Ed Patrick prescribes some Fringe tips
NHS anaesthetist, comedian and author Ed Patrick is set to injects the Edinburgh Fringe with his new show about becoming a junior doctor, the NHS, the pitfalls of modern medicine and the power of questioning it.
What are your passions off-stage (within reason)?
I've been practicing golf. There's sometimes a performers' tournament at the Fringe and if it's on I want that trophy. Although Dominic Holland once pointed out that, despite being anaesthetist with skill and pin-point precision to perform lumbar punctures and epidurals, I can miss a putt from mere inches, a hole as wide as his forearm. So, work to do.
What are your Fringe rituals/hopes/fears?
There tends to be napping. That could be the body preparing, or because I'm a junior doctor catching up after incessant nightshifts. Fears? That I sleep through my entire show, how very anaesthetic that would be.
What's been your favourite preview / audience engagement this year and why?
I did a work-in-progress show in Newbury, it was lovely. There was someone with an incredible laugh, so there'd be waves of laughter once their laugh kicked in. I explained to the audience that I couldn't work out if a bit was funny, or if the incredible laugh was boosting it. Anyway, I've asked that person to be in the audience for my entire Edinburgh run.
What are your Fringe hacks/tips. Or what are the myths associated with it?
It's intense, but the world doesn't start and end in August. Subject to current global events.
Also be absolutely sure you can trust your footwear. Edinburgh is great for the step count, especially for ruminating walks or sweaty sprints to shows. Last Fringe, two reliable trainers failed me, inflicting blisters when I trusted them most. I can never look them in the laces again
What would a better Fringe look like?
It would have less roadworks.
A joke / quote / piece of advice to live by?
"There's no such thing as bad weather - just the wrong clothes" - Billy Connolly. Sadly this advice is only remembered in Edinburgh when it's hammering with rain and you're handing out flyers, shivering and your shoes have become portable puddles.
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