Close your eyes and picture Edinburgh. What do you see?
My own reflection, looking pretty rough and haunted.
What is the last thing that made you snort with laughter?
My friend and I came up with characters who are obsessed with talking about healthcare but compulsively apologise every time they bring it up. I don’t think it translates on paper but it made me snort for sure.
Tell us about this year’s show.
The show’s called Dope and it’s about addiction! My personal experiences with it, and in a broader sense the way we all participate in obsessive and addictive behaviour unconsciously. There’s also a lot about Bette Midler, shrimps, and love. I am very pumped for people to see it.
Who do you want to see this year?
A real ghost. Every year I spend literally hundreds of pounds on ghost tours and so far, no dice. This year I’ll just sleep in a crypt or something. I’m desperate. (Also Nick Coyle, Phil Dunning, Al Green, and many many others.)
Do you have any Edinburgh Fringe traditions?
Every year I plan a big hike up Arthur’s Seat at 5 a.m. on the final night. I organise it and harass people about it, start group text threads etc. Then, around 3 a.m., I decide I’m too tired and disappear, and my friends do it without me.
What is your getting ready music?
Jay Z – Hard Knock Life.
If you could have any guest in your show, who would it be?
BETTE MIDLER. She’s vivacious. She’s outrageous. She’s a triple threat. OR Adele. Imagine Adele emerging from behind a curtain and singing Someone Like You. You’d win every award.
What is the best backhanded compliment you have had?
‘I don’t usually like female comedy, but you’re pretty good.’
Who made you howl with laughter when you were a child?
I remember watching the French and Saunders parodies of Silence of the Lambs and Misery and pissing myself even though I’d never seen the original films and understood
nothing.
What should Donald Trump know?
What the inside of a prison cell looks like.
What do you do in Edinburgh that your parents wouldn´t approve of?
Comedy.
Catch Mae Martin: Dope at 8pm at the Laughing Horse @ City Cafe throughout August
Mae Martin and Nick Coyle: Show Party at 10.30pm at the Laughing Horse @ City Cafe throughout August
And for a taste of Mae’s style, have a look at our recommendation from last year
Punchline 