Jesus, Jane, Mother & Me, Pleasance Courtyard.

What a way to start your day at the Fringe! Philip Stokes’ blistering but delicately written play returns to Edinburgh after a successful 2022 season. In a moving, sensitive, and frequently terrifying play, Jack Stokes plays Daniel Valentine, a troubled young man with severe mental health issues masquerading as fan worship of the one and only Jane MacDonald. He takes us through his difficult journey through childhood and school bullying, with inadequate parenting and a zest for performance. As the play develops, you sense it’s going to have a tragic ending but you can’t quite put your finger on exactly how it will turn out until the final minutes. One of those plays where you laugh out loud and then kick yourself for having been so cruel. I had my hand over my mouth for the final, excruciating scene – truly brilliantly written and performed. An immaculate production.

In Loyal Company, Pleasance Courtyard.

A powerful account of the real-life story of Arthur Robinson, a young man who signed up to join the army in 1941, and how he was eventually captured as a Prisoner of War by the Japanese and just about survived enough to tell the tale. The fact that it’s written and performed by his great-nephew David William Bryan adds to the personal and emotional aspect of the production, which successfully steers away from any sentimentality which could have weakened its impact. Hard-hitting, and with an athletic and intense central performance, this is a strong play that lingers in the mind way after the curtain has come down. A rare opportunity to come face to face with the horrors of war through a genuine personal narrative. Highly recommended.

Edmonds, Pleasance Courtyard.

Remember the days when Noel Edmonds ruled the light entertainment roost? With references to Noel’s House Party, The Late Late Breakfast Show, Multi-Coloured Swap Shop and even going back to the days of Radio Luxembourg, the man himself invites us to share a special edition of Deal or No Deal, with a guest player from the audience (in our case, Cameron, who played a blinder) and a very intimidating incarnation of “The Banker” indeed. It’s a very amusing idea, and Edmonds himself is horribly accurately portrayed in all his faux bonhomie and hollow laughter. It is something of a character-assassination of the man, whether you believe he deserves it or not, but there are some very nice appreciations of Mr Blobby, Crinkly Bottom and memories of his experiences on the Tring By-Pass. Whilst it doesn’t overall contribute much to our greater understanding of the human condition, and at times it gets a little underpowered, it’s still an entertaining little show.

The Importance of Being… Earnest? Pleasance Courtyard.

The Importance of Being Earnest starts straightforwardly enough, but when Ernest doesn’t make his entrance on cue, all hell breaks loose as a member of the audience is recruited to take his place. Then when Gwendolyne gets a bit squiffy on real bourbon, someone else steps in. And then another… and then another…. and then another. If you like to see members of the audience suddenly catapulted onto the stage to fend for themselves as best they can, you’re in for a field day. It is all done with a lightness of touch and some very funny recurring jokes – my favourite being that the actor playing Algernon cannot improvise for toffee and so when things go wrong all around him he continues to act as if everything is going fine. The cast do a great job of keeping the amateur actors afloat, and there is an abundance of laughter throughout. There are a few moments when the energy saps for some reason, and I couldn’t help but think that, very good as it is, it could have been a little snappier and more dangerous. Of course, no two shows will ever be the same and it does rely on the goodwill and commitment of the audience members to make it go with a swing. Good fun!

Marcus Brigstocke: Cheese and Whine, Pleasance Courtyard.

As we queue to get in to see Marcus Brigstocke: Cheese and Whine, the man himself greets us with a pen and a card for us to write down some of our current whines – trivial, personal and massive. And once on stage, the bulk of the show is spent with him taking some of our whines, analysing them for suitability and humour, and then, rather like a wine, choosing a cheese from an extensive and rather delicious-looking selection of fine cheeses on a table next to him, as the perfect accompaniment to that particular whine. A piece of that cheese is then offered to the whiner in question. As he himself admits, it’s a slight premise for a show. Mr Brigstocke is a naturally funny guy and can riff off whatever an audience chucks at him with effortless ease and hilarity. But I did feel this was rather an odd vehicle for him, and one which restricts his comedic abilities rather than releases them. No question, there were lots of laughs, but I still felt a bit underwhelmed by the show; normally Mr B blows me away but this was just very light entertainment.

Sigmund the Viking: Valhalla Calling, Underbelly Bristo Square.

Sigmund the Viking has seen the light and given up a life of plundering and pillaging for the more refined practice of yoga. He takes us through a few poses, including the excellent Business Pose that I think I’ll add to my list of domestic asanas. But will Odin let him get away with that change of lifestyle? A combination of very silly and very funny comedy, Sigmund is a great comic creation with terrific stage presence and warmth. I ended up having a battle to the death with him on stage – I won, but I didn’t kill him, it would have been a very short run otherwise. We were a very small but appreciative audience; it’s one of those shows where you have to completely throw yourself into it, and we enjoyed it very much. Possibly it needs a little more actual content, but it’s still a lot of fun.