With oral history passed down over the family generations, Peter gives a stirring and passionate account of his great-grandmother’s hard-fought campaign for the right to vote ove…
Come and join us for the original free walking tour of Edinburgh’s historic Old Town and enjoy the stories of the many colourful characters who lived here.
Our unique tour sets out to inform and entertain as we take you into both the Old and New towns, giving you a real sense of the two sides of Edinburgh; revealing some of the secret…
The tumultuous life of Richard III: not the villain of Shakespearean lore, but loyal brother to a king, devoted husband and father, and eventually reluctant monarch.
The incredible true story of missing WWII soldier Arthur Robinson, written and performed by his great-nephew David William Bryan.
We all make mistakes, but rarely do they change the course of history.
The year is 1990.
After performing The Story of Captain James Cook in 2022, Tim Hunter returns to the Fringe to narrate and perform songs taken from his latest concept album, The Progressive Campaig…
It’s 1066 as you’ve never seen it before! Following the death of popular King of England Edward the Confessor, Harold Godwinson takes the throne.
Gillian Lacey-Solymar, Carrie Penn and Toby Huelin’s Irrepressible, whilst a compelling story seems to rehash old messages without leaving us with a sense that we should do somet…
The Edinburgh Renaissance Band is back for 2023 with a fresh programme of their ever-popular Viol Rackett Show, the much-loved programme of instrumental music, from the Middle Ages…
Strafed by Splendour: Under Paolozzi’s Window.
God’s Craftsmen.
The Art of the Icon.
The Desert in the Heart of the World is a filmic study of the impact of the Carthusian monastic movement on the French landscape.
Sanctified Royalty: Jacobite Relics and the Divine Right of Kings.
Meet Sir Oswald and Lady Diana Mosley.
The Victorian music hall: a hotbed of scandal and home of betrayal, discrimination, sexual exploitation, domestic violence and press intrusion.
Osgood is known for Inverewe Gardens in Wester Ross.
Neil is a comedian, animator and computer programmer who utilises his many skills to take you on a journey through historical events.
Deep beneath the streets of Regency Edinburgh lies a labyrinth of pitch-dark vaults, housing the downtrodden and hiding a criminal underworld.
How long would you wait for a moment of inspiration? 1860s Paris is a place of romance and art, but for Victorine, it is an escape from her grey life in Dublin.
Based on a true event in New York City, 1911.
Edinburgh Renaissance Band’s New Frontiers.
United in their determination to support their country during World War Two, four young women join the Land Army.
Summer 2020, NYC.
‘When light and dark converge, it is an act of creation…’.
Bruce Fummey has spent fifteen years creating comedy and Scottish history-themed comedy shows for festivals around the world.
The critically acclaimed Fringe 2022 smash hit returns to Edinburgh for two final shows.
Nestled in a dim-lit basement within a stone archway, Paradise in The Vault feels like the perfect venue to indulge in some late evening fairytales, and from the moment the cast co…
Join historian, broadcaster and writer, Alice Loxton, as she delves into the delights of her new history book, UPROAR!: Satire, Scandal and Printmakers in Georgian London – a bri…
Every city has a history, but when it comes to grisly secrets, it’s hard to rival the gruesome history of Edinburgh.
It’s 1723 and writing while Black could get a girl hanged in Virginia.
Multiple shows a day, seven days a week! Shows times are 18:00, 19:30 and 21:00 and 22:30 every day with extra shows added upon demand – 20:00 and 21:30 shows on Saturdays only!
Peter gives a stirring and passionate account of his great-grandmother’s hard-fought campaign for the right to vote over 100 years ago.
A real-life heroine of the 1745 Jacobite Rising, Colonel Anne defied her husband the Laird of Mackintosh and raised troops for Bonnie Prince Charlie.
Renowned punk poet and multi-instrumentalist Attila the Stockbroker has loved early music ever since he grabbed a recorder aged about 8.
John Cambo Cambridge lived with David Bowie at Haddon Hall when he had his first hit-record Space Oddity and toured Scotland with him in Junior’s Eyes.
If you liked Six, then you will love Fierce.
John Harper and Joseph Ismay.
Come and join us for the original free walking tour, packed with the rich historical sites and tales of the many colourful characters around the heart of Edinburgh’s Old Town.
Raymond will lead you on a comedy walking tour of Edinburgh’s Old Town.
As the British Empire struggles to keep its colonial possessions, Nigerian lawyer Tunji Sowande quietly breaks through multiple barriers to become Britain’s first Black judge.
The play follows the arrest and trial of Hans and Sophie Scholl – two founders of the White Rose Group.
We all make mistakes, but rarely do they change the course of history.
This musical, composed by Joel Goodman and Jan Osborne, with a new script by Joan Greening is a journey through the extraordinary life of Alan Turing.
Ancient coins are an amazing window into history – rare, valuable and often beautiful.
The Scottish witch hunts – sanctioned by the state, fuelled by the Church, fed by hysteria, and buried by history.
One of the twentieth century’s most impressive but overlooked figures is revived in this powerful, compelling tour-de-force.
Impro Poet Presents: What If History? They say that history repeats itself.
From the Producers of I, Sniper (2018) and Chaika (2010) – After her brother is unjustly arrested by the Nazis, a young German student begins a deadly game of cat and mouse with …
From the Producers of I, Sniper (2018) and Chaika (2010).
Our unique tour sets out to inform and entertain as we take you into both Old and New Town, giving you a real sense of the two sides of Edinburgh and revealing some of the secrets …
What happens to Shakespeare’s best-loved heroes and most reviled villains after the curtain falls? Come and join a host of familiar Shakespearean characters as they reflect back on…
Chopped Liver and Unions tells the story of workers’ activist and trades unionist Sara Wesker, now largely lost to the footnotes of twentieth century history, but in her time a n…
There’s been a mix-up in the weekly appointment with her Sanatorium psychiatrist.
The Mountebank Comedy Walk is the hysterical, historical and completely original walking tour of Edinburgh led by professional local award-winning comedian Daniel Downie.
A hilarious history tour through the seriously skanky past lurking behind the “posh” New Town façade.
Christopher Marlowe is forever fated to be associated with his peer and likely chum William Shakespeare.
An over-zealous Highlander taking on the British comedy establishment to impress his dad – Daniel Downie is a Jacobite! Award winning Scottish comedian and historian Daniel Down…
Il Burattino begins in April 1942 and tells the story of Tino, an orphan, native to Varallo Sesia in Northern Piedmont, Italy.
David Hume and Adam Smith, based in Edinburgh, were giants of The Enlightenment of the 18th century.
Ethnoscape is an audio-visual interpretation of five turbulent moments in South Africa’s history.
A true story of deception, magic and torture.
Jesse James, the famous outlaw, finds himself in hot water with the authorities and the rest of his crew.
Stand-up comedian Richard Pulsford (Top 10 Jokes of the Fringe 2019, 2021 and 2022, Scottish Comedian of the Year runner-up 2021, UK Pun Championships winner 2022) hosts this show …
When a Jane Austen heroine, unlucky in love, finds herself thrown into the modern world of dating, she must set aside her customs and expectations to brave this new world of courts…
In a century littered with dynastic families and the parts they played in history, few names are as fascinating as those of the Mitford Sisters with their controversial beliefs, ma…
It’s Berlin 1914, a younger, pre-crazy-haired Albert Einstein awaits news from an eclipse expedition that will prove his theory of general relativity.
The history of Western philosophy but fun! Think Horrible Histories for philosophy.
The thrilling true story of Florence Waren, an intrepid Jewish resistance fighter and dazzling showgirl leading a perilous double life in WW2.
In 5 Mistakes That Changed History, host Paul Coulter establishes the self-evident premise, that this will be something of a comical TED Talk about some fascinating moments that sh…
85% of executed witches were women! Why? The brutal truth of the witch hunts in Scotland, told with humour and empathy.
Edinburgh’s gruesome past is brought to life by two actors (as seen on CBBC’s Saturday mash up) in this hilarious show for all the family.
Returning after sell-out runs in 2018 and 2019, In Loyal Company is the incredible true story of missing WWII soldier Arthur Robinson, written and performed by his great-nephew Dav…
UK Theatre Award Nominee 2022: Best New Play.
A haunting celeste chime creates a sombre mood that permeates John Ransom Phillips’s Mrs President at C Aquila as Mary Lincoln (LeeAnne Hutchison) poses for photographer Mathew B…
Based in a Men’s Shed in East Lothian, The Collie’s Shed follows four retired miners as they discover how a review into the policing of the ’80s mining strikes and a potential Mine…
The works of Tennessee Williams rank as some of the greatest and most iconic plays ever written.
