Latest news with #PleasanceCourtyard
Metro
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Metro
Netflix's Cat Cohen had a stroke age 30 and it's a surprisingly hilarious story
Cat Cohen is a force of comedy nature. Only she can perform a whole show about having a stroke without allowing the audience a moment to draw breath between laughs. Broad Strokes marks the 33-year-old US comedian's triumphant and beautifully unhinged return to the Edinburgh Fringe, with sold-out nights up to her eyeballs and a show that fully deserves every star. The Only Murders in the Building star's cabaret-style hour is jam-packed with belly laughs and intentionally navel-gazing gags about the need to be the brightest, most interesting woman in the world. 'It's giving coastal grandmother aesthetic,' Cat says of her stroke, which happened just as she was about to travel to (demure French accent incoming) 'Eurrrropppe' in 2023 for her cancelled Fringe run. Netflix special star Cat's on-stage persona is far more preoccupied with the image of having a stroke than the stroke itself: is the physical hole in her heart a manifestation of her need for validation? Isn't it 'creative' to have a stroke at the age of 30? Not only is Cat one of the most impressive stand-up comedians to grace the Pleasance Courtyard, but she also sings hilariously penned songs which explore important topics like, 'Are you mad at me?!?!?!' in a silky-smooth voice and ample glitz, primed for the West End. But there isn't a whiff of musical cheese here: just radical frankness and deft comedy that scratches the bones of the zeitgeist before we realise we're in it. Describing her stroke, Cat doesn't take a serious turn but amps up the comedy by 100 decibels. She's watching Selling Sunset and tries to turn it off, but her arm won't move. 'Okay, Chrishell…' she panics. This is typical of Cat's humour: irreverent and unapologetic. The idea of being a normal girl makes Cat's skin crawl. As do 'adult blondes' who no one should trust . Another recurring joke is that Cat still identifies as 'young for her grade' which means she can't reasonably be expected to buy a house or grow up any time soon. But Cat isn't just a relatable queen. She's also an incredibly skilled joke writer, crafting multi-layered and surprising gags just when the audience thinks they've got the measure of her. Like when the Uber arrives to take a distressed Cat to the hospital, and she sees a female driver. 'What is this, the f***ing Barbie movie?' she jokes. More Trending Somehow, Cat provides maximum laughs and minimum trauma-dumping in a show exclusively about her hitting rock bottom. Well, she's picked herself up from the floor and created one of the Fringe's most exciting shows this year. It's a, ahem, stroke of genius. I'm left wondering: what can't Cat Cohen do? Cat Cohen: Broad Strokes is showing at the Edinburgh Fringe until 24 August. Tickets here. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Alan Davies 'moved' by audience during his harrowing show detailing childhood abuse MORE: TV star's harrowing show detailing abuse is a must-watch for all fat people MORE: Record-breaking TV series hailed 'funniest in ages' launches on free UK streamer
Scotsman
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Four and Five Star Edinburgh Fringe Theatre 2025: Here are 13 shows the Scotman critics have loved you can still get tickets for this weekend
It's approaching the end of the first week of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the reviews have been pouring in. With the physical programme containing over 3,350 shows across 265 venues, it can be a daunting task to work out what exactly you are going to see. At The Scotsman we review hundreds of shows every year, with the best receiving a sought-after four or five star rating. This year we have only awarded two theatre shows the perfect five stars so far, but there have been many more that have earned four stars. More importantly, several of those still have ticket availability for this weekend (August 8-10) so you can go and see what all the fuss is all about. Here are 13 five and four star theatre shows our team of critics would recommend you see this weekend. 