1,229 words, 7 minutes read time.
Every August, Edinburgh’s cobbled streets erupt into a riot of laughter and possibility—and in 2025, Welsh comedians are poised to steal the show. These eight acts don’t just bring punchlines; they arrive armed with razor-sharp stand-up, off-kilter character sketches and storytelling so inventive it upends every expectation you had about a comedy hour. From the warm absurdity of life in the Valleys to fearless riffs on identity and pop culture, Wales once again proves it’s a creative heavyweight on the world’s biggest arts stage. Whether you’re a Fringe veteran hunting your next comedy crush or a curious newcomer drawn by the buzz, prepare for nights of genuine insight wrapped in that inimitable Welsh wit—and trust me, you won’t forget the names you discover this August.
- Steffan Alun – Stand Up
Steffan Alun arrives at Edinburgh Fringe 2025 armed with a decade’s worth of sharp-witted optimism and the kind of warmth that turns strangers into friends by punchline two. Best known for his guileless charm on BBC Wales and S4C, and a stellar stint supporting Elis James on tour, Steffan has quietly honed a voice that’s equal parts self-deprecation and unshakeable hope. He’s the kind of comic who’ll have you roaring about the absurdities of dating apps one minute, then pause to remind you why falling in love with your own hometown—the Valleys, in his case—is an act of radical joy. In Stand Up, his debut hour-long show, Steffan works through what he calls “my latest identity crisis” with an unflinching spotlight on sexuality, pop culture obsessions and everything that makes Wales wonderful and gloriously maddening. He’ll riff on the baffling etiquette of modern romance, the addictive scroll of social media, and the rugby heroes who taught him that community means more than individual glory. But beneath the riffs and the laughter lies a gentler truth: this is a man who believes comedy can bridge divides—between straight and bi, local and global, hero and nobody—in a single joke
More Info and tickets - Stuart Thomas – Bad FattyStuart Thomas storms the Fringe with Bad Fatty, a brazen, no-holds-barred hour that flips fat-shaming on its head and celebrates life as a big Welshman. Raised on a sheep farm in the Valleys, Thomas fuses his proud working-class roots with a modern manifesto of body positivity, gripping diet culture by the scruff of the neck and ripping it to shreds with every punchline. Candid about his bisexuality and battles with depression, he weaves personal truth into riotous riffs on sexuality, self-image and the absurdities of rural life, proving that honesty is the funniest weapon in his arsenal. Sofie Hagen’s verdict—“a big fat star in the making”—and The Scotsman’s praise—“made me laugh a lot”—only scratch the surface of his fearless charm. More Info
- James Arthur isn’t a mathematician and other
lies
The life of a mathematician is one that most people outside of the sphere don’t understand.
The mathematician is a shy reclusive animal, so says Joe Public. Imagine my shock when I
realised I was one after walking off stage as Othello. Welcome to the life of a mathematician
who isn’t a recluse, has social skills and apparently likes being on stage. Come join me and
work out how on earth this happened and maybe I’ll tell some stories of other people just like
me.
More Info and tickets - Jake Cornford – Fair Play To Me
Jake Cornford has fast become one of Wales’s most magnetic comic discoveries, and in Fair Play To Me he turns the everyday into a celebration. Over a lean 45 minutes in the Attic at The Mash House, he channels his infectious energy into riffs on self-improvement mantras, the humble coffee mug and the baffling etiquette of toxic masculinity. He’ll have you nodding along as he unpacks our collective nostalgia for 90s pop stars, then flip the script with a surprising insight that lands like a communal high-five. Driven by a mission to find friends and unite strangers in the dark, Cornford invites the audience on a joyous odyssey where every confession is both deeply personal and universally relatable.
More Info and tickets - Bennett Arron: I REGRET THIS ALREADY
Bennett Arron arrives at the Fringe with I Regret This Already, an hour devoted to life’s cruel punchlines and the art of laughing at your own misfortune. Fresh from snagging a Top 10 joke of the Fringe in 2023 and a BAFTA shortlist nod, Arron proves that even success can’t save you from disappointment—he’ll have you queuing early at the Liquid Room Studio to witness it. On stage, he weaves razor-sharp storytelling about dementia, depression and death into riotous one-liners, treating the darkest moments with a disarming honesty that turns collective gloom into shared relief. It’s no wonder The Scotsman “had the room creased up” and The Guardian christened him “a Welsh Seinfeld.” Catch this free, pay-what-you-want gem every afternoon from 2nd to 24th August at 4.15pm and prepare for a bittersweet masterclass in comedy resilience.
More Info and tickets - Phil Cooper – …And such (WIP)
Phil Cooper’s …And Such feels less like a work-in-progress and more like an intimate portrait of a 36-year-old finally figuring out what “adulthood” means in the Valleys. Cooper unpacks the chaos of planning a wedding in a tight-knit, working-class town, from the eccentric aunt fixated on family traditions to the baffling etiquette of seating charts and stag dos. His self-deprecating honesty about fumbling through floral arrangements and negotiating with quirky characters around every corner is both uproarious and tender. Underneath the laughs, there’s a gentle reckoning with his own insecurities—because coming of age doesn’t stop at 30, and sometimes the greatest act of bravery is admitting you don’t have all the answers. This show really has it all! (well specifically the stuff
mentioned here).
More Info - Josh Elton: Away With The Fairies
Josh Elton storms the Fringe with Away With The Fairies, a barnstorming hour that takes three short weeks of his life—nearly letting a man die, bombing so spectacularly he ended up in therapy, and literally crashing his car on a rising bollard—and casts the blame on one culprit: fairies. With razor-sharp timing and unshakeable confidence, Elton turns near-disaster into side-splitting confession, spinning personal chaos into comedy gold. Ignacio Lopez raves that he “rocks every show,” and David Baddiel insists he’s “really, really funny,” but it’s Josh’s uncanny gift for weaving misadventure and myth that keeps audiences queuing early.
More Info and tickets - Paul Hilleard – Work In Progress
Come and have a look at how the sausage is made, in this hour-long work in progress from
Paul Hilleard. The dry, Welsh oddball has been recognised as one of the emerging talents of
UK Comedy after winning the BBC New Comedian of the Year 2024 award. Expect off-beat
ramblings about Yoga, bus drivers and Epstein. As seen on Comic Relief and BBC Wales.
‘Energy and delivery on stage absolutely fantastic’ (Babatunde Aleshe). ‘Top rate comedy’
(Spencer Jones).
More Info and tickets
Together, these eight acts capture the soul of Welsh comedy in 2025: generous, unfiltered and relentlessly human. Whether you’re hunting your next comedy crush or simply craving genuine connection, their shows promise evenings of laughter that linger long after the applause fades.
By Pat Harrington with thanks to Stuart Thomas