Our distillery is situated in an area once known as the Charmed Circle, named after the abundant underground water supply and the vast collection of breweries and distilleries that…
The first Salem witch to confess and household slave to the Parris family, Tituba vividly described supernatural apparitions and denounced community members, resulting in many bein…
This free exhibition explores the changing meaning of skin from the 1500s to the present day – from flaying and tattooing to prosthetics and skin sculptures.
From design classics to cutting-edge catwalk creations, Beyond the Little Black Dress deconstructs this iconic garment and examines the radical power of the colour black in fashion…
The 19th century was a time of seismic developments for the piano, and Paris was at the epicentre of these as many virtuosi made it their home.
To celebrate Visit Scotland’s Year of Storytelling, Glengoyne are bringing their Storytelling Tour to Edinburgh for one night only! Swapping the distillery for Yotel’s Imaginex d…
His name is Gavrilo Princip.
As the British Empire struggles to keep its colonial possessions, Nigerian Tunji Sowande quietly breaks through multiple barriers to become Britain’s first Black judge.
Even a prince needs a woman’s first gift.
This is a one-man play about the infamous life of the actor, criminal, alleged lover of Princess Margaret and possessor of a 12-inch appendage, John Bindon.
It’s 1664 and the world is on the cusp of a sweeping pandemic which will devastate the population and change lives for everyone.
Tim performs songs he composed for Frederick McKinnon’s musical about Captain James Cook, and tells the story of the 18th-century explorer.
Battle describes itself as a modern mystery play, and takes the audience on an intricately-plotted historical journey from 1066 to the present day: exploring how women just gather …
Paul Robeson is a world-famous actor, singer and civil rights campaigner.
Musical influences on JS Bach were many and varied.
The WW2 Special Operations Executive is tasked with espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance.
Painting Heaven on Earth.
Whilst wide awake one night, comedian Neil Harris found himself watching a video titled How One Man Changed the High Jump.
Have you ever noticed how all female leads in historical fiction are.
Immrama: Columba’s Journey, Your Story.
Join us on a tour through medieval and renaissance Europe, playing period instruments of every kind: cornetts, sackbuts, serpents, viols, rebecs, fiddle, violins, shawms, curtals, …
The highly acclaimed Tay Bridge was commissioned by Peter Arnott for the 80th Anniversary of the Dundee Rep in 2019.
Directed by Guy Masterson.
A transgender doctor in early 20th-century America is outed in the newspapers by his best friend.
The Echo Salon.
When Coretta Scott King became widowed after an assassin’s bullet murdered her husband, the iconic Martin Luther King Jr, it propelled her voice, activism and leadership onto the i…
Painting the Way of the Cross.
This one-act play is a historical drama that tells the true story of a catastrophic, man-made disaster that killed 2,200 people in 1889 when a dam containing 20 million tons of wat…
Stunning opera in which two famous queens are locked in dangerous power play.
On April 3rd 1968, Martin famously gave a speech that was a premonition of his own death.
There have always been legends of a city below the pavements of Edinburgh.
Presented by the Barsanti Ensemble and the University of Edinburgh Musical Instrument Collection, this concert highlights a manuscript collection of music in Edinburgh University L…
Come join us for the original free walking tour around the heart of Edinburgh’s historic Old Town.
Peter Barratt gives a stirring and passionate account of his great-grandmother’s hard-fought campaign for the right to vote over a hundred years ago.
Alan Turing – A Musical Biography.
PowerPoint, politics and profanity collide in C*nt! A show by Edinburgh and Morecambe Fringe award winner and beige non-binary bird – Becky Fury (and yes, that is her real name!)…
Playwright, composer, actor, singer; Noël Coward defined and shaped the 20th century.
Stand-up comedian Richard Pulsford (Top 10 Edinburgh Fringe Jokes, 2019 and 2021; Scottish Comedian of the Year runner-up, 2021; UK Pun Championships winner 2022) hosts this show f…
Our unique tour sets out to inform and entertain as we take you into both the Old and New towns, giving you a real sense of the two sides of Edinburgh; revealing some of the secret…
Judy Garland is an icon, loved as Dorothy in Oz.
Occasionally humorous, this is a well-formed exploration of Wilde’s life, loves and works.
Pasty-white, loved a round of golf and a bevy, locked in a bitter dispute between Catholics and Protestants, had an adorable wee Skye Terrier dog, married three times, implicated i…
Miep Gies was a 32-year-old secretary in Otto Frank’s office when he asked her to help him and his family hide from the Nazis.
‘Marvellously dramatic dancer’ (New York Times) Laura Careless tells stories of forgotten female rulers of England before Elizabeth I.
Any one person show relies heavily on the performance of the central cast member and the quality of the script, luckily The Poetical Life of Philomena McGuiness is blessed with exc…
France 1789.
Edinburgh’s hysterical, historical, and completely original comedy walking tour will take you through the cobbled streets of Edinburgh’s Old Town with comic inspiration coming from…
Sammy, an artist with a love of music, has a dark secret.
Around 600AD 300 mead-fed warriors from Gododdin (roughly today’s Lothians) set off from Din Eidyn (today’s Edinburgh) to do battle at Catraeth, Deira, in what is now northern …
The Orphan Train tells the story of children on an orphan train that left New York City on May 28, 1914.
Paul Robeson is a world-famous actor, singer and civil rights campaigner.
In 1828, Burke and Hare killed 16 people in Edinburgh and they sold the bodies to an anatomist.
Burials have been taking place in Greyfriars Kirkyard since the mid-16th century, situated at the southern edge of the Old Town.
Hell hath no fury like a woman’s scorn.
Shakespeare’s Henry IV and V - two great plays and one that’s a bit of a stinker.
In 1810 a brave Scottish man named Sir George Steuart Mackenzie ventured all the way to Iceland with some pals.
One of the twentieth century’s most impressive but overlooked figures is revived in this powerful, compelling tour-de-force.
As the British Empire struggles to keep its colonial possessions, Nigerian lawyer Tunji Sowande quietly breaks through multiple barriers to become Britain’s first Black judge.
Earwig is an engaging and classy piece which tells the story of entomologist Marigold Webb, trapped in a loveless marriage and a society as uncomfortable with her deafness as it is…
Ellie MacPherson is oddly obsessed with the Presidents of the United States.
We all love a good story.
A timely piece of theatre for 2022, which is the 75th anniversary of the Partition in India.
One performer.
Captain Jake returns to Pleasance with another tale of daring piratical dos.
Long Lane Theatre return the Edinburgh with their hit play The Giant Killers.
Vibrant, inspiring play about Eglantyne Jebb; visionary, passionate, humanitarian, human rights activist and founder of Save the Children.
Denied ownership of her land through endless bureaucratic delays.
The year is 1914.
A humorous and sometimes shocking insight into the untold stories of women in Scotland and the fine line they had to walk in an ever-changing climate of politics, religion and magi…
Explore Edinburgh Sherlock style! A succession of clues and puzzles will lead you to find the truth about Sherlock Holmes and his connection to the city of Edinburgh.
A fascinating insight into Edinburgh’s past, hear incredible stories of royalty, writers, sieges, battles and plagues.
A masterclass on the hidden meaning behind characters from ancient Greek theatre, commedia dell’arte, film, television and slapstick.
Lunchtime lecture: Theology in Stone – Faith and Art in Edinburgh’s Church Architecture.
Lunchtime talk: Ms Zoe van Zwanenberg, embroiderer, discusses the art of embroidery. Tickets can be purchased at the door or from the Fringe Box Office.
One-day exhibition: Faith in Fabrics Church Vestments and Ecclesiastical.
Lemon Squeeze Productions are presenting a new adaptation of Rossetti’s Women at the Space@Surgeons’ Hall, written and directed by Joan Greening, award-winning writer of ITV si…
Come and join us online or live for the original free walking tour around the heart of Edinburgh’s Old Town.
Join us on a guided tour of the legendary and eerily macabre Greyfriars Graveyard, a picturesque burial ground full of beautifully carved gothic monuments.
In this show, I Robert Inston(is), narrate as informatively as I am able, on the mythology that surrounds the murders in Whitechapel in 1888.
Follow Princess Gayatri from the Singhasari Kingdom evolve and blossom as she strives to attain her youthful dreams alongside preserving the long-time legacy of her deceased father…
Visit the largest network of 1700s Old Town underground vaults and hear tales of how the poor and unfortunate lived in these former slums.
