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The Herald Scotland
24-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
The only people who came to my Fringe show were drunks and sea cadets
Fringe veteran Lucy Porter flashes back on how traumatising the Fringe experience can be. 'My first gig turned out to be in a Sea Cadet hut,' she recalls. 'I was going through a Goth phase at the time, so I thought I was prepared to be miserable, but I wasn't. The only people who came to the gig were drunks and sea cadets, who thought the hall was still in use for sea cadet stuff. The other comedians in the hall and me all fell out. At one point I sat on the steps and sobbed and let out a primal scream.' Read more about the Fringe In 1986, Paul Merton played the Pleasance to 'around six people every day.' 'I can remember walking in the rain every day to the venue, but then one day I couldn't remember how to get there. I think my brain was saying 'I'm not taking you there.'' Many performers assumed (wrongly) that consuming sufficient amounts of alcohol could help them deal with the Fringe experience. In 2012 Chloe Petts was a hopeful actor who turned up with a cast of 13 to live in a five-bed flat. Not ideal, admittedly. 'I coped by going out and getting drunk every night, mostly ending up blacked out with my face in a bowl of plain pasta. But that night on stage, I felt the Buckfast wield its power, and I threw up. Unfortunately, I had to kiss the other lead, my best friend, who'd just seen me being sick in a bucket. As we leaned in, she viscerally communicated 'I hate you, you stink' with her eyes while I tried to communicate 'I'm so sorry!' with mine. She didn't talk to me for the rest of the run.' Cash, it seems – or the lack of it - is at the core of many performers' stress build up. (The average cost for an adult to stay at the festival for its duration this year is £2,471 on Airbnb and £5,198 on Then there is venue hire, marketing materials and PR, and fees for the producer and director. In fact, last year Mancunian comedian John Tothill decided to mitigate the costs by contracting malaria, signing up for a medical trial that would see him infected with the deadly disease. His £2,500 research fee helped covered his upfront costs. Hyperinflation in Edinburgh during Fringe time has seen Gail Porter axe her show. Even comedy giant Jason Manford said he can barely break even. London critic Holly McMahon was initially delighted to land accommodation in a 'private summerhouse' on the outskirts of the city's West End, a 40-minute walk from the major venues, for only £76 a night. But she was shocked to be berthed in a shed with a chamber pot. Each year, some 400,000 visitors descend upon the city to witness a kaleidoscope of colour and madness, such as the lady who lip-synced using her genitalia. We've witnessed the collection of knitted bible stories. A one-man Hamlet was performed 12 years ago featuring teddy bears and a karaoke machine. There was a Bouncy Castle Hamlet, featuring a blow-up sex doll as the ghost of Hamlet's Dad, with extra points added for using a miniature bouncy castle on the big bouncy castle - to perform the play within a play. Paul Merton, seen here with Ian Hislop, is best known for presenting Have I Got News for You (Image: BBC/Hat Trick/Ray Burmiston) There have been plays featuring every affliction known to man; you are virtually guaranteed plays featuring depression, death, grief, alcoholism, drug addiction, gambling addiction, and every obsessive compulsive disorder imaginable. You can see parody musicals and dramas, spoofs and satires. You can see shows in bunkers, tents, science labs and shipping containers. Or sometimes a theatre. Yet, why would performers wish to compete in such a world of contrived insanity, of often uncontrolled ego? Performer Juliet Myers's nemesis was her attention-seeking tech support. 'She often just chipped in and responded to things I said in the show,' says Myles. 'I had a bit where I pretended I didn't know where Zurich was. She would just shout out, 'It's in Switzerland. You asked that yesterday!' She constantly insisted on making the lighting red or green and when I insisted I didn't want that she'd exclaim, 'It's my show too!'' But hang on; is this compendium of colours part of the reason why performers wish to be part of the melee? Perhaps. Paul Merton maintains that very few achieve fame thanks to appearing at the Fringe. 'It's a myth you think an Edinburgh run can be a launch pad.' Of course, many will hope to emulate the experience of Richard Gadd's Baby Reindeer which began life as an Edinburgh Fringe show, or the success of Phoebe Waller-Bridge's Fleabag. Some will cite the historical successes of the likes of Derek Jacobi who starred in a sixth form production of Hamlet, comics such as the Monty Python team, Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, Rowan Atkinson, Rory Bremner and Keiran Hodgson. And theatre colossus Six began life at the Fringe. However, the likes of The Chase's Paul Sinha, who fronted a show themed around Love, Actually, and cancelled two shows due to zero ticket sales, wallow in the challenge. And comic Adam Riches maintains the Fringe experience toughens the spirit. 'I've suffered so many shockers, from multiple walkouts and single-digit audiences to lame promoters and supposedly 'career-threatening' reviews. I was once told a 'one triangle of one star' review was coming out, but 'on the plus side, they were going to be printing a photo'. The fringe is like the shark in Jaws: a cold, brutal killing machine that sleeps badly, eats worse and makes little fringes.' It is indeed a test of grim endurance, and it just may be the (badly lit) place in which dreams may be realised. Yet, it's certainly a month-long examination of character, says writer James Cary. 'It's not just an endurance of physical stamina, ultimately, you will experience emotions and feel frustrations that only happen in this annual cauldron of dysfunctional ambition.' He adds; 'In the Bible, there is a wonderful proverb from King Solomon which runs thus: 'As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly'.' Is Lucy Porter one of those fools? She smiles as she says the Fringe experience may be tough, but it's transcendent. 'It's a constant carnival with things going on all day or night. It's like being in Vegas - but with mime and contemporary dance.' To purchase tickets for the Fringe, please click here
Irish Times
01-07-2025
- General
- Irish Times
The lost millionaire – the mystery of Glenveagh Castle's missing owner.
