First winners of The 2025 Besties announced

The Skinny and Fest, Capital Theatres and Premier Scotland are delighted to announce the winners of the first of the weekly new Festival Awards, The Besties.

Article Source: The Besties
Last Updated: 10 August 2025 11:44

The Skinny and Fest, Capital Theatres and Premier Scotland are delighted to announce the winners of the first of the weekly new Festival Awards, The Besties, in the following categories:

The Super Power Award (chosen by the young critics of The Super Power Agency’s summer school) Connor McKenna – Seltzer Boy at Paradise in Augustines

The Outwith Award (for best international talent) for Alaa Shehada – The Horse of Jenin at Pleasance Dome

Radgie of the Festivals (for radgeness) for In Bed with my Brother – PHILOSOPHY OF THE WORLD at Summerhall

Next Debut Award for Toussaint Douglass – Accessible Pigeon Material at Pleasance Courtyard

New One to Watch Award for Saaniyaa Abbas – Hellarious at Gilded Balloon Patter House

The Dame Good Show Award for Johnny McKnight – She’s Behind You at Traverse Theatre

The Breakthrough Award for Kate Dolan – The Critic at Assembly George Square

The award ceremony took place on Saturday 9th August at the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh, hosted by Ayo Adenekan, whose show Black Mediocrity is at Monkey Barrell, with performances from Creepy Boys: SLUGS playing at Summerhall this Fringe.

The Besties award, designed by artist Camillo Feuchter a recent graduate of Interior & Environmental Design at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design in Dundee, uses recyclable plastics gathered by the partners and leftover wood sourced locally.

Reflecting the broad and diverse coverage both magazines produce every summer and celebrating the breadth of Edinburgh’s Festivals, The Besties span all the festival activity taking place in the city over the month of August, including the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and Edinburgh International Festival, Edinburgh Art Festival, Edinburgh International Book Festival and the Edinburgh International Film Festival starting next week.

Winners of The Besties are chosen each week by the editorial teams of The Skinny and Fest, drawing on their cross-festival expertise to celebrate the best work happening anywhere in the festivals.

There will be two further award ceremonies on Saturday 16th and Saturday 23rd August.

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