Fringe benefits: forget Edinburgh as Camden serves its own colourful arts festival

Will You Hold My Hand

John Hunter is the father of modern medicine, a revered individual whose name is celebrated and who has his own statue in Leicester Square. However, duo We Are Goose want to expose the man behind the myth, the man involved, or thought to be, with robbing graves and a collection of murders no less. An hour-long, grisly tale through history at its most lurid. Top stuff!

Aug 10-12. 8pm, £8
Camden Head, NW1 0LU 
Tube | Camden Town 
thecamdenhead.co.uk
 

That Thing in August: a Brief History of Timelessness

This ambitious comedy-theatre show has none other than the goal of proving to the audience that time does not exist (presumably within the running time of an evening stage show). Quite a tough sell but, as host for the evening Matt Welcome explains, even Einstein thought time might be just a ‘persistent illusion’. Prepare to have your grey matter (and funny bones) tested.

Aug 1-6, 9-11 & 13. 7.30pm.
Aug 12. 9pm, £10
Lion and Unicorn Theatre, Kentish Town
NW5 2ED 
Tube | Kentish Town
giantolive.com

Cabaret of Pottiness

This cabaret show is a love letter to the age when cabaret was black and white, full of innuendo, and, above all, intended to entertain. Bettie Burlesque is your host for this evening of variety, that includes burlesque, magic, music and comedy. It will leave you wide-eyed with wonder.

Aug 5, 6 & 8. 8pm, £7.50
The Black Heart, NW1 0AP
Tube | Camden Town
ourblackheart.com

James Mullinger: The Man With No Shame

A man who has no shame about what he does or has done, taking to the stage to entertain, and perhaps shock, with his misdemeanours and truthful approach to stand-up, life on the stage, and existence in general. Mullinger promises to bring you an evening of shocks and laughs, so go along, be surprised, and walk away wondering whether shame is indeed a vice or virtue.

Aug 3-13. 9pm, £7.50
Etcetera Theatre, NW1 7BU
Tube | Camden Town 
etceteratheatre.com

Scales of the Unexpected

Musical melodies and pop music parodies from this harmonious trio in a show that promises to make you smile from ear to ear.

July 30. 7.30pm, £12
Upstairs at the Gatehouse,
N6 4BD | Tube | Camden Town
upstairsatthegatehouse.com

Swingball Champion

Rosie set out six years ago to have swingball introduced as an Olympic sport by 2012, she failed (only 32 signatures in support). She‘s back with a new hour about summer sports and her misadventures of the past half a decade.

Aug 1. 7pm, £7
Camden Head, NW1 0LU
Tube | Camden Town
thecamdenhead.co.uk