Barrymore and ‘Mr Spock’ Among the Stars Lined Up for Festival Fringe

Controversial comic Michael Barrymore and Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy will be among the stars of this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Barrymore will feature in a show about another troubled comedian, Spike Milligan.

Nimoy, who played Mr Spock in the sci-fi series, has written a play about Vincent van Gogh.

A record 2,088 theatre, music and comedy shows will take to the stage at this year’s festival.

Other stars taking part include Brit Ekland and Simon Callow.

Barrymore’s play, at the Assembly Rooms on George Street, focuses on Milligan’s turbulent relationship with his manager.

A number of theatre productions will examine the darker side of online social networking and internet chatrooms.

Other plays will tackle the serious issues of the day, such as the devastation of the London Tube bombings, the struggle for democracy in Burma and the Columbine High School killings in the US.

Headliners at The Edge – the successor to T on the Fringe music festival – include Tricky, Dizzee Rascal, Maximo Park and Kate Nash.

And for the first time in the Fringe’s history, the city will have a dedicated home for musical theatre with 29 new musicals and a wealth of concerts, masterclasses and cabaret being held in a venue on George Square, operated by the University of Edinburgh’s festivals office.

Fringe director Jon Morgan said: “The wide range of shows that connect with current issues in our world demonstrates that the Fringe is an incredibly flexible platform for artists.”

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