Marjolein Robertson at the Fringe

Back from lockdown-exile and better than ever, habitual Fringer Marjolein Robertson brings a bit of the isles to Edinburgh, armed with quick wit and an ADHD diagnosis. On behalf of the Shetland Times.

One woman, one stage, a room of laughter.

The first 10 minutes were spent introducing herself, finding out about the audience and how French they may be, and giving the uninitiated in the room an introduction to Shetland. This included mentioning the well-known hobby of “sacrificing tourists to provide a good harvest” and other similar fun facts.

This loosens up the audience for a chaotic but coherent introduction to the life of Robertson, stretching from such anecdotes as explicit escapades across Potterrow in her student years, to leaving Reestit Mutton in an airing cupboard for a few months too long, and having accidents while playing Rust for 12 hours straight.

These stories may seem a bit tangential, but that only serves to place the audience in the mind of Robertson. Loose threads are all connected by one thing, her ADHD. This fulcrum of the show sits in the background for the first 40 or so minutes, as relatable humour (and a bit of mind reading) plays out in the intimate venue.

Then things start to seem a bit clearer, how all the weird and wonderful stories all come back to the way Marjolein thinks.

Something I particularly admire about this show was that it made ADHD accessible to many people in the audience. There are a great number of stereotypes about the condition, with little thought given to how people affected by it can perceive it. Marjolein takes these stereotypes and moulds them into a microphone to entertain and inform people while being one of the funniest act at the Fringe this year.