As Andrew Carnegie, the richest man in the world, lies on his death bed, Peterson, the embodiment of St Peter, brings John, a steelworker killed in the infamous Carnegie Steel Home…
Macready: for over thirty years, William Charles Macready (1793-1873) was the preeminent actor of the Victorian theatre.
Our unique tour sets out to inform and entertain as we take you into both the Old and New Towns, giving you a real sense of the two sides of Edinburgh; revealing some of the secret…
In 1968 East and West Germany were far from united.
Covering everything from history to religion and folklore, this walking tour is our original tour of Edinburgh’s medieval Old Town.
Hour of Scotland is Scottish history with lots of jobby jokes – if that sounds like your thing then enjoy an hour of hysterical and historical stand-up with Scottish comedian Dan…
Come and join us online or live for the original free walking tour around the heart of Edinburgh’s Old Town.
France 1789.
The tour will start at the Netherbow Port, broached by the Jacobites before dawn on Tuesday, September 17th 1745 (just outside the World’s End public house), proceed through the Gr…
Discover the sinister side of Edinburgh’s Old Town from villains to aristocracy; slums, prisons, execution sites, and the architecture of its famous sons.
World-famous Greyfriars Graveyard awaits for you to discover its relation to Harry Potter, Greyfriars Bobby, unique historical characters and the infamous Covenanters’ Prison.
Take an intriguing and entertaining stroll with our guide as you investigate some of the old wynds and closes on the Royal Mile, which are steeped in a sometimes violent and bloody…
Immrama were ancient voyage tales, allegories of our journey through life.
Philomusica of Edinburgh presents a programme of classic theme music and signature tunes from the golden age of radio.
This version of Cyrano relocates the infamous nose from 17th-century France to the battlefields of the First World War.
Peter Barratt gives a stirring and passionate account of his great-grandmother’s hard-fought campaign for the right to vote over 100 years ago.
Male impersonator, soubrette and headliner at all the major theatres, Nelly Power was a force to be reckoned with in an era before female emancipation.
Our unique tour sets out to inform and entertain as we take you into both the Old and New Towns, giving you a real sense of the two sides of Edinburgh; revealing some of the secret…
Who was Shakespeare’s true love? Anne Hathaway who seduced the young Will.
Judy Garland is an icon, loved as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz.
Celebrate the 100th anniversary of Prohibition with flappers, gin fizz and a cabaret concert featuring lost speakeasy songs.
France 1789.
Join our expert guides for a free walk around the heart of Edinburgh’s historic Old Town.
Huddersfield, West Yorkshire 1977.
This exhibition of paintings by Susie Reade refers to a young woman’s diary describing her unusual journey from Scotland to work in WWII Russia.
Discover a little-known side of Edinburgh’s Old Town: behind the historic buildings, find the surprising number of little gardens and green nooks and crannies, all with a story to …
Enjoy a plaguey, fiery hour in this informative and interactive one-man show for history-loving kids.
We find Lila, a young British woman, alone in a hospital for the criminally insane in 1928.
There have always been legends of a city below the pavements of Edinburgh.
After total sell-out Edinburgh Fringe runs in 2018 and 2019, In Loyal Company returns in a bigger venue for 2020.
A unique hands-on reminiscence museum in a shopping centre with an exhibition full of memories.
A guided walk in a lush, green valley with a focus on key Scottish architectural features.
The Scottish guitarist/composer Gordon Ferries returns to St Cecilia’s with tenor Stuart Mitchell, performing Ferries’ new songs from A Shropshire Lad and from poems by Byron and S…
A new play by John Knowles written for the students of the PQA.
Set in 1942, in the final days of an orphanage in the Jewish ghetto of Warsaw, where food is scarce, tempers rise and everyone just wants to survive.
At the turn of the 16th century, the first music ever to be printed was published by Ottaviano Petrucci in Venice.
Sense and Sensibility tells the story of the Dashwood sisters as they navigate the world of love, loss and society.
The Pope makes legal history having his predecessor exhumed and put on trial.
London, 1946.
Tom Devine is arguably Scotland’s greatest living historian, having written or contributed to more than 25 books covering such areas as Scottish and Irish migration, Scottish ind…
The Edinburgh Renaissance Band are joined by Polyhymnia Dancers in the ever-popular Viol Rackett Show, with a fresh programme for 2019 of music, song and dance from the Middle Ages…
A world premiere, Wingmen explores how different people react to overwhelming danger.
The accomplished and versatile team of Anthony Robson, Gerry McDonald and John Kitchen present a programme of virtuoso concertos in miniature by five undisputed masters of the genr…
Handel was famous for making unauthorised quotations of musical material from other composers in his own works.
Whilst Arthur Conan Doyle is arguably most well known for bringing the legendary Sherlock Holmes to life through his novels, it is less well known that he was a devout spiritualist…
A history show unearthing the most shocking events, actions and characters throughout our past.
In this alternative history show four panellists each deliver an original stand-up comedy set based around an event which happened on the same date as the show at some point in his…
On a pale horse: in 1547, King Henry VIII is dead, and his court is reeling from the news.
Set in a TV studio, News@1066 puts history straight! Roving reporters get to the bottom of history’s biggest stories.
Peter Barratt gives a stirring and passionate account of his great-grandmother’s hard-fought campaign for the right to vote over a 100 years ago.
It might be true that Brandy was first performed in 2010 at South London Theatre, but it’s still impossible not to view this production through the lens of Yorgos Lanthimos’ 20…
Robyn Stapleton, a BBC Traditional Singer of the Year, partners the historian David Purdie to trace the story of the Scots nation through its songs.
Music of great halls, cathedrals and servants’ quarters is brought to life by the group who have been delighting Fringe audiences since 1973.
England, 1585.
‘The men are gone and all has sunken into disorder’.
From labour to rest.
From its start, the Piccolo Teatro Nexonnais has desired to establish theatre plays whose content evokes deeper aspects of the human comedy.
Part I: fool me once.
A fun and fascinating tour of the oral tradition and the poetic movements that have shaped history presented by a former National Poetry Slam Champion.
Bethlem Royal Hospital, 1854.
Sell-out event with a new line-up! On the outskirts of Edinburgh, hidden away at the end of a winding driveway, lies one of Edinburgh’s secret treasures – Lauriston Castle.
True story of the role played by theatre in the birth of modern Ireland, set backstage during performances of groundbreaking Irish plays, Cathleen ni Hoolihan (1902), The Playboy o…
This year’s Shackleton memorial concert, featuring horn player Andy Saunders playing the Courtois horn from circa 1840.
In his cell, woodturner Daniel McNaughton, wronged by his father, dismissed by the Glaswegian legal establishment, awaits sentence for his botched attempt to shoot Prime Minister R…
Following the popularity of Greenyonder Tours’ sell-out tour Hidden Gardens of the Royal Mile, this walking tour celebrates the work of Patrick Geddes, the early Scots environmen…
Life after war is quiet and eerie.
Tom McNab, technical adviser on Chariots of Fire, delivers extracts from his play 1936 using extensive coverage of Riefenstahl’s Olympia film.
Returning by popular demand for its fourth year. As technical adviser on the film, Tom gives a rare insight into the making of the 1981 Oscar-winning picture.
2018 Fringe sell-out.
Join our curators, conservator and volunteers on special highlight tours of St Cecilia’s Hall, Scotland’s oldest concert hall and home of the University of Edinburgh’s world renown…
Take a look back at Scotland’s darker history as we delve into the lives of a few Scottish folk whose fates were sealed by being accused of witchcraft.
Enjoy a relaxed walk through the historic Old Town with a bona fide Scottish Historian.
Explore Edinburgh Sherlock style! A succession of clues and puzzles will lead you to find the truth about Sherlock Holmes and his connection to the city of Edinburgh.
The boy I love is up in the gallery.
On a cold, blustery evening in 1945, the playwright’s grandmother, June, answers the door to an ill-fated telegram delivery.
Our unique tour sets out to inform and entertain as we take you into both the Old and New towns, giving you a real sense of the two sides of Edinburgh; revealing some of the secret…
Steve Taylor is Will Kemp – celebrity comedian and superstar of the Elizabethan stage.
After their successful run of Greyhounds in 2018, Time & Again return with Edwardian epic, Clouds! The year is 1913 and women are rising up.
Join our expert guides for a free walk around the heart of Edinburgh’s historic Old Town.
Booking is essential for this sell-out tour.
