50 shows in seven days is a hard act to pull off but the brand new Off Beat has managed just that, introducing a brand new fringe festival to Oxford in what hopefully will become an annual event.

Bringing together the most eclectic mix of genres, acts and performers, none of which have been seen in Oxford before, the organisers are absolutely delighted that after a year of hard work they have pulled together such an exciting and inspiring collection of shows to rival any fringe.

Overwhelmed by the sheer number of applicants, the Playhouse and OFS committee had to trawl through the dazzling variety of performers to bring together the broadest range of shows to appeal to everyone.

Encompassing science, comedy, feminism, topical issues, drama, mind reading, romance, spoken word, improvisation, physical comedy, puppetry, animation, dance, therapy, story-telling, poetry, live music, documentaries, scratch and ghost stories, you can take your pick.

With between three and five shows a day to choose from in four venues, organisers hope, as with the Edinburgh Fringe, audiences will move from one to another, and make a day or evening of it. And with all tickets costing between £10-£5 Off Beat aims to be affordable.

“We wanted to celebrate the small scale and the new, especially those with a local identity,” Katy Snelling the Playhouse's programme director said.

But why now? “We can’t stand still, we always need to be looking forwards and hope we will prove this next week when people come and watch shows they have enevr seen ebfore, and take a chance on things. It works in Edinburgh where people come from all over the country to see what;s new, so we hope it will also work here.

"Because Oxford is the perfect place for Offbeat with so many creative people living and working here, so we are really excited about it and really hope Offbeat takes off so we can make it an annual event.

Booking is advised. Offbeat Monday20-Sunday 26 June. www.offbeatoxford.co.uk