It’s mid July and I have just under two weeks before I pack my set, my actor (and best mate) Sonia Jalaly, and our taxidermy cat into a van and take off for Scotland, ready to unleash Happy Birthday Without You on to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Although I’ve been working in, and producing theatre for five years, I’ve never taken a show to Edinburgh before, and it is as terrifying and thrilling as I always thought it would be.
I had my first brush with the Fringe in 2010, when, fresh out of University, I worked as a Stage Manager for one of the big Edinburgh venues. It was a crazy month, and I would be lying if I said I enjoyed every minute of it. As almost everyone who has spent a month at the Fringe knows, it is a real test of stamina. You have the mid month flu, complete with hallucinations, you have the sleepless nights and hungover mornings and the points at which you just don’t think you can carry on. But it is addictive. No other festival compares. You can see one show that leaves you questioning your own mortality, and the next moment be belly laughing to a newly discovered comedian. Ever since, I have been hooked on going. But still, I never thought I’d be one of the brave souls taking a chance with the unforgiving crowds, spoilt with the choice of over 3,000 shows.
