Assembly @ George Street
6 - 31 Aug (not 17), 4:40pm (5:40pm) 

Whatever happened to Alistair McGowan?  If you only knew him from the BBC's Big Impression, you'd be forgiven for thinking he'd vanished without trace.  Well, he's back in Edinburgh this year, making up for lost time with two shows.  One's a reprise of his TV series - but in this preview, we've gone for the less obvious choice.

Royal Highland Showground
18 - 22 Aug; 7:30pm (9:30pm) 

Ever since the game-changing Fuerzabruta a couple of years ago, Edinburgh's been waiting for its next immersive spectacular: for a show which assaults the senses, thrills the audience and shakes the Festival out of its well-trodden routine.  That show just might be coming in 2009.  But this time, it's no product of the Fringe... it's the refined and highbrow International Festival which brings us Faust.

Blue Police Box Outside The Tron Kirk
3 - 31 Aug, 2:00pm (3:15pm)

Like all the world's great cities, Edinburgh is rich in history, and full of stories which deserve to be told.  But in the hurly-burly of the modern Festival, time spent on the tourist trail is precious time spent away from the shows.  So we're drawn to this unique walking tour - which bundles an hour-and-a-quarter of local history together with a one-man, al-fresco Fringe musical.  Problem solved!

C soco
5 - 31 Aug, 8:55pm (10:05pm)

Rarely has a theatrical company made as striking a debut as Belt Up (Nothing To See/Hear), the youthful collective behind this year's Tartuffe.  Their 2008 programme was a full-on stampede of innovation and energy, earning them a prestigious prize from the "official" International Festival - and a fistful of five-star reviews on the Fringe.

C, Chambers Street
6 - 31 Aug (not 21, 22), 2:50pm (3:40pm)

If you spend any time at the Fringe, you're bound to run into Out Of The Blue: one of the most hard-working groups in the Festival, they're often found touring the city, belting out samples of their a cappella melodies to anyone who's passing by.  And the same enthusiasm for their music pervades the on-stage act - back once again for a mid-afternoon slot at C.

Pleasance Courtyard
5 - 31 Aug (not 12, 19), 4:00pm (5:30pm)

How many comedies - Shakespeare's aside - still draw the crowds after 200 years?  First performed in 1777, R.B. Sheridan's School For Scandal deserves its place in such exalted company; a satire of Georgian manners, the antics of the gossip-mongering lords and ladies are eerily reminiscent of the present day.  And this new production mixes the old and the modern too, combining the language and setting of the original with an eye-catchingly up-to-date cast.