Enigma, a new musical presented by Enigma Theatre UK is an exciting piece of historical musical theatre telling the story of a unit of female code breakers in America during World …
Set against the backdrops of the Vietnam War, World War II and the Korean War, Beyond Glory tells the stirring, emotional, and heroic true stories of eight recipients of America’…
The true story of a forgotten Scottish hero, the Reverend Donald Caskie, who was known as the Tartan Pimpernel, when the Germans invaded France in 1940.
Just yards from James Boswell’s Edinburgh birthplace and subsequent residence on the Lawnmarket, MHK Productions & Rhymes with Purple present his famed friendship with Samuel…
A woman, a warrior, a Chinese legend – Michelle Yim (The Empress and Me) brings to life the real Mulan who, to save her family’s honour, disguised herself as a man and joined the…
On 20th July, 1969, thousands of people gathered to watch two remarkable firsts: the first all-night broadcast on British television, and the first man walking on the surface of th…
France.
Edinburgh Fringe sell-out show 2018! ‘Absolutely phenomenal, sensitively portrayed with painstaking accuracy’ (BroadwayBaby.
Presented through Hawaiian hula, chant, and song, this opera dramatises the battle between the chief, Kekuaokalani, who wanted to hold onto the ancient Hawaiian religion, and Lihol…
Financier? Miser? Witch? A dry-witted tale about the life of Hetty Green, once America’s richest woman.
More of a personal theatrical experience than what one might expect from a show described as ‘cabaret’, Allie Jessing’s Hetaira: A Mythic Cabaret sees the talented actress de…
The Byrd International Singers, directed by Markdavin Obenza, participates in an annual Renaissance course offered by the Byrd Ensemble (US).
Meet characters including a publican, an investor and a spy who’ll share details with you from Edinburgh’s colourful past as you journey through Gladstone’s Land.
It’s August, and we know what has lured all of you to Edinburgh—the neoclassical architecture!Whether you’re a regular tourist, Fringe-goer or resident, Cobble Tales' Arc…
A completely unique, side-splittingly hilarious walk of Edinburgh’s Old Town with local comedian Daniel Downie that promises to be more hysterical than historical.
Highlighting the best examples of Scottish furniture from our collection, this exhibition will show timeless designs from Scotland’s iconic cabinet-makers, from William Trotter t…
This tour will take you into parts of Edinburgh that you did not know existed, off the tourist trail.
We are the top-rated walking tour company for English tours in Edinburgh on TripAdvisor and we have put together a special festival friendly walking tour of the Old Town for you to…
2018 sell-out; a small group walk in a green valley with a focus on key Scottish architectural features.
‘The problem with Scotland is that it’s full of Scots’ (Edward Longshanks, Braveheart).
Celebrating the 275th anniversary of the original rules of golf, this exhibition will show John Rattray’s involvement in shaping the modern golf game and golfing artefacts, clubs…
A fictitious talk show with a live audience, featuring a guest from the afterlife.
Showbiz stalwart and Wheezing Dragon Best Newcomer (1980, 1982), Whobblers returns for one last debut show.
Dramatic Highland landscapes, heroic histories, tartan and bagpipes are among the defining images of Scotland for many people around the world today.
What would happen if the lost papers of a genius were recovered in the modern day? Four actors present a dramatisation of the life and works of Adam Smith, performed in the house i…
Help us to find out which ghosts haunt our famous underground vaults.
This exhibition reveals the stories of prisoner-patients held in the Criminal Lunatic Department in Perth.
Bombs are falling on Liverpool.
2018 Best Musical nominee (MusicalTheatreReview.
From the creator of the international sensation Eleanor’s Story: An American Girl In Hitler’s Germany comes the highly anticipated sequel, detailing life after war.
A true story set in a small town in Ireland between 1899 and 1916.
The French and Italian styles compared and contrasted by Francois Couperin, JS Bach and Telemann.
Set in a TV studio, News@1066 puts history straight! Roving reporters get to the bottom of history’s biggest stories.
International performing artist Phamie Gow and Enlightenment scholar Professor David Purdie collaborate in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe for the first time.
A badly planned polar expedition in 1912 led to the Russian ship The Saint Anna to be locked into the ice of the Kara Sea.
Over 50 years ago, thousands of young American women went to Vietnam to serve their country during the war.
The Last Burrah Sahibs is a one-hour, one-man, spoken-word show about the mansion house dwelling life led by ordinary Scottish mill workers in the old jute colonies along the Hoogh…
Three lovers.
Washington State, 1910.
Music by 17th-century composer John Dowland for lute, soprano and viol.
A programme that includes some of Bach’s earliest organ music as well as pieces that are decidedly youthful in spirit including the Prelude and Fugue in D and the Partita on Christ…
A striking result of the Anglican Church’s break with Rome in 1536 was its impact on English literature, not only Cranmer’s masterly Book of Common Prayer and the King James Bi…
There Was a Soldier.
Heinrich Schütz, perhaps the most highly regarded composer in 17th century Germany, wrote The Resurrection History on returning to Germany in 1623, following a period of study in …
In the beginning was the Word, but I honestly don’t know which word to begin with when trying to describe this production.
Linking Old and New Towns, Princes Street Gardens are truly amazing in their unique geology, disputed history, diverse planting and the myriad ways that ordinary folk have used and…
With a statue of Alice unveiled earlier this centenary year and her very own suffragette memorabilia currently on loan to the UK Parliament as a star feature in the summer Voice an…
What do you look for when you riffle through the remains of history: the truth or yourself? Danielle Bainbridge’s play follows an obsessive young researcher’s journey to uncove…
Laura Careless’ solo show, inspired by the book and BBC series of the same name by Helen Castor, is an intricate, forceful and nuanced production examining the life of five diffe…
Citadel Arts Group present Dancing with Mrs Murphy, an edgy new play by Vincent Maguire, directed by Mark Kydd.
We’re hosting drop-in screenings of Festival in Edinburgh (1955) and Edinburgh on Parade (1970).
‘A collection of.
Hundreds of thousands marched for peace but when war came, only a few dared to be different.
Written and directed by Heather Alexander.
A war hero, a statesman, a husband, Alexei Petro had everything… to lose.
Born in Kansas, home of the South Wind, in 1897, Amelia Earhart reigned as Queen of the Air until her mysterious disappearance over the Pacific in 1937.
The original show, performed for the first time in 10 years. Turn up early, sell-out expected.
The Edinburgh Quartet, founded in 1960, is one of Britain’s foremost chamber ensembles.
The Edinburgh Renaissance Band are joined by Polyhymnia Dancers in the ever-popular Viol Rackett Show, our best-loved programme of music, song and dance from the Middle Ages to the…
A dramatic representation of the life of Adam Smith, supported by Kirkcaldy 4 All.
Catalina Vicens presents keyboard music for and around women in 16th and 17th-century Italy and England – works by Cara, Tromboncino, Valente, Byrd, Bull, Gibbons and others, usi…
From prehistory to 1877, you choose which version of Scotsman JT Stewart’s Palmerston will be told through music by one of New Zealand’s celebrated Maori instrument makers and his …
‘Leeson in the title role is absolutely phenomenal.
Direct from the USA, the defending three-time National Shakespearean Acting Champions present Shakespeare’s rarely done history, King John.
Jack stayed on when the guns fell silent, to search amongst the rusty wire and unexploded bombs for those that could never go home.
David Gerrard, the soloist and doctoral student, plays music by JS Bach, favourite composer of the late chairman of the Friends, and by his French contemporary Antoine Forqueray, o…
Tom McNab, technical adviser on the film Chariots of Fire, gives a short, sharp history of the Olympic games to raise funds for the Eric Liddell Centre – a dementia care charity …
With Bassanio murdered, Gratiano is forced to revisit his fascist past.
With five years of sell-out shows behind her Ann Treherne, Chair of the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Centre, talks about Edinburgh’s famous son, a man of literature and world spokesman o…
Explore how the Wars of the Roses still has relevance today.
On the outskirts of Edinburgh, hidden away at the end of a winding driveway, lies one of Edinburgh’s secret treasures – Lauriston Castle.
The Wardrobe is a place where children over time have felt safe to share secrets and find solace for the struggles – some different and some the same across the ages.
In a cramped cell aboard a ship, six prisoners are being shipped to a life of hard labour.
Step back in time to the 18th century – visit Outlander film locations in Edinburgh Old town pubs, closes, jails, churches and print shops visited by Claire and Jamie! Your tour …
Experience the dark and hidden atmosphere of the Detective Inspector John Rebus books, which are written by bestselling crime writer Ian Rankin.
Could you be a psychic spy? In 1972, the Cold War took an unusual turn.