1 . A Brief History of Neurodivergence You'll have to be quick to see the first theatre show The Scotsman awarded five stars to this year. A Brief History of Neurodivergence ends its run on Sunday, August 10. There are still tickets left for the show at C alto at 1.50pm. What we said: "A Brief History of Neurodivergence is a performance that everyone should see." | Contributed Photo Sales 2 . JEEZUS! There are still tickets left for every show of JEEZUS!, running until August 24 at the Underbelly Cowgate at 6.50pm each day. It's the other theatre show we've awarded the rare perfect five stars. What we said: "Yes, JEEZUS! will shock and offend, and it sets out to do just that. In the end, though, its joyful, even sentimental celebration of love beyond ecclesiastical trappings of power might bring a tear to the eye of even the most devout." | Contributed Photo Sales 3 . Red Like Fruit Moving onto the theatre shows that have been awarded four stars by The Scotsman's review team and Red Like Fruit. The play, which this week won a Scotsman Fringe First Award, is on at various times at the Traverse until August 24 - and has ticket availability for every date. What we said: "Michelle Monteith as Lauren, and David Patrick Flemming as the actor-reader, deliver two performances so beautifully pitched and timed that Moscovitch's words shine through with a magnificent clarity." | Contributed Photo Sales 4 . Kanpur: 1857 You can still get tickets for every performance of Kanpur: 1857 at the Pleasance Courtyard each day at 3.40pm - running until August 24. What we said: "With a little light-touch historical information projected behind the action, and powerful live accompaniment from brilliant Scottish tabla musician Sodhi, the show emerges as a fascinating hour of reflection on the psychology of colonialism, and the related politics of gender." | Canva/Getty Images Photo Sales
Scotsman
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Edinburgh Fringe Comedy reviews: John Tothill
Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... John Tothill: This Must Be Heaven Pleasance Courtyard (Venue 33) ★★★★☆ Thanyia Moore: August Upstairs at Pleasance Courtyard (Venue 33) ★★★☆☆ Alison Spittle: BIG Monkey Barrel 1 (Venue 515) ★★★★☆ Ben Pope: The Cut The Box at Assembly George Square (Venue 8) ★★★★☆ Cat Cohen: Broad Strokes Pleasance Courtyard (Venue 33) ★★★★☆ John Tothill's gorgeously louche character could have us spellbound whether he had a strong story to tell or not, but, good gracious, does he have a humdinger of a tale in This Must Be Heaven. Last year he funded his Fringe run by taking part in a medical experiment that gave him malaria – and plenty of material for that year's show, The Last Living Libertine. But a few days into the run he developed crippling stomach pain which he tried, like the jolly-old pro he is, to ignore. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad John Tothill: This Must Be Heaven | Contributed The symptoms worsened and it turned out that his appendix had been obliterated, causing intra-abdominal sepsis that could have killed him. The poor man was hallucinating with it and could barely move. His description of the ordeal is wrapped in a velvety bundle of whimsical flourishes, in which he touches upon everything from the Margate Crab Museum's devotion to destroying the bourgeoisie to the ways in which his love of indulgence is hindering his goals. After several playful teasers, he tells us about Edward Dando, an unapologetic Victorian oyster glutton and thief. This was a man, declares the foppish Tothill, who was free; who truly knew himself. It's deliriously fun being in the company of someone who wears his learning with such playful elegance, every sentence and gesture delivering a big laugh. He's like a devilish cocktail of the best elements of Oscar Wilde, Miles Jupp and your favourite naughty friend whose persuasive 'Oh, let's have one more, darling,' leads to you calling in sick the following day. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It was also during the Fringe – two years ago – that Thanyia Moore ended up in hospital. Well prepared and supported, she was excited for the debut show that she'd been working towards for years, and she was going to 'Usain Bolt' it. But her pregnancy (she was in the first trimester) started going wrong almost immediately, and what followed were frustrating medical interventions, a necessary trip back to London, cancelled shows and a heartbreaking emotional response. Thanyia Moore: August | Rebecca Need-Menear Moore, an assured and charismatic presence with a persuasive style of storytelling, has taken time to process what happened and how she reacted at the time (blocking her loved ones, for example, after telling them what had happened), and, despite the sadness of her story, she's always in control of the mood. We're left with a clear-eyed insight into the myriad ways in which people react to losses such as this, underpinned by a comfortingly logical acceptance of statistical probability of unviable pregnancies. And, as she puts it, the comedian's curse is that 'We don't have a bad day; we have material.