In our ongoing Edinburgh Fringe 2026 interview series, we are speaking to artists and creatives who are bringing their shows to the Scottish capital this summer.
In this interview, we speak with Alyssa O about her show The Ally O Show: Married To Myself.
What can you tell me about your show?
I like to say that MARRIED TO MYSELF is a solo rom com about culture clash, generational trauma (but make it fun!) Waking the dead (but make that fun too!), Tik Tok Witches, putting yer gran on Hinge, surviving wedding receptions when you're single, living abroad and the love of a good pair of Spanx. Also, I marry myself live onstage.
How would you describe the style of your show to anyone who has never seen you before?
Absurd, joyful, physical, ridiculous, riddled with pop culture references, and loads of good natured snark, a little bit vulnerable and a little bit heartbreaking and hopefully, relatable to women who are larger than life in a world that wants us to play small.
In the end, I want the show to feel like a glitter bomb, a shot of whiskey and a warm hug from a friend that just gets you.
How would you describe the style of your show to anyone who has never seen you before?
Absurd, joyful, physical, ridiculous, riddled with pop culture references, and loads of good natured snark, a little bit vulnerable and a little bit heartbreaking and hopefully, relatable to women who are larger than life in a world that wants us to play small.
In the end, I want the show to feel like a glitter bomb, a shot of whiskey and a warm hug from a friend that just gets you.
Bring your best friend, bring your mom, bring the baddest bitch you know, bring anyone who loves to laugh at all of the unhinged stuff life throws your way when you’re a woman.
What was the lightbulb moment that led to the creation of this piece?
According to The Guardian, single, child-free women are the happiest subgroup of the population, but you’d never know that by looking at how they’re portrayed in the media. I was tired of seeing media portrayals of single (or to use the term I prefer, solo) women as lost, incomplete, miserable and alone because in my experience, nothing could be further from the truth!
What was the lightbulb moment that led to the creation of this piece?
According to The Guardian, single, child-free women are the happiest subgroup of the population, but you’d never know that by looking at how they’re portrayed in the media. I was tired of seeing media portrayals of single (or to use the term I prefer, solo) women as lost, incomplete, miserable and alone because in my experience, nothing could be further from the truth!
I’ve been a writer and performer all my life, but this year I started dabbling in standup comedy a bit more and speaking my truth onstage. After gigs I’d get people coming up to me and saying that they could see themselves in my comedy and to keep going with it. I realized that there’s lots of audiences like me, and we’re not seeing ourselves represented. I thought to myself, ‘I’ve got to write a show about this!’
What makes 2026 the perfect year for this specific story or performance?
2025-2026 was a year of endings and beginnings for me. I thought to myself, for those of us who don’t choose traditional marriage, we don’t get a ritual to mark these passages, do we? So I started thinking about what this would look like for me onstage, and how I would transform my new beginnings into a show.
What makes 2026 the perfect year for this specific story or performance?
2025-2026 was a year of endings and beginnings for me. I thought to myself, for those of us who don’t choose traditional marriage, we don’t get a ritual to mark these passages, do we? So I started thinking about what this would look like for me onstage, and how I would transform my new beginnings into a show.
How will you mentally and physically prepare for a run at the Fringe?
I’m no stranger to Fringe as an audience member but this is my first Fringe as a performer and I would be lying to you if I said I was ready for it. Bringing a show to Edinburgh as a team of one has been overwhelming, I’ve really had to learn how to expand my skills set (doing my own PR, for example!), but it has taught me how much I’m capable of. I’m just going to try and get as much rest as I can, try to subside on something besides a Tesco Meal Deal every once in a while and pause to appreciate the magic of Fringe as often as possible.
I’m no stranger to Fringe as an audience member but this is my first Fringe as a performer and I would be lying to you if I said I was ready for it. Bringing a show to Edinburgh as a team of one has been overwhelming, I’ve really had to learn how to expand my skills set (doing my own PR, for example!), but it has taught me how much I’m capable of. I’m just going to try and get as much rest as I can, try to subside on something besides a Tesco Meal Deal every once in a while and pause to appreciate the magic of Fringe as often as possible.
If you couldn’t use a flyer to attract audiences, what ridiculous object would you hand out to people to get them into your show?
If I was a millionaire, I’d be handing out fresh pairs of Spanx like hotcakes.
If I was a millionaire, I’d be handing out fresh pairs of Spanx like hotcakes.
What is the one item in your Fringe Survival Kit that you can’t live without at the Fringe?
A water bottle full of fresh, delicious Scottish water. If you’re not hydrated, you’re not getting anything else done.
A water bottle full of fresh, delicious Scottish water. If you’re not hydrated, you’re not getting anything else done.
What would you deem as success at the end of the Fringe?
Connecting with audiences that really enjoy my work.
Other than your own show, are there any other shows you would recommend at the Fringe this year?
If you are looking for guidance from the universe, go see Page of Cups Improv at PBH Free Fringe! They’ll give an audience member a tarot reading and then create scenes from it live onstage!
Connecting with audiences that really enjoy my work.
Other than your own show, are there any other shows you would recommend at the Fringe this year?
If you are looking for guidance from the universe, go see Page of Cups Improv at PBH Free Fringe! They’ll give an audience member a tarot reading and then create scenes from it live onstage!
What is one Edinburgh spot that you would recommend people to visit when they're not watching performances?
Go down to Newhaven Harbor, get some fish n’ chips, breathe some sea air, look at the lighthouse.
Go down to Newhaven Harbor, get some fish n’ chips, breathe some sea air, look at the lighthouse.
Can you describe the show in 5 words?
Crazy eyes, nonna-maxxing, feral, immigrant, cha-cha slide.
Crazy eyes, nonna-maxxing, feral, immigrant, cha-cha slide.
The Ally O Show: Married To Myself runs at Back Room at PBH's Free Fringe @ Pizza Geeks Easter Road from 8th - 15th August. For further information, visit https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/the-ally-o-show-married-to-myself
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