10 unmissable shows at this year’s Greater Manchester Fringe

Nominated for London Pub Theatres’ Best Solo Show, Ali Williams’ Careless Talk charts an absorbing true tale of treachery, espionage and spam fritters through the life of Mabel Bancroft, the only British person to be tried for treason in the Second World War.

Billed as ‘a cross between a wonderfully observed Victoria Woods sketch…and an episode of Dad’s Army’, the captivating stage adaptation of the James Friel novel transports audiences to Sandown Beach, where Mabel and her secateurs, sequined tassels and steadfast convictions collide with the suspicions of British intelligence while running a hotel on the idyllic Isle of Wight.

Following her award-winning debut show No Previous Experience, Amy Webber takes over The Kings Arms Theatre with her ‘divinely constructed’ (Playbill) new comedic stage memoir, Wannabe.

Inspired by a weekend back home which left her with a box of childhood bric-a-brac, Webber’s hilarious and unflinchingly personal deep dive chronicles her journey from the lofty dreams of her adolescence through twenties mishaps to the unabashed, kinetic free spirit she’s become, as she recounts a life of ill-fated encounters and absurd scenarios with trademark wit, golden-voiced singing and ‘self-produced wall-to-wall bangers that some might say are more suited to a Middle England nightclub’.

Fresh from their runaway sell-out success with pool (no water) at last year’s Greater Manchester Fringe, ETAL Theatre returns to 53Two with another run of Phoebe Eclair-Powell’s timely, resonant excavation of toxic masculinity, WINK.

The searing theatrical study of modern manhood follows Mark, a solitary and terminally online sixteen-year-old fixated on his insecure, bigoted French teacher, John. Set against the backdrop of an accelerated technological era defined by unregulated communication and carefully curated profiles, WINK examines two lives veering perilously close to a fateful collision, as the truth mutates into something unrecognisable and desire distorts into danger.

Starring esteemed performers Harriet Dyer, Josh Jones, Hayley Ellis and Tom Lawrinson, The Crisp Review is back at this year’s Fringe with four one-off shows this month.

Hosted by Adam Evans, the snack-based comedy-cum-mockumentary showcase features full headline sets from the award-winning comedians, alongside fabulously rigorous reviews of their favourite crisps and free packets of Evans’ new collaboration with Serious Pig.

“Quirky and fresh… A crowd favourite” – The Stand

Shortlisted for the 2020 Alfred Bradley Bursary Award, WriteForTheStage’s The Big Things brings ‘an interlude of compassion and hope amidst the reality of modern life’ to The Kings Arms Theatre.

Running across three dates in the storied Salford institution, this tender account of love and keeping your path explores traditional romantic roles and the challenges they face when Grace and Malcolm, a couple united in contented and seemingly unbreakable devotion, have their bond tested by the sudden arrival of a third presence in their relationship.

On Sun 20 Jul, the ‘scrupulously honest, ridiculously funny’ (The Scotsman) wordsmith, humorist and philosopher Charles Quarterman brings his singular blend of stories from the mind, poems from the heart and sounds from the larynx to The Fitzgerald in a standalone evening of vivid verse and side-splitting observational insights.

The following weekend, The Digital Prometheus comes to Salford Arts Theatre with an evocative, foreboding examination of AI’s ascension and the cost of human hubris, posing the question: What if your mind developed a mind of its own?

Two young AI researchers, Michael and Elliot, have spent years devising an algorithm that could feasibly upload someone’s consciousness into a computer programme. Now, it’s ready for testing, and Elliot is the first subject.

When Elliot dies suddenly and in unexplained circumstances, Michael is swiftly accused of his murder by the programme itself, igniting a legal firestorm in which AI is the key witness of an unprecedented case, and the cold calculations and dread-inducing amorality of tomorrow’s technology are brought to the fore.

Described ‘a comic tour of the medieval world’, Bloody Marvellous sees comedian and Durham University’s Professor of Medieval French Literature Luke Connell whisk audiences on a mud-flecked march through the Middle Ages, with myths, medicine and curious conventions rediscovered through games, props and songs across two nights at The Social Refuge.

“A lovely stage presence… this is awesome.” (one4review)

Winner of the Tour Ready Award at the San Diego Fringe, Best of the Broadwater Encore at Hollywood Fringe and ranked as a Top Ten Theatre Pick by Stage Theatre Los Angeles, Karen Hall’s innovative classical cello recital unfolds as a performance art piece that blurs the boundaries between artistry, humanity and insanity, confront identity, expectations and success ‘through the eyes of a fool’.

Featuring Suite No. 1 in G Major by JS Bach amongst personal comedic pieces developed in ‘Idiot classes’, Delusional Grandeur brings a refreshing jolt of pathos to high-flown musical tradition with an original production ‘as irreverent as it is poignant’ (Australian Arts Review).

Performing over two days at Ancoats’ breathtaking Hallé St Michael’s, Chorus of Others presents a stirring showcase of song and poetry spanning the full spectrum of emotion, from the irrepressible euphoria of early love to the achingly relatable pain of heartbreak with popular tunes from the 60s to the 90s by the likes of ABBA, Stevie Wonder, R.E.M and others.

Conducted by Musical Director Nino Raphael, Songs in the Key of Love celebrates men openly speaking and singing about their thoughts and feelings, advocating for men’s mental health through open musical dialogue with intimacy, anxiety and divorce.