” a rapid-fire hour of comedy that barely stops to breathe. She’s the straight-talking aunty who’s had a vino and is going to answer all your questions about sex, money, and life at middle age. “
3***
A ticket for seasoned pro Desiree Burch is what you’d call ‘value for money’. She bursts onto the sweltering underground stage and simply does not stop for a solid 60 minutes. She’s in her ‘Kaftan Era’ and provides a rapid-fire hour of comedy that barely stops to breathe.
Burch leaves it all on the stage, barrelling headfirst into the generational divide. She warms up the crowd with her evidenced theory that Gen X were experimented on to make way for Millennials. She’s the straight-talking aunty who’s had a vino and is going to answer all your questions about sex, money, and life at middle age. Punchline after punchline cascade effortlessly as she fires through stories of growing up, turning 40, womanhood and menopause like a runaway train.
The heart of this show is about women’s health. Burch grasps the ‘me too’ moment currently happening with menopause and she is stoking that fire with all she’s got. Solid and devastating statistics pepper her performance; dementia is twice as common in women, and there simply isn’t enough research into what happens to the female body when you drain the oestrogen from it.
Her talent as a slick writer is demonstrated with a breathless mock-advert for the menopause, complete with aching limbs, sleepless nights and vaginal dryness, which earns a well earned break for applause. She veers only slightly off-piste upon learning a front row audience member is 17. “Enjoy your juicy years girl!!!” A brilliant metaphor conveys the hormonal chaos of womanhood. ‘Its like living above a nightclub’. -If that nightclub was facing foreclosure and desperate for customers.
The show is tied up with stories about her mother who had dementia. The roles of mother and daughter reverse and in an all-too familiar story, Burch comes to the conclusion that our mothers have always deserved better. I was left wanting for more development on topics, as we skipped over some points that could have transformed into more nuanced moments. However, this is an enjoyable and polished hour of comedy that is made poignant by Burch’s total and unrelenting passion for her subject matter.
Desiree Burch: The Golden Wrath
Monkey Barrel 3
17:40 | 1st-10th
Desiree Burch: The Golden Wrath ***
Published on
Edinburgh Fringe 2025 
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