Photo credit: Iarla O’Mahony
Post by @nataliagresty
Seen by Natalia at Edinburgh Festival Fringe on the 10th of August 2026
⭐⭐⭐ – hot, messy and all over the place
Georgia Polly-Taylor‘s one woman show Very Hot. Very Messy is, best described by her own words, a ‘comedic carnage spectacle’. It’s so full of props, gags, pop culture references, and – last but not least – a glittery toilet wrapped in purple boa that it’s enough to turn even the toughest stomachs upside down. We follow Hot Mess, a burlesque/ clownlike dressed energetic fashionista that suffers an IBS attack during Met Gala. Nothing she can’t turn into a bit of self-centered comedy! Also, unless it wasn’t clear how she got the red carpet invite, we find out via a phone call that Daniel Craig is her godfather…
The show is rich with chaos; it’s a cocktail of character comedy sketches and audience participation, some of which land more than others. At one point she’s miming and showing us flashcards instead of speaking, at another she picks up a chewing gum from the floor and puts it back into her mouth, later again she’s asking us all for consent and getting us to write our darkest secrets. The jokes are not all equally fully fleshed and the show may appear quite incoherent, but Georgia Polly-Taylor’s bold, unhinged presence, her loud voice, wide eyes and lack of any shame confidently carries the weight of the silliness throughout. If you’re looking for a larger narrative, you won’t find it here, but just like most sketch shows, the ‘arc’ isn’t what we came here for. We’re merely living in Hot Mess’s world mostly covered in silver and purple and she’s very much the captain of the wonky ship.
Aug 5th-30th at 16:15
Running time: 60 minutes
Venue: Belly Laugh at Underbelly Cowgate
Tickets and info: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/georgia-polly-taylor-very-hot-very-messy
Leave a comment