Edinburgh Fringe 2026 is set to showcase a thrilling new generation of theatre-makers, with emerging companies presenting work that is daring, distinctive and deeply personal. Across the city, audiences can discover stories exploring identity, class, digital culture, mental health and connection, alongside riotous comedies, inventive solo shows and genre-bending performance. Here are 24 standout productions to add to your Fringe list this summer.
15 Minutes of Shame – ZOO Playground 2
7–30 August, 19:20
A sharp new play from investigative journalist turned writer Sean Stillmaker. When a young London couple turn to OnlyFans to survive mounting financial pressure, their online success begins to unravel their real-world relationship. Directed by Adébayo Bolaji, this urgent, research-driven drama explores the cost of monetising intimacy, where visibility becomes currency and privacy comes at a price.
A Costume Drama – ZOO Playground 3
7–30 August (not 18th), 13:25
With World Cup fever sweeping the nation, writer-performer Claudia Fielding returns to Edinburgh Fringe with A Costume Drama, a heart-warming new comedy where football, family and legacy collide. When reluctant Ella is suddenly thrown into the oversized boots of her mascot father, she’s pulled into a world where the forgotten figures on the sidelines matter just as much as those on the pitch. Inspired by the rise of women’s football, this feel-good story celebrates the fans, families and women at the heart of the game.
A Queer Little Murder – Gilded Balloon Patter House (Coorie)
5–31 August (not 19th), 15:40
From Savannah Hankinson, A Queer Little Murder is a riotous interactive whodunnit with a distinctly queer twist. Set in a suspiciously fabulous small town where everyone has something to hide, Hankinson plays six larger-than-life characters in a camp, chaotic murder mystery where no two nights are the same. Packed with audience participation, improv and absurd humour, this is a gloriously gay game of whodunnit where the killer changes nightly.
Alexis Sakellaris Presents – Gilded Balloon Patter House
6–30 August (not 10th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 24th), various times
Award-winning queer icon Alexis Sakellaris returns to Edinburgh Fringe 2026 with a bold season of musical comedy, new work and late-night chaos. From A STAN IS BORN! – Encore to CHILD STAR (WIP), Alexis explores fame, fandom and selfhood through song and storytelling, alongside MCU: Musical Comedians Unite! and THE CVNTY AWARDS, a parody awards show and Fringe afterparty.
Argonauts – ZOO Playground 2
7–30 August (not 10th, 17th, 24th), 18:05
Opinions are weapons and friendship is the casualty… Argonauts is a sharp, funny and devastating new tragicomedy from Brazilian company Technis. When two theatre podcast hosts clash over a controversial production, their argument spirals until myth and reality collide, unleashing figures from Medea to Prospero into the present day. Blurring criticism, creation and chaos, this world premiere turns theatre into its own battlefield in a bold exploration of why we still make art at all.
An Ode to the Casting Director – Assembly George Square Studios (Studio Four)
5–29 August (not 13th, 20th), 12:00
She’s auditioning by day, questioning everything by night… An Ode to the Casting Director is a sharp, funny and deeply honest solo show from Sophie Fisher. When a young actor enters the relentless world of auditions and industry expectation, she begins to realise the real performance isn’t on stage but in how she is seen, judged and valued. Inspired by Fisher’s own experience, this work explores identity, ambition and self-worth.
Broke & Fabulous in the 21st Century – Gilded Balloon Patter House (Dram)
5–31 August (not 17th), 14:20
Created by and starring Dale Robertson, Broke & Fabulous in the 21st Century is a sharp, funny new comedy about friendship, ambition and surviving London as a young artist. Best friends Alex and Petunia are determined to make creative lives for themselves while juggling precarious work, visa pressures, complicated love lives and the relentless pressure to “make it”. When they unknowingly become involved with the same man, loyalty, ego and romance collide in unexpected ways.
Forget About Me – Pleasance Courtyard (Below)
5–31 August (not 12th, 19th, 26th), 13:40
Performed, designed and co-written by Dylan Howells, Forget About Me is a funny, frightening and inventive collaboration. Set in a remote village where something unsettling lurks in the bathroom, the show blends mind-bending mentalism, ghost stories and theatrical illusion to explore memory, childhood and the things we try to leave behind.
Heart Beats Strong – Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker 2)
5–31 August (not 12th, 18th, 25th), 12:20
Three birthdays. Three boys. One night that changes everything. Based on real teenage diaries, Heart Beats Strong is a funny, fast-paced and deeply personal show blending physical theatre, dance and storytelling to explore friendship, identity and modern masculinity.
