PRESS RELEASE for immediate release June 2026
Buxton Fringe’s comedy section is bigger than ever this year with over 90 entries, many of which have a variety show flavour blending different genres and sometimes involving audience participation. Be warned!
Fresh from her success in TV’s Drag Race, Buxton’s own Kate Butch returns with her brand new show: A Kate In The Hand Is Worth Two In the Butch, bound to sell out. Also flying the drag flag is Fringe regular Angela Bra - billed as ‘the queen of ball-based bedlam’ with a new take on her show Secret Diary of a Bingo Call Girl 2: The Balls are Back in Town.
There is musical mayhem from Barbara Fernandez in her Underground show ‘Singing, Sagging and Shagging’ - think Liza Minnelli and Debbie Harry’s love child. Comedian and harpist Caitriona Dowden’s Sesh Head is an award-nominated show celebrating Irish folk and family history.
Musical duo Jonny & The Baptists sing songs about serious things in a wickedly funny way in Live On Stage. They keep being nominated for awards but they never win. Maybe this year? Fringe-goers can head down to Scrivener’s bookshop to hear comedy poet and singer-songwriter Majk Stokes’s comic take on the 21st century in Songs for the 2020s.
Music Is The Food of Love - I Can See The Stage From Here is a high-energy comedy panel show featuring teams of comedians and musicians. Joyful chaos ensues. There is more hilarity in Title Explained In Blurb - The Musical, Paul Dennis’s show featuring songs and stories about overthinking. Just go along and don’t think about it too much.
Variety lovers will appreciate an hour of comedy cabaret poetry and improvised rhyming mindreading in an interactive show from stage hypnotist-turned-teacher Ben Dali, Humdinger Words For Lollygaggers and Fuddy-duddies.
Improvisation features heavily in the comedy music turns this year, Alex Prescot’s Cosy tailors his show to his audience with a blend of musical comedy and thinking out loud. Comic Harmonic is a talented trio whose any subject, any style show turns into a full length improvised concert. And of course there is Fringe favourite, the usually sold-out The Totally Improvised Musical. There are more opportunities for audience participation with Den of Fools’ Improv Panel Show featuring a team of comedians.
Jake Yapp continues the panel show theme with a full-blown game show, Cornershop Showdown set in 1976. Things get even weirder if that’s possible with a double bill of puppet madness, first Slightly Psychotic Cynthia then Leon’s Alien Gameshow, aimed at all those who still haven’t grown up. Brave audience members game to put their love lives up for inspection should meanwhile head for Jesters’ Telling Tinder Tales.
Billed as both a game show and a talk show is The Third Eye Comedy Show presented by Gurps Dhesi. The Improvised Surprise Party by "rubbish party planners” Twinprov invites audiences to take part in joyful improv games. Also needing audience participation is Chris Neville’s It’s Not Cluedo with murder weapons, locations and suspects all up for grabs. Over 12s are welcome to join in the fun.
Definitely not for families is Sweet Production’s Imaginary Porno Charades: outrageous observations and porno puns, or the cult Late Night Dirty Scrabble with Rob Rouse. Guaranteed belly laughs or your money back.
Fringe Marketing Officer Stephanie Billen says: “With this year’s enormous comedy offering at the Fringe, there is a huge choice of entertainment with shows that straddle various genres and many that could definitely use some unabashed audience involvement!”
There is plenty more comedy on offer at Buxton Fringe. Fringe-goers can just pick up a programme, see www.buxtonfringe.org.uk or download the free Buxton Fringe App.
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