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Jack Traynor: Before I Forget

 
Esther Review by Esther 4 Published: 15 Aug 2025 Pleasance Courtyard Show Dates: 30 Jul 2025-24 Aug 2025

In Jack Traynor’s debut Fringe hour Before I Forget, he promises to share his best stories “before he forgets” because dementia runs in his family. One such story involves how Susan Boyle helps him get through substance-induced comedowns. So, not only is “best stories” used incredibly loosely, you can fear not about this being yet another “sad, but uplifting” comedy show.

An utter rip-roaring ride

That qualm is immediately assuaged as our introduction to Traynor is him bursting into the almost sold-out room, screaming “Come on!” and handing out hugs and high-fives like he’s fresh out of a pre-SuBo sesh.

Traynor is out of breath for most of the show – as are we. He ricochets around the Pleasance Bunker stage, with no issue crowbarring himself between a couple (because he has a question for only one of them) or staring unblinkingly into someone’s face.

Dementia and how it affects his family, particularly his “granda”, is woven in alongside relentless riffs that cover the gamut from his disdain for American tourists to crabs. There is no time to recover from the previous joke – nor his truly impressive range of impressions – before Traynor is hollering about something else. On that note, this show might not be for those averse to yelling.

The mood never dips, which is a real testament to Traynor’s talent considering he is, occasionally, talking about “your mind falling out of your arse”. Such is his skill, honed across comedy clubs and Scottish prisons alike, that he can make dementia an utter rip-roaring ride.

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The Blurb:

One of Scotland's fastest-rising stars, Jack's highly anticipated debut combined the bizarre and the brilliantly relatable. Ranked fourth in the world in the Roast Battle League, Jack shares his best stories before he forgets. Jack's vibrant storytelling weaves the real and surreal, and his distinctive comedic style have led him to placing second in the Hot Water Comedy Club New Comedian of the Year, and Roast Battle's MVP in 2024. Jack's razor-sharp wit and colourful storytelling make this an unmissable hour from a future star of Scottish comedy. 'Likeably down to earth' (Scotsman).