Georgina Thomas: Hysterical Soprano – Underbelly Bristo Square (Dexter)
5–31 August (not 17th), 13:15
She’s chasing operatic greatness by day, spiralling into delusion by night… Georgina Thomas delivers a gloriously unhinged musical comedy blending virtuosic singing with razor-sharp humour, exploring ambition, ego and the terror of being perceived.
I Bought A Flip Phone – ZOO Playground 2
7–30 August (not 19th, 26th), 15:35
He’s deleting social media by day, questioning every life choice by night… This candid and hilarious debut follows Charlie as he swaps his smartphone for a flip phone in search of connection, exploring loneliness, queer desire and life offline.
In A Bad Way – Gilded Balloon Patter House (Blether)
5–31 August (not 17th, 24th), 14:20
She’s back at the doctor’s office for the fifth time this month… Isolde Fenton’s darkly comic solo show follows a young woman spiralling through symptoms and self-diagnosis in a frantic search for certainty, capturing the chaos of anxiety.
Learning to Human – Gilded Balloon Teviot (Wee Room)
5–30 August (not 17th), 15:00
Following multiple award wins, Sims Holland presents a funny, moving solo show about addiction, recovery and starting over, blending storytelling, clown, stand-up and poetry into an uplifting and human journey.
Operotica: Lovers in Every Lifetime – Underbelly Bristo Square (Dairy Room)
5–30 August (not 12th, 17th, 24th), 19:45
Classically trained, fetish approved and recently deceased… This wildly original show blends opera, cabaret and queer storytelling as audiences journey through the past lives of doomed lovers guided by a ghostly diva.
Puck Bunnies: A Heated Rivalry Drag Musical Parody – Gilded Balloon Patter House (Other Yin)
5–31 August (not 11th, 18th, 25th), 22:45
They’re rivals on the ice, lovers in everyone’s fantasies… A camp, chaotic drag musical parody packed with original songs, outrageous characters and big queer energy.
Racists, Recessions & Revolutions – ZOO Playground 3
7–30 August (not 12th, 19th, 26th), 15:55
Girl I’m bored, let’s go spread fake news… This darkly funny play explores the global rise of misinformation as a group of teens become entangled in digital manipulation and viral lies.
Rockpools – Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker 3)
5–30 August (not 17th, 24th), 15:20
A young woman, a crumbling marriage and a house full of rooms she can’t face… This surreal solo debut blends character comedy with a fractured domestic world to explore grief, illness and quiet unravelling.
Stayin’ Alive – Gilded Balloon Patter House (Blether)
5–31 August (not 12th, 19th, 26th), 15:40
Maggie’s nan is dead, her therapist is useless, and her sister is threatening to knock her out… A riotously funny and brutally honest play about OCD, grief and survival set in a working-class pub.
Surreally Good – Summerhall (Former Women’s Locker Room)
7–31 August (not 17th, 24th), 17:20
Grief, corporate absurdity and lo-fi storytelling collide in this delightfully bizarre one-man show combining projection, humour and unreliable memory.
Thermodrama – Summerhall (Old Lab)
7–31 August (not 18th, 25th), 22:30
Four people enter a sauna. Three walk out… This tense, darkly funny drama explores relationships, wellness culture and emotional pressure in a space pushed to its limits.
They’re Just Small Town (Northern) Lads – Summerhall (Anatomy Lecture Theatre)
6–16 August, 19:15
Be hard. Be respected. Never be too different… This deeply personal play follows a mixed-race teenager navigating masculinity, class and identity in the early 2000s.
This Is How I Got Arrested (after smuggling drugs across the border but never actually getting caught with any drugs) – ZOO Playground 3
7–30 August, 19:40
These girls are not drug mules. They are young women chasing feelings, sensations and escape… A raw, darkly funny solo show exploring identity, belonging and the stories behind the headlines.
To Do Lists – Pleasance Courtyard (The Green)
5–31 August (not 12th, 17th, 26th), 17:15
NO ONE IS COMING TO SAVE YOU. EXCEPT YOURSELF… This high-energy solo show charts a life measured in tick boxes, exploring control, chaos and burnout as everything begins to unravel.
TOAST – Summerhall (Dissection Room)
7–31 August, 12:10
One skint creative versus the system. Living off toast, apparently… This blisteringly honest debut follows an artist navigating work, benefits and survival, asking whether endurance itself becomes the final performance.
