Just 45 years after becoming a comedian!

Rosie O’Donnell is to make her Edinburgh Fringe debut – 45 years after starting her stand-up career

The American  comedian had her own daytime talk show from 1996 to 2002, when she earned the nickname Queen Of Nice.

She came out as a lesbian in 2002 and is an outspoken advocate for gay rights. But she has been  a bete noire for MAGA supporters ever since Donald Trump unleashed a ‘vicious’ media blitz against her in 2006, after she questioned his claim to have any moral authority given his string of affairs 

Earlier this year, shortly after Trump was inaugurated for a second term, O'Donnell moved to Ireland, where she is in the process of securing citizenship.

She said: ‘I’m beyond excited for my first Fringe Festival! I'm thankful to be a part of this historic gathering of artists of all shapes and sizes - I'm so happy to be included and hope you can stop by and say hello!’

Producers say her show, Here & Now, will reflect on the comic's life and career ‘with Rosie’s signature blend of heart, humour and honesty’.

Caroline Rhea – best known for her role as Hilda Spellman in Sabrina the Teenage Witch – will also be performing at the Fringe, following a short tour of Scotland last year.

Both will be part of the Gilded Balloon’s 40th anniversary programme, which also includes Alan Davies’s first Fringe run in a decade as he launches his new tour, Think Ahead, as well as a reunion of Smack The Pony.

FAST FRINGE

Other comedy highlights at the venue announced today include Fred MacAulay returning with No Podcast Live, blind Glaswegian comedian Jamie MacDonald, Matt Forde’s Political Party podcast and Hal Cruttenden and Ronni Ancona joining forces for In Pieces, a podcast where they seek help from celebrity guests on dealing with performance jitters.

Meanwhile Michelle Brasier and Chloe Petts will be hosting a UK incarnation of the Melbourne Comedy Festival hit Comedians On Stage Auditioning for Musicals.

Most tickets go on sale on Tuesday, but some will be released at midday tomorrow.

Karen and Katy Koren, artistic directors of Gilded Balloon, said: ‘We’re so proud to still be working with some of the most exciting acts in the country at the world’s biggest arts festival… Our programme will showcase some of the very best rising talent in comedy as well as hard-hitting theatre and fantastic musicals.’

And Davies praised the venue, saying it was ‘an incredible achievement to run so many venues for so many decades while still championing the quirky, risky, bonkers Fringe shows we all love’.

Published: 1 May 2025