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Alison Spittle's medical problems were life-threatening. In BIG, her finest show to date, she describes how a cellulitis skin infection triggered by a fall turned into septicaemia, which then caused her organs to start shutting down. And in true millennial style, she started having a panic attack in hospital because she didn't have the capacity to reply to everyone who'd sent her messages of concern on Instagram. A gifted storyteller with an irresistible turn of phrase and a true gift for comedy, she has some important things to say about fatphobia – from amusement parks and clothes shops to outright cruelty during a moment when what she needed was empathy. The day Adele slimmed down was her 9/11, she jokes, and, sadly, Spittle almost feels as if she has to justify the medical reasons behind her own significant weight loss. 'I became fat so I could destroy the NHS from within,' she quips, partly in response to a well-meaning but ignorant suggestion from a family member that she lose some weight. And while, politically, Spittle had claimed her space, the sleep apnoea, pre-diabetes and cellulitis all had the same cause and she didn't really have a choice but to go on weight-loss injections. People develop their own forms of armour following traumatic experiences, and Spittle trusts us with a brief but courageous insight into something that happened to her when she was very young. BIG is a beautifully crafted piece of work – as important and funny as it is radical. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Ben Pope's need for surgery wasn't an emergency, but his problem was causing discomfort. Like one in 100 people with penises, he had phimosis – an excess of foreskin. As with an Amazon delivery, there was too much packaging, he jokes. But although he covers, with great wit and gentle, instinctive charm, the process of deciding to 'Marie Kondo' his body, entertaining interactions with medical experts and the ensuing pain (gosh, but there's a horribly vivid simile to look forward to), The Cut seems really to be about the value of communication and love. On one level, there's the conversation his girlfriend instigates about his intimate problem (and some funny-cos-they're-true observations about how ill-equipped we are linguistically to compliment a penis), while on another he shares insight about his relationship with his father, who lived with Parkinson's over the past decade of his life. In order to help his dad continue to do things he loved, Pope, a man who's clearly as generous as he is self-deprecating, would facilitate the older man's interests in a way that appears to have brought them both emotionally and physically closer. There's nothing mawkish here, though: it's just a beautifully constructed and communicated slice of life that also happens to be funny all the way through. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The term 'main character energy' could have been invented for Cat Cohen, who's made a career out of her dramatic self-obsession. It's a trait that might be tiresome in less boldly talented hands, but delivering it via comedy cabaret packed with some extremely candid personal information, she's a true star of our age. Cat Cohen: Broad Strokes | Dev Bowman At the age of 30 the American discovered she'd had a stroke (though it's hard to determine exactly when it happened), caused by a hole in her heart. Having been a lifelong hypochondriac who will forever be outraged by having been called a 'normal girl' at stage school, she felt not only vindicated by the medical revelation, but thrilled about the attention it would deliver. Sure, she had to cancel a Fringe run and European tour for the surgery and she makes artful sport about the fact that she hates not to be in control, but she certainly gets a lot of mileage out of it and the adoration from her largely millennial audience seems absolute. All shows run until 24 August
Scotsman
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Four Star Edinburgh Fringe Festival Comedy 2025: 12 shows the Scotman critics have loved you can still get tickets for this weekend
