The Best Comedy at Edinburgh Fringe 2025

[UPDATED Tue 26 Aug, 2.30pm] We're all done. After thousands of shows across the city, it's time to pack away the folding chairs and temporary stages for another year. On this page, we've collated all of our four- and five-star reviews by our comedy team from the 2025 Edinburgh Fringe. But comedy lives on! Find these acts when they're touring, check out their sets at your local comedy club, or bookmark them all for the 2026 Fringe (but maybe give yourself a day or two off first). For more top picks, check out the best of the festivals list from our pals at Fest magazine.

Five-star ★★★★★ Comedy Reviews

Luke McQueen @ Pleasance Dome

Artificial intelligence, comedy gatekeepers, the podcast industrial complex and his own ambitions – Luke McQueen tackles all-comers in his new show. Pleasance Dome (Jack Dome), until 24 Aug, 9.40pm, sold out, returns only

Tim Key @ Pleasance Courtyard

Poet-actor-filmmaker-comedian Tim Key is sublime as he returns to the Fringe with his new show, Loganberry. Pleasance Dome (Queen Dome), until 24 Aug, 5.30pm, sold out, returns only 

Rosa Garland @ Assembly Roxy

Five-star hunters, beware: this show is categorially not for everyone. But for those on board, Primal Bog offers a deliciously warped, deliriously funny lurch into the goop with Rosa Garland. Assembly Roxy (Downstairs), until 24 Aug, 9.50pm, £9-14

Dan Tiernan @ Monkey Barrel

In new show All In, Dan Tiernan provides an hour of unrelenting laughter, and the promise of a astonishing career in comedy ahead. Monkey Barrel (MB1), until 24 Aug, 10.25pm, £11-14

Ozzy Algar @ Pleasance Courtyard

Ozzy Algar's magical Fringe debut, Speed Queen is an hour of transformative character comedy. Pleasance Courtyard (Cellar), until 24 Aug, 10.30pm, £11-13

Mark Silcox @ Voodoo Rooms

The long-reigning king of gold-plated anti-comedy strikes again on his Fringe return. PBH's Free Fringe @ Voodoo Rooms (Speakeasy), until 24 Aug, 2pm, free entry/pay what you want on exit

Old God @ Assembly Roxy

Alec Jones-Trujillo's Old God offers sublime moments and masterful comic portraits. Assembly Roxy (Roxyboxy), until 24 Aug (not 18), 9.55pm, £9-13

Four-star ★★★★ Comedy Reviews

Ed Night @ Monkey Barrel

Your Old Mucker is an hour of solid gold gags from the incomparably offbeat Ed Night. Monkey Barrel at the Hive (Hive 1), run ended

Rosco McClelland @ Monkey Barrel

How Could Hell Be Any Worse? is a searching hour touching on mental health, roombas and crows from one of the Scottish scene’s brightest and best. Monkey Barrel (Cab Vol 1), run ended

Bebe Cave @ Pleasance Dome

With a winning combination of lo-fi charm and high ambition, Bebe Cave's CHRISTBRIDE is a Monty Python-meets-Clueless medieval romp. Pleasance Dome (Jack Dome), until 24 Aug, 5.40pm, sold out, returns only

Andy Barr @ Pleasance Courtyard

Surreal stand-up Andy Barr returns with an unsettling, nostalgic, 'fourth debut hour'. Pleasance Courtyard (Cellar), until 24 Aug, 8pm, £9-13

Chloe Petts @ Pleasance Courtyard

With a fourth great Fringe hour in as many years, stadium-filling stardom surely beckons for Chloe Petts. Pleasance Courtyard (Forth), until 24 Aug, 7pm and Pleasance Courtyard (Cabaret Bar), 22-23 Aug, 5.30pm, £17-18

Toussaint Douglass @ Pleasance Courtyard

Toussaint Douglass weaves stories of family, class – and pigeons – in his Best Newcomer-nominated show. Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker One), 7.25pm, sold out, returns only

DeliaDelia! The Flat Chested Witch! @ Underbelly Cowgate

Amando Houser's sideways glance at the witch hunt on trans rights is a classic piece of clowning mayhem. Underbelly Cowgate (Iron Belly), until 24 Aug, 11.10pm, £8-12

