Endangered languages with Len Pennie, digital censorship in China with Yi-Ling Liu, and historical female pleasure with Kate Lister—Day 1 at @edbookfest offered an eclectic, brilliant start at Edinburgh Futures Institute! 📍 Edinburgh Futures Institute 📅 15–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

Forbes 30 Under 30 star Abby Govindan brings an assured, opinionated, and delightfully funny TED-talk-style hour to #EdFringe in Pushing 30. A lovely debut from a rising comedic voice. ★★★ 📍 @thepleasance (Pleasance Courtyard) 📅 5–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

What happens when a collapsing bookcase squashes the head librarian? The Librarians turns municipal decay into retro sitcom farce at #EdFringe—an agreeable hour of physical slapstick with an energetic cast. ★★★ 📍 @thepleasance (Pleasance Courtyard) 📅 5–31 Aug (Thread 👇)

Tony Award winner Jeff Whitty’s modern adaptation of Shakespeare’s Midsummer! transforms the Bijou Spiegeltent into an engrossing, 4-star world of live music, potion-induced chaos, and comic delight. ★★★★ 📍 @assemblyfest (Assembly Rooms) 📅 6–19 Aug (Thread 👇)

With Edinburgh Art Festival taking over venues across the capital, what are the must-see exhibitions this August? We’ve rounded up the highlights of the 2026 programme, featuring everything from pioneering queer photography to unseen archive art. 📍 City-Wide 📅 14–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

As Matthew Warchus begins his Old Vic farewell, Alan Ayckbourn’s How The Other Half Loves proves its farcical gold still shines brightly. A brilliant, fast-paced 4-star revival tackling class, infidelity, and chaotic dinner parties. ★★★★ 📍 The Old Vic 📅 29 Jul–19 Sep (Thread 👇)

What happens when Gustavo Dudamel & the LA Phil take on Beethoven 7 & Gabriela Ortiz at Usher Hall? An unforgettable, 5-star masterclass for @edintfest. ★★★★★ 📍 @edintfest (Usher Hall) 📅 14 Aug (Thread 👇)

Can the bureaucratic nightmare of end-of-life care become a high-voltage, cathartic comedy? Lions by Lightning Rod Special tackles the "sadmin" of grief with clowning and absurdism in this 4-star hit. ★★★★ 📍 @summerhallarts (TechCube 0) 📅 6–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

Can you build an entire 5-star contemporary circus show around wooden planks and 300 fragile wine glasses? Olo Company’s Soft Spot is a quiet masterpiece of trust, fragility, and failure at #EdFringe. ★★★★★ 📍 @zoovenues (ZOO Southside) 📅 7–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

What is the hidden cost of turning intimacy into digital capital? From the producers of Fleabag and Baby Reindeer, Hannah Reilly's fiercely contemporary satire ROLEPLAY is a 4-star hit. ★★★★ 📍 @summerhallarts 📅 6–31 Aug (Thread 👇)

Screen star Maxwell Caulfield gives a bravura 5-star performance as Pontius Pilate in Michael Punter's legal thriller monologue Pilate: The Lost Gospel at #EdFringe. ★★★★★ 📍 @thepleasance (Pleasance Courtyard) 📅 5–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

When a Broadway lyricist got an email from Qatari royalty offering a commission, colleagues warned it was a scam. Stephen Cole's Camelton is a 4-star, song-filled account of going anyway! ★★★★ 📍 @gildedballoon (Teviot) 📅 5–31 Aug (Thread 👇)

A former sketch duo pivots to a brilliant, daring 4-star comedy drama. Jitters by Charly Clive & Ellen Robertson tackles privilege, grief, and generational clashes with sharp wit. ★★★★ 📍 @summerhallarts (Old Lab) 📅 6–21 Aug (Thread 👇)

How do ancient classical dance vocabularies adapt to tell modern stories? Space in Between interweaves Bharatanatyam and Kathak in a striking, 4-star dance theatre trilogy at #EdFringe. ★★★★ 📍 @assemblyfest (Assembly @ Dance Base) 📅 9–16 Aug (Thread 👇)

