Latest news with #EdinburghFringeFestival
Wales Online
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
The Chase's Paul Sinha forced to give up vital part of career due to health struggle
The Chase's Paul Sinha forced to give up vital part of career due to health struggle The Chase star and comedian Paul Sinha has opened up about his struggle with Parkinson's disease, revealing that he has been forced to give up a key part of his career Paul Sinah, known as the Sinnerman on ITV's popular quiz show, The Chase (Image: ITV ) Paul Sinha, known for his role on ITV's The Chase, ventured into stand-up comedy while working as a junior doctor, yet his diagnosis of Parkinson's disease has made his participation in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival increasingly difficult. In 2019, after noticing his limp growing worse on one side, Paul was diagnosed with Parkinson's, a progressive neurological condition that gradually impairs parts of the brain. Symptoms include tremors, balance complications, sleep disturbances, psychosis, and emotional fluctuations. There is currently no cure for the neurological condition, and Paul Sinha, also known as The Sinnerman on The Chase, has opened up about living with Parkinson's and how it has impacted his life. Having been a dedicated attendee of the festival, revelling what he called the "exercise in masochism" of enduring multiple shows in compact, crowded spaces, Paul now faces significant challenges. Speaking to Tim Lihoreau on the Guess Who's Coming to Dinner podcast, Paul, who turned 55 on Wednesday, admitted: "I now find with my health not being what it was, and my general energy levels, I find it a lot harder – not least the heat." He further said: "The rooms at the Edinburgh Festival are really hot, the performing rooms, and I find it hard." Paul went on to discuss his reluctance to leave the festival prematurely, saying: "I don't think I could ever go to Edinburgh and leave early, because I just wouldn't feel like I was part of the gang.", reports Bristol Live. "You've got to be genuinely suffering to a degree to feel that you're part of the gang." For the latest TV and showbiz gossip sign up to our newsletter Previously, Paul has candidly spoken about how early warning signs of his disease were overlooked. His friends in the medical field initially failed to spot his symptoms, but it was during a follow-up consultation that the extent of his illness came to light. Recapping his experience to The Sun, Paul relays a notable comment from his consultant: "I went to see him and he said, 'I've just been watching you on Taskmaster, I wish I'd known. I would have diagnosed you far quicker'," observing that certain gestures he made were symptomatic. The renowned quizzer emphasised that while tremors are commonly associated with Parkinson's, there is less awareness about other symptoms. He mentioned diminished sense of smell as one of the first potential indications that could arise well before the more obvious tremors. He also cited nerve pain, issues with urination, and memory lapses as potential early warning signs of the disease. On Loose Women, Paul discussed another symptom: a lingering shoulder problem that hinted at his condition: "I presented one morning with a stiff, painful right shoulder. I never had a stiff joint before," he explained. "I didn't think anything of it, I thought, 'this is just going to go away,' and then it just never went away." Paul makes a concerted effort to preserve his mental sharpness through daily brain exercises. One of his go-to activities is participating in Tea Time Trivia, an online quickfire quiz at 6pm, emphasising the significance of this routine by saying: "It's something that's always on your mind because my brain is my tool," he said. "If I become more physically disabled, I'll still be able to do The Chase and I'll still be able to do stand-up comedy." Article continues below
Daily Record
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
ITV The Chase Paul Singha's health battle which has made comedy career 'harder'
Paul Sinha, who is known as The Sinnerman, often performed stand-up comedy at Edinburgh Fringe Festival but has been forced to give up a vital part of his career. The Chase star Paul Sinha is most notably known as The Sinnerman on the popular ITV quiz show. However aside from being a brain genius, he is also known for dabbling in stand-up comedy. He juggled his comic flair with his job as a junior doctor before his Parkinson's diagnosis in 2019, which has since made it tough for him to participate in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, an integral event for comedians held in Scotland. While he used to be an enthusiastic participant at the festival, enjoying what he dubbed an "exercise in masochism" by engaging with a number of shows in tight and crowded