Emily Worthington, clarinettist and musicologist, presents 19th-century chamber music on historical clarinets from the world-class Sir Nicholas Shackleton Collection,* accompanied …
Past secrets remain hidden, not by the sinister or well-meant, but from fear.
All About Her — Feminism in Chinese Traditional Opera creatively combines traditional Chinese Opera with contemporary ideas, exploring feminism in the traditional opera repertoir…
On our tour we will reveal some of the secrets hidden within a city rich in culture and ancient history, and blessed with beauty.
One hundred years of blues, 60 minutes to play it.
Set in the small village of Shuttlefield, Greyhounds sees the local amateur dramatic society attempt to raise money for a Spitfire fighter aircraft by putting on a production of Sh…
Excitement! Drama! Romance! And… knitting? A scintillating cabaret, featuring the lost knitting songs of WWI and WWII from Canada, Britain, America and France.
Join our expert guides for a free walk around the heart of Edinburgh’s historic Old Town.
Edith Piaf and Jacques Brel: two French musical icons.
Haggis, Neeps and Burns is about as Scottish as tartan and the trinity.
Cast Iron Theatre have rocked a minimalist set – an intimate three chairs and floor space surrounded by a ring of audience members – and have stretched it expertly to the peak …
Dive into the horrors of history in our immersive walking tour and show.
November 22nd 1963.
Who is the real Sherlock Holmes? Join us on this 90-minute magical mystery walking tour as we take a step back in time to Victorian Edinburgh and discover the hidden history and fo…
A small group walk in a lush valley with a focus on key Scottish architectural features.
The first point to make clear is that My Name is Dorothy has nothing to do with The Wizard of Oz.
Dr Korczak was a Polish doctor and writer, who passionately championed every child’s right to freedom, respect and love.
I Sniper, appropriately enough, starts with a bang.
Visit the magnificent Parliament Hall, once the seat of Scotland’s politics, and gain a fascinating insight into the history, traditions and ceremonies of the home of Scotland’s Su…
Sir Nicholas Winton organized the rescue of 669 children from Czechoslovakia on the eve of World War II in an operation that would later become known as the Czech Kindertransport.
Joanne Hartstone’s one-woman show is a brilliant send up to classic Golden Age Hollywood that keeps the glitz and glamour of the period whilst showing the grimy and exploitative …
Take an easy walking tour to discover a little-known side of Edinburgh’s Old Town.
It’s August 1918 and it’s finally beginning to look like an Allied victory is on the cards.
Following on from last year’s successful stand-up show of the same name, Bruce Fummey will take a small group in a people carrier to hear the real story of this much maligned Sco…
A play of overwhelming sincerity and honesty and a moving tribute to an incredible and unique First World War chaplain.
After married man John Proctor decides to break off his affair with his young lover, Abigail Williams, she leads other local girls in an occult rite to wish death upon his wife, El…
A boozy history of Scotland held on the most unique of venue – on board The Lochrin Belle canal boat.
From laundry girl to one of Hollywood’s most glamorous stars, the tragic and wonderful life of Anna May Wong.
A story of one of the 200,000 Koreans who were deported from the Russian-Korean boarder by the Soviet government in 1937.
Daniel Downie takes an irreverent look at Edinburgh’s history that’s more hysterical than historical.
When stand-up comedian Richard Pulsford decided to research his family tree, he uncovered some seriously interesting stories of ordinary people caught up in world wars – on both …
Award-winning Lucky Dog bring their acclaimed Mr Merrick, the Elephant Man to Edinburgh for the first time.
From the age of sieges and chivalry comes a show about medieval love, adrenaline junkies and an insane quest for glory.
The women of England demand the vote! The remarkable true story of Muriel Matters: the South-Australian actress and elocutionist who became a leading figure of the UK’s suffragette…
Tony Award winner Ben Harney (Broadway's Dreamgirls), and writer Mehr Mansuri, lead this musical about an 1850s Virginia slave who ships himself to freedom in a box.
Mengele by Philip Wharam and Tim Marriott.
11:87 returns to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with a new show by John Casey.
There is only one football champion in Scotland, and its colours are maroon and khaki.
Join a local guide for a fun and informative introduction to Edinburgh’s Old Town.
Two Destination Language are encouraging audiences to see the personal narrative behind history with their performance Fallen Fruit.
I was unsure what to expect from this performance, but "a musical about Robert Burns" already had my interest piqued.
Welcome to The 24/7 Club, where everyone was born on the 24th July! Party with Zelda Fitzgerald, Amelia Earhart and more in Charlie V Martin’s new solo show about her birthday.
While Henry the 8th fights for his life, his daughter Mary Tudor has a battle of her own: she wants to claim his soon-to-be-empty throne.
Celebrating the friendship between composer and war poet, Ivor Gurney, and musician and first woman music critic, Marion Scott; written and performed by Jan Carey.
For the first time Little Fish Tours is running our Festival Friendly Tour.
Christmas is a time for joy and happiness, but there’s a sinister secret wrapped in the stories we tell.
Vibrant, inspiring play about Eglantyne Jebb, the visionary, courageous, passionate, human rights pioneer and founder of Save the Children.
Eleanor Ramrath Garner’s best-selling memoir of her youth, adapted for the stage and performed by her granddaughter Ingrid.
The final resting place of the work and artefacts of Scotland’s most creative writers: Robert Burns, Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson.
‘Private Peaceful at the theatre is a moving experience that not only tells the story of a young soldier’s final day in World War One, but perhaps more importantly conveys the stre…
Lizzie, her mother and an elephant from the zoo flee the Dresden firebombing in the Second World War.
If you were anywhere near the Pleasance Courtyard this year, you’ll of heard of Lab Rats Theatre’s In Loyal Company as it shook the Fringe with its sell out run and critical ac…
There are a worrying number of ‘ists’ in society today – racists, sexists, even fascists – who’d have thought they’d make such a comeback?! For her debut Edinburgh show, …
A fun-packed evening of traditional Scottish music, legend and dance set within the photo-ready setting of historic Prestonfield House – former mansion to Edinburgh’s Lord Prov…
Bunker Girls shows us two women who worked as secretaries documenting the German perspective on WWII.
Nigerian Tunji Sowande quietly breaks through multiple barriers to become Britain’s first black judge in 1978.
Though history favours certain people and ends up silencing others, theatre can be a means of trying to give a voice to those whose perspectives have been lost.
A tale of two countries.
In view of the recent violence in Charlottesville, KKK sympathisers in the White House and, even on our end of the pond, much of the sentiment behind Brexit, a discussion of the in…
Scotland’s new chamber choir makes its debut, bringing to life three of Bach’s incomparable masterpieces.
A mind reading show based on the true story of America’s psychic spies.
“All I knew was the playground song Mary Queen of Scots got her head chopped off,” says opera singer Louise Macdonald, “until I started learning Schumann’s Maria Stuart Lie…
In 1875, a group of first and second generation immigrants, from the greatest refugee crisis of the age, fed up with their lack of opportunity, founded a football team called Hiber…
We’ll Meet Again, White Cliffs of Dover, There’ll Always be an England: Dame Vera Lynn’s nostalgic songs defined a generation.
Period production set in India in the 1940s, staging a spiritual journey two people take as they step foot into the theatre of life.
1717 – the inaugural meeting of a secret society where young ladies exercise their minds.
With the UK centenary of women first gaining the vote just months away, great-grandson Peter Barratt gives a stirring and passionate account of Alice’s hard fought campaign for wom…
Join us as we spend an hour celebrating the brave, drunken, high, and sex-crazed pioneers that built our civilization one bad choice at a time and watch us as we stumble in their f…
Dramatised reading of letters exchanged between the British, Palestinian and Zionist parties 100 years ago sheds more light on the events that led to the present geopolitical relat…
After sold out residencies at The Brooklyn Art Library (Brooklyn NY) and The Sekrit Theater (Austin TX), Invulnerable Nothings presents the (un)Staged Reading series alongside Howa…
With four sell-out shows behind her, Ann Treherne, Chair of The Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Centre talks about Edinburgh’s famous son and man of literature who became the world spokesma…
Visit a spectacular building and discover how diseases and treatments fell in and out of favour in Edinburgh and beyond.
If you have a passion for current affairs, a thirst for knowledge, or are simply looking for an interesting topic to discuss at the dinner table, these free events are for you! Our…
How long will your adult child be staying? Should you make an ultimatum? Can you steer them away from war games and into the archives? What’s the point of it all? Will the story of…
Sherlock Holmes, whisky lore, and a wee dram in a haunted venue! Join Scots whisky expert Charles MacLean and Sherlockian author/expert Bonnie MacBird as they talk history, murder …
Walt Whitman stops somewhere, waiting for you.