Glenveagh Castle is arguably Donegal's most famous landmark, however the architectural splendour of its Scottish baronial exterior belies a much darker history. In July 1933, the castle's owner, American professor of architecture Arthur Kingsley Porter disappeared without a trace on the nearby island of Inishbofin near Magheraroarty. It is a mystery which endured now for the best part of a century and no definitive answer has ever been found as to what exactly happened to Kingsley as he was affectionately known by his family. Porter and his wife Lucy, a wealthy heiress, bought Glenveagh Castle in 1929 from the controversial Captain John George Adair. Adair was despised by locals in Donegal due to his role in the Derryveagh evictions of 1861, where the clearing of his estate of its 224 tenants in the wake of the Great Famine left an indelible mark on the local population. Indeed, it was said locally that Glenveagh itself was cursed as a result. READ MORE Arthur Kingsley Porter was a much different man from Adair. In the United States, he was widely admired as an eminent archaeologist, art historian and Medievalist. His published work on ancient pilgrim roads and early Christian high crosses drew him to Ireland, first to lecture in the Society for Irish Antiquities in Dublin and eventually to Glenveagh. Lucy and Kingsley wished to live like local people and eventually they built a small two-bedroom cottage on the small island of Inishbofin located between the coast in Magheraroarty and Tory Island. Porter was fascinated by the local people and wrote plays and poetry while on the island. He fell in love with Inishbofin and wrote of it in his diaries: 'We who live inland know nothing of islands, we never know what the sea is like with its spaces, its storms, its sadness, its exultation. We have never felt its wild winds sweeping unbroken from the rim of the world. We know nothing of islands.' Porter also had particular fascination with St Colmcille who is closely associated with nearby Gartan. However, all was not as it seemed as the Porters were carrying a dark secret with them. Kingsley Porter was struggling with his sexuality and suffered from episodes of depression as a result. In an effort to address the cause of his depressive episodes, the Porters visited the English physician and sexologist Dr Havelock Ellis in London. Ellis recommended that the Porters introduce a young homosexual man named Alan Campbell into their marriage in order to help Kingsley overcome his depressive episodes. Campbell posed at Harvard as Kingsley's assistant and travelled with them to Glenveagh on occasion. Sadly, Harvard in the 1930s was a dangerous place for gay men. Beginning in the early 1920's Harvard University had begun a purge of homosexual members of faculty as well as students. Under university president Abbott Lawrence Lowell's direction, an ad-hoc tribunal known as the 'secret court' conducted more than 30 behind closed doors interviews with men who were suspected to be homosexual. Eight students and an assistant professor were subsequently expelled or relinquished of their duties. Kingsley Porter's relationship with Alan Campbell eventually came under scrutiny. Campbell fled to San Francisco and the resulting pressure on campus, coupled with financial difficulties for the Porters caused them to flee to Donegal to escape what they believed was to be an impending national scandal. Both Lucy and Kingsley made their way to Inishbofin in mid-July 1933. One evening during a storm on the island, the couple briefly parted in order for Kingsley to prepare his coracle for fishing the next day - he was never seen again. An inquest was later held in Falcarragh, the first of its kind in Ireland without a body present where it emerged that Kinglsey had arranged for his estate to be left to Lucy in the weeks before his disappearance. Locals also testified that Kingsley's currach was missing from the island and that a large freight ship had passed by Inishbofin the night of his disappearance. Curiously, during the couple's time living on the island, Kingsley had penned a play about Colmcille sailing on a coracle out to sea away from all his troubles. Did Kingsley Porter escape to a new life away from his troubles? Was it a simple accident? Or did Kingsley tragically take his own life? Perhaps Adair's curse indeed hung over Glenveagh, which was eventually sold to the Irish State. Today, a prestigious architectural prize is awarded each year in Porter's memory by Harvard University. On Inishbofin, the ruins of his old cottage still remain.
