10 Hidden Gems From Edinburgh Festival 2019
7. Martin Pilgrim - I Write Jokes Not Tragedies
Martin Pilgrim is something of a joke machine. You only need to check out his twitter feed to see how prolific he is at coming up with smart, intricately worded one-liners.
Many shows at the Fringe see people going on some sort of personal journey, having revelations about themselves or experiencing personal growth. Martin Pilgrim has tried and frankly mastered that style in the past. You can see for yourself as his whole 2017 show Sadulthood is available to watch on Youtube.
This year however he decided to turn away from long form narrative or emotional heft, instead focusing on just relentlessly pursuing the funny. The result was one the single funniest shows at the Fringe this year with wall to wall gags delivered in Pilgrim's diffident, downbeat style. Few comedians working today can match his gag rate in terms of both quantity and quality.