Since 2011, George Wilson and his twin sons have presented Bach at the Canongate.
Spencer Percival has one claim to fame.
On our tour we will reveal some of the secrets hidden within a city rich in culture and ancient history and blessed with beauty.
Join an expert local guide for a historical walking tour around Edinburgh’s world-famous Old Town.
Who is the Real Sherlock Holmes? Take a step back in time to Victorian Edinburgh, and join our very own Holmes on a magical walking tour to discover the hidden history and forgotte…
One hundred years of blues, one hour to play it.
Chamberlain has been relegated to history as one of life’s wishful thinkers.
After huge success in China, highly popular Oxygen Media brings Yayapa, a show for children to learn Chinese history and culture, to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
The story goes that in November 1786 the Scottish poet Robert Burns borrowed a pony and left his native Ayrshire for Edinburgh.
The Sneeze is a collection of hilarious short plays by the great Russian playwright Anton Chekhov, translated and adapted by Michael Frayn.
Cockroaches is an adaptation of Mikhail Bulgakov’s play Flight, a story of five refugees fleeing the civil war and the Soviet regime in 1920.
The Amish Project (Ensemble Version), a story of grace and healing, is a fictionalized account of the shooting at an Amish school in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in 2006.
Back in the 1960s there were seven of these mobile cinemas made for the Ministry of Technology.
Natural philosophers Edmund Halley and Robert Hooke are engaged in a scientific wager that will crown the man who can prove why the planets move elliptically the victor.
Why do they fire a massive canon every day at lunchtime? How many pubs are named after brutal murderers? How did the Stone of Destiny end up back where it never belonged in the fir…
A hundred years ago or yesterday? Strange and distant events or strangely familiar? Feminism, art, war, pop music, revolution, crime fiction, independence, racial violence, crazy p…
Prolific children’s author, conservationist, believer in fairies – Angela Brazil was a complicated and determined woman with a tendency to write her personal life into her book…
A light-hearted lecture on the German Renaissance’s coolest dude, Albrecht Dürer.
Putney Light Operatic Society are bringing a famous English haunting back from the dead with their new musical The Poltergeist of Cock Lane, composed by Steven Geraghty and written…
Victor Hugo once said “You can resist an invading army; you cannot resist an idea whose time has come.
This mesmerising adaptation of Stefan Zweig’s novella gives you no choice but to be completely immersed into a tiny room with a Nazi prisoner, as he attempts to cling to sanity u…
‘Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.
Football wasn’t always a game for the masses.
‘I thought they wanted soldiers.
Join a local guide for this fun and informative walk through 900 years of Edinburgh’s history.
Be led by a gruesome character from Edinburgh’s dark past around some old streets and wynds, then take a visit down into our Underground Vaults.
Kings or Queens? Thinkers or Doers? Rogues or Heroes? This exciting exhibition showcases the lives of some of the most famous and infamous Scots, told through unique treasures from…
On this guided walking tour of Edinburgh, an expert guide will show you all the city has to offer.
Originally opened in 1763, St Cecilia’s Hall is the oldest purpose-built concert hall in Scotland.
One of the greatest ever photographic records of human survival, Enduring Eye honours the achievements of Sir Ernest Shackleton and the men of the Endurance expedition of 1914-1917…
This major exhibition tells the real story of the rise and fall of the Jacobites.
Nigerian Tunji Sowande quietly breaks through multiple barriers to become Britain’s first Black judge in 1978.
Some people might think that setting the Battle of Stalingrad to Britney Spears’ Baby One More Time is somewhat trivialising the matter.
An umbrella for a sword, a lamp as a tree and a wooden spoon as a nun, are just a few examples for the smart and innovative use of objects in The Tale of the Cockatrice.
Constance Lloyd is rarely remembered in literary history.
In a time of pre-war political tension, gone are the days of frothy fashion journalism for Pamela More, a feisty and glamorous Times journalist who stubbornly prioritises haute-c…
Forget lovable rogues and artful dodgers, this uncomfortable monologue tells the true story of a London awash with criminal gangs in the interwar years.
In 1987, celebrated BBC weather forecaster Michael Fish stood up on national television and shrugged off reports of an oncoming hurricane.
An Arab, a Jew, and a new immigrant take a voyage into memory, dramatising their personal stories.
Richard III.
In this tapestry of storytelling, poetry and monologues from the afterlife, Arachne the weaver spins tales of darkness, death and feminine mystique.
Fusing stand-up, cabaret and live documentary, we go on a journey through that most deceptively fascinating of subjects - debt! With comedy vignettes (laughs), appearances from …
“I looked like an angel, but was a fiend inside.
Next to Normal spin words, music, vocals and their sweet, sweet moves into sketch forms every damn day (after their day jobs).
Come and take a look around our beautiful church.
The award-winning true story of the lives of the best-loved comedy duo of all-time.
Take Shelter at Downs Junior School, and step back to the 1940s when you visit our original WW2 Air Raid Shelter under the playground.
Notorious performer Hypnotique tells her personal story about the world’s first electronic instrument (from 1920s Russia) and it’s influence on music today – including Led Zepp…
A social history of Brighton & Hove’s largest taxi company, formed by a group of drivers in 1936 using a brand new concept which changed the taxi industry all over England, spreadi…
Plunge into tales of the legendary Welsh bard Taliesin.
New writing about the Great War, this poignant, funny play follows the story of innocent and enthusiastic men who volunteer their services to Britain after Kitchener’s call to arms…
Before World War One most immigrants to Brighton were French and German speakers from the Continent.
Geoffrey Mead will be conducting a special tour dating back over 90 years of cafe and family history.
Two masterly and unfairly neglected short plays by W.
Exclusive after hours tours, just on offer as part of the Brighton Fringe in May.
The cramped prison cell under Brighton’s Town Hall once more plays host to 368 Theatre Company’s trilogy of jail-based plays, which includes the sad tale of Olive and Bosi…
Over 200 years of history from a lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer perspective including Regency Dandies, 1950s lesbian and gay life and political activism.
Immigration, migrants, the refugee crisis; hot divisive topics of debate that have been blamed for Brexit, Trump, rise of hate crimes in the past year.
These amazing tours only happen during Brighton Fringe.
Guided tours of this magnificent Grade I* listed church - one of the finest Victorian churches in the country.
Brighton’s most popular 90 minute traditional city walking tour.
Close to the city centre lies the Victorian suburb of Clifton Hill and Montpelier; a quiet architecturally interesting community with its own geological, geographical and social hi…
London Road is an area rapidly regenerating after years of inner city decline.
Join John George Haigh in his cell, the night before he is hanged in 1949.
In the era of Serial, Making a Murderer and Casting JonBenet, it can be easy to forget that the public’s taste for true crime is not a particularly modern phenomenon.
Jack stayed on when the guns fell silent, to search amongst the rusty wire and unexploded bombs for those that could never go home.
A fact-filled walk celebrating our unique city.
Soviet Russia, 1937.
A 70 minute tour in the company of either Silas, Jasper or Ebenezer, visiting eight sites, around Brighton’s most haunted quarter.
Inspiring solo play about Eglantyne Jebb, a courageous, passionate, Edwardian human rights activist.
Award-nominated sell-out hit HIP returns as an immersive journey through the streets of 1970s Brighton.
Organist David Hamilton presents a programme including Bach’s Sei gegrüsset variations and the mighty Passacaglia.
We encounter the Workcenter’s deepening of an exploration of the human being in action, as Mr Richards guides us through the phases of the Workcenter’s performing arts research…
We encounter the Workcenter’s deepening of an exploration of the human being in action, as Mr Richards guides us through the phases of the Workcenter’s performing arts research…
Much has been said and written about gin but Dorothy Parker probably uttered the most appropriate for this event.
There have been by my count no less than six adaptations of Macbeth at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2016, yet the China Anhui Opera Institute’s offering may be the most unusual.
Carla Pollastrelli will carry the public through an outline of Jerzy Grotowski’s creative biography with a specific focus on the theatrical phase he carried out between 1959 and …
Carla Pollastrelli will carry the public through an outline of Jerzy Grotowski’s creative biography with a specific focus on the theatrical phase he carried out between 1959 and …
Come and meet Holly Bidgood, author of The Eagle and The Oystercatcher.
100 years ago Nurse Edith Cavell was shot for assisting allied soldiers out of Belgium.
