STARBURST is a Manchester based magazine, so it may come as no surprise that we’re rather fond of the city’s own fringe festival. (We’ve been covering it ever since Robots of Death.) This year it runs from 1st to the 31st of July.
I’VE BEEN EXPECTING YOU
A two-person comedy about henchmen for a supervillain. Trapped in what can be truly described as a dead-end job, two witless minions try to navigate the deadly world of super spies whilst trying to find the lunch menu. Genre comedy fun.
THE AUGUR
Coming to Manchester before it travels to Edinburgh, The Unnatural Disaster Company Presents The Augur, a macabre fortune telling puppetry experience. A strange mix of improv, the occult and general weirdness, this sounds like a quintessential fringe experience.
UNMASKED
Dark avant-garde humour about the timeless nature of being. Sounds just weird enough to be fun.
WILL DANES: PRESENTED BY MENTAL ILLNESS
Musical comedy with a dark sense of humour, taking inspiration from Lehrer, etc.
ONE MAN POE: THE BLACK CAT AND THE RAVEN
Actor Stephen Smith has really made the works of Edgar Allen Poe into something unique. He does multiple shows, each one covers a pair of Poe classics. Definitive, impressive and unforgettable, this is a must for horror fans.
You can find out more about the Manchester Fringe here.
If you really want to, you can check out our previous coverage of the Greater Manchester Fringe for 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023 , 2024 & 2025.
