2026 reviews will be added here throughout the festival
Bliss
When I saw the poster for Bliss my first thought was ‘the inevitable SIX rip-off’ but the short Instagram trailer I watched hooked my interest with some solid-sounding tunes so I was keen to see the show for myself. And yes, the comparisons do extend further than the flyer, with the opening number bearing more than a passing nod to the Ex-Wives; however, from that point on it very much becomes its own thing.
★ ★ ★★
Detective Heartbreak
A gleefully daft parody that puts a hard-boiled gumshoe on the case of modern romance, tasked with cracking his most baffling mystery yet: why Connor got left on read after a seemingly successful(ish) date. A fun, lighthearted and silly look at the modern dating landscape that is well worth catching.
★ ★ ★ ★
Bigfoot Ripped My Dog In Half I Saw It
As both a huge fan of Xhloe and Natasha’s previous Fringe shows and someone who has voluntarily listened to a fourteen-hour podcast deep-dive on the Patterson–Gimlin film, I think it’s fair to say that this was my ‘must see’ for the festival - and I’m glad to report it did not disappoint.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Spare Room
A darkly dramatic and acerbic portrait of student life amid a never-ending blur of booze, bravado and boy-banter as a daily hazing ritual. I would certainly recommend Spare Room to anyone familiar with the particular hell that is sharing a flat whilst drowning in British binge-drink culture.
★ ★ ★ .5