There's no happy hour.

Belatedly, the 2026 Fringe Monkey Talent Award (rebrand courtesy of Jake Baker) goes to John Spillane for his show Johnny Hollywood at City Cafe. John, if you message me contact details I will send you a tiny, underwhelming trophy. If you can't be arsed that is absolutely fine.

2026 Fringe Stats Shows entered: 74 Shows abandoned: 5 Reviews posted: 66 Average mark allocated: 3.1 Smallest audience I was part of: 3 Shortest Hour Show: 45 mins Best Show: Pierre Novellie Show I Most Regretted Missing: Sam Eley Main downtime location: Monkey Barrel Bar

I'm done with Fringe 2026. Hopefully the reviews were of some help & you found something interesting/dodged a bullet as a result. I don't post much Sep-Jul so feel free to Unfollow. I'll hopefully be back in 2027. Thanks to all the performers & to the venue staff. Cheers!

Rob Moriarty: He's the unlikeliest of gays. He warns us the material is dark & he's not wrong. It's misdirect-heavy & he's strong on targeting hypocrisy - Mark Normand fans might enjoy. It's not billed as a WIP but it feels like he's still finding his feet. Very promising. 3.5/5

Harry Stachini: Delivery is quick & matey but there's no distinct comic voice. The personal anecdotal material is down to earth but isn't challenging stereotypes. There's no theme, tho he does his best at the end to give the impression. The crowd got on better than I did. 2.5/5

John-Luke Roberts: Expect an hour of clever, whimsical & above all, silly standup. Delivery is rapid but fluid & there's some delightful use of callbacks. Mortality is the through line but he readily embraces tangents & adores an act-out. Accessible & worth catching. PWYW. 3.5/5

3's Comedy (Mornings): A split bill with ex-pat Aussies Peter Jones, Prue Blake & Ty Gray. An easy-going hour of accessible material in a small room. PJ probably offers the most professional set. Maximising a single day at the Fringe? This 11:15am could be your start. FF. 2.5/5

It's the last Fringe weekend. Here are some of my favourites you might still get into: Paid: M Brettingham, Mark Thomas, L Dean, J Wolf, T Hardikar. Free/PWYW: P Novellie, T Ballard, Ayo Adenekan, Seymour Mace, D Tiernan, Chris Kent, D Rath, J Hollywood, Jake Baker, R Copland.

John Tothill (Close Your Eyes): It's a WIP so things are quite unstructured. He's in a tent inside a building for a start. There's some chatting/riffing with the crowd, some catty bitching & two bits of material, the main one being about walking the Camino. Not unmissable. 2.5/5

Phil Ellis: Expect tales of his tragic life, some audience interaction, the odd daft stunt & some singing - just general titting about really. It won't win him new fans but Taskmaster has already done that quite successfully. A pleasantly stupid way to spend an hour. PWYW. 3.5/5

Daniel Petrie & Valeria Vulpe: A split bill from 2 very promising comics. Scottish DP's delivery is engaging & the frequently-surreal material charms. VV offers deadpan, precision gags often focused on her Moldovan background. Both are worth catching. PWYW. 3/5

Jenny Gorelick: Her dating life is the core theme but there are frequent tangents. The "girly girl" persona (her words) won't be for everyone but there's a whipsmart comic mind behind it. It's dense with gags & the callback-heavy wrap-up doesn't overstay its welcome. PWYW. 3.5/5

Rob Copland: It's bookended by theatrical set pieces. In between he reveals his hopes/worries. It's a physical performance including elements of mime & clowning. The silliness is dialled up high & if you enter wanting to have a good time you should be suitably rewarded. PWYW. 4/5

Johnny Hollywood: It's billed as entirely improvised & that appears to be the case. There's a small amount of good-natured crowd involvement but he carries the show via his own idiocy. Larger rooms may feel different but in a small Fringe space it works very well. PWYW. 4/5

Just a heads up - if you were of a mind to get last minute tickets for Michelle Wolf at the Playhouse tonight, they are available at the half price hut. Although you have to call in at the Fringe shop on the High Street, it's a not inconsiderable saving.

George Zacharopoulos: He starts strongly with the best material I've heard about Shiraz (genuinely). After that things lose focus, tho he's keen to force a theme onto the anecdotal stories. The wrapup is wordy & takes forever. He's a reliable comic who I'll catch again. PWYW. 3/5

Jake Baker: It's an updated version of 2025's WIP, focusing on masculinity & the manosphere. Delivery is gentle & nerdy & the material well worked - there's barely 10 seconds without a laugh. The addition of the "animal facts" is a delight. His best show yet. PWYW. 4/5

Richard Stott: He readily flits between topics - identity, self-worth, masculinity, disability & dating. Sad girl coffee mornings goes down very well. Delivery is chatty & upbeat. He is guilty of throwing in some contrived puns without warning. Brace yourself for that. 2.5/5

Barcelona Comedy Tapas: A bill show featuring around 6 acts & a host. Their connections to Barcelona will range from non-existent, through living there to long term resident. It's primarily a way for performers to promote their solo shows. Safe to assume you'll get in on PWYW.

Silky: The theme (imposter syndrome) is very loosely linked into the body of the hour - the lies he's told & the consequences. These autobiographical tales could arguably be trimmed of some detail. He seems very nice & the show clips along but it's not an undiscovered gem. 2.5/5