Exciting and exclusive opportunity to preview Edinburgh Fringe shows at Live Theatre

There is a scorching line up of Edinburgh Fringe Preview shows at Live Theatre from Tuesday 28 July. This is a fantastic chance for Newcastle  audiences to be the first to experience new work from some of the UK’s most  exciting artists before they head North of the border for Europe’s biggest arts  festival.

The hilarious hand-picked previews feature a mix of emerging theatre companies, performance artists, musicians, award-winning comedians, and  local favourites, selected from an open call out for artists travelling to the  Fringe.

Kicking-off the 2026 Fringe Previews on Tuesday 28 July is Kate Hammer: Government Approved Comedian. Join Canadian Kate as she tells the tale of  getting her Global Talent Visa for comedy, balanced with stories of getting  dominated on Vinted and being brought to tears by a modern printer.

Also on Tuesday 28 July, Edinburgh University Theatre Company present Last Orders. Featuring an all-female cast as they charm with their impressive  facial hair and ability to down a pint of Budweiser in a geographically  ambiguous US town in the 1980’s.

Award winning drag performer Fanny Bleach (Your Aunt Fanny) brings The Nearly Naked Show on Wednesday 29 July. With 10 plus years’ experience  working across cabaret, drag, performance art, comedy and life-drawing,  Fanny is a cartoonish chameleon adopting personas as readily as new  costumes.

The 9pm show on Wednesday 29 July sees Edinburgh Comedy Award  nominee and modern, normal Northern person Freya Paker (Smoggie Queens)  mine for LOLs in her sophomore stand-up show An Hour Of Decay. A brave  and landmark briefing on the most hilarious topics of all – ageing, Vinted and  AI.

Returning to the Fringe previews on Thursday 30 July is Scott Turnbull with Surreally Good. The award-winning performer, writer and theatre maker,  recently cast in Our Friends In The North, uses live illustration alongside his  interactive brand of surreal comedy to tell stories that explore the fine line  between the sacred and the profane.

Gigantica by Grace Mulvey on Thursday 30 July is a warm and laugh-out loud show about parents, identity and finding joy in the things you can’t  escape. Grace dares to tackle a controversial topic – is it an insult to tell a woman she looks like her Dad? Support comes from Joanne McNally.

The two shows on Friday 31 July include Homeland Insecurity from Ayo Adenekan and I AM JOHNNY written and performed by Tessa Parr (Astell &  Woolf). BBC New Comedy Award finalist and writer on the hit TV show SNL UK, Ayo explores summer romance and the cost of chasing your dreams.  Effortlessly charming and razor-sharp. Ayo blends big laughs with beautifully observed storytelling. I AM JOHNNY is an unsettlingly funny, absurd and  politically sharp solo performance that dives head-first into fragile power  dynamics, performative masculinity and ownership of the female body.

On Saturday 1 August, multi-instrumentalist Tom Oakes presents Forge a  new piece that blends traditional music with live composition, improvisation  threaded with archive broadcast and new writing by Kolbrún Björt Sigfúsdóttir.

The final preview show on Saturday 1 August is Metroland Live: As Seen On TV a recent Fringe 2026 Rolling Stone UK recommendation. Blending absurd  sketches, acerbic character comedy and chaotic Geordie energy, this is both  a celebration of television’s communal past and gloriously ridiculous farewell  party. 

JD Stewart, Live Theatre’s New Work Producer said: “We are excited to welcome a host of talented artists from around the UK to Live Theatre to  preview their work for this year’s Fringe Festival. We hope that audiences  enjoy the selection – a mix of theatre, music and stand-up, and that this  format of previewing is something which will continue in the future before the  world’s largest theatre festival.” 

Be the first to the Fringe. With two shows per day, you can see more and save with a special discount offer for those booking both performances on the  same day.

Find out more and book at www.live.org.uk.