Udderbelly's Pasture
6 - 16 Aug, 8:35pm (9:35pm)

Canadian actor Charles Ross has a lot to live up to.  In 2006, he took the Fringe by storm with his cult One Man Star Wars, and he basked in the glory of another sell-out run of the same show the following year.  So how can he possibly cap the achievement of condensing George Lucas's magnum opus into a 60-minute solo act?  Why, it's obvious: pull the same stunt on the most famously interminable trilogy of our times, and do a One-Man Lord Of The Rings.

Royal College of Surgeons
7 - 29 Aug (not 9, 16, 23), 10:30pm (11:30pm); 24 - 29 Aug, also 5:30pm (6:30pm)

There's a vast array of new Fringe theatre clamouring for attention this year... but this play, in particular, has caught our eye.  An intriguing diversion off the well-trodden path of the Victorian parlour mystery, it's set to combine two of the topics which most fascinated our 19th century forebears: the emerging scientific detection of crime, and the continuing exploration of the occult.

The Underbelly
6 - 30 Aug (not 18), 9:00pm (10:00pm) 

And now, for something completely different.  We really don't know how to categorize Frisky and Mannish: their unique style of tuneful cabaret bears comparison to the greats, yet never mimics them.  It's musical patter, but it ain't Tom Lehrer; it's a parody of pop, but forget Weird Al.

St John's Church
17 - 23 Aug, 4:00pm (5:00pm)

Here's something you don't see much at the modern Fringe: a piece of serious, committed, meaningful political theatre.  Produced with the support of pressure group Reprieve, Rendition Monologues tackles one of the murkiest and most controversial issues of our time: the acknowledged practice of transferring prisoners, outside of legal process, for interrogation overseas.

Assembly @ Royal Botanic Garden
12 - 30 Aug (not 17, 18, 24), 9:30pm to 11:20pm (timed admission, show lasts 40 minutes)

Oh look, it's one of these: an immersive, night-time art installation, promising a magical journey of sound and light, thread through an enchanted landscape in the city's Botanic Garden.  If you've been around the Festival track as often as we have, you'll recognize this genre as a risky one.  But banish that cynicism; with Power Plant, we think we've been dealt a winning hand.

Pleasance Courtyard
5 - 31 Aug (not 12, 24), 3:15pm (4:15pm)

Shows stacked with silly songs have been a staple of the Fringe for many years, so Rob Castell and Tom Sadler - otherwise known as the Bodega Brothers - are trying to break into a crowded field.  But this pair of carolling comedians have an ace in the hole: they're half of last year's word-of-mouth sensation, Barbershopera.