One of the great benefits of London in summer is the stacked line-ups at comedy clubs as performers try out their new material at Work in Progress (WIP) shows. It’s often a chance to see top quality comedians playing intimate spaces to audience members numbering in their dozens, honing their routine ready to do a run at the Edinburgh Fringe and onto the bigger theatres in the West End and around the country. The not-yet-polished sets can also bring bigger laughs as they deal with the moments that don’t work as planned, not to be seen by wider audiences when the final show reaches the stage.
I’ve been taking every chance I can to check out early versions of shows before the Fringe officially gets under way on Friday. Here are some of the highlights you might want to have on your radar if you’re planning your Fringe itinerary.
Best new acts
Freddie Meredith is much loved by the young crowd at MOTH Club in Hackney, where he regularly hosts his Groom of the Stool mixed bill nights. Even skits based on Clarkson-era Top Gear potentially predating some of the east London audience work thanks to his oddman’s distant stare and uncomfortable self-awareness. Viewers who enjoyed him in his role as Seb in the seriously underappreciated BBC sitcom Such Brave Girls (even after its Bafta win) will have a fair expectation of his live persona. Need a Light? is at Baby Grand at Pleasance Courtyard.
Also often seen in front of the MOTH Club’s gold curtain, Ele McKenzie: Bringing It All Back Home (Bunker Two at Pleasance Courtyard) likewise takes her debut show to the Fringe this year. Known for her role in BBC sitcom Funboys, she self-describes as 'a sort of horny teenage boy in the body of an adult woman', and I don’t think I could put it better. Expect some shame-free self-deprecation.
Harriet Richardson had mouths agape when I watched an early WIP of her debut comedy show at The Bill Murray in Angel, titled on the nose, Creep (Below at Pleasance Courtyard). You may have seen the performance artist go viral for her 100 virtual dates on Valentine’s Day, which she playfully entertains us with at the start of this show. Then the story turns darker over the advances of a male TV comic to be date 101. Expect some buzz over this one.
Any of these could well be in the running once the Edinburgh Comedy Awards best newcomer nominees are announced on Wednesday 26 August.
Stars of SNL UK
Little over four months ago, ‘live from London it’s Saturday night’ was said down the camera lens for the first time as SNL UK debuted on Sky One (and subsequently in clips that have gone viral every weekend.) Many of its cast are no strangers to Edinburgh, but now they appear on the bill as stars of primetime TV - and there are plenty of opportunities to see them in the flesh.
That said, tickets have already sold out for the two faces of the show’s Weekend Update segment. Ania Magliano: Peach Fuzz, which could have been called Jorts and All as she teases the mystery created by loose fitting clothing - while exploring the sexualised performances of Sabrina Carpenter and what you mustn’t do in a floatation tank, sees the 2023 Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee sell out a full run at Monkey Barrel 3.
Meanwhile, Paddy Young: Will Sir Be Laughing Alone? is in town for the first half of the month, at Monkey Barrel 1, with flights of fancy over hating stag-dos, hating his flatmate, and, in pursuing childhood crushes, hating himself. Post-Fringe tour dates for both of these shows are already selling out too.
Larry Dean: Hellbent is a slick hour of smart gags occasionally touching on the naughty side, along with a strong range of accents and impressions that made him a perfect fit for SNL UK, loosely themed around gay weddings including his own. Catch him in Edinburgh at Beyond at Pleasance Courtyard (rather than where I saw his preview in the back room of Hot Toddy’s, a remarkably dire bar in Mornington Crescent.)
Members of the SNL UK writing team will also be back in front of audiences, among them the ever-joyful Celya AB: We Must Stop Meeting Like This (Monkey Barrel 1) who might have a tale or two of what goes on on transmission night.
Head writer Jonno: Here Comes Mr Funny is a largely musical act, which is laugh out loud even for people who don’t usually like musical comedy (or James Bond theme tunes) - you’ll be glad you came (Monkey Barrel 2 at Monkey Barrel Comedy). Having appeared numerous times in the wonderful sketch group Sheeps, alongside Liam Williams and Al Roberts, it’s his first solo show, which should make him eligible for the best newcomer award this time around. Is he worthy of a shout? You can bet your cowboy potatoes.
Ayoade Bamgboye brings back Swings And Roundabouts - the show that earned her the best newcomer award last year - for three nights only (Forth at Pleasance Courtyard), as well as a five nights of a new WIP, titled Small Talk (Monkey Barrel 2).
Lastly for SNL UK fans, there are just three nights to catch Al Nash and Friends (Pleasance Two at Pleasance Courtyard).
Shows returning from 2025
There’s another chance to see some shows from last year’s Fringe, including my top pick from 2025: Luke McQueen: Comedian's Comedian (four performances at Ace Dome at Pleasance Dome) is still the best way I’ve seen AI put to use, even if this new tech advancement has had a year since last August.
Tim Key has also had a bit of a year himself, starring in The Office spin-off The Paper. His show Loganberry contrasted playing venues you might say (and he might say) are beneath him - in this case Beyond at Pleasance Courtyard - fresh from his film Wallis Island being a critical hit last summer.
Old favourites
While I’ve not had a chance to see their previews this summer, it wouldn’t be the Fringe without easing into a Sunday afternoon in the life-affirming warmth of Rob Auton: JUPITER (Central at Assembly Roxy) or spending a late evening watching Jordan Brookes: The Part of You That's Always Screaming testing the boundaries of his audience (Queen Dome at Pleasance Dome). Though if this is a developed version of the WIP he took to Edinburgh in 2025, there’s one frighteningly good (or plain frightening) routine no one will forget.
