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Fringe Picks for 2013

     Of nearly 3,000 shows at this year's Edinburgh Fringe, nearly a third are comedy, and for any one publication to review them all is a pretty impossible task. This will be my fifth year at the Fringe, and my first at reviewer publication Broadway Baby, where I'll be humbly taking up the post of Comedy Editor, so it's my job to pick and choose which shows are worth sending a reviewer to. Of course this is what anyone does when they arrive at the Fringe, filtering the 3,000 shows down to probably five or six to spend an average of Ā£8 a ticket and hoping beyond hope that it's worth the ticket price. Personally, I'll be attempting to get to all of these, regardless of price and regardless of whether or not I'm reviewing them-

Starting with the big names in comedy, Reginald D Hunter is an essential for lovers of wildly intelligent satire and unstoppable wit. Hailing from Albany, Georgia, Hunter has lived in the UK for several years and has this year swapped his traditional use of the word 'nigga' in his title for the more friendly 'crackers'. It's this brand of testing-the-line comedy, never offending, only ever poking fun, which has earned Hunter his crowds. An outsider's view of the UK and a skeptical insider's view of society's uglier bits, this is a man worth listening to and worth giggling along with.

Waistcoated parlor magicians Morgan and West return for another year of traditionally mind-boggling tricks and magnificent sleight-of-hand in a time-travelling adventure-based show. This seems to be their first story-led show, as opposed to simply standing up and doing the tricks, or even last year's exclusive twenty-seater midnight close-up show. There are plenty of magic shows on the Fringe, and even plenty of magic-slash-comedy shows, but this pair, of classic comedy duo stature, set themselves apart by half-explaining, never revealing, their tricks, and playing with the very nature of magic itself.

There aren't many comedy double-acts that can reduce you to tears of laughter and joy, but Max and Ivan can. The pair were Holmes and Watson two years ago, then they were Con Artists, and now they are an entire school reunion. Yes, just the two of them. No, I have no idea how they'll get away with it.
Their other show, The Wrestling, is a far more populated one. Taking professional wrestlers and comedians from across the Fringe, one team of Good and one team of Evil will battle for the title of, um, winners. Maybe.

Edinburgh Skeptics on the Fringe
Free shows are often hit-and-miss, but the Edinburgh Skeptics, I believe, have perfect aim. A range of talks from a horde of scholars address a range of scientific, religious, and simply skeptical topics, from the myths of Miracle Cures to Your Brain On Sex. Experts are encouraged to make their talks engaging and entertaining, and boy do they. Last year, our speaker on the Mayan Calendar told us, quite frankly, that there was not enough myth to debunk to fill an hour, so all that fuss about 2012 was really based on nothing at all.

Secret Location. Come to George Square and we will pick you up in a van and take you to the seaside and show you a play about the four survivors of a plane crash.
What else could you possibly want?

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