Edinburgh Fringe 2025
It’s Gonna Blow!
Fishing4Chips
Genre: character comedy, Comedy, Historical, Immersive
Venue: Pleasance Dome
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
An immersive comedy that takes you, the audience, back to the public forum of Pompeii. And guess what? It’s volcano day.
Review
How often do men really think about the Roman Empire? For Freddie Walker and Sean Wareing, the answer is clearly pretty frequently, and it’s completely to their credit. Their script for It’s Gonna Blow is a complete masterclass in character comedy, complete with Monty Python-esque farce, praiseworthy (or groanworthy, if you’re so inclined) puns, and just the perfect balance of gentle audience participation to really blow your socks off.
The show is set in a public forum, and you yourselves, the audience, are Roman citizens. But it’s not just any public forum. It’s the Pompeiian public forum, and it’s the fourth of Augustus 79 AD – volcano day. A completely immersive experience, with the cast even milling about in the queue before the show starts, the action starts from the get-go and never drops the ball. What follows is an hour packed full with zany characters, from crooked merchants, mimes after justice, and various Roman townsfolk, out to air their grievances – and in some cases, their dirty laundry. And all the while, the great volcano rumbles.
The four-strong cast is an absolute powerhouse – seamlessly switching from character to character without missing a single beat, with some impressive improv skills from Wareing especially. Freddie Walker and Sean Wareing make a strong return, with Walker flexing his impressive accent skills and physical comedy chops, and Wareing throwing out some exhaustive tongue-twisters with eminent ease. Arguably, he’s done it to himself, but with evident gusto. Fresh faces Elinor Solly and Yasmine Meaden round out the cast this year, with Solly playing a series of rascals and rogues, each more ridiculous than the last. And her recorder skills are especially impressive! Meaden’s Mayor Fausta is a particular stand-out favourite, with just the right air of snooty cunning and devious political machination to make her one of those characters you just love to hate.
I had the absolute pleasure of seeing their Fringe production last year, Burning Down the Horse – I’ll admit, I was drawn in by the colourful poster and the Talking Heads pun in the title. I’m thrilled to say they’ve got another absolute hit on their hands, and one that will be a delight to audiences of all ages. Honestly? I think it’s one of the funniest shows I’ll see all Fringe. Fishing4Chips has gone from strength to absolute strength, and I’m incredibly excited to see what they’ll do next.