In this encounter, Carla Pollastrelli, co-director of Fondazione Pontedera Teatro from 1993 to 2012, will introduce and present the video documentation of Akropolis, an outstanding…
Brundibar is an opera for children performed by children.
In this encounter, Carla Pollastrelli, co-director of Fondazione Pontedera Teatro from 1993 to 2012, will introduce and present the video documentation of Akropolis, an outstanding…
This tense thriller presents the true story of one of the greatest media scandals in British history – the publication of Andrew Morton’s book about Diana, Princess of Wales, whi…
Performed by a company of young actors, this is a credible adaptation of Shakespeare’s rarely performed King John that revels in the high stakes of its historical narrative.
Berlin, 1928 – a fun-loving young American actress and a straight-laced German film director come together to make a classic of the silent screen, Pandora’s Box.
One actress in an authentic, theatrical and compelling performance that breathes life into long-forgotten African-American women’s voices from slave narratives, personal letters,…
After a sold out run in London, Who’s the Umpire is the Edinburgh debut of London based Theatre company, Omnifolk.
Born 400 years ago, Weckmann was regarded as one of the greatest organists of his generation. David Hamilton performs his complete organ works in two parts with an interval.
James VII (reigned 1685-8), Scotland’s last Catholic king, was overthrown by his son-in-law William of Orange in the revolution of 1688-9.
The Life of St Margaret provides a unique insight into late 11th-century Scotland and her profound influence on her husband and his kingdom.
Directed by Patrick Sandford.
Prince Edward Island, Canada, 1883 – home to the young Lucy Maud Montgomery, creator of Anne of Green Gables, and to four young spinsters of Scottish, Irish and English descent.
WWI stories, songs, poems, humour and visuals by performers aged 14-70.
“Reason is, and ought only to be, the slave of the passions.
Between the 1830s and 1920s over 1.
If you want to see a show that constructs John Knox as a talking point for oversimplified political views, may I suggest Mary Queen of Scots got her Head Chopped Off? It’s not on…
A splendidly constructed World War Two piece, that struggles to be heard.
Early archaeological enthusiasts at Carthage were drawn in search of the city of Dido and Hannibal.
1513, Flodden Field: among the dead lay Scotland’s most popular Stewart King and the flower of her nobility.
A premiering play based on the life of the 19th-century Indian soldier Turrebaz Khan who rebelled for his country’s freedom.
In this one-performer play by writer Donald Smith, actor Robin Thomson plays King James – at once James VI of Scotland and James I of England.
The Confederate States of America lost its quest for political independence in 1865, but its symbol, the Confederate flag, lived on, long after the nation it represented cease to e…
Waldorf Wayfarers – Directed by Australian composer Judith Clingan, 20 students and teachers from Waldorf or Steiner schools in Australia and Taiwan will give an hour’s program…
Nigerian Tunji Sowande quietly breaks through multiple barriers to become Britain’s first black judge in 1978.
Tristram Shandy’s sizzling autobiography, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, has just hit the shelves and the author has announced a nation-wide tour: a theatrica…
Following her third year of successful, sell-out shows, Ann Treherne, Chairman of The Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Centre, talks about this famous man of literature – and spiritualism!…
Paul Robeson is a world-famous American actor, singer and civil rights campaigner.
‘We are more than bodies to be fed to a machine.
Come to the College’s spectacular hall to be shocked by our seventh Fringe event.
One World Actors Centre’s fringe production of James Goldman’s historical black comedy The Lion in Winter is a valiant attempt to bring the acclaimed play to the festival stage…
Lest We Forget is a play centered on the human cost of World War One directly in its aftermath.
A collection of witty, intelligent and highly entertaining plays written for and by members of the Actresses Franchise League.
A mind reading show based on the true story of the Cold War’s psychic spies.
In their sixth appearance at the Fringe, George, Adam and Tom Wilson have borrowed the title of Wilfred Meller’s book for a programme which will include music for organ, solo violi…
Join a trained festival guide for a historical walking tour around Edinburgh’s world-famous Old Town.
This tour covers both the Old Town and the New Town, and includes a wide breadth of history about Edinburgh.
Ladies in Waiting, written by and starring James Cougar Canfield as the lascivious and misogynistic King Henry VIII, is a steamy, feminist critique of the most notorious of England…
Adolph Eichmann never personally killed anyone, but he was hanged in 1962, having been found guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
New late night tour experience offering a unique insight into Edinburgh’s tumultuous yet fascinating past with witches and witchcraft, telling stories of its infamous accomplices a…
The genius of the Romantic poets was their ability to bring emotion to the forefront in a world where faux-rationality reigned.
Call Mr Robeson is Tayo Aluko’s tribute to one of the twentieth century’s most recognisable singers in terms of looks and voice.
The intimate SpaceTriplex Studio, tucked underground beneath Edinburgh’s cosmopolitan centre, is an appropriate home-from-home for Quli: Dilon ka Shahzaada.
History meets hilarity as stand-up comedians bring the past to life with punchlines.
This exhibition within the magnificent Parliament Hall gives a fascinating insight into the history, traditions and ceremonies of the home of Scotland’s Supreme Courts.
In Paul Duncan McGarrity’s eighth show at the Fringe, Ask An Archaeologist, interesting and funny are blended to create a must see stand-up at the heart of the Free Fringe Festiv…
Huddled underground in a nuclear bunker, Three Men in a Boot attempt to recreate history as best they can whilst staving off hunger (and potentially another Ice Age).
George Orwell once wrote a fairy tale in order to avoid accusations of criticising reality.
Nigerian Tunji Sowande quietly breaks through multiple barriers to become Britain’s first black judge in 1978.
Emerging in a Grecian breastplate of gold, to a poetic backdrop of Wilfred Owen’s Dulce et Decorum Est the stage is seemingly set for the presentation of a man whose view of hims…
‘Ireland’s hottest comedian’ (OneWorldChronicle.
The queen who ruled a kingdom (and an empire) as you’ve never dared think of her before.
Notorious performer Hypnotique tells her personal story about the world’s first electronic instrument (from 1920s Russia) and its influence on music today – including Led Zeppe…
International theatre has always been a key component of Edinburgh Fringe.
The image of a twisted spindly shadow with long crooked fingers, along with pointy ears and even pointier fangs ascending the stairs, is one that is burned into the imaginations an…
Meet the real edgy Bard.
The self-empowerment of interesting American women from history is a dramatic premise that instantly arrests your attention.
The Celts exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland is well worth a visit.
What is a map? The National Library of Scotland’s free exhibition You Are Here asks that question, taking you on a cartographic journey from Edinburgh to the ends of the earth.
Join a fun and informative small group tour through Edinburgh’s historic city centre, led by a knowledgeable and experienced local guide.
Character comedian Nick Hall brings a one-man Cold War thriller to Brighton.
“Highly recommended.
Prince Edward Island, Canada, 1883 - home to L.
Jack stayed on when the guns fell silent, to search the battlefields for those that could never go home.
May 1816.
Izzard, Brand, Hardee - comedian Charmian’s had steaming hot cuppas with them all.
A one-man drama about Indian chief, Crazy Horse that captures the high adventure of the Sioux Wars of the Wild West.
Preston Manor opens its doors and gardens for a pick-and-mix day showcasing the wider attractions of one of Brighton’s uniquely historic and picturesque city villages.
Award-winning comedian Amadeus Martin takes you on a journey through Brixton urban legends, anecdotes and observations, from the failed Viking Invasion of 885AD, the Victorian Era …
Opening in 1943 Rome, Gran Consiglio is set with The Grand Council of Fascism meeting to discuss the deposition of Benito Mussolini.
Discover forgotten WW1 stories of Sussex’s Edwardian film and entertainment personalities who were the real life inspiration for ‘Oh! What A Lovely War’ and who were behind the cam…
I should have known from the start.
“We are sorry to have to tell you that in this country it all began with a bear.
Embassy Court’s time-travelling cocktail bar returns to celebrate this modernist building’s 80th birthday.
It’s a dangerous move to end your fringe show with a cover of Peggy Lee’s Is That All There Is? as you run the risk of audiences leaving with that very question ringing in…
Argus Angel award winners with brightonirish.
Fresh air, amazing sea views, forgotten histories, architecture and aquatic entertainment.
As soon as Taylo Aluko, in the guise of Paul Robeson, takes to the stage we know we’re in for a treat.
Brighton & Hove is a city of contrasts.
Thoroughly entertaining, cleverly written and immaculately performed.
