If you live in Edinburgh then the summer is synonymous with its Fringe Festival and Tunbridge Wells can now boast the same.  The Tunbridge Wells Fringe Festival is a huge boost to our town and surrounding areas taking place in the first two weeks of July. 

The Festival is in its fourth year, born in the dark days of COVID to revitalise the local creative arts and hospitality industries, both of which really suffered during the pandemic.  It is taking place right now, its usual spot in the calendar of the first two weeks in July, sandwiched between Brighton Fringe in May and, of course, the world-famous Edinburgh Fringe in August.

At its core are four Tunbridge-Wells-based women, Aimee Cooper, Nell Price, Grace Simpson and Debbie King who volunteer their time to make the Fringe happen each year.  They have some assistance from Tunbridge Wells Borough Council and Visit Tunbridge Wells who are trying to put RTW on the cultural map. 

To give you an idea of scale, this year there are 150 events across 30 venues during the two weeks which we’re sure you’ll agree is impressive.  It’s an all access arts festival which means that if you want to perform, you can perform regardless of ability or experience and events range from comedic to life drawing, children’s dancing to contemporary takes on Shakespeare.  As one of the core volunteers, Aimee Cooper tells me, “There really is something for everyone, for all ages.”  

What may have started out as very much community based now attracts acts on their way to Edinburgh, using Tunbridge Wells Fringe as preparation: there may be some novices, treading the boards for the first time but you might also see some acts which are award winning or on their way to doing so.  So don’t go up to London to see the latest hit show, support local, support our town and invest in our economy and community. 

How to get involved with Tunbridge Wells Fringe Festival

Performing

Anyone can perform at the Festival and applications open around October time, closing around February / March.  There is a fee of £25 to perform.  The best way to track when applications open is by following the festival on social media @twfringefestival on Instagram.  If you have a comedy set that you’ve been practising in the mirror, a magic act or maybe a kids’ puppet show, why not try it out at the TW Fringe 2025?

Attending

A festival like this is a great opportunity to attend something that perhaps you wouldn’t normally attend – you might not know or have heard of any of the performers but why not go along?  A sample of what’s on this week is below but for a full line-up, head to the Tunbridge Wells Fringe website, here.

Theatre:

‘As You Like It’ by William Shakespeare.  This is performed by the Castle Theatre Group who are from Durham.  “They have performed at every TW Fringe Festival and we so appreciate their loyalty to the cause!” Aimee Cooper says. 

Wed 10th July 7pm at The Spa Hotel

https://twfringe.com/events/a-midsummer-nights-dream/ 

Children’s Shows:

‘Boudica: Warrior Queen’ performed by award-winning DoDo Dramatics.

Sat 13th & Sun 14th July at The Rotunda Theatre (a pop-up venue in Langton Green)

https://twfringe.com/events/boudica-warrior-queen/ 

Madame Chandelier’s Opera Party for Kids

Sun 14th July 2:30pm Trinity Theatre

https://twfringe.com/events/madame-chandeliers-night-at-the-opera/ 

Comedy:

Sitting Pretty with Kitty

Thurs 11th July 6:15pm at The Rotunda Theatre (a pop-up venue in Langton Green)

https://twfringe.com/events/sitting-pretty-with-kitty/ 

Hatty Ashdown 

Fri 12th July 7pm at Charlie’s Angels Kitchen

https://twfringe.com/events/hatty-ashdown-chatty-ashdown-work-in-progress/ 

Music:

‘A Sprinkle of Stardust’

Tues 9th July 8:30pm at Old Auction House 

https://twfringe.com/events/a-sprinkle-of-stardust/

Piano Recital with Jong-Gyung Park

Sun 14th July 3pm Brittens Music 

https://twfringe.com/events/piano-recital/ 

What a diverse selection of shows!  We’re so lucky to have all this happening on our doorstep!

Volunteering

Aimee, Nell, Grace and Debbie are volunteering their time year-round to bring the Festival to life each summer but once July comes round, they need more volunteers.  Luckily, there are many people who help the women but they’re always looking for more. 

They need people on a practical level to supervise the events, help to manage props, help direct the audiences and the like, but then they would love help in the shape of skills such as photographers, PR specialists, social media experts, writers or maybe whatever you do could be what they’re looking for! It could be that you have some speakers or mics in the garage or loft that have been gathering dust – could you lend those?

And it doesn’t have to be a full-time commitment if you can only do certain times but when you’re putting on a show on a shoestring, any help is appreciated.

Aimee says that the army of volunteers has the nickname of the ‘TW Fringe Crew’ and yes, they see each other around town throughout the year but it’s actual Festival time when the ‘tribe’ comes together.  She says that they’re special times and that there is a real camaraderie.

Sponsorship

Tunbridge Wells Fringe Festival is not yet a charity and so relies on support, goodwill and sponsorship in order to take place each year.  If you would be interested in sponsoring, do get in touch via social media or their website – they’d love to hear from you! 

Do your bit

If you can’t do any of the above then you can still do your bit: talk about the festival and spread the word and follow TW Fringe Festival on social media so that you can like and comment on their posts. 

You have one week left to attend TW Fringe shows and there is such a variety that there’s sure to be something to tickle your fancy.  Tickets are very reasonably priced so it’s good value entertainment plus you don’t need to trek to Edinburgh!