When I walked into the hotel lobby and saw a sea of screaming children, I realised I hadn’t been thinking properly when I booked to go and see a show called The Big Bad Wolf at eleven-thirty in the morning. But fifty minutes later, I left the performance as one of the adults who had screamed louder throughout than any of the children.
We all know the story of The Big Bad Wolf who ate Little Red Riding Hood’s grandmother in the middle of the woods. And the three little pigs, whose houses he tried to blow down. But have you ever given much thought to where these characters may be today?
Theatre company The Plandits, certainly have – they’ve even written a show about it.
From the moment you walk in, past the welcoming fairy and to your seat, a live band of witches, trolls and animals bang away on drums, strum guitars and play keyboards, setting the tone for what is set to be a punk rock fairytale about whether a leopard can ever change his spots. Or in this case, a wolf.
It’s a madcap, rock’n’roll musical journey of plotting and scheming with folklore’s most notorious villain. Exiled to the Deep Dark Wood, he parties hard and rocks out every night with his cronies, far away from the goody-goody townspeople of Fairytaleville.
But whatever happened to Little Red Riding Hood? Well, she’s now the local townsperson of Fairytaleville, and she’s putting on a music festival, headlined by everyone’s favourite German techno band – the three little pigs. When the big bad wolf gets word that the pigs will be out of their houses and out in the open, he hatches a plan to infiltrate the festival and save his (long-awaited) bacon. Can the wolf”s Fairy Godmother change the ways of a hardened carnivore?
The Big Bad Wolf is highly original, energetic fun with live rock music, played by multi-rolling, multi-instrument-playing performers who are seemingly living their best lives with this show they have created.
It’s a show for children and it’s a show for adults. You don’t need a sprog to feel like you fit in here. This show seems to be drawing crowds of people of all ages to find out whether a big bad wolf can seek redemption and be accepted. And it works on all levels.
The Big Bad Wolf is the most fun I had at the 2026 fringe and I would watch it again in a heartbeat.
★★★★★
Reviewed by West End Wilma
The Big Bad Wolf plays at Space 3 at theSpace on the Mile until 22 August, 11.30am.
Read other reviews I have written of Edinburgh Fringe shows over the years
