Review: Cathy, Traverse Theatre - Elaine C Smith at the top of her game | Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Travfest26

Eilidh Loan's new play Cathy - inspired by her grandmother - premieres at the Traverse Theatre during Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Cathy plays until Sunday 30th August as part of TravFest26. Read my review below.

Elaine C Smith in Cathy by Eilidh Loan. Photo: Mihaela Bodlovic

Cathy ★★★★☆

Review: 9 August 2026 | Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

Eilidh Loan's incredible debut play Moorcroft was based on her dad's amateur football team, and is one of the most joyful, refreshing pieces of new writing to grace Scottish stages in recent years. I cried when reading Loan's Director's Note, which talked about how the process of creating that show brought her closer to her dad.

A similarly personal story comes from Loan in her new, and remarkably only her second, professional play, Cathy. This one is inspired by her grandmother, who by all accounts sounds like a formidable woman. She insisted that Scottish acting royalty Elaine C. Smith play her on stage... And she does!

Cathy is a comedy play written and directed by Loan that starts with Cathy's husband's funeral. The story then focuses on Cathy's life as the matriarch of a working-class Glasgow family and how she deals with her grief in the aftermath of the devastating loss.

In what marks her return to the Traverse Theatre stage for the first time in 26 years, Elaine C. Smith is at the top of her game playing the fierce, outspoken grandmother. Cathy's sharp wit and brusque commentary on her family's actions borders on brutal at times, but Smith delivers every line with impeccable comic timing and the assured confidence of an experienced leading lady. It's a joy to watch.

The cast of Cathy by Eilidh Loan. Photo: Mihaela Bodlovic

Cathy is not a solo show

Cathy is not a solo show, and although Smith has never been better, she's supported in this world premiere production at the Traverse Theatre by a stellar cast that includes an excellent Michele Gallagher as her daughter Flo, and Alan Orr as Flo's husband Colin.

If you've ever seen Orr in the PