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!

Grubby Little Mitts: Eyes Closed, Mouths Open

Location:   Assembly George Square – Studio Five (Venue 17)

Dates: Jul 31st Aug 1st-9th, 11th-26th

Time: 16:35

Price: £12 Concessions £11

Ticket Link: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/grubby-little-mitts-eyes-closed-mouths-open

Hello! Tell us about yourself?

Hello! I’m one half of Grubby Little Mitts, comedian, actor and writer, and the producing arm of Grubby Little Mitts. I grew up in East Sussex and went to Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, where I met Sullivan Brown, the other Grubb in the double act.

When I’m not performing, I make props for theatre companies and comedians and work on film sets as a prop dresser. I’m an original cast member of the popular youtube board gaming show No Rolls Barred!

I designed and built their studio, as well as the set for their popular series Blood On The Clocktower, a series which I also produced and directed. I like cats and I have a good fringe.

Tell us all about your show!

This show is the third show in a trilogy of sketch shows we have made in the last three years, each one an evolution of the previous. This year we are trying something different, perhaps more narrative driven, perhaps more surreal, perhaps with more drama. But it’s a comedy show at its core and there is plenty of silliness. This year we are superbly directed by Dominic Allen (Belt Up Theatre, No Rolls Barred) and Simon Maeder (Superbolt Theatre, Lecoq), whom we have been working with in various capacities for a number of years and we can’t wait to bring our theatre/comedy/clowning/sitcom sketch show to Edinburgh audiences!

How did you come up with the name for the show you’re taking to the fringe?

We had a name which symbolised that it was the third in the trilogy, but we were talking with a friend about the show and they actually suggested the name we went with! We loved it and built our whole poster shoot around it. It’s the perfect name for our show – it invokes something innocent, optimistic and sexual at the same time. All things we successively undermine throughout the show. It couldn’t be more perfect!

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

Joe & Rory have a brilliant reworking of their 2023 show Television One which I can’t wait to check out; Lil Wenker’s Bangtail is sure to be fantastic as well; Rosalie Minnit’s new Clementine show and Lorna Rose Treen’s Skin Pigeon are all brilliant sketch comedy shows worth checking out! We have had all of these fantastic acts on Sketch Book, our monthly sketch show which is also coming to Edinburgh on 17th and 24th August, to great applom. I want sketch comedy to be king this year.

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?

We have two done fringes with Grubbs, and both have been very different; the follow up year to our award winning show was a real mental challenge for us, even though we sold better and had great reviews! Sometimes it goes that way. My advice is not to over stretch yourself if you are performing; have a routine, try to keep track of what day it is – it’s unusual to work a full month without a day off, and performing is work, so take a daytime off every now and then. Practically, you MUST flyer, but do it efficiently as its knackering. Try and get some press in during the first few days, and don’t turn away independent reviewers!! If you get four great reviews from smaller online platforms, the bigger publications will come and see what all the fuss is about!

Talk us through your daily routine for a day at the Fringe

Ok! I get up early. I do some exercise and eat something proper so I know I’ve had at least one good meal today. Then I go to the print shop and print off some review flashes and do an hour of stapling them to my flyers with Sullivan. Then I answer some emails and do any show admin – like fixing props or costume. We’re funded by Kickstarer, and fringe daytimes before the show are a good time to organise the fulfillment of our rewards, so I do a bit of that. Then I might go and see a show or perhaps take part in a mixed bill show. Then we will go and flyer the area around our venue about 90 minutes before the show.

Once that’s done I do a little warm up, set up the show and then do my show, this year that’s 4.35pm! After the show I have a break and a debrief with Sullivan and our directors if they’re around. Then I’ll maybe go and see a show with Sullivan or some other pals, maybe another opportunity to do a mixed bill show here. I’ll usually end up in the Assembly Club Bar in the evening and depending on how raucous that gets I will likely get a falafel wrap from Palmyra Kebab at 2am. Repeat.

Ok, where is your favourite place to eat at the Fringe?

My top three are Kampong Ah Lee on South Clerk Street for the roti and vegan lamb curry, Missy’s Bakery just behind Assembly Studios for the custard slices, and Black Rabbit near Toll Cross for their breakfast sandwiches.

Best thing about performing at the fringe?

All the people you meet! Audience, performers, venue staff…you make friends for life when you do the fringe and the atmosphere is so positive and friendly. I love hearing recommendations of what to see and going to venues I’ve never been to before. It’s so much fun as a performer to take a month out of your life to just have a blast every single Day.

Top tips for travelling around the Fringe and getting to shows on time?

There are lots of underpasses and bridges in Edinburgh so leave some time to go the wrong way. Sometimes shows have looooong queues to get in, so if you want to sit at the front then get there early. If you’re seeing a show close to midnight (ie. 12am, 1am etc) then check you have booked the right date!! If you’re going out on Friday night but advance-book a 1am show, you’ve missed it by 24 hours…!!!

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

Vitamins – so weird but chips and midnight crepes don’t have much nutritional value?!

Bedding – not all accommodation provides it!! Finally, a notebook – keep a diary of what you’ve been up to that day. Who have you seen? Who did you chat to? What did you eat?

How are you feeling?! Those details are so joyful to your future self. You might never be back at the fringe again and you don’t want to forget anything!

What’s the secret to successful flyering?

Flyer close to your venue so you can point people in the right direction…the marketing power of the phrase “oh its just down there!” is huge. Flyer in the 90 mins just before your show! Tell people it’s on within the hour and they’ll probably come! Talk to the punters, people love it when it’s your show. Be resilient as well because some people just ignore you or worse, and that’s all part of it. Make flyering friends with other performers! And as soon as you get a good review, get flashes printed and staple them on. Do it as soon as you can!

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

You can find our show on @grubbycomedy, our mixed bill show on @sketchbookcomedy and me on @rosie_nichs on Insta and @papanichs on X!

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

Six foot owl.