Please consider your position before applying. If you grew up in a working class environment and face the struggles working class people face, this scheme is for you. If your granddad worked down a mine but you grew up in a five bedroom detached house in Surrey, it is not for you. Equally if you live off a trust fund, went to a fee paying school and benefited from everything that brings, but now consider yourself working class because you are a struggling artist, it isn’t for you either. We will take applications at face value, nobody is going to come round your house and check how many pairs of trainers you own. But please be aware that this opportunity exists for people who could not access the fringe without it. If you lie about your background you could end up taking the place of a genuine working class act, that will be on you.

Not at all. Acts don’t need to talk about being working class, their material can be based on anything. We welcome applications from different comedy genres, surreal character comedy from Cheekykita and hip hop musical comedy from Vince Atta have both featured on our showcase.

Absolutely. We welcome applications from people who have previously applied. Hannah Platt was unsuccessful in 2018 but awarded places in 2019. Maxine Wade and Amanda Hursy both applied in 2023 and got places in 2024. Competition is tough and applications are of a really high standard. If it is your second time applying we will be looking to see how you have developed since your last application. Make sure you applications shows your development and send us a more recent video to showcase your skills.

We are looking for people who are regularly smashing 20 minutes of high standard comedy. The fringe is a big advert for what you can do. If you have a tight five minutes but are quite new to performing, you might want to hold off and apply when you have more experience.

We welcome applications from experienced acts. We have had acts who have previously performed solo shows at the fringe. We understand that just because you afforded it once doesn’t mean you can afford it every year. The show is for working class comedians that would not have the opportunity to perform at the fringe without it, if you fit that description and are happy to perform as part of a mixed bill, apply.

No. This is not covered by Best In Class, applicants should budget for their own travel and accommodation costs.

Stupid question? You would be surprised how many applications had to be voided due to incomplete forms. Sell yourself to us! A video link to your work is crucial! This is the main advert for who you are and what you do. Previously people have applied without videos, with videos date stamped over ten years ago and with videos that seemed to have been shot on potato. If you don’t have a high quality video of your set you are setting yourself back massively when applying for any gig.

It all depends how much money we take on ticket sales and bucket donations each day during the fringe. Any profits are split proportionally between the acts based on how many shows they take part in and capped at £50 per act per show. The decision to cap payments is an attempt to establish a reserve fund for Best In Class future projects. In 2018 acts were paid £25 per fringe show. In 2019 this increased £35 per fringe show. By 2023 and 2024 everyone received £50 per fringe show. This could obviously vary a lot depending on how well the show sells, but we have established a loyal audience at the fringe and hope to continue our success. If our costs aren’t covered before Edinburgh we will be running at a deficit and need to make that back before anyone gets paid, however we usually exceed these costs in the run up.

Acts are required to work hard during the run up to the fringe to push our fundraising efforts. They must commit to promoting Best In Class as a joint effort. The aim is to have all our costs covered by the time we get to Edinburgh. This year we have shows at Leicester Comedy Festival and Brighton Fringe, and we expect the acts to plan and perform in other shows. We don’t expect every act to take part in every show but it is a great way to get a feel for how our shows look. We will have regular zoom meetings and work together on things like planning posters, marketing and press releases. 

We run the fringe show with an MC and two acts doing 20 minutes each. Each act does around one week on the bill. During their time at the fringe acts must take part in flyering and be fully involved with running the show, from ticketing and tech to bucket collection. They can do spots on other shows and get involved with the whole experience of the fringe, however Best In Class must be their priority.

No. If you are planning to take your own show to the fringe, this opportunity is closed to you. The reason for the project is to provide the opportunity for working class comedians who could not otherwise perform at the fringe to do so. If you have applied for other showcases or venues and are waiting to hear, please inform us of this so we can plan accordingly. It wont affect your application, but we need to know if there is a chance you may pull out at a later date. We understand this early in the year, a lot of people will be hedging their bets with a variety of opportunities.

Applications for the 2025 Best in Class Edinburgh Fringe Comedy Showcase opened on 18/12/2024 and will close on 24/01/2025.