Charlie Chaplin is perhaps the greatest physical comedian of all time. But he was so much more than that. Smile: The Story of Charlie Chaplin shines a light on some of his life. Born in South London poverty, he was sent to a workhouse aged just seven. Anyone familiar with his later tramp-pathos work will not have to look far for the inspiration. He later lands work at a circus, which tours to Vaudeville, USA. He is spotted by Max Sennett of Keystone Studios, signed up, and

Some German Jews managed to escape the Nazis. Clare Fraenkel’s grandfather Heinz was one of them. Heinz Fraenkel was at a Berlin cinema on 27 February 1933. This proved to be a momentous night historically, as the Nazis burned down the Reichstag, effectively bulldozing German democracy a mere four weeks after Hitler had come to power. While the second world war was still some time off, persecution was already rife in Germany. The film he went to see was interrupted by stormtr

Relationship management. No, this is not corporate jargon – this is more serious: just how does she get her boyfriend to take the rubbish out? Unusually for the Edinburgh Fringe, Clean Slate is staged in a traverse setting – in other words, audience members sit in rows on either side of a catwalk-style stage. The set initially is a kitchen island, with our protagonist, Louisa Marshall, cleaning vigorously. The set, incidentally, proves to be ingeniously mobile. The reason f

To say there is a housing crisis in Britain is something of an understatement, with successive governments proving unwilling or unable to reverse a generationally disturbing trend. Rents have spiralled beyond affordability, especially in city centres. The tightening of lending criteria following the banking crisis, along with the inability to save for a deposit, have proven to be stubborn barriers to homeownership. Resentment has grown, therefore, towards the wealth division,

Know thyself.” This hubris-fuelled throwaway snippet of pop psychology is proffered by our protagonist’s boss. It does come from the Oracle of Delphi, though, so there may be something to it. Referred to as the ‘CumEx-Files’, Teater Katapult’s The Insider casts a light upon a £50 billion tax fraud, spanning multiple countries, involving international banks, many of which are household names. The scheme hinged on the premise that the same tax refunds could be claimed multip

Have you got a home for me?” To say there is a housing crisis is something of an understatement, with successive governments proving unwilling or unable to reverse a generationally disturbing trend. Rents have spiralled beyond affordability, especially in city centres, and ownership is a distant dream for many. Resentment has grown towards the wealth divide and the damage to communities caused by short-term holiday-let platforms, subduing an entire generation. Which brings us

What's in a name? This Fringe story is set in the Uttar Pradesh city of Kanpur. Except for some, it wasn’t – the British renaming it Cawnpore, as they had renamed Mumbai and Chennai, among others. The causes of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 were myriad: hubris, misjudgment, cultural insensitivity, and plain incompetence. Rumours of pig and cow fat being used to grease cartridges were not adequately addressed. The distribution of chapatis – a form of signposting discontent – wa

Lolo (Lauren O’Brien) is on stage – this is her boyfriend show… or is it? The opening depicts a conversation with a loving boyfriend. They’re making plans and this looks like the real deal. She then circles back to her beginnings and recounts her backstory. As a child, she failed to read the popularity room, effectively marginalising herself. She is far from immune to cultural influences, however, and realises that she can reposition herself socially in a more accessible vein

A classical piano awaits us. And… a feather coat. The stage alludes to something left field, and we are not disappointed as Valentina Tóth sweeps the stage with a shock of red hair. She says that she is “very good at playing the piano.” Well, in the words of Muhammad Ali, it’s not bragging if you can back it up. She is, in fact, a former child prodigy. However, Fatal Flower is not a classical concert – far from it. It is a series of vignettes, all on the theme of ‘hysterica

Protests are planned in support of Hong Kong’s fragile democracy. Millie, while along for the ride, is more keen on partying. Millie is the daughter of ex-pats, a “third culture kid” – raised in a different environment than that of their parents. She is used to being uprooted and is a Hong Kong resident without a sense of belonging. Her lack of British identity is laid bare at her school’s International Food Event. She is described as a “gweilo”, a Cantonese term simultaneous

