Fringe Q&As: Sofie Hagen on performing in a yurt and the magic of the Mosque Kitchen

Last year, I saw a show about a guy whose father left when he was a child. Then he came back and ended up being a really good father. The guy grew up and fell in love with a woman and they got married. They had a kid and were really happy as a family. My show is pretty much that show, except the father never comes back and there is no kid or happiness.

2 Best thing about the Fringe?

It makes you a better comedian. It hardens you, thickens your skin, makes you quicker, stronger and better. It is a comedy bootcamp. I can't imagine ever not going up. It feels silly to not take advantage of such an opportunity. To create, perform and absorb that much comedy. It is a dream.

3 Worst thing about the Fringe?

That the rest of the world don't seem to care about it as much as I do. My best friend is having a baby during the fringe. That is incredibly bad planning. A comedian friend of mine, the very funny Edd Hedges, told me that he had to tell someone when his birthday was and he kept saying "23rd of Edinburgh", subconsciously expecting them to understand that, of course, that means August.

4 How many years have you been coming to the Fringe?

Three years. First year, I shared an hour with a Danish comedian for one week. Second year I did the Big Value Showcase for Just The Tonic and third year, I did my own show, my first show, Bubblewrap with PBH Free Fringe.

5 Favourite Fringe venue?

I was in the Liquid Rooms last year and I am there again this year. It is really becoming one of the best Fringe venues. The staff are wonderful and the rooms are so versatile and have great acts in them. And me.

6 Best Fringe memory?

After a particularly rough night towards the end of the fringe, I got drunk with comedian Evelyn Mok (who is doing a two-hander in Cabarat Voltaire this year and is hilarious) and we crashed a fancy industry-party and kidnapped some of the decoration, which happened to be a large cardboard cut-out of an otter. We carried the otter from bar to bar and ended up sitting on the steps of a church, contemplating our entire lives and everything that led us to that moment. Just her, me and the otter. It felt like we had done what we had to do in order to survive our first year in Edinburgh and now we were equipped to do anything we wanted to do.

7 Best heckle?

Second year, half-way through my twenty minute set, posh English voice coming from the second row, "I think we all might want to leave."

8 Craziest on stage experience?

I did a short set in a yurt during the fringe a few years back. It was pouring down with rain outside. There were a few weird noises coming from the speakers and the sound desk, but I kept going, casually joking about the little interruptions. The promoter of the show was waving at me and I waved back, letting them know I had it all under control. A few moments later, I was dragged off stage. Apparently the rain had messed with the electricity and I could have been electrocuted. They had been waving at me to get the f*** off stage as my life was literally in danger. Everyone was rushed out.

9 What’s on your rider?

Two bottles of water. I mean, I don't have a rider because I'm doing free fringe. But I bring two bottles of water. It really is very lowkey, the free fringe.

10 How do you wind down after a show?

I like to go and see other shows. I am always over-enthusiastically turning up to other people's shows with an energy that says, "Guys! Can you believe we're here? Can you believe we're actually being comedians doing comedy shows? Isn't this exciting?" so the short answer is: I don't wind down after a show. I don't wind down till the festival is over.

11 What do you love about Scotland?

It is so beautiful. I do believe it helps with your mental health that when you look up, it's gorgeous. And some of the buildings are so old that it's hard to really feel too sorry for yourself when you get the feeling that someone has definitely been tortured in the spot where my stage is. 

12 What do you like about Edinburgh?

Can I be a real tourist and say Mosque Kitchen? It's definitely a thing I miss on a daily basis whenever I am not in Edinburgh.

13 Favourite joke?

In the show she is bringing to Edinburgh, Alison Spittle has a joke about being robbed in her house in Dublin and it genuinely makes me stomach-laugh every single time I hear it.

14 Favourite Scottish food/drink?

Uhm. Does Mosque Kitchen count?

Sofie Hagen's show, Summer Shatter is on at the Liquid Room until August 28. 

For more information visit www.sofiehagen.com