Jandek of comedy. 7.30PM

Jerry Sadowitz – Not For Anyone! – Pleasance @ EICC (12th/13th) Sadowitz’s schtick made conceptual sense when we all lived in a supposed liberal consensus, but now we are in the foothills of Phil MacIntyre-promoted fascism-lite will it read differently? He is one of the great stand-ups but we are in a different world to the one that gave us the classic ‘80s opening line, “Nelson Mandela! What a cunt!” I wish I could see it nonetheless, but he won’t let me. The Gilles de Rais of comedy/magic. 9PM

Paul Sinha – One Sinha Lifetime – Stand’s New Town Theatre. Paul is a brilliant, measured, writerly, satirical, compassionate stand-up, and I was worried his success in his favoured field of TV trivia quizzing would steal him away from the art form, much as talking to Ed Gamble about food threatens to steer J Acaster from the path The Norns have chosen for him. But here he is, back. Brilliant. The Captain Scarlet of comedy. 4.40PM

Eleanor Tiernan – Away With The Faeries – Gilded Balloon Teviot Tiernan has been quietly and unassumingly brilliant for ages now and every Fringe her show is my treat to myself. This is promoted by evil comedy agents Avalon though, so if you do see this, carbon-balance your guilt by going to see a free Fringe type show or some worthwhile loss-making art. The Sister Anselme O’Ceallaigh of stand-up. WARNING – AVALON ACT – REPARATION RULES APPLY 6.15PM

Thom Tuck & Tim Fitzhigham – Macbeth – Underbelly Cowgate (until 20th) Two funny posh men, who have squandered their birthrights, fuck about with Macbeth, probably while drunk on the finest wines known to humanity. Pointless but, I assume, brilliant. The First And Second Murderers of Comedy 8.35PM

Tim Vine – Breeep! – Pleasance Courtyard. One man. Millions of tiny jokes. The Willard Wigan of comedy. 6pm

War Of The Worlds (On A Budget) – Space @ Surgeons’ Hall I have no idea what this will be like, but I expect I will enjoy it if I see it with the right person (Ben Moor, who did this same idea in 1989 with Dave Green & Danny O’Brien, who went on to coin the phrase ‘life hack’) VARIOUS TIMES

THEATRE

Afghanistan Is Not Funny – Henry Naylor – Gilded Ballon 1990 Barclays advert star on his true experiences of the Afghan War Zone. Our ‘Enry has had an amazing second wind as a respected political playwright. 4PM

Fata Morgana – Pleasance at EICC I saw Nico at the Fringe in 1987, stentorian as ever. And now 35 years later I can see a play about her life. If I want. 5.30PM

Grid Iron – Muster Station – Leith Academy 15th – 26th Always amazing immersive theatre company tackle societal breakdown. TIMES VARY

Macbeth – Assembly, Roxy For all your children’s 2023 GCSE syllabus needs. MIDDAY

Medea – Liz Locheed – Hub (10th-28th) A standing-around re-write of Euripides’ Greek tragedy by the great Scottish poet. TIMES VARY

The Sneeze – Gilded Balloon (13th – 28th) Comedy titan Michael Frayn’s Chekov translation co-dir’d by Amanda Redman and David Threlfall (who gets decapitated in Hot Fuzz). 1.30PM

This Is Memorial Device – Lyceum (13th – 29th) David Keenan’s novel of the same name is a 21st c masterpiece, each chapter being a different character’s version of life in the same small late 70s town, that becomes totally 3 dimensional by the end, leaving you bereft and missing the place when the book ends. To me, it seems unadaptable because it is utterly entwined with the notion of its own novelistic nature. I love the book so much normally I’d swerve an adaptation in case it disappointed but I really want to see this. TIMES VARY

Thunderstruck – Scottish Storytelling Centre Play about life of radical Pitlochry bagpiper and binman Gordon Duncan, The Gordon Duncan of bagpipes. TIMES VARY

The Trial – Pleasance Courtyard (5th-14th) 90 min adaptation of Kafkaesque novel, a favorite of mine. How will it fare? 3PM

Who Here’s Lost? – Ben Moor – Pleasance Courtyard For thorty years, Ben’s work has helped carve out an ad-hoc genre including Kitson’s story shows and James Rowland’s rough and ready raconteur efforts. Ben is more writerly than them, more faithful to his own text, and every moment is precisely choreographed. His shows portray oddly discombobulated men, adrift in worlds superficially similar to ours, but with key details tweaked, and leave you spellbound. 11.35AM

MUSIC

Beefheart New Beef Dreams – Bannermans Tues Weds 16th/17th. Orange Claw Hammer channel the Captain.

Blue Note Jazz Nights – The Jazz Bar (6th,8th,17th) 8.30pm Jazzmain play Blue Note era jazz, £50 cheaper than my Herbie Hancock ticket. Never seen them. Who knows?

