Category: Arts News!

Arts News!, Brett Herriot at the Festivals, Mary Woodward at the Festivals

Thank you! The curtain falls on the 2025 Edinburgh Festivals Season!

Brett Herriot

“The greatest platform for the arts in the world!”

Three weeks and four weekends spanning July 30th through August 25th has seen the annual cultural explosion that is the festivals season taking over the Scottish Capital as Edinburgh welcomes the globe and re-establishes itself as the greatest platform for the arts in the world!

The two-person team here at Scotsgayarts.com received thousands of emails from companies performing across the Edinburgh Fringe, The international Festival and the Book Festival.  These were whittled down to the hundred or so reviews that have been published on the site across the duration of the festivals.

Our coverage has spanned the Edinburgh Fringe, The Edinburgh International Festival, The Edinburgh Book Festival, The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, The PHB free festival and even the Film Festival got a look in.

As the festivals continue to grow and expand there is ongoing debate on all sides as to the impact both negatively and positively for the city which hosts these acclaimed events. The 2025 festival season was also affected by the nearly 300,000 music fans attending both Oasis and AC/DC concerts hosted at Murrayfield Stadium not to mention even more pop concerts hosted at the Royal Highland Showgrounds at Ingliston.

Just how much can one city take from tourism? Can it withstand these pressures? it appears that for 2025 at least Edinburgh has come through it in fine shape but there may well still be a cost to bare. Not every show that was offered across the festivals program enjoyed healthy audiences and many dreams will lie shattered, that however is the nature of the beast.

The one thing that is clear is the formula isn’t working for far too many and discussion is needed across the festival organizers going forward and more importantly the city council and the citizens of this great city to secure the cultural phenomenon for both performers, producers, venues, the city and its people on a shared equal footing for generations to come.  

As the curtain falls on this year’s festivals, we at Scotsgayarts.com offer our profound thanks to all those who shared their work with us, each and every moment spent in venues that spanned small intimate theatres to the grandeur of the tattoo arena at Edinburgh Castle provided magical theatrical moments that will stay with us for a lifetime.

The Arts matter and Scotsgayarts.com is indebted to the creatives who shared their work and themselves and make the festivals just what they are! We now move forward into the autumn and winter season of work from across Scotland, but we are already pondering with excitement what the 2026 Festival season will bring our way!

For now, rest well, thank you and haste ye back!

Brett

Editor

Scotsgayarts.com

Arts News!

The High Life – The Musical Takes Flight in 2026!

Brett Herriot

“Get that adrenaline flowing!”

After a 30-year delay in the departure lounge, The High Life returns in a new musical spectacular featuring all four original cast members – Alan Cumming, Forbes Masson, Siobhan Redmond and Patrick Ryecart aka Sebastian Flight, Steve McCracken, Shona Spurtle and Captain Hilary Duff. 

The production will tour Scotland in Spring 2026, with previews and opening performance at Dundee Rep Theatre from 28 March, then onward touring to HMT Aberdeen, Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, Eden Court Theatre and King’s Theatre Glasgow until 16 May 2026. 

The High Life is a creative collaboration between trailblazing, multi-award-winning artist Alan Cumming (US Traitors, X2 and Avengers: Doomsday and Cabaret on Broadway) and his long-time writing and performing partner, prolific stage and screen actor and writer Forbes Masson (Only Child, The Crown, Eastenders). The creative team is joined by celebrated writer, performer and panto-maker Johnny McKnight (Wendy Hoose, Radiant Vermin, River City) and the award-winning and internationally acclaimed Artistic Director of Dundee Rep, Andrew Panton (August: Osage County, No Love Songs, A History of Paper). 

Oh deary me! Air Scotia has been sold, and unless our intrepid cabin crew can prove they’re still fit for purpose it looks like the future destination for Air Scotia is the scrap heap. In this flight for their lives, our cut-price cabin crew must get themselves (and their passengers) to their destination safely, testing their mettle and putting decades old friendships and rivalries finally to rest. 

The High Life was first commissioned and broadcast by the BBC in 1995 running for just six (plus the pilot broadcast in 1994) episodes, created by and featuring Alan Cumming and Forbes Masson. It was a launch pad to its creators’ long and illustrious careers. Since airing in the 90s it has attracted cult status for its sharp wit, farcical storytelling and joyous buffoonery. Taking place in the fictional Air Scotia airline, it centres around air stewards Steve, Sebastian and Shona – the most useless cabin crew ever to push a drinks trolley while asking ‘U Fur Coffee?”.   

This revival sees our iconic characters finding themselves growing older in an ever-changing world. It will feature new and original music, is stuffed full of camp silliness and is cleared for take-off. 

Siobhan Redmond reprises her TV role as the iconic Shona Spurtle on stage. Siobhan has worked extensively in theatre, film and television and is known most recently for appearances in Two Doors Down, Death in Paradise and Rain Dogs. She is joined on board by Patrick Ryecart as the absent-minded Captain Hilary Duff. Patrick’s screen credits include The Crown, Poldark and The King’s Speech.  

Cumming and Masson met at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 1982 and  formed the beloved comedy double act Victor and Barry. This momentous showbiz event was recently chronicled in the book Victor and Barry’s Kelvinside Compendium – A Meander Down Memory Close, a 40th anniversary celebration of their birth.  

The pair later transmogrified Victor and Barry into Steve and Sebastian when they wrote the BBC sitcom, The High Life. 

Alan Cumming and Forbes Masson said  

“Never say never! We are both beyond excited to be donning those nylon slacks and crimpelene blazers and connecting with our inner trolly dollies after all these years. Returning to these characters alongside the genius that is Johnny McKnight has been a joyful experience and we can’t wait to share what madness we’ve come up with around Scotland!”

Johnny McKnight said:

“I am absolutely thrilled to join the Air Scotia cabin crew. I grew up watching The High Life, wishing that one day I could get to fly thirty thousand feet with Alan, Forbes, Siobhan and Patrick. I never believed that a reunion show would happen, let alone that I would get to be part of the team working on it. The bags are packed, the tena-man pants on, and I am ready for check in. Fasten your seatbelts and get ready for the flight of a lifetime.”

Andrew Panton said:

“Having been a High Life fan right from take-off in 1994, it’s been a total joy to work with this amazing team of pure talent. Our development time together has been a riot of creative energy, hilarity and brilliant music and songs and I feel sure our new stage musical will appeal to both fans of the TV show and folks new to The High Life! I’m thrilled that we’re creating the show at Dundee Rep Theatre before it jets off to entertain audiences across Scotland.

A much cherished icon of tv comedy finally returns so grab your slacks and ties and board Air Scotia for what promises to be a musical romp! This indeed will be a boeing flying up to the High Life!

National Theatre of Scotland Presents The High Life – The Musical Touring Scotland from 28th March 2026. The Production visits Dundee Rep Theatre, His Majesty’s Aberdeen, Festival Theatre Edinburgh and The King’s Theatre Glasgow.

The High Life is available on BBC Iplayer!