spaces, it now proves to be a struggle eports Bristol Live. On Tim Lihoreau's Guess Who's Coming to Dinner podcast, Paul, who turned 55 on Wednesday, expressed: "I now find with my health not being what it was, and my general energy levels, I find it a lot harder – not least the heat." He elaborated on the conditions at the festival by saying: "The rooms at the Edinburgh Festival are really hot, the performing rooms, and I find it hard." Paul then reflected on how departing the festival prematurely would alienate him, admitting: "I don't think I could ever go to Edinburgh and leave early, because I just wouldn't feel like I was part of the gang." He added: "You've got to be genuinely suffering to a degree to feel that you're part of the gang." His Parkinson's symptoms first called for medical attention when he noticed his right limp becoming increasingly worse. The condition is characterised as a progressive neurological disorder that incrementally impairs sections of the brain, resulting in issues such as shaking, balance difficulties, sleep disruptions, psychotic episodes, and emotional fluctuations. Currently, there is no definitive treatment for the disease. The Chase's beloved quiz genius Paul, has been candid about his Parkinson's diagnosis and the signs that were initially overlooked. Despite having colleagues in medicine observe early signs of the illness, it took a while before he received an accurate diagnosis. In recounting his journey to The Sun, Paul shared a telling quote from his consultant: "I went to see him and he said, 'I've just been watching you on Taskmaster, I wish I'd known. I would have diagnosed you far quicker'," pointing out specific movements that signalled the condition. The quizzing champion underscored that although tremors are a common symptom associated with Parkinson's, the wider public might not be aware of the other effects. He noted that anosmia or loss of smell can be amongst the initial signs, potentially occurring years prior to other more recognisable symptoms. He also highlighted that other early warning signs may include neuropathic pain, difficulties with urination, and cognitive challenges. During a segment on Loose Women, Paul discussed how a persistent shoulder problem hinted at the underlying condition: "I presented one morning with a stiff, painful right shoulder. I never had a stiff joint before," he said. "I didn't think anything of it, I thought, 'this is just going to go away,' and then it just never went away." Committed to preserving his sharp mind, Paul partakes in daily brain workouts. He participates in Tea Time Trivia, an online speed quiz at 6pm, and underlines the significance of this habit: "It's something that's always on your mind because my brain is my tool," he said. He then highlighted a pragmatic outlook regarding his capacity to work, saying, "If I become more physically disabled, I'll still be able to do The Chase and I'll still be able to do stand-up comedy."
The Courier
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Courier
Stirling Uni lecturer joins Greg James on Radio 1 for Taylor Swift-inspired duet
A Stirling University lecturer has joined DJ Greg James to perform a duet on his Radio 1 show. Rebecca Boulton, known as Becky, joined the presenter on his breakfast show on Thursday morning. The pair performed wasp impressions to the tune of the Taylor Swift hit Anti-Hero. It came after Becky, a wasp biologist, wrote a parody of the 2022 song from the perspective of the insect for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival last year. She hopes to change the reputation of wasps and highlight why they are important The song features lyrics like: 'I have this thing where I'm misunderstood by everybody, just cause I like to have my space.' Another line says: 'What they don't know is my sisters and I stopped a famine, so maybe get off of my case.' The song ends with: 'It would be nice if you started rooting for us anti-heroes.' After performing the song live on air, James said: 'Becky, that is so good. 'I love you for that and I love your brain.' He added that he had 'struck gold' after inviting her on the show and promised to join her for another duet. Becky then teased a Blurred Lines parody about the genitalia evolution of insects. The evolutionary ecology lecturer is a regular listener of the breakfast show. After hearing a segment about flies flying into people's mouths, she was reminded of her song and decided to get in touch. Becky told The Courier: 'Talking to Greg on Radio 1 and doing a duet of our song was a great opportunity to spread my love for wasps. 'It was Greg's idea to do the wasp voice, and I am always up for that sort of nonsense. 'It was great fun and certainly an unexpected series of events for what would have otherwise been a quite routine day of doing wasp genetic work in the lab.'
