Australian and New Zealand artists celebrate Edinburgh Fringe success - and where to see them next
Australian and New Zealand artists have rounded off a strong Edinburgh Festival Fringe, with award wins, critical acclaim and a string of further UK appearances already lined up for September.
Performers from across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand were represented throughout this year's Fringe in comedy, cabaret, theatre, circus and physical performance, with several picking up recognition along the way.
Australian comedian Frankie McNair was among this year's winners, taking home the Uprise Award for Huge Ass Mindset.
The award celebrates shows that 'provoke, disrupt and reframe discussions', and McNair's deeply personal stand-up hour combines their trademark chaotic comedy with an exploration of trauma, resilience, self-belief and recovery.
The Melbourne-based performer arrived in Edinburgh following a nomination for Most Outstanding Show at the 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Huge Ass Mindset was presented at the Gilded Balloon during its Edinburgh run.
There was further Australian success for Melbourne contemporary circus company One Fell Swoop Circus, whose acclaimed production By a Thread received a Seoul Arts Award.
Featuring seven acrobats, 30 metres of rope and two pulleys, By a Thread uses circus to explore trust, risk and human connection, with performers' movements literally affecting one another as they work above and across the stage.
The Seoul Arts Awards recognise international performance capable of communicating across cultural and language barriers, with winning productions given opportunities to take their work to audiences in South Korea.
Australian comedian, singer and cabaret performer Reuben Kaye also earned recognition for his new show Hard to Swallow, which was shortlisted for Best Show at the ISH Edinburgh Comedy Awards.
Where to see Fringe artists next
For several of this year's Australian and New Zealand performers, Edinburgh is only the beginning of their UK appearances.
Adelaide-based contemporary circus company Gravity & Other Myths takes Ten Thousand Hours directly from its Edinburgh season to Freedom Festival in Hull from 3-5 September.
Featuring eight acrobats and a live musician, the show examines the thousands of hours of practice and repetition behind extraordinary physical skill, turning the process of mastering acrobatics into the focus of the performance itself.
Fresh from its Edinburgh run and Seoul Arts Award win, One Fell Swoop Circus will take By a Thread on a short tour of England. It appears at Worthing's Pavilion Theatre on 5 September, before heading to Jacksons Lane in London from 6-8 September and The Lowry in Salford on 10-11 September.
New Zealand comedian Rose Matafeo (pictured) is also heading south after appearing at Edinburgh with Work in Progress Morning Hour, a run of early-morning shows at Monkey Barrel from 17-30 August.
Matafeo will appear at Laughterama at Manchester's Castlefield Bowl on 6 September, joining a bill that also includes Michelle Wolf, Lindsey Santoro, Amy Annette and Phil Ellis.
From award-winning Australian circus to one of Aotearoa New Zealand's best-known comedy exports, the Fringe may be over for another year, but there are still plenty of opportunities to catch Australian and New Zealand talent around the UK this September.