Exclusive previews of the hottest shows heading for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2005. Two nights offering you the chance to be the first to see the best. Plus… BBQ in the beer garden from 7pm and DJs till late.

Monday 25 July

Prior to its run at Bedlam Theatre:
Petit Four presents Tea Without Mother
In Petit Four's Fringe debut, four characters try to discover the secrets of an extraordinary woman, in this absurdist tale set inside a world without weather. "Most acclaimed work of the festival..." (NSDF05) Sunday Times.

Prior to appearing at Cafe Royal Theatre, The Underbelly and The Stand:
Comedy: The Best of the Festival
Three of the best comic talents in the country convene for a pre-Festival showcase of brand new material from their Edinburgh shows.
Featuring Danielle Ward ("the most exciting female talent around" The Comedy Store), Josie Long ("Born comic, my face heart from laughing" Ross Noble) and folk singer Gavin Osborn.

Plus…
6:30pm FREE
A rehearsed reading of Ark by Rhys McClelland
Rhys showcased an extract from Ark at back in February. Sam knows nothing of her life, her dreams, fears, opinions or her daily routine. But when the radio forecasts no tomorrow the only face he could think of was hers. Now he is trapped with her to take her hand in a tango to end all tangos: their limbs entwined and prepared for however long or little they have left.

Monday 18 July   SOLD OUT

Prior to its World Premiere at The Pleasance, Edinburgh:
Aisle16 : Poetry Boyband
Notching up cultural roadkill with ambulance-chasing poetics and stunning visuals, Aisle16 return with white-knuckle micro-lectures on the achingly hip subject of contemporary verse. It's Edutainment, innit. "Aisle16 redefine the genre" Time Out. "Pure genius" Metro. "Clever" TLS. www.poetryboyband.com

Prior to its World Premiere at The Pleasance, Edinburgh:
Small Change Theatre presents Making the Difference
Lost direction? Need to make sense of the new world order? Sign up to Brigadier John Wahon's solution: a weird kind of party. From company behind award winning Long Wave: "A triumph of the imagination" Sunday Times.

Plus…
6:30pm FREE
A rehearsed reading of Viola Ends by Sarah Daggar Nickson
Those of you at May will have seen an extract from Sarah’s lyrical play about the question of meaning in the city and the struggle to separate fact from fiction. A hangover haze prompts a jaded young urbanite to question what’s really important. Over the course of her double shift, alone in the basement of a cable TV company, she begins to peel away.

The Old Red Lion Theatre, 418 St John Street, London EC1V 4NJ BBQ from 7pm. Show starts 8pm.
Tickets £10 from 020 7837 7816