Time Out
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
My Son's A Queer (But What Can You Do?)
Photograph: Courtesy Mark Senior | My Son's A Queer (But What Can You Do?) After hit runs at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and in the West End, the twentysomething British writer-performer Rob Madge was scheduled to bring their solo show to Broadway in 2024, but those plans fell through. Now, at last, Madge makes the leap across the pond—if only for a weekend jaunt—in a Pride Month engagement at City Center . Expect a joyful exploration of queer childhood and family love as Madge extends their penchant for dress-up into adulthood. By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. 🙌 Awesome, you're subscribed! Thanks for subscribing! Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon! Discover Time Out original video
Metro
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
‘How I turned a rant about Nigel Farage into a rave tune'
I had no idea what I was in for when I first stepped foot into the House of Life. It was 2024 and my first time at Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where my friends and I were popping our Fringe cherries. We'd already spent one afternoon wincing at the first comic to lure us into their one-man show, so it hadn't been the start we hoped for. Thankfully, we met with someone in the know, who had an Excel spreadsheet of shows they wanted to see and at the top of that list was a queer cabaret called House of Life. It turned out to be the most unexpected fun I've had in 60 minutes – and more powerful than therapy. For anyone who missed out on the cult immersive – and very secretive -experience, You Me Bum Bum Train, because you're not Madonna, Katy Perry or Jeff Bezos, House of Life is another show with the same power to change your direction. And you don't need to sign an NDA to see it. Later this month, it comes to London's Soho Theatre for a five-night stint as part of its never-ending tour around the world. I'll admit it's practically impossible to put the concept into one box, but as founder Ben Welch explains to me: 'House of Life is a travelling musical collective with one mission to get you happy at any cost. Ultimately, it's an experience, it's about celebrating the people in the room, trying to find genuine connection and see what building a community in the room looks like.' Ben stars as the RaveRend or The Rev, draped in sequinned robes, silver boots, oversized yellow shades and a glittered beard. His sidekick is Trev, a socially awkward musician in a creased grey suit and tie who could be the fifth member of Interpol, played by Ben's real-life schoolmate Lawrence Cole. Music festival famous for helping launch Billie Eilish is coming to London – and you could win tickets We've teamed up with SXSW London to give away two pairs of Music Festival Wristbands valid for 2-7 June 2025. Headliners include Grammy-winning Nigerian singer Tems, Brit Award-winning artist Mabel, Crystal Castles's Alice Glass, and East London-based R&B artist NAO, plus emerging talent set to perform at showcase acts around Shoreditch. Click here to find out more about SXSW London's incredible events and how to enter to be in with a chance to win, or simply enter your details using the form below. *T&Cs apply. You have until midnight on Sunday 25th May 2025 to enter. Good luck! * Open to legal residents of Great Britain (excluding Northern Ireland) aged 18 or over. Promotion opens at 06:01 BST on 13 May 2025 and closes at 23:59 BST on 25 May 2025. The promotion is free to enter; however internet access is required. Entrant must visit and when prompted by the form, submit their name, email, telephone number, date of birth and postcode. Acceptance of the terms and conditions (by ticking the relevant checkbox) is necessary to enter the promotion. 1 entry per person. 1 prize available per person. There will be two (2) winners. Each winner will win two (2) Full Week (6 days) Music Festival Wristbands (each such wristband worth £99) granting secondary access to Official SXSW London Music Festival showcases valid from 2 until 7 June 2025. Proof of age and photographic ID is required for entry (18+). The prize, including entry and attendance at SXSW, is subject to and governed by the SXSW's full ticket terms and conditions here. Full T&Cs apply, see here. The Rev hogs the spotlight, but their chemistry is the heart of House of Life. As The Rev greets everyone at the door, he smears glitter across their cheeks, and as my friends and I entered the House of Life, we immediately felt energised, intrigued and comforted knowing whatever we've let ourselves in for, we're in safe hands. Soon, The Rev had people all around me frankly sharing their biggest anxieties or anything they wanted to celebrate, be it a new job or the person sitting next to them. When it was my turn, he asked