Guy Williams @ Assembly George Square

An hour of brazen and bullish political comedy from Kiwi firebrand Guy Williams. Assembly George Square Studios (Studio 5), until 24 Aug, 7.20pm and Assembly George Square (The Box), 22 Aug, 3.45pm, £10-15

Ray O'Leary @ Pleasance Courtyard

In his second Fringe hour, Ray O'Leary proves that he's a jokesmith of the highest order. Pleasance Courtyard (Beside), until 24 Aug, 6.05pm, £10-15

Ayoade Bamgboye @ Pleasance Courtyard

Swings and Roundabouts is an impressive, shapeshifting first hour from a future star of British comedy. Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker One), until 24 Aug, 4.45pm, returns only

Kim Blythe @ Gilded Balloon Patter Hoose

Mischievous Glasgow comic Kim Blythe returns to the Fringe with an hour of raucous gags in new show, Cowboy. Gilded Balloon Patter Hoose (Other Yin), until 25 Aug, 7.30pm and 22-24 Aug, 9pm, £10-15

David Elms @ Pleasance Courtyard

David Elms Describes a Room is a deceptively simple idea which improviser Elms carries off with aplomb. Pleasance Courtyard (Baby Grand), until 24 Aug, 9.35pm, £9-14.50

Johnny White Really-Really @ Monkey Barrel

am/pm is an hour of super-dreamy stand-up from underground Fringe legend Johnny White Really-Really. Monkey Barrel @ Hive (Hive 2), until 24 Aug, 12.30pm, £7/PWYW

Christopher Macarthur-Boyd @ Monkey Barrel

Howling at the Moon is a whip-smart hour where killer impressions, razor-sharp storytelling and joyful nonsense collide. Monkey Barrel (MB1), until 24 Aug, 9pm, sold out but some pay-what-you-want tickets available on the door; extra show at Assembly Rooms (Music Hall), Sat 23 Aug, 10.30pm, £15

Sam Nicoresti @ Pleasance Courtyard

In pursuit of the perfect skirt suit, Sam Nicoresti has devised an excellent antidote to the state of the world. Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker Two), until 24 Aug, 5.40pm, returns only; extra show at Pleasance Courtyard (Pleasance Two), Thu 21 Aug, 9.30pm, £12-13

Ada & Bron @ Pleasance Courtyard

The Origin of Love is an hour of late-night, high-energy, loved-up sketches from debut duo Ada & Bron. Pleasance Courtyard (Attic), until 24 Aug, 11pm, returns only

Zainab Johnson @ Pleasance Courtyard

Toxically Optimistic is an hour of guns and gospels from acclaimed US comic Zainab Johnson. Pleasance Courtyard (Above), until 24 Aug, 6.40pm, £10-17

Jordan Gray @ Assembly George Square

Musical comedy star Jordan Gray returns to the Edinburgh Fringe after her spectacular run in 2022. Assembly George Square Gardens (Piccolo), until 24 Aug (not 19), 9.05pm, £10-18

Desiree Burch @ Monkey Barrel

Burch returns to the Edinburgh Fringe after a six-year hiatus with an energetic and important bang. Monkey Barrel (MB3), run ended; touring the UK this winter, including The Stand, Glasgow, 4 Mar and Monkey Barrel, Edinburgh, 14 Mar

Seaton Smith @ Pleasance Courtyard

Smith deserves a much bigger audience for Trauma Bonding, an old school show that's still wonderfully progressive. Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker Three), until 24 Aug, 8.30pm, £11-13 

Andrew Doherty @ Pleasance Dome

Doherty returns to the Fringe with Sad Gay AIDS Play, an irreverent takedown of arts funding bureaucracy and the desire to see artists to milk their trauma. Pleasance Dome (10 Dome), until 24 Aug, 8.30pm, £9-£15.50

Alison Spittle @ Monkey Barrel

Spittle’s new show Big is a riot of laughter and fearless honesty, weaving her personal journey with fatness into a sharp, audacious, and irresistibly witty hour

Kate Dolan @ Assembly George Square

Hugely creative and genuinely alternative, Kate Dolan's Bestie-winning show The Critic is a standout at this year's Fringe. Assembly George Square (The Box), until 24 Aug, 6.25pm, £9-14

SLUGS @ Summerhall

Oozing with humanity and powered by sheer chaos, Sam Kruger and S. E. Grummett offer an impish and eccentric antidote to the horrors of modern life. Summerhall (Red Lecture Theatre), until 24 Aug, 9.15pm, £14.50-17

