It is festival season and that means that in the next month there is so many great comedy festivals to look forward to! This month we are looking at some of the great shows that you can see at the Edinburgh Fringe. So take note because we are going to give you all the information you need for just a handful of some of the great shows happening this year! We have also been able to interview some of the acts that are heading up to the Fringe as well.

Ticket Link: http://www.underbellyedinburgh.co.uk/whats-on/bumper-blyton

How did you come up with the name of your show that your taking to the Fringe?
The company is actually called ‘The Make Em Ups’ but the show we’ve taken to Edfringe for the past few years is Bumper Blyton. Strictly etymologically speaking, it’s Enid Blyton… but it’s got the word BUM in it. I think that pretty much sums that up.

Tell us all about your show!
The show offers an hilarious tongue-in-cheek homage to Enid and her work, to be enjoyed by everyone aged 11+ or anyone who can remember being 11!

Inspired by audience suggestions in the form of illustrations drawn by the audience, the cast invent a hilarious one-off adventure live on the hoof. Allowing the audience to return to a time when they could get a delicious tongue sandwich or wrap their lips around a nice spotted dick…

What other acts are you looking forward to seeing at the fringe?

Jonah: Whilst I try to make sure I catch a couple of the big improv shows, generally I tend to opt for sketch comedy or solo character work. I’m looking forward to seeing ‘These Please’ a great new sketch team, Ricahrd Gadd’s Baby Reindeer (his last show won the big award) and I have to admit to wanting to see Eddie Izzard perform Dickens
Great Expectations. I’ll make time to see Tony Slattery, who was my improv hero as a kid. Anyone who has a heart will want to see the Basil Brush show (for adults).

Susan: Odd Paul , Paul F Taylor’s edfringe show. He’s got funny bones and funny words and is just all round funny.

Have you done the fringe before? What are the key pieces of advice you have been given or would give to new groups or people performing at the fringe?

Dan: Scheduling! Plan your day and with out where venues are so you don’t waste shoe leather on walking to Leith and back for mistimed shows. But being open to the batshit is part of the fun too: a compromise between iron Spartan discipline and being a leaf in the wind. B vitamins help too. Work hard, play dead.

Amy: This is Blyton’s 4th at the fringe and personally it’s my 12th though not in a row. My advice is the following;
+Don’t read your reviews until September (no one cares about them except you, and if you get a bad one brush it off as the subjective opinion it is and move on).
+ Go to the seaside/ Crammond Beach on your day off, or if you have a couple of days off go and see some of the spectacular natural landmarks of Scotland, it’s quite a phenomenal country and will put your worries into perspective as well as probably help solve them through pure wanderlust.
+ Watch something that’s not to your usual tastes, this is the best time and place in the world to feed your creative brain.

Favourite one liner you have done in a show and why?

As improvisers we would hardly admit to trying to ever trying to pull off one-liners would we… or would we?!

What have been some of the most unique and different comedy shows you have seen this year and why?

Susan: “Dummy” a duo made up of improv powerhouses Colleen Doyle & Jason Shotts. They are effortlessly funny engaging and like us each show is unique because it’s 100% improvised.

Rhiannon:  Other improv groups I find inspiring are the ones that simply have a lot of fun in each others company and take care of one another. A company that does that as well as blowing me away with their talent is Impromptu Shakespeare. They’re technically exceptional, their nuance and attention to detail is amazing and their cheeky
sense of fun is infectious. And both the male & female cast play cross gender with intelligence and without a whiff of cliche (no Monty Python ‘women’ to be seen – hurray!). Another inspiration for their sense of play and joy is probably Baby Wants Candy. Seeing them in 2014 was like watching a party you want to be involved in!

Vicky: John Robertson’s The Dark Room is really fun, and Bec Hill always makes me laugh.

What is the best way to enjoy yourself at the fringe?

Liz:  Have an idea of what you’d like to see but hold it loosely and take a punt. A lot of the fun comes from discovery!

What would be your top three items every performer must take to the fringe?

James: An extension cord with multiple outlets, noise cancelling headphones and a decent way make coffee at home this year I am thinking of bringing my Xbox up but that’s probably not interview worthy…

What’s the secret to successful flyering?

Jonah: It’s a performance, each interaction is a micro-showcase and audience will take the interaction to be representative of the quality of your show whether you like it or not.

However, try not to be cringey. Sellotaping yourself to a bollard or doing the ‘silent walk’ up the Royal Mile whilst covered in fake blood/torn wedding dress/smeared facepaint will cause eyes to roll, but not onto your flyer.

Who would be your ultimate dream audience member?

James: Gotta’ say Enid herself, haven’t we? We think it would be interesting to see whether she’d be rolling in the aisles with laughter or just rolling in her grave…

If people want to find out more about you where can they follow you on social media?

On FB , Insta and Twitter we are @BumperBlyton.

And Finally in three words – Why should people come and see the show?

Jonah – Stupid retro comedy

Dan: Enid Commands it

Susan: For scrumptious fun!

Rhiannon: Nostalgic, hilarious, uplifting!

Amy: Long-form with songs

Liz: Laughs and hi-jinks!