what was making me angry about the world in that moment. It was weeks after the general election, and without hesitation, I vented into the microphone: 'Nigel F**king Farage!' Moments later, my outburst had been mixed with a disco track, and the whole room was dancing to the record I didn't know I had in me on loop. The beauty of House of Life is that each show is completely different to the last. The Rev steers the ship, but the audience decides the journey by sharing their own experience. The music is inspired by whatever people get off their chest, with Trev on the track and The Rev belting out lyrics on the spot with unbelievably quick improvisation and the gusto of Tom Jones. Many who have been there once, like me, need to experience it again. And again. Ben recalls: 'We had one woman at the end of the run in Edinburgh who had been travelling the world and said to me, 'I've been really lost, I've been depressed, asking myself, what am I doing? I don't know where I'm going, but now I feel like it just doesn't matter because I've got people around me here, and this show taught me to just grab life and enjoy it. So many strangers have given me so much joy and love.'' During the show, audience members are also asked to visualise what they want from life. At one performance, a woman told The Rev she visualised leaving her job and going travelling. Later, she got in touch to tell him it was 'the best thing I ever did'. Since its successful Edinburgh run, the world wants a bite of the show's contagious joy. The Rev and Trev have just travelled around Norway, where they're 'a bit more reserved'. 'But they were so in it and listening,' adds Ben. 'Once they knew that was the task, they celebrated their friends and talked beautifully about their lives and dreams.' Next, they'll be heading to the queer venues of New York, surely the natural setting for a sermon held by a gay and glittered gospel singer. Listening to Ben's story, it becomes clear that House of Life was the inevitable path he was meant to tread. As a teen, he was accepted at Television Workshop in Nottingham, the training ground for local stars such as Jack O'Connell, Bella Ramsey and Vicky McClure. He's played the Panto Dame in Liverpool, set up his own company called Sheep Soup with his collaborator Nic Harvey, taking independent shows to places like Fringe, and in between projects, he's worked with vulnerable young people to encourage them to pursue creative outlets. His dad died shortly before his first child was about to be born, at a time when the world was beginning to crawl out of the coronavirus pandemic. 'I was performing as an actor, other people's material, hosting events and working with the community, they were all bubbling away and that was the creation of House of Life,' Ben explains. 'Then my first child was about to be born, and my dad passed away. It was a real shift moment. I thought, 'I have to do this because who knows what time we have left?'' After I went to the Fringe show, I felt more inspired than I had been in years. Ideas suddenly poured out of me for days, and I've since left my job to pursue many of them. The holistic experience has stayed with me ever since. In the House of Life, it is the music that carries you. If Ben's booming voice and performance weren't as good as it is, the rest wouldn't land. The tunes are infectious and slap as hard as they help. When he was 14, like every aspiring millennial singer, he auditioned for The X Factor. 'I went to Aston Villa's football ground with my mum and tried to sing Valerie, but it was awful.' Eventually, he recovered and took a dark comedy to the Fringe. He'd sing covers of tracks from the time, like Gnarls Barkley's inescapable Crazy on the Edinburgh mile, to promote it. Naturally, people asked: 'Is there song in the show?' They'd missed a trick. 'So we made this show, Mrs Green, about an old woman who was an ex-Motown soul singer and grew marihuana for her arthritis and was an agony aunt for the community. I played Mrs Green and developed my singing and songwriting during that process.' His voice is a clear nod to the female Black singers of the 60s and 70s, such as Aretha Franklin and Donna Summer. If you want a good time, come for the music alone and leave nourished in funk and disco. The pair have already built their label, signed a distribution deal with Universal Records. Those tracks that have helped so many already will soon be bursting out of the confinement of venues and into streaming services for everyone. The possibilities are endless and are beginning to feel well within Ben's grasp. 'We have a plan to set House of Life off in the world as much as possible,' he adds. 'Maybe there are different versions in different places, but we're just going to keep following our nose because we're having the best time.' House of Life returns to London's Soho Theatre on May 27 til May 31.
