Every August, thousands of artists, companies and audiences descend on Edinburgh for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe – and the Queen’s Hall team is among them.
For our Artistic Director Katy Taylor, the Fringe is an annual opportunity to discover new work, catch up with artists and companies, spot emerging talent and gather ideas that help shape future programmes and experiences back in Hexham.
This year, Katy spent four packed days at the festival – and for one of them, she was joined by 20 members of the Queen’s Hall team for our annual staff development trip. Between them, the team squeezed six shows into one day, experiencing everything from new writing and physical comedy to murder mysteries and some brilliantly inventive theatre.
Here, Katy shares why the Fringe remains such an important date in her calendar – before some of the team reveal a few of their highlights.
Four days, 22 shows and 40 miles…
Katy Taylor, Artistic Director:
“Every year I head to Edinburgh for the Fringe. Four intense, exhilarating days at the world’s biggest performing arts festival. It’s one of the best parts of working in the arts, and also some of the hardest-working days of the year.
The Fringe is where you catch up with who’s touring, what new work is emerging and where the next big ideas are coming from. It’s also where you bump into old contacts, meet new ones and spend a lot of time walking up hills.
This year: four days, 22 shows, eight meetings and 40 miles walked – and one brilliant day where 20 members of the Queen’s Hall team joined me for our annual staff development trip, seeing shows together and soaking up new tech, new staging ideas and new approaches to performance.
Why do we do it? Because the Fringe is a living laboratory. It’s where you see how shows develop, how companies evolve and how artists are responding to the world around them. You learn as much from the audience experience, customer service, front-of-house flow, lighting choices and technical problem-solving as you do from the performance itself.
For Queen’s Hall, this trip is essential. It helps us understand what’s touring, what’s possible and what might resonate with our audiences in Hexham. It keeps us connected to the wider sector, ensures we’re spotting new talent early, and gives our team a shared experience that sparks ideas for months afterwards.
The Fringe is exhausting, inspiring, chaotic and completely wonderful. Every year I come back with a notebook full of ideas, a renewed sense of what’s happening in the performing arts, and a reminder of why festivals matter: they bring people together, push boundaries and keep the creative world innovating.
And yes – my legs still ache. But it’s worth every step.”
Six shows in one day
For the Queen’s Hall team joining Katy, the challenge was to pack as much Fringe as possible into a single day. Six performances later, there was plenty to talk about on the journey home.
Helen Mills, Sales and Audience Manager, picked Linus Karp Was Hit With an Umbrella as one of her highlights.
“One evening, while walking through Soho, Linus Karp was brutally attacked by a stranger simply because he was gay. Linus Karp Was Hit With an Umbrella explores the ripples of that attack – the fear that followed, the impact on how he saw himself and whether he felt safe doing everyday things like holding hands with his partner.
It also explores his experience with the police, who failed to capture key parts of his statement and, crucially, the fact that this wasn't just a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. It was a hate crime.
This could have been a very heavy hour of theatre. Instead, it is funny, clever, warm and surprisingly uplifting. Karp is confident, joyous and completely engaging on stage, finding humour in what happened without ever diminishing its seriousness.
I saw this as the sixth and final show of a very long day at the Fringe. I hadn't read anything about it beforehand and was already starting to flag, but by the end I'd completely forgotten how tired I was.
Going to the Edinburgh Fringe each summer has become a real highlight for me. Of the six performances we saw this year, five were really excellent – there is always one duff! – and all were utterly different. That's what makes the Fringe so special: seeing brilliant new work, seeing things that challenge me, and having the opportunity to fill my cultural cup.”
Suitcases, sleuthing and slapstick
Yvonne Heminsley, Box Office Assistant, also managed the full six-show marathon, with three very different productions standing out.
On Suitcases, Yvonne said:
“An inventive, entertaining scenario set at airport security, with lots of twists and turns. Original and interesting from start to finish.”
Next came a rather different proposition in Murder Mystery & the Famous Five:
“An interesting blend of a traditional sleuth and his ‘Hurrah Henry’ assistant. Brilliant acting, full of hilarious retorts and highly entertaining – I’d definitely recommend it.”
And finally, Don Quixote brought some high-energy physical comedy to the day:
“High-energy slapstick comedy from a longstanding pro, with props cleverly used throughout. Very entertaining – hilarious!”
Bringing the Fringe back to Hexham
From discovering artists and productions to experiencing different approaches to staging, technology and welcoming audiences, the Fringe gives the whole team plenty to take back to Queen’s Hall.
And after 22 shows for Katy – and six in a single day for the rest of the team – there’s certainly no shortage of conversation, inspiration and new ideas.
Now the only question is: which Fringe discoveries might you see at Queen’s Hall in the future?
