“Andrew White has forged his own path- Through grief, loss, love and comedy. He may have had a HARD few years but He has the promise of a very good fringe.”
****
There’s something distinctly Fringe about a show being promoted as a ‘Heartwarming death comedy.’ Part of me, I had to admit, had already prepared myself for a little indulgent trauma dumping in the name of a one hour slot, however, Andrew White somehow manages to make the topic of death feel like a warm bubble bath.
He begins with familiar riffs on the dilemmas of settling down in the modern age. The big questions: Should he get married? Is it time to fall for the air-fryer propaganda? Are there benefits to moving back in with your parents to save money?
These relatable quips do the job of introducing you to his mother, a dear friend, and a Jester who become key characters around which White’s strong personal narrative is woven. Multimedia elements are well timed, clever, used sparingly enough, and earn more than a few incredulous laughs as White runs us through a crash-course in getting your money back. A skill in dogged pedantry he learned from his mum.
White clearly comes alive in crowd work. When a well-meaning but uninvited interaction landed mid-set, he didn’t just handle it with class, he welcomed it, folding it into the show with the ease of a seasoned compere. This ability serves him later with a genius piece of audience participation that provides one of the many charming twists toward the end of the show.
Where some of the connective tissue of material could feel a little sparse, there were real elements of pure gold; how to get a refund, how not to get a celebrant, and a fantastic bit of character work that had us all giggling at a funeral. He also presented some of the most well-crafted chemo jokes I’ve ever encountered.
White manages to frolic through subjects of conversion therapy, assisted dying, funerals, cancer and loss in a way that makes you forget that this is ultimately a story about grief. Loose ends were tied up with a satisfying series of clever callbacks- beautiful full circles that even caused me to shed a tear at the bittersweetness of it all.
It takes real talent to push through what is, sadly but accurately, a fairly well-trodden route in terms of ‘dead parent’ material. Andrew White has forged his own path- Through grief, loss, love and comedy. Life is the story we are living right now, so let’s make it a good one. He may had had a hard few years but but he has the promise of a very good fringe.
Andrew White: What A Life!
Cabaret Voltaire, CabVol 2
3-30 Aug | 17:45 (1hr)
Andrew White: What A Life! ****
Published on
Edinburgh Fringe 2026 
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