Category Archives: 2026

Roll Up! Roll Up! It’s Fringe Time

Roll up! Roll Up! It’s Edinburgh Fringe time. Quick, hide the addicts and the homeless. Slap on your rouge and your lipstick and get in that doorway, bitch. Entice them in. Shake yer moneymaker. Show them yer wares. A tartan tart in tat, that’s what you are. By god, it’s pure radge but we willContinue reading “Roll Up! Roll Up! It’s Fringe Time”

Some Edinburgh Fringe 2026 Predictions

****! A title will have a swear word and the accompanying poster will have a suitably provocative image, which will be catnip/rage bait to Quentin Letts. Gilded Balloon,7.30 pm 68 Guns Despite featuring music by The Alarm, this gory new musical, written by David Ireland, focuses on The Troubles. Traverse Theatre almost wet themselves withContinue reading “Some Edinburgh Fringe 2026 Predictions”

Do Give Up The Day Job?

When it comes to being a triple threat, many people excel. They’re all-rounders, who can turn their hands to everything. Then.. there are some of the greatest actors in the world, who fancied having a go at becoming singers. Take these three. Admittedly, Bette Davis knew she couldn’t sing, but the others, hmmm. Nonetheless, theseContinue reading “Do Give Up The Day Job?”

Baby Voices

Beth Ditto- who should be praised for having such an eclectic playlist on 6Music – hit a bum note this morning when playing Candy by Ravyn Lenae. It gives me the ick. I don’t mind idiosyncratic voices, obviously. I like Bjork, although her pixie nonsense was often pretty annoying in the nineties. Alison Shaw, ClaireContinue reading “Baby Voices”

“I’ve had a great night… This wasn’t one of them!”

All too often , art critics are dismissed as being malcontents like The Muppets’ Statler and Waldorf, curmudgeonly, jaded old men who find no joy or pleasure in anything. But that’s both unfair and unhelpful. When poring over the music press as a teen, I knew this was what I wanted to do. Some epiphanyContinue reading ““I’ve had a great night… This wasn’t one of them!””

TV Review:The Vampire Lestat: Interview With the Vampire

Sam Reid stars as a derivative glam rocker… Except he’s the immortal bloodsucker Lestat in this Anne Rice- inspired follow-up to ‘Interview With the Vampire’. How to modernise him for Gen Z? By making him an insufferable, preening edgelord, part Ewan McGregor in ‘Velvet Goldmine’, part undead Michael Hutchence, and inserting endless jump-cuts and heapsContinue reading “TV Review:The Vampire Lestat: Interview With the Vampire”

A Round Robin From the Yeardleys

Season’s Greetings, All! What a year we’ve had. The Yeardley family has been unusually busy this year, what with our business ventures, restaurant reservations, holidays and bitcoin endeavours. Elon, eat ya heart out, the Yeardley family is coming for you! LOL. And sure, Leonard may have had his head turned by Savannah, his hot yogaContinue reading “A Round Robin From the Yeardleys”

Jennifer, Oh Jenny

Rest in peace, beautiful Jennifer Finch, bass player with L7, punk icon and artist/designer in her own right. She was just 59, and aggressive brain cancer cruelly stole her from us. I will forever remember seeing L7 live in Edinburgh in 1992. She had a brilliant sense of humour and was such an icon forContinue reading “Jennifer, Oh Jenny”

Arab Strap Are Fighting…The Seven Signs of Ageing

Rejoice! For arch Falkirk indie satirists Arab Strap are back, and on fighting form. The new single, ‘Glamour Magick’, is excellent, taking a pop at quick -fix solutions for the truly vain and vacuous. It’s a nice antidote to the uptake in cosmetic surgery, weight loss jags and skin remedies across the world. Trust AidanContinue reading “Arab Strap Are Fighting…The Seven Signs of Ageing”