Angie Johnson is anticipating an Oxford Fringe festival that's set to take the rest

Oxford Fringe is back, after a year off, bigger and better than ever and ready to take on the opposition and make a name for itself on the national fringe scene, with an exciting programme bursting with must-see events and massive names.

Basing itself on the universally acclaimed Brighton and Edinburgh Fringe Festivals, Oxford Fringe has now got a line-up to rival any of its competitors, with 60 shows planned from 28 acts, boasting an eclectic variety of venues to match the exciting mix of acts on offer, from theatre, comedy and music to dance and poetry.

Organiser Tom Crawshaw said: “Oxford Fringe is Oxford’s very own Fringe festival — a joyous celebration of live arts that anyone can take part in, mixing local performers and artists with touring professionals from around the UK.

“Think stand-up comedy, theatre, puppetry, poetry, live music, magic, improv and family shows… in fact any kind of entertainment, and it belongs at the Oxford Fringe.”

In the planning for a year, interest in Oxford Fringe is at an all-time high, Tom says, and the festival is building year-on-year. So what was his inspiration? “Oxford has got one of the richest artistic communities in the UK but they were all functioning separately. We wanted to bring them all together under one roof to put Oxford Fringe on the map.”

And is it working? “Absolutely, we have had an unprecedented amount of interest, tickets are selling well and it would seem that the word is out.”

Recruiting names is a big plus. Simon Munnery Sings Soren Kierkergaard sits alongside the likes of Holly Walsh’s Work in Progress, and John Hegley’s New and Selected Potatoes. Oxford favourites The Awkward Silence bring their show The Voyage of the Narwhal, set on a doomed and crazy cruise ship, while improv troupe The Dead Secrets are set to delight with Hickory Dickory Murder, a murder mystery based on suggestions from the audience.

Oxford Mail:

Show time: Holly Walsh

Oxford Mail:

Big name: Simon Munnery

Tom adds: ‘We have a very strong comedy programme, featuring some very well-known comedians, lots of up-and-coming performers from all over the country, and also local acts that have a strong following on the Oxford scene. They are a real mix of comedy styles – each act is completely different.”

On the theatre front things are also hotting up. Breathe Out Theatre’s An Extraordinary Light celebrates scientist Rosalind Franklin, one of the pioneers in the research into DNA, whose contribution went unrecognised for too long. Dracula makes an appearance courtesy of Reverend Productions, and along with Beauty’s Legacy or The Modern Frankenstein will bring some thrills and chills, as will Horror Vacul, by acclaimed writer and comedian Gerry Howell, which deals with the dark relationship of a once happy couple now only held together by a sinister secret.

Local new writing company Leaning House will be presenting Contractions a black comedy about the boundaries between work and play, while Almost Random Theatre boasts a double bill of high drama with School Assembly and Condemned to Live. Augustus Stephens, poet, musician and champion for mental health issues has developed This Way Madness Lies (a journey not dissimilar to that of BBC 1’s The Naked Rambler) full of humour, honesty and comic ditties.

If you are looking for family friendly shows, Time Travelling magicians Morgan and West are calling in with their latest show Parlour Tricks, and Mark Cairns’ show God Versus the Mind Reader is a quirky mix of mind reading, theatre and storytelling.’ Another possibility is Oliver Meech: When Magic and Science Collide, a jaw dropping mash up of astounding science in a comedy magic show.

”It was important to us to be able to provide something for the whole community and a treat for the whole family,’ Tom says.

Those hankering for dance will be delighted with the show Aladdin from Performance Mastery Productions, which tells the classic tale through the medium of middle-eastern dance. It is led by award winning performer Delilah with a troupe of international middle-eastern and tribal fusion dancers.

Anyone who enjoys spoken word performances will be well catered for by The Back Room Poets, with a reading from the Canal Laureate Jo Bell, The Pity of War, and Much Ado About Noshing – a whistle stop tour of Jews, food and literature which has delighted fringe audiences up and down the country.

This orgy of performances will take place in a multitude of exciting venues, from the Old Fire Station and the Playhouse theatres, Turl St Kitchen and the Big Bang restaurants, the bookshops Waterstones and Albion Beatnik bookstore, St Aldate’s Tavern and the Jam Factory.

“Oxford Fringe is on a bigger scale than ever before,” Tom concludes, “And we can’t wait to see all the shows. We are very excited because this is exactly what we wanted to happen and interest is so high that audiences, acts and venues are already enquiring about next year.”

Oxford Fringe runs from May 25 until June 8. To find out more go to the website www.oxfordfringe.org where you will find shows suitable for all different ages and to suit all pockets – including some free events.