It's approaching the end of the first week of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the reviews have been pouring in. With the physical programme containing over 3,350 shows across 265 venues, it can be a daunting task to work out what exactly you are going to see. At The Scotsman we review hundreds of shows every year, with the best receiving a sought-after four or five star rating. This year we have yet to award a comedy show with a rare five stars, but there have been several that have earned four stars. More importantly, several of those still have ticket availability for this weekend (August 8-10) so you can go and see what all the fuss is all about (bad luck if you wanted to see American star Rosie O'Donnell though - she's totally sold out after her four star review earlier in the week). Here are 12 four star comedy shows our team of critics would recommend you see this weekend. 1 . Patrick Monahan: The Good, The Pat, and The Ugly Patrick Monaghan is on at the Gilden Balloon Patter Hoose until August 24. What we said: "His kind of funny is an irresistible force and he doesn't leave anyone behind." | Contributed Photo Sales 2 . Thor Stenhaug: One Night Stand Baby Thor Stenhaug is sold out this Friday and Saturday but there are still tickets left on Sunday and for the rest of his run until August 25 at the Pleasance Courtyard. What we said: "The boyish, almost perma-smiling comic has an irrepressible sunniness, eliciting big laughs for his carefully apportioned bleakness." | Contributed Photo Sales 3 . Ada and Bron: The Origin of Love There are still tickets left for Ada and Bron's 11pm show at the Pleasance Courtyard, throughout its run ending on August 24. What we said: "He's highly watchable and versatile. She's a future star, recalling Caroline Aherne, Tracey Ullman or Morwenna Banks' most memorably girlish turns." | Contributed Photo Sales 4 . Pierre Novellie: You Sit There, I'll Stand Here Pierre Novellie has sold out a couple of his shows at 7.05pm at the Monkey Barrel, but there's still availability for most dates, including this Friday and Sunday (Saturday's sold out, but if you arrive early and queue you may still get in). What we said: "It's rare for an hour to whizz by so fast, for nothing to be for one to wish for a show to be much longer." | Contributed Photo Sales
The Herald Scotland
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Here are the best 10 shows I've seen at the Edinburgh festival so far
Vittorio Angelone: you can't Say Nothing any more Monkey Barrel 1, 7.35pm, until August 24 Nice to be proven right for once. A couple of weeks back I namechecked Angelone as one to catch at the Fringe in these very pages. I took my own advice and was rewarded. Easily the best thing I've seen at the Fringe so far. There's a delight in seeing a young comedian at the top of his game totally in command of his material and the audience. Half-Irish, half-Italian (and soon to be seen on Richard Osman's House of Games), Angelone's stand-up is playful, provocative (though not in a creepy edgelord way) and challenging. He's also just really funny. Plus, he throws in a three-piece Irish band pre-gig for added value. NB, his Monkey Barrel run is pretty much sold out but he's also appearing at the Underbelly, Bristo Square on August 22 at 11pm. Kieran Hodgson: Voice of America Beyond at Pleasance Courtyard, 9.30pm, until August 24 The star of Two Doors Down is exploring his own obsession with America in this show full of nailed-on impersonations, personal memories and sharply sketched satire. It's about the push and pull of the United States politically and culturally and, yes, the current incumbent of the White House does feature. 'The central quest of the show is to make a show that he isn't in,' Hodgson admitted to me when we talked last weekend, 'and this quest ends in defeat.' It does, though, provide for a chilling climax to a comically inventive and energetic show. Alison Spittle: BIG Monkey Barrel 1, 4.45pm, until August 24 Comedian Alison Spittle (Image: unknown) The Irish comedian's new show BIG takes in septicemia, Shrek and skiing, but at heart it's a show about weight-loss and body-shaming. Spittle is an articulate, at times even angry guide to the subject. All of which brings a real energy to this show to add to Spittle's natural comic timing and way with an anecdote. There's a dark heart to BIG, but Spittle herself is all light. Joe Tracini: 10 Things I Hate About Me Underbelly, Bristo Square, 8.25pm, until August 24 Comedian and actor Joe Tracini has Borderline Personality Disorder. In this show he explains what that means in eye-opening detail. This is a busy show. Tracini's word count is probably double everyone else's on the Fringe, given how quickly he talks. Then again, he has a lot to get across. We are talking mental