BBC News
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Hastings comedy festival set to celebrate 10th anniversary
A comedy festival in an East Sussex town is celebrating its 10th Comedy Festival kicks off on Monday with dozens of performances over seven days including Seann Walsh, Lucy Porter and Robin event "showcases a large variety of professional comedians and emerging comics from around the UK and the world", organisers Chris Young and Jake Alexander said. The two friends who founded the festival in 2015, said it "united their passion for live comedy and the community of Hastings". They added: "Finding, supporting and promoting new comedy talent is at the core of our ethos of running the festival."If you're looking for the future bright stars of stand up comedy then Hastings is the festival showcase you really shouldn't miss out on."It promises to be an explosion of laughter."Dozens of shows will be performed at 15 different venues in Hastings and St Leonards throughout the festival runs until 15 June.
Telegraph
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Watch: House of Lords hit by leaflet protest
Protesters campaigning for the abolition of the House of Lords forced a temporary shutdown of the upper chamber on Thursday and disrupted proceedings by throwing leaflets. Peers were interrupted just before noon as a group of six people in the public gallery started shouting: 'Lords out, people in.' They threw leaflets into the air and down into the chamber. The sitting was suspended for just under five minutes as they were escorted out and calm was restored. Peers had been discussing the 80th anniversaries of Victory in Europe and Victory over Japan when they were disrupted. The leaflets thrown by the small group said: 'Never mind the Lords here's the House of People.' The other side of the leaflets said: ' Aristocrats and oligarchs: Out. Posties, mums, nurses and neighbours: In. Replace the House of Lords to save the UK.' The protesters said they were acting on behalf of Assemble, an organisation that campaigns for the House of Lords to be abolished and replaced by a citizens' assembly. Citizens' assemblies are selected by sortition, which means members of the public are picked at random via a lottery. Supporters of this mechanism argue it means a more representative sample of the population are able to come together and debate important issues. Protester Lucy Porter, 50, a primary school teacher from Leeds, said she was 'campaigning for a House of the people'. On the Lords, she said: 'It's a symbol of everything that's outdated. We don't have a functioning democracy in this country.' One protester, who wished to be known only as Christina, said: 'We did this action on behalf of Assemble and the ask is that, instead of a House of Lords, which is a house of unelected wealthy elites, we have a house of the people. 'So, we have citizens' assemblies where people can participate in real democracy, instead of having everything handed to them from up high.' A spokesman for Assemble said: 'Today's action has been taken in support of the abolition of the House of Lords in favour of a House of the People – a new institution where any adult in the UK may be selected to serve, like a jury, to set the political agenda and balance the House of Commons. 'This action mirrors one undertaken by Suffragettes on October 28th 1908, where they took direct action by raining handbills onto the House of Commons, demanding suffrage for women in the UK.'
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
House Of Lords Thrown Into 'Chaos' As Democracy Protesters Bring Debate To A Halt
The House of Lords was thrown into 'chaos' after democracy campaigners started chanting and throwing leaflets into the debating chamber. Stunned peers looked on as the protesters shouted 'Lords out, people in' during a debate on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War 2. Proceedings had to be abandoned for several minutes until the campaigners, from the group Assemble, were removed. An official could be heard saying: 'The house will adjourn for five minutes while this chaos calms down.' Labour whip Baroness Twycross was speaking when the protest began. On one side, the protesters' leaflets said: 'Never mind the Lords here's the House of People.' On the other side it stated: 'Aristocrats and oligarchs: Out. 'Posties, mums, nurses and neighbours: In. 'Replace the House of Lords to save the UK.' One of the protesters, Lucy Porter, 50, a primary school teacher from Leeds, told the PA news agency she was 'campaigning for a house of the people'. On the Lords, she said: 'It's a symbol of everything that's outdated. 'We don't have a functioning democracy in this country.' Another protester, who wished to be known only as Christina, said: 'We did this action on behalf of Assemble and the ask is that, instead of a House of Lords, which is a house of unelected wealthy elites, we have a house of the people. 'So, we have citizens' assemblies where people can participate in real democracy, instead of having everything handed to them from up high.' 🚨🎥 WATCH: Protestors throw leaflets and shout 'Lords out, people in' in the House of Lords — Politics UK (@PolitlcsUK) March 20, 2025 House Of Lords 'Abolition' Petition Highlights Growing Support For Change The House of Lords Is Bigger Than Lord Sewell - Which Is Why It Shouldn't Be Abolished
