Edinburgh Fringe 2025
John Gibson: The Likes of Me
John Gibson
Genre: Comedy
Venue: Greenside @Riddle's Court
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
This is a warm, witty, and quietly powerful hour exploring class, belonging and the cost of pursuing art. Drawing on his Gateshead upbringing and life experience, John Gibson blends storytelling with comedy to probe social inequalities in a relaxed, authentic, and engaging way. Performed in Riddle’s Court, the show feels both intimate and resonant, an ideal start to the day and a hidden gem that deserves a bigger crowd.
Review
The show asks us to consider a deceptively simple question: if you are working class and accidentally become middle class, do you ever really fit in? It is a theme that could easily weigh a show down, but Gibson handles it with warmth, wit and sharp storytelling that makes the hour both engaging, entertaining, and thought-provoking.
The show is framed as a personal journey. Gibson recalls, amusingly but poignantly, growing up in a single-parent family on a tough estate in Gateshead, not realising until his teens that maybe he might be “poor”. School days, bullying and a thwarted attempt to join an acting class at the local library are told with humour and tenderness. He briefly quotes Shakespeare at the start and speaks movingly of his love of art, but the point is clear: working-class kids rarely had the encouragement or opportunity to pursue such passions. Instead, he found himself in the shark-infested waters of corporate life, where only time, work and savings enable the likes of John to take part in the Fringe.
Gibson threads jokes neatly into the narrative. His pigeon companion in Barcelona is a delightful oddity, and his mother’s baffled reaction to being gifted a turnip is another amusing highlight. More serious reflections on toxic masculinity, crime, and racism are handled with sensitivity, always balanced with enough levity to keep the tone buoyant. Despite life’s challenges Gibson resists sentimentality, keeping the focus on resilience, humour and hope.
On stage he is relaxed and authentic, a warm presence with sharp timing and well-crafted jokes delivered with a wink and a wry smile. His Geordie accent and grounded humour, supported by the occasional use of multimedia, keep the audience engaged from start to finish. Beneath the surface, his story gently probes the social complexities and the unfairness of a society that overlooks and fails to encourage talent from less privileged backgrounds.
The audience this time numbered only eight, but they responded with laughs, applause, and genuine appreciation, giving the show an intimate, open-hearted feel. It takes confidence, belief, and a fair amount of money to reach the Fringe, and Gibson is frank about the time it’s taken and the costs involved. His breakdown of expenses is eye-watering, a reminder of why both audiences and performers are finding it harder than ever to support and take part in the Fringe.
Performed in the delightful Riddle’s Court at the top of the Royal Mile, once home to hundreds of working-class families crammed into Edinburgh’s Old Town, Gibson’s reflections on class and belonging feel especially poignant. The Likes of Me deserves a bigger crowd. It is not the angry rant it could have been, but a gentle and funny exploration of paths not taken. A hidden gem of a show, warm, thought-provoking, and a great way to start the day.
