Ventor Fringe unveils a programme of over 150 events for its 16th instalment

One hell of a homegrown festival….an authentic, bohemian festival experience – The
Independent

The Isle of Wight’s award-winning summer arts festival, Ventnor Fringe, has unveiled a packed programme spanning circus, comedy, theatre and music for its sixteenth instalment, taking place from 18th to 27th July 2025. Spanning 10 days and over 150 performances, Ventnor Fringe offers a miniature Edinburgh experience at the opposite end of the UK, attracting a mix of artists looking to preview work before they head to Scotland or those seeking a more intimate alternative in a unique coastal setting.

Ventnor’s Botanic Garden will be the setting of Circus Trail, a new promenade performance featuring a fully international cast with exhilarating acrobatics taking place throughout the tropical gardens after hours. The newly unveiled Ventnor Exchange Arena will host Edinburgh and West End smash hit, Murder, She Didn’t Write, Finnish physical comedy Receptionists, Gorilla Circus’ spectacle on a giant conveyor belt, RPM, as well as Sunny Side, a raw portrayal of modern masculinity informed by the voices of over 750 young people across the UK presented by esteemed company Northern Rascals.

Comedy is well represented at the festival with Simon Brodkin, Ahir Shah, Josie Long, Geoff Norcott, Russell Hicks, Janine Harouni, Jessica Fostekew, Derek Mitchell, Glenn Moore, Ania Magliano, Rob Auton and BBC New Comedy Award and Edinburgh Best Newcomer Joe Kent Walters, AKA Frankie Monroe, among the many making the trip to the Island.

Other notable performances include Darkfields’ ARCADE, an immersive experience in a completely dark shipping container, a live recording of hit podcast Drunk Women Solving Crime and the anarchic Fishing 4 Chips, who will preview their new comedy It’s Gunna Blow! Audiences will also be delighted by impressionist Jess Robinson, improv troupe Impromptu Shakespeare, crowd favourite The Elton John Story and cabaret legends Le Gateau Chocolat and Big Quiffy Bingo.

Set in the heart of a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, the festival offers a great base from which to explore a stunning coastline. In total, over 150 shows will be held across a variety of unique venues including a 1930’s Parisian bus, a vintage Dutch ‘kermis’ tent and even a trail to the Island’s highest point. Alongside this programme, the wider ‘Free Fringe’ features hundreds more artists performing in Ventnor’s hilly streets and scenic parks. Highlights will include Head Over Wheel’s Anchored In Air, Luke Brown Company’s Walk of the Dandelion and 15ft6’s roller-skate show Les Patineurs.

For full information of everything that is happening, please check out the Ventor Fringe website

Daniel the 10 foot puppet is part of a walkabout show called The Walk of the Dandelion, that will be taking place at Ventnor Fringe. It was built by Luke Brown Company. Daniel the Puppet greeting passengers on the Red Funnel Ferry from Southampton to Cowes to spread the word of positivity and the Ventnor Fringe Festival, taking place 18-27th July 2025.. Luke is a gay, ADHD, neurodiverse artist with lived experience of childhood trauma from domestic abuse. The Walk of the Dandelion project has grown out of these lived experiences and Luke’s desire to promote mental health in a positive and creative way. Yellow dandelions are a poignant symbol for Luke, they represent the inner child that was resilient and strong despite his surroundings. At times he would use nature and outdoors as a place of play and escapism. This promenade production delves into these themes with an aim to find ways to come together, check in with our loved ones, make connections, and understand that we are not alone in times of struggle. For Ventnor Fringe, our take on this is to showcase the Island’s landscape and location as a unique setting for an event which takes place in all sorts of venus on the southern trip of the Isle of Wight. Literally ‘on the fringe’ of the UK, Ventnor was built as a health spa and today we see arts and culture as an important part of wellbeing, and the town increasingly a place to escape and experience a different type of arts festival to the conventional field or metro events that dominate the calendar. © Vicki Couchman Photographer 07957226911 vickicouchman.com

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