REVIEW: Hope this Helps!, Shark Bait Theatre, Ed Fringe 2026, ★★★★

Everyone’s wearing oatmeal coloured pyjamas and doing yoga. Which means… Hope this Helps! is either a play about a cult or a play about a retreat. It’s a retreat! For… phone addiction? Internet addiction? AI addiction? General technological addiction? Unclear, but it doesn’t actually matter given that this is a character comedy using the topic of tech as it’s background scenery. 

Given the witty banter and dramatic asides proliferating between the group of strangers before me, I take it this is going to be a play about the inner struggles and relationship conflicts between these characters, rather than an existential deep dive into how technology is reshaping humanity. Good, I’m in need of a good laugh and a break from thinking.

Are they…Kintsugi-ing?! I never thought I’d live to see Group kintsugi class on stage played straight at a Fringe show (and I’m only 26). Keep the gold glitter glue flowing! And the jokes about sniffing glue, this is some good old fashioned banter. 

Gotta love these weather reports that take the piss out of weather reports for pretending to be able to predict the weather. I’m sensing a storm brewing. Literally. Literarily. 

It is the chemistry of the cast that brings Lex Joyce and Jess Ferrier’s well-made script to life. (Love to see some co-writing on the scene!!). I think all of the characters are meant to be ‘bad’ or ‘unlikeable’ people in need of help – wannabe 4chan warriors, unavailable girlfriends, workaholics and lonely rich girls looking for love in all the wrong places – but the cast strike such a good balance between playing for laughs and playing with heart that I’m still rooting for them, despite their flaws. 

This is all aided by the confident direction of Liam Rees, who handles one of the largest casts I’ve seen at Fringe with ease, ensuring we can see the action from all three angles. Elizabeth Robbins is particularly winning in her role as Unlucky in Love: “Have you been to the opera? It’s amazing. They sing so loud.” was one line that had me cackling. 

As the storm breaks so do our characters: secret agendas, hidden back stories and embarrassing addictions are all thrown out into the open – much like the retreat, as it’s roof is caved in by the storm. It wouldn’t be a play set in the Scottish Highlands without some extreme weather! The host of this retreat is revealed to be a soft scammer: he’s used to women in their forties who just come to use the sauna, not people with actual problems! I’m still wondering how he ended up with this messy lot, a bunch worthy of a Cluedo dinner party or a Knives Out murder mystery. 

Shark Bait continue to put out well-made, impeccably produced shows with a brilliant cast and a water-tight plot, if not water-tight roofs. Wow, the cast are striking this set like a well-oiled machine! Look at them go! I can’t wait to see what they come up with next year!

Recommended Drink: Anything but the piss bucket! How about a green tea to help reconnect with your senses? 

Catch Hope this Helps! at Venue 45 at theSpace from 17-29 August (not 23) at 12:40 (55 mins). Tickets are available through the EdFringe Online Box Office.

Please Note: This review features a show where another member of the Binge Fringe writing team is involved in the production. No incentives or promotions have been offered to cover this show, and Conflict of Interest measures have been taken in the editorial process to ensure an impartial, fair review.