Comedy news: Secret Edinburgh Jeff Leach: Walking the Gauntlet of Broken Dreams

As a newbie to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival I have only attended this magnificent event once previously, for a short stint last year and therefore most of my time was spent drinking with comics in late night watering holes and early morning watering holes. There was a lot of watering going on is what I'm saying and most of it was hole-based.

However, amidst living up to the womanising heavy-drinking stereotype of the issue-ridden stand up comedian I did find time to allow my thirst for culture to be quenched also. 

During my time last year I found that there was some amazing theatre on offer, some immense cabaret and performance art shows and a magnitude of dance extravaganzas. However I also came up with the most successful formula for finding that hidden festival gem that will glisten and gleam like a performative diamond in the rough and it is this winning piece of knowledge I wish to share with the good readers of Such Small Portions. 

The formula is simple and yet brilliant. Simply walk slowly along the Royal Mile or as I like to call it 'The Gauntlet of Broken Dreams' in the middle of Edinburgh.

Here you will find every student theatre group, amateur theatre group and mentally unstable theatre group don their make-up, costume and bucket-loads of misplaced confidence to spends hours every day thrusting unwanted fliers into your faces causing city-wide annoyance and worldwide deforestation problems in one fell Am-Dram swoop.

And as you meander through this litany of embarrassing 'careers-that-never-will-be' pick the most amateur, most irritating, most unlikely to possess any quality whatsoever of them all and take a small group of friends along.

Smuggle in a couple of small bottles of spirits of your choice and take a sip every time the desperation on stage makes your stomach twist with embarrassment on their behalf.

I guarantee that this show will be one hour of more amusing performance than any of the professional comedians performing at the festival. What's more the cast will probably be so pleased you have attended AND stayed in your seat for the whole performance you'll make a plethora of new friends willing to buy you a beverage at the bar afterwards.

To drama students everywhere I salute you.

Jeff Leach will be performing his show ‘A Leach on Society’ throughout the Edinburgh Festival Fringe from 5th-29th August at The Pleasance. For more information and tickets see www.edcomfest.com

Want to experience the Fringe yourself? Travel with East Coast and you can be in Scotland in no time - visit eastcoast/edinburgh