Swamplesque ★★★★★

Swamplesque — Get Out of My Swamp and Into This Show

★★★★★

After several sell-out Edinburgh Fringe seasons, Swamplesque is taking its final bow in Edinburgh. Yes, this is your last chance to enter this particular swamp — but superfans shouldn’t start crying into their onions just yet. Swamplesque 2 is finally set to hit UK shores in 2027, following its Australian tour earlier in 2026.

For now, though, the original is going out on one hell of a high.

Shrek puns? Tonnes of them. Burlesque? Exceptional. Absolute chaos? Naturally.

Tash York, as Princess Number Three, delivers vocals that kick you squarely in the proverbials, drag you hair-first through the bushes and slap you across the face. In the best possible way.

The sold-out audience took a little while to become electric, but watching the room transform was almost a performance in itself. Before long, mouths were open, people were gasping, yelling, screaming and cheering as each burlesque routine pushed things further.

The fly pole deserves a very special mention. I’m giving absolutely nothing away, just hold onto your wigs and lashes and don’t shut your eyes for a second. Don’t even blink.

The Gingerbread Man routine? Top marks. No crumbs.

Think you’ve seen burlesque? Think you’ve seen a Shrek parody? You haven’t seen anything quite like Swamplesque.

How do you improve something that was already smashing Edinburgh in 2024 and 2025? You hand it back to Trigger Happy Productions and somehow they polish the swamp into near-perfection.

With this farewell season already selling fast, procrastination is not your friend.

Stop ogre-thinking it and get your Shrek together — buy a ticket before this swamp sells out for good.