Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2023: Jack Docherty is the real hero in David Bowie Fringe show

Edinburgh actor, producer, writer and television presenter Jack Docherty delivers an incredible hour of laughs, music and love in his Fringe show ‘David Bowie and Me: Parallel Lives’.

The Scot Squad star had the audience in the palm of his hand on Saturday night at Gilded Balloon Dining Room at Teviot House, telling of his love for David Bowie from the age of 13 and interviewing him for his TV show in the 1990s. Reminiscing about his time growing up in Carrick Knowe in the 1970s, he revealed that he fell in love with the Star Man and his schoolgirl crush Eleanor Mackie on the same day, discovering Bowie for the first time on Top of the Pops.

He went on to talk about the sometimes hilarious connections he has had with Bowie throughout his life, including disapproval of the music star from his angry grandfather (“a small man but a giant of rage and imitation”) and how he and a friend stole a bunch of trading cards from a sweet shop to get his hands on an illusive David Bowie card to win approval from his first crush Eleanor. And how he got tickets to see Bowie with Eleanor, but he was forced to wear a Bowie outfit under a ‘Goldbergs suit’ as the concert was on the same day as his grandfather’s funeral.

Jack had the audience in hysterics when he revealed that his dream date didn’t quite going to plan, with the school bully also in attendance, stealing Eleanor from him, with the new couple then gleefully taking photos of Jack being sick after drowning his sorrows.

Jack then looked back at his meeting with his icon in 1997 for his TV chat show, revealing that they talked all night after the cameras stopped rolling about everything and anything. With the TV interview even prompting a reunion with his childhood crush.

As the show neared its end, the Edinburgh star’s trademark surrealism kicked in with an impromptu interruption from an actress dressed as a Fringe guide and a fake tale of a cancer diagnosis, as “it’s a Fringe show so I needed a serious bit”.

Jack concluded his nostalgia trip with a thought-provoking monologue, looking at our connections with our heroes and suggesting “maybe we should look closer to home for our heroes”. Before stripping off and getting into the suit he wore 24 years ago for the interview with his hero after recently losing weight, prompting a standing ovation to finish his interesting and hilarious Fringe show. This show truly showcases Jack’s ability as a performer and story-teller, engaging with his audience from start to finish, with the talented TV star surely destined to appear more on our screens in the future.

Jack Docherty in David Bowie and Me: Parallel Lives, at Gilded Balloon Dining Room, 9.30pm, until August 27.