It is the tenth year of the siege of Troy, the year that Calchas the soothsayer has predicted the city will fall.
Gavin Henderson regales first hand hilarious stories of the many conductors he has worked with: Stokowski, Otto Klemperer, Giulini, Svetlanov, Barbirolli, Sargent and Rattle among…
Ben Watson’s meet and greet as we entered the theatre made his audience immediately warm to him.
Laurel and Hardy are the best-loved comedy duo of all time.
So much history, so little time.
Visit people’s memories of toys and take the opportunity to share your own toy recollections via video, writing, drawing or whatever other media inspires you.
Written when he was nearly 70 years old, Arthur Miller’s Broken Glass, had been in his mind’s development ever since his marriage to Marilyn Monroe ended shortly before her deat…
A unique opportunity to go off the public route and learn about the remarkable history of the world’s oldest operating aquarium.
‘The Synagogues of Great Britain’: Dr Sharman Kadish is the Director of Jewish Heritage UK and a research fellow and lecturer at the Centre for Jewish Studies at the University of …
Geoffrey Mead will be conducting a special tour dating back over 90 years of cafe and family history.
Heritage bus tour of places of historical Jewish interest in the Brighton & Hove area in connection with the 250th Anniversary, ending with a tour of Middle Street Synagogue.
Fascinating, touching and truly enlightening, this lesbian musical romance tells the story of forgotten Variety stars Gwen Farrar and Norah Blaney.
The concert, which is being held in the synagogue, is in celebration of the 250th anniversary of the first recorded Jewish family who lived in Brighton at 22 East Street.
The Clifton Hill and Montpelier area is a charming, inner-city architectural gem that is the essence of Brighton style.
Frankfurt 1938: Jewish pianist Sol and Aryan violinist Hilda are lovers.
A social history of Brighton and Hove’s largest taxi company, formed by a group of drivers in 1936 using a brand new concept which changed the taxi industry all over England, sprea…
The story of Fr Damien, leper priest and patron saint of outcasts.
These amazing tours only happen during Brighton Fringe.
Wilful princesses, Music Hall stars, headstrong courtesans, acrobats, entrepreneurs - Brighton has always attracted women who dare to do things differently.
By popular demand! Hove has been home to women whose ideas have shaken up our world - from some of Britain’s first women doctors to suffragettes; campaigners to boundary-shifting e…
A walk celebrating all that’s unique, and a little bit weird, about Brighton.
Brighton’s No.
Why is Brighton the LGBTQ capital of the United Kingdom? That’s the question tour guide Ric Morris poses at the start of Piers & Queers, a queer-historical walking tour that span…
“A fascinating stroll through the city’s association with the occult, packed with detail and entertainingly dodgy conjecture” **** (The Argus).
A new exhibition from the archive of Brighton photographer, George Douglas.
Brighton’s rich cinema history rediscovered on this acclaimed 90 minute tour.
The Cranston Fiddle tells the story of the Cranstons of Haddington – an ordinary family who suffered great loss during the First World War.
Comic and tragic.
1915: in a Northern mining community, Tom lies about his age and, to the sadness of his sweetheart and mother, enlists as a tunneller in France.
It’s 1941 and millions of women have their loved ones ripped away from them, unsure if they’ll ever meet again.
Author Tessa Dunlop hosts a one-off, revelatory session with three of the extraordinary women who were involved in Britain’s most secret wartime operation and feature in her book…
London, 1888.
One of the most exciting solo shows of the past decade.
Ever wondered what Jane Austen wrote before Mr Darcy? Ever wanted period drama without the dull bits? You’re in luck! This is Austen without the slow stuff.
How far would you go for a cause you believe in? Celebrating the 60th anniversary of the international charity Open Doors – God’s Smuggler is an exciting new play about the jou…
The new Gaelic language play Sequamur, by Donald S Murray, reflects on the life of educationalist William J Gibson, headmaster of the Nicolson Institute, Stornoway between 1894 and…
Gask 1847.
Texan Kiya Heartwood (Stealin’ Horses, Wishing Chair) is ‘an award-winning American singer/songwriter who writes smart, funny and poignant songs about the famous and not-so-famou…
The Romanovs is not about royalty.
Setting the evening’s tone from the outset, the audience take their seats while the actors prep onstage, cycling through an exaggerated array of warmup exercises that any perform…
A sweet, beguiling Shakespearean romance is skilfully reimagined against the backdrop of the Second World War in Youth Action Theatre (YAT)’s appealing production of All’s Well…
Uncover the secrets of the dead in this creepy night time tour of Greyfriars, Edinburgh’s most historic graveyard.
‘An invaluable body of work that traverses genres and captures untold stories of Kiwi pioneer women’ (NZ Herald, September 2014).
The Tudors and the Stewarts enjoyed a colourful and controversial past, occasionally solicitous but more often a battle of wills involving courtship and conquest.
Set aboard a convict ship on its way to Australia, Steve Gooch’s stark, hard-hitting drama tells the story of six female convicts on their six-month journey and their determination…
I have seen several performances of Richard III; Laurence Olivier and Ian McKellen on film, and Kevin Spacey at the Old Vic, but Emily Carding’s portrayal of the king who murders…
There’s niche and then there’s the niche of the niche.
A moving multilingual anthology of the First World War, recreated by contemporary poet and playwright, Andy Cargill.
Antigone: An Arabian Tragedy started out as two plays in a year-long project by One World Actors Centre (Kuwait) to produce Jean Anouilh’s Antigone in both English and Arabic.
The challenge for any writer tackling the well-worn topic of WWII is to find a particular niche or angle which has not previously been given adequate treatment.
Hosted by Club members Professor David Purdie, retired medical doctor, renowned after dinner speaker and Honorary Professor at IASSH, David Ingram, antiquarian, historian, wit, bon…
This is a play for fans of Greek tragedy and theatre nerds.
For the fourth year, George, described in the Scotsman as ‘a musician of extraordinary flair and sensitivity’ with his twin sons – now aged 13 – will offer insight into Bach’s …
There have been many books, films, documentaries, etc on Mary Stuart, giving us many perceptions of Mary, those involved with her, and incidents in her life.
This is immersive theatre.
Take part in the Festival’s longest running show at no charge at all.
It’s the early 20th Century, and dancing, drugs and violence are rife in London.
On our tour we will reveal some of the secrets hidden within a city rich in culture and ancient history and blessed with beauty.
Beyond Expectations markets itself as a reworking of the Dickens classic, but this time told from the perspective of the love interest, Estella.
September 11, 2001, started off like any other day at Stuyvesant High School, located only a few blocks from the World Trade Center.
Nelson: The Sailors’ Story.
A ridiculous romp through nearly 500 years of American history, as seen and interpreted through hearts and minds of students from Stow Munroe Falls High School, Stow, Ohio.
Like bagpipes, deep-fried mars bars and kilts, eating porridge is one of those ‘typically’ Scottish clichés that gets bandied about far too often.
This show invites us to take a look at life in wartime Britain.
Recommended by LondonIsFunny.
This one-woman show presents Nell Gwyn, mistress of King Charles II, as she regales the audience with her lot in life – actor, lover and whore.
Inspired by the life of Nina Simone, the show follows a jazz musician and civil rights activist called Mena Bordeaux as she undergoes a spiritual cleansing following the untimely d…
Be enlightened, be frightened! A fascinating insight into Edinburgh’s underground city! By Davy the Ghost who founded the very first underground ghost tours in Edinburgh! What co…
Meet the pioneers of photography and discover how the Victorian craze for the photograph transformed the way we capture images today and mirrors our own modern day fascination for …
This late night special one hour tour takes you on a journey into the darker side of Edinburgh’s underground history.
Escape the thunderous thrill of the High Street! Unwind and enjoy tranquillity, inspiring music and stunning architecture in the medieval heart of Edinburgh.
Using the Library’s rich collections of manuscript and printed recipe books, we explore Scotland’s changing relationship with food and drink over the centuries.
The world-renowned Sandemans Free Tour shows you the best of Edinburgh, with enthusiastic local guides providing tours in English and Spanish every day of the week! Starting on the…
New in town? Start your day with a fun and informative walking tour, following a scenic route through Edinburgh’s city centre.
Barbara Graham’s case is a shocking miscarriage of justice and a declaration should be made by the Governor of the State of California to rectify this injustice, which stands to th…
It’s 1870.
Achtung! Achtung! Comedian Al Murray and historian James Holland are bringing their highly acclaimed World War II podcast to the Edinburgh Festival.
A transgender doctor in early 20th-century America is outed in the newspapers by his best friend.