The Holyrood Tavern – Edinburgh Festival 2006

 

Its amazing what you can do with a tin of green paint.

 

Its even more amazing what you can do with a bottle of Magners

 

The fire brigade kicking doors down

 

They found the fire – now all they need is a hose

 

 

Mr Miller laughs his head off at The Holyrood

 

Mr Miller vets the punter

 

Our supporter at Lindsays

 

The Chuckle Brothers getting pissed up

 

Me brotherŐs pissed off

 

Al Stick having a laugh

 

Krysstal plays darts

 

Henning & Otto womanising

 

Still at it – with Laura this time

 

Mike Belgrave joins the flyer brigade

 

 

Frank Sanazi reads MikeŐs flyer

 

Slaughterhouse Live

 

KrysstalŐs biggest fan

 

SabrinaŐs film crew

 

New material

 

The stairs

 

Luka the barman

 

Two Nuns

 

Fringe Sunday

 

The audience

 

Brian & Krysstal & Friends

 

e Live

 

 

The guitar I bought from Cash Converters

 

The guitar I didnŐt buy

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Holyrood Tavern – Edinburgh Festival 2005

Peter Buckley Hill, Boothby Graffoe with Brian Damage & Krysstal

 

Until the last weekend of this year's fun fest, the most un-remarked-on development at the Fringe was the creative rise of the tiny and shabby Holyrood Tavern, a 50-or-so seater drab room behind a dingy pub at the bottom of the Pleasance Hill en route to the old Gilded Balloon and the new Smirnoff Underbelly. Seldom visited by Armani-clad media moths, only six years ago the Holyrood Tavern used to have naff shows you wouldn't want to see even when drunk and wearing a thin tee-shirt on a rainy day. In the last five years, though, it has been programmed by Vicky de Lacey (female half of the Brian Damage & Krysstal comedy act) and the Holyrood has become a fascinating hotbed of interesting acts - some brilliant, some talented though underdeveloped and some just plain bizarre.

 

Wil Hodgson

 

Last year, the Holyrood Tavern's Wil Hodgson won the Perrier Best Newcomer award.

 

Laura Solon

 

This year, their Laura Solon rightly won the prestigious main Perrier award for Kopfraper's Syndrome while, with less of a fanfare, their Desperately Seeking Sorrow (Johnny Sorrow & Danny Worthington) was nominated for the new Malcolm Hardee Oy Oy award.

 

 

Vicky de Lacey and Brian Damage run the Pear Shaped comedy clubs in London and Sydney and are shaping up as the new Malcolm Hardee, although adding a pair of breasts to his legendary bollocks. They drink, they can spot talent and they run fascinatingly creative bills in shabby venues.

 

So, while the media moths are attracted to the brightly-coloured and wackily-posed posters of the three (or, with the Underbelly, four) main venues and sign up the Douglas Bader end of the creative spectrum - acts with no legs - the really interesting acts have been passing them by.

 

It will be interesting to see if this changes next year for two reasons. One is that Pear Shaped at the Holyrood Tavern have now won Perrier Prizes at two consecutive Fringes.

 

John Fleming – Writers Guild

Edinburgh Festival 2005

 

 

 

Links:

Pear Shaped in Fitzrovia 

  Pear Shaped Listings - London 

Pear Shaped in Sydney  

Oval Comedy Club  

Brian Damage & Krysstal

Silly Songs CD

  Krysstal's Page

Download Biog

Journey to Ithaca

 RareBirds Productions

 Holyrood Tavern

 Edinburgh Festival 2005

 Fitzroy Tavern

 

Bookings & Enquiries

 

Email us