Blueswater The reliably brilliant blues interpreters manifest themselves in 3 different iterations on the delayed occasion of their 10th anniversary. 5th 7th 11th 12th 14th 28th – Queens of The Blues Live At The Jazzbar (Nicole Smit is brilliant!); 11th -14th, 18th – Live At The Jazzbar (staff party time for the blues professors); 15th – 27th Blues! – Surgeon’s Hall (the classic story of the blues type show that made them Fringe favorites. A must!) TIMES VARY

Philip Glass at 85 I & II – St Andrew’s & St George’s West (10th & 24th) A bloke plays lots of Philip Glass on the piano at 12.30PM

Herbie Hancock, Playhouse. Sun 7th 82 year old jazz legend currently operating in a happy herbie hinterland between his superb ‘60s and ‘70s sounds and his cheesy ‘80s.

Martin Hayes – Leith Theatre Tues 16th. The Miles Davis of traditional Irish fiddle.

Kuniko Plays Reich – C Cubed (14th – 18th) Two shows daily, a woman does Steve Reich’s Counterpoint and Drumming on her own. 3.O5PM

Dean Owens – Pleasance EICC Fri Sat 12th & 13th Ersatz Arizonan troubadour, actually from Edinburgh, also w The Sinners, same venue Aug 18th

Sacred Paws, Summerhall – Sat 6th distaff highlife-tinged post-punk duo and Trash Kit spin-off

The Sons of Kemet – Leith Theatre – Sun 14th. East London afro-futurist jazzers

ART

Alan Davie – Dovecot Studios Times vary. Erratic access to see the works of the abstract artist/free jazz improvisor whose star seems to be in the ascendant, eight years since his death, even though all the provincial galleries of Britain keep his stuff in the cellar. The Phil Kay or Art.

Barbara Hepworth – Scottish National Gallery

Phoebe Traquair Murals – the Mansfield Traquair Centre Annual daily expose of these hard to see classic of 20th c arts and crafts holy art. Superb. There are talks about Traquair’s work at 1pm on 16th and 18th. The Daniel Kitson of murals.

BOOK FEST EVENTS

David Keenan – Talks about/reads from new novel. Sat 13th 8.30PM
Geoff Dyer – Fri 19th 7.30PM
Beyond The Swelkie – Tribute to George Mackay Brown – Sun 21st 7PM
Amy Liptrot – Orkney novelist – Mon 22nd 7PM
Janina Ramirez Goth ancient historian Sun 27th 4.15PM

SPOKEN WORD

The Church of The Fall – The Space @ Surgeons’ Hall Times vary. A man talks about how much he likes The Fall and why. Ace! TIMES VARY

Iain Dale – Pleasance at EICC The easily enraged egghead talks to Rory Stewart (6th), Angela Rayner (8th), Jess Phillips (14th) and others, many of them twats. 1.30PM

Jakko Jakszyk – The Road To Ballina – Gilded Balloon I saw Jakko in my first Fringe, in 1987, when he was the funny Greek guitarist in Roland Rivron and Simon Brint’s comedy band, Raw Sex. Today he is the frontman of Robert Fripp’s current King Crimson line-up. Like me he is adopted, but seems troubled by it, and this show is about his attempt to understand it. I am unable to attend but if I could I would stand up all the way through it demanding he play ‘20th Century Schizoid Man’ and stop wanking on about being an orphan like a loser. 2PM

FOLK RITUAL

12th The Burryman – Queensferry. Follow the drunk thistle-encrusted sacrificial figure around the town all day as he becomes hotter and more drunk. The Arthur Smith’s Late Night Tour Of The Royal Mile of folk ritual. ALL DAY

MY SISTERS’ FRIENDS

Both of my sisters have friends doing theatre shows in the festival, which is as good a reason as any for me to go and see them.

Plague – The Space The year is 1348 and the small Yorkshire village of Bogsfield is about to be hit by the Black Death. How to approach the looming threat causes a rift between the village inhabitants, and as the villagers squabble over what they think is the best approach, the plague threatens everything! Full of twists and turns, heart and humour (with a wealth of colourful characters and historical inaccuracies), Plague is a medieval, fun-filled musical tale of hope, community… and root vegetables. 4.50PM

Finding Magic – C Venues, Lawnmarket Do you believe in magic? Bev does, but after the death of her son Jess she thought she’d never find her magic again. This remarkably uplifting true story of personal survival and triumph shows how she survived her grief and found new hope. Beverley uses storytelling, film, clowning and magic to introduce and demonstrate her new reality of unpredictable triggers, clichés and flashbacks. The audience are invited to share the new-found surreal humour she deploys to find peace after bereavement. Equal parts moving and magical, Finding Magic is a captivating story of loss, longing, love, laughter and solace. 2PM