Ventnor Fringe Festival begins today, and the 2026 line-up of more than 130 shows ranges from unscripted Shakespeare to circus acrobatics performed among beer kegs.
Between magic, poetry, grief, ghosts and a violin that remembers steam trains, there’s something here for pretty much every taste.
Here’s a run-through of nine shows heading to the festival, along with the details you need to book.
Circus among the beer kegs
Brainfools closes out this selection with Balance, a circus duet built entirely around two steel beer kegs and a path of empty glass bottles rather than any traditional rig.
Performers Jared and Toffy lift, catch and occasionally slip their way through a piece about trusting someone else to keep you upright.
Balance runs at Bosco Theatre in Fringe Village on Friday 17th, Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th July at 5pm, general admission £16, with £10 tickets for groups of six or Culture Pass holders. Book now.
Comedy with something to say
The Guilty Feminist, one of the most downloaded podcasts around, brings host Deborah Frances-White to the Island for a live recording built around its new Road to Gilead Project.
The initiative takes its name from Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and aims to blend sharp humour with what the team describes as “radical hope” in the face of a shifting political climate.
It’s on at Ventnor Exchange Arena at Flowersbrook on Saturday 18th July at 6pm, with tickets starting from £10. Book now.
Poetry that refuses to sit still
Canon Fodder brings a rowdier kind of literary evening to The Bijou in Ventnor Fringe Village, mixing award-winning poetry with live music and an open mic for anyone brave enough to sign up on the door.
Cornwall-born poet Ella Frears headlines, alongside host Lily Blacksell, with Island musicians Mouth playing the Saturday and singer-bookseller Paul Armfield closing out Sunday.
Both dates run at 3.30pm on Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th July, with tickets priced at £10. Book now.
Grief, jam and a Komodo dragon
Deluge takes a stranger route into loss, folding more than 40 real-life stories gathered through a social media callout into one woman’s slide into surreal chaos.
Critics have been kind to it: Binge Fringe gave it five stars and called performer Gabriela Flarys “a beast of a performer, funny, multitalented, physically impressive,” while Bouquets and Brickbats simply wrote, “I am totally absorbed.”
Catch it at Ingram’s Yard on Dudley Road across three evenings, Tuesday 21st, Wednesday 22nd and Thursday 23rd July, each starting at 5pm, with general admission at £13.50 and £10 tickets for Culture Pass holders. Book now.
A haunted house with a sense of humour
Physical comedian David Hoskin follows up his acclaimed debut with A Haunted House, a guided tour through a crumbling mansion stuffed with vampires, werewolves and demonic birds.
Expect mime, clown work and sound design layered over a plot that starts with a broken-down car and only gets stranger from there.
It runs at Ingram’s Yard on Wednesday 22nd, Thursday 23rd and Friday 24th July at 3pm, with tickets from £11 for under-25s and £13 for everyone else. Book now.
Rabbits, magic and a five-star Edinburgh run
Norvil & Josephine arrive fresh from a five-star season at Edinburgh Festival Fringe with Rabbits Out of the Hat, a 1905-set magic musical about a magician with a secret and an assistant with a mission of her own.
The Magical Mr West of Morgan & West called it “absolutely bonkers,” adding, “I’ve never seen anything like it,” while One4Review praised a show that “absolutely sparkles with originality.”
It runs daily at Ventnor Exchange Arena at Flowersbrook from 22nd to 25th July at 1pm, tickets from £10, suitable for ages five and up. Book now.
Turgenev, Herzen and a very local secret
On Holiday With Herzen: A Postcard From Ventnor digs into a surprisingly overlooked slice of local history: the fact that Ivan Turgenev wrote Fathers and Sons while staying in the town.
Creators Bob Prophette and Jonas Golland use the novel’s characters to explore the life of Alexander Herzen, once one of Europe’s most influential thinkers and now largely forgotten by British audiences.
Local actor Tim Cooper joins the cast, and the production worked with Ventnor’s Heritage Centre to bring the story together.
It plays Ingram’s Yard on Thursday 23rd and Friday 24th July at 1pm, suitable for ages 12 and up, with tickets at £12 (£8 for under-25s). Book now.
Shakespeare, but nobody knows how it ends
Impromptu Shakespeare kicks things off with a genuinely different proposition: a full Shakespeare play, invented on the spot, using suggestions shouted out by the audience.
The touring company has already won Best Comedy Event at the Buxton Fringe and appeared on BBC Shakespeare Live, and BBC Arts Editor Will Gompertz called the show “ingenious and very funny.”
Cast members carry proper Shakespearean credentials too, with academic dissertations, classical training and Shakespeare’s Globe credits between them.
You’ll find them at Ventnor Exchange Arena at Flowersbrook on Friday 24th and Saturday 25th July, both performances starting at 3.30pm, with tickets running from £10 to £20. Book now.
A violin, a viola d’amore and a father’s railway years
Isle of Wight-born violinist Charlie Wild turns her own family history into music for her debut show, The Railwayman and Other Stories.
Her father worked the Isle of Wight Railway through the 1970s and 80s, and Charlie sets his memories against genuine vintage film footage from that era.
The show lands at Ventnor Arts Club on Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th July, both at 1.45pm, with general admission at £14 and £10 for Culture Pass holders. Book now.
Booking your tickets
Every show listed here can be booked through the Ventnor Fringe online Box Office, by phoning (01983) 71 67 67, or in person at Ventnor Exchange, 11 Church Street, Ventnor PO38 1SW.
There are more than 130 shows taking place this year, from live music to comedy, theatre to circus acts. With this much packed into ten days, it’s worth checking out the programme and booking your tickets now!