What happens when classical piano superstar Yuja Wang collaborates with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra? A thrilling, 5-star world premiere. ★★★★★ 📍 @edintfest (Usher Hall) 📅 12 Aug (Thread 👇)

What does it take for a Russian TV superstar to flee a regime and rebuild a comedy career in a second language? Sasha Nezlobin's I'm Fine is a sharp, honest 4-star debut at #EdFringe. ★★★★ 📍 @thepleasance (Pleasance Dome) 📅 5–31 Aug (Thread 👇)

Is this the most visually stunning spectacle at #EdFringe? French-Norwegian company Plexus Polaire reimagines Bram Stoker's gothic horror through breathtaking puppetry and physical theatre in Dracula: Lucy's Dream. 📍 @thepleasance (Pleasance at EICC) 📅 6–29 Aug (Thread 👇)

Can you play virtuoso violin while hanging upside down from ropes and juggling live fire? Tale of the Firebird by The Freestyle Orchestra delivers an extraordinary fusion of circus arts and live music at #EdFringe. 📍 @assemblyfest (Assembly Roxy) 📅 6–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

Known for Celebs Go Dating, Tom Read Wilson brings old-style Hollywood charm, sonnets, and songs to #EdFringe in A to Z of Me. But is there more to the TV logophile than meets the eye? 📍 @gildedballoon 📅 5–16 Aug (Thread 👇)

How does a 35-year comedy veteran tackle generational culture shifts without falling into tired tropes? Tom Stade delivers a 5-star masterclass in stand-up craft at #EdFringe. ★★★★★ 📍 @standcomedyclub.bsky.social 📅 5–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

Can an all-star cast of Fringe comedy icons pull off a full-blown spoof of 12 Angry Men? Owen O’Neill and Guy Masterson's 11 ½ Angry Men trades dramatic tension for weak gags. 📍 Pleasance at EICC 📅 5–22 Aug (Thread 👇)

How do you turn personal trauma and shamanic rituals into a grounded 'spiritual traumedy'? Veteran US actor Dede Lovejoy delivers an uplifting masterclass at #EdFringe. 📍 @greensidevenues 📅 7–29 Aug

What if fairytale villains were actually gig-economy caterers taking down a billionaire 'Hamazon' CEO? Grimm AF delivers a dark, hilarious musical satire at #EdFringe. 📍 Assembly Festival 📅 5–16 Aug (Thread 👇)

A brand-new family musical that plays like Motown magic meets Pixar? Cricket & The Freebugs is a banger-packed gig theatre hit. 📍 Assembly Festival 📅 6–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

Can you turn Virginia Woolf's inner thoughts into a compelling stage "TED Talk"? Lucy Stevens succeeds in An Audience with Virginia Woolf: Writing One's Mind. 📍 Assembly Festival 📅 6–30 Aug (Thread 👇)

A hard-working 10-strong ensemble gives it everything, but cannot rescue MUSE: The Shakespeare Mayhem Musical from a fundamentally flawed premise. Read our review of the Underbelly production in the reply below 👇 #EdinburghFringe #TheatreReview #EdFringe

What starts as a sharp laundrette rom-com rapidly warps into a claustrophobic psychological maze probing memory and suppressed grief. Read our full review of 'Spin Cycle' at Underbelly in the reply below 👇 #EdinburghFringe #TheatreReview #EdFringe

Director Samantha Lane brings Quentin Blake’s scratchy drawings to life with clever staging, a puzzle-box set, and a roaring score by Jessie Maryon Davies. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Full review of 'Mrs Armitage On Wheels' in the reply 👇 #EdinburghFringe #TheatreReview

"There’s a reason why Craig Hill has been so successful for so long — he delivers a laugh-out-loud evening without fail." ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 27 years into his Fringe tenure, this Scottish treasure proves why his uninhibited crowd work and high-energy stagecraft remain unmatched. 👇

"She weaves some twinkle-eyed humour through her take on Bob's soothing patter, offering a genuine oasis of cheeky calm amidst Fringe noise, but always with love." ⭐⭐⭐⭐½ In The Bob Ross Effect, Sarah-Louise Young transforms personal grief into a communal, artistic sanctuary. 👇