There are thousands of artists at the Edinburgh Fringe: some are well-known stars, but mostly they are following their dreams. And so we meet the multi-talented Lucia Mallardi. Mallardi delivers the distilled narrative of her life—so far, at least. As a child, she only really wanted to be a performer, but was also a very talented footballer, if ever given the opportunity to demonstrate her skills. However, she knuckled down to a sensible career path, accepting a place at Pesc

One of the purposes of science fiction writing is to issue a warning to humanity about a possible future. In 1949, when George Orwell wrote his now classic novel 1984 , never had that idea been more urgent, with the Nazis only just overrun and Stalinist forces now controlling eastern Europe and parts of Asia. Britain has been subsumed into a trans-Atlantic authoritarian superstate, ruled by Big Brother. Winston Smith works for a historical revisionism department, responsibl

It's the late 90s and in a fictitious small town in Ohio, the sales team at Terry’s are trying to sell cars. It’s Memorial Weekend, the equivalent of a bank holiday weekend in the UK, with implicitly heightened sales opportunities. The team are playing heavily on the Memorial theme: stars and stripes adorn the lot and they draw ever-more spurious patriotic links with their deals on vehicles. The lead salesman Tom refers to himself as ‘Major Tom’. They shoot in-house televisi

What is the difference between trauma and experience? Lauren is a journalist working on a domestic violence story. These cases are depressingly commonplace, but this one appears to have an undertone of male entitlement. The antagonist, Andrew, works for a politician. The victim of the assault once worked alongside him but has not had her contract renewed. Andrew, chillingly, has been welcomed back to the inner sanctum. Lauren prods at the story. Andrew’s boss peddles a party

The year is 1941. France is occupied by the Nazis, who wield significant influence in North African Casablanca. A stream of desperate refugees clamour to leave for America, but only the rich or powerful can hope to make it. European flotsam and jetsam gravitate to Morocco – but once there, they wait. And while they wait, everybody comes to Rick’s… There is an art deco-style set at the lovely Ghillie Dhu venue that evokes memories for anyone who has seen the film – and it’s ut

Three Can Keep A Secret is piece of comedy drama with a twist: there is frequent audience interaction to influence the plot, making it a cross between drama and the ‘choose your own adventure’ genre. A boys’ poker night is the setting. The host, Mason, is expecting various party guests and with his wife, Denise, safely out of town, it promises to be raucous. Sonny and Moose arrive, yet…they don’t especially seem to be cordial with one another – are they in fact friends at al

Kofi is on stage, attired (if that’s the word) in an orange jumpsuit. A Black man is in prison – cue the pearl-clutching – and he has a life sentence. But it’s not what you think. Kofi (Quaz Degraft) is a numerical marvel, entertaining his fellow inmates by solving mathematical puzzles, and is clearly articulate. So, how did he come to be incarcerated? He is first-generation Ghanaian, raised in New York. His family has imbued him with a strong work ethic, and he has, albeit n

It's Eileen’s 90th birthday party in Northern Ireland. Her daughter Gilly has gone to some trouble to make it a special occasion, including the arrival of her own daughter Jenny and granddaughter Muireann – meaning there will be four generations of women under the same roof. There are party hats, balloons and the promise of a cake. It should all pass off rather smoothly – right? Eileen (Julia Dearden) is prickly, demanding and frankly more than a little truculent. She relentl

The sister of a famous pop star, Standing in the Shadows of Giants is Lucie Barât’s personal story – and it’s not quite what you might expect. Barât recounts her adult journey through drama school, auditions, fending off predatory industry suits, an unfulfilled career and part-time jobs. Her brother Carl has formed an indie band, The Libertines. History recalls how they find fame and an endless stream of parties, launches and media hype ensues. Frontman Pete Doherty’s drug

Grand Guignol de Milan, fresh from their recent triumphant, award-winning show at Prague Fringe, export a further series of vignettes, all with a distinctly Italian flavour and themed around the company’s stated raison d’être to revive Italian horror stories. Gianfilippo Lamberti takes to the stage, elegantly attired and with horns on his forehead. The Devil is the host and puppetmaster for the evening; however, he is interrupted by Salvatore (Lorenzo Balducci), not only rais