Marjolein Robertson @ Pleasance Dome

Robertson's third instalment of her self-titled trilogy provides more of the Shetland comic's whimsy, wonder and straight-up weirdness. Pleasance Dome (Queen Dome), until 24 Aug, 8.20pm, £14-17

Amanda Dwyer @ The Stand

Dwyer’s I Did Something Bad chronicles her experiences with miscarriage and sexual assault, blending raw honesty with disarming wit – and somehow tying it all back to Taylor Swift. The Stand (Stand 4), until 14 Aug, 3pm, £10

Dirty Work @ Underbelly Cowgate

Jessica Barton's clowning take on Mary Poppins, Dirty Work showcases an artist in control of her craft – and her audience. Underbelly Cowgate (Delhi Belly), until 24 Aug, 5.25pm, £8.50-12.50

Jazz Emu @ Pleasance Dome

Archie Henderson’s Jazz Emu stage persona isn’t an easy cocktail to perfect, but he mixes musical, character and standup elements with aplomb. Pleasance Dome (Queen Dome), until 24 Aug, 9.50pm, £15-£18

Cat Cohen @ Pleasance Courtyard

In an excellent return to the Edinburgh Fringe, Cat Cohen offers a newfound vulnerability alongside her ironic flamboyance and camp narcissism. Pleasance Courtyard (Pleasance One), until 24 Aug (not 13 or 19), 9pm and Sat 16 Aug, 10.45pm, £17-20

Trygve Wakenshaw and Barnie Duncan @ Underbelly Cowgate

Promising an all-new show each night, Hot Chips is an hour of joyful mime-clown improv from Wakenshaw and Duncan. Underbelly Cowgate (Big Belly), until 24 Aug, 11.10pm, £12-14

Sami Abu Wardeh @ Pleasance Dome

Palestinian comic Sami Abu Wardeh presents 70 minutes of devastating history dressed up in an all-singing, all-dancing, joyous romp. Pleasance Dome (Ace Dome), until 24 Aug (not 21), 9.45pm, £12-15

Urooj Ashfaq @ Monkey Barrel

2023 Best Newcomer winner Urooj Ashfaq makes a triumphant return to Edinburgh with a manifesto packed with fanfic delusions, astrology, and health-related oversharing. Monkey Barrel (MB4), daily until 24 Aug, 6.25pm, £8-£15; extra show at Monkey Barrel (MB3), Sat 16 Aug, 2.50pm, £14-15

Su Mi @ Underbelly Cowgate

An extraordinary clowning persona and a glorious reclaiming of space, Su Mi throws the rules of respectability out the window in their debut Fringe show. Underbelly Cowgate (Iron Belly), until 24 Aug (not 12, 19), 6.40pm, £8.50-12.50

Molly McGuinness @ Monkey Barrel

Slob is a loveable and authentic debut hour from Mancunian comedian Molly McGuinness. Monkey Barrel (Cab Vol 2), until 24 Aug (not 12), 2.55pm, £7-10

Jack Traynor @ Pleasance Courtyard

Glasgow comic Jack Traynor bursts into the Edinburgh Fringe spotlight with a jam-packed and fast-paced debut hour. Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker One), until 24 Aug, 9.55pm, £9-12

Josie Long @ Pleasance Dome

In her new show Now Is The Time of Monsters, the much-loved alternative comic weaves a silly, poignant and freewheeling tapestry of prehistoric megafauna, climate breakdown, parenthood and a whole lot more. Pleasance Dome (Queen Dome), until 24 Aug (not 13), 7pm, £13-18

Helen Bauer @ Monkey Barrel

With a winning mix of bravado and vulnerability, Bauer fully embodies an affronting, dangerously vocal and brilliantly caustic personality that is mid-explosion at all times. Monkey Barrel (MB1), until 24 Aug (not 4, 11, 18), 3.20pm, £9-15

Saaniya Abbas @ Gilded Balloon

Beneath UAE-based comic Saaniya Abbas's sweet demeanour lies a wicked sense of humour. Her writing is brilliantly sharp and punchy, with something almost retro about the strength of her punchlines. Gilded Balloon Patter Hoose (Bothie), until 25 Aug, 8pm, £10-£13

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