Edinburgh Fringe, Tuesday 5th August 2025: Larry Dean (WIP), Glesga Da F**ks Off, Ray O'Leary, Alasdair Beckett-King, Rhys Darby

Bob and I took advantage of the '2 for 1' day at the Fringe, seeing the following acts:

Larry Dean WIP £12 (12 noon) Monkey Barrel 3

A reliable start to the day, with Larry working on a set about his recent marriage. Some banging punchlines. It is going to be a brilliant show when he's finished working on it. 

Glasga Da F**ks Off £10 (15.40) Hoots @The Apex Hoots 2  

Stuart Mitchell and Raymond Mearns sign off from their podcast with a run of shows at the Fringe. An improvised hour of chat, with the veteran Mearns providing most of the banter. I was surprised by how little Stuart contributed. Lots of fans of the podcast were in the audience and were very much up for a laugh. The seating layout was a bit awkward, with entry to the rows only from the side nearest the door and hardly any room for people to get by. After the show, on the way out, I got to shake Raymond's hand as he thanked everyone for coming. 

They've ended the podcast because it made them no money. Any income they made went back out to pay for the studio, the producer, and the techies.      

Ray O'Leary: Laughter? I Hardly Know Her! £15 (18.05) Pleasance Beside

As we stood in the queue, we were informed by the ticket checker that this show would start twenty minutes later than billed. I'd left a long enough buffer between shows that this didn't matter, but others were annoyed. The previous show had started late.

Ray gave a good performance, opening with a bit where a stranger accused him of being a good role model for autism. Only he hasn't been diagnosed as autistic. Not that you'd know from the way he constantly touched his hair, face and glasses. His deadpan hour was humorous, using his slow speech pattern to good effect. When he left the stage at the end, following a scripted section involving audience participation, the girl speaker was left holding her microphone. When she looked behind the curtain to return it, Ray was already gone. 

Alasdair Beckett-King "King of Crumbs" £17 (20.00) Pleasance Dome - King

This was a fine hour of left-field humour, utilising clever sound effects, PowerPoint and stage props. Alasdair has a unique view of reality and takes us into his world. The jokes are insightful, clever, obscure and very funny.  Highly recommended.

Rhys Darby "The Legend Returns" £19 x 2 (21.20) Pleasance Courtyard - Grand

One of the finest shows I have seen at the Fringe. Rhys is concerned about AI and the imminent rise of the robots and takes us on a journey into the future, masterfully making all his own sound effects to illustrate it. The stories he physically acts out are hilarious, and the way he ties them all together at the end is brilliant. 

My only problem was seeing over the full head of hair in front of me. When Rhys stood centre stage, my view was blocked by the lush, spiky locks of the youth in front. I'd recommend getting there early to snag a seat nearer the front. 

All in all, a fantastic day at the Fringe, with five top shows for under fifty quid each (excluding transport and sustenance).