illness, drug addiction and suicidal ideation. But also Hollyoaks, pantos and talking to Lorraine Kelly. This is a show that is full of difficult material and yet it's also truly joyous. Tracini, son of Joe Pasquale, has been trying to do this show for five years. It has been well worth the wait. This is a great Fringe debut. Do You Accept These Charges? Pleasance Courtyard, 3.10pm, until August 24 This one-woman play by American writer and performer Laurie Magers is not for all the family. It explores her 'love addiction' for an incarcerated felon and the extreme ends she went to in order to feed that addiction. At times that can be shocking (especially when she's miming phone sex in what is, after all, a pretty small venue). But this autobiographical show is clever, brisk and unblinking. Mike Nelson: Humpty Dumpty Fruitmarket Gallery, until October 10 Out of Chaos:Postwar Scottish Art, 1945-2000 City Art Centre, until October 12 Mike Nelson. Humpty Dumpty (Image: Mike Nelson) Even the best of us can wilt at the Fringe and need a retreat. If that's you there are a couple of art shows that might offer some solace while you gear up for another night of comedy and theatre. In the Fruitmarket Gallery Mike Nelson's Humpty Dumpty is a mixture of photographic works from London and Turkey - which are fine - and a truly astonishing, even jaw-dropping installation in the gallery's Warehouse. He has effectively built a decaying house inside the space. There's an old racing calendar on the wall, broken tiles, torn-up carpet underlay (but no carpets), wires and machinery and discarded chairs and garden spaces full of rubble. The man hours that went into making it must have been huge. It was worth every one of them. It left me giddy. Just across the road in the City Art Centre there's a huge John Bellany exhibition. But if that's too much of a commitment the supplementary exhibition Out of Chaos, which charts postwar Scottish art through Edinburgh's art collection is a thrilling show featuring all the big names from Joan Eardley to Eduardo Paolozzi (I think the only obvious missing name was maybe Steven Campbell). It's a wide-ranging show full of small treasures and big statements. Jock McFadyen's Great Junction Street - an urban landscape featuring Leith's Mecca Bingo Hall - looks pretty great in this context. Christopher McArthur-Boyd: Howling at the Moon Monkey Barrel 1, 9pm, until August 24 I caught Macarthur-Boyd on a bad night. He had to deal with a persistent talker all the way through the show which threw him a little. He messed up the order of the show and admitted he'd missed bits out. None of which mattered. The show was still great. An hour full of strong material really well delivered. Alongside Susie McCabe and Connor Burns, he's proof that Scottish comic voices are loud and proud at this year's Fringe. Rob Auton: CAN (An Hour-Long Story) Assembly Roxy, 1.25pm, until August 24 To attend a Rob Auton show to is effectively enter Autonworld; a curious, off-kilter place with a Yorkshire accent. CAN is the story of a motivational speaker who manages to motivate the world. Auton then explores the consequences. It's a thought experiment with really good jokes (I'm desperate to tell you the one about AI, but I don't want to spoil it for you). The result is strange and silly and, actually, rather moving. In its own way it's also pretty motivating. The Burns Project The Georgian House, 6.30pm, until August 16 James Clements (Image: James Clements) Staged in the swish surroundings of the Georgian House in Charlotte Square, this immersive theatrical performance (staged around a long table with the audience ranged along both sides) sees James Clements play Robert Burns in a brisk, thoughtful telling of his life story, supported by musician/performer Lisa Rigby. Directed by Cora Bissett, it's an attempt to get beyond the shortbread tin image of the Bard and find the human being behind the legend. The result is an immaculately designed, smartly staged piece that offers up a portrait of a complex, at times, flawed man. Big Brain Tumour Benefit Underbelly Bristo Square, August 13 I've heard good things about Josie Long's new show Now is the Time of Monsters, Benji Waterhouse's show Maddening is good and comedians Tiff Stevenson and Tom Rosenthal have solid Fringe shows on offer, but this, the Underbelly's seventh annual brain tumour benefit should be worth your time. And not just for the cause. The bill includes Michelle Wolf, Ivo Graham, David O'Doherty, Abandoman and Emmanuel Sonubi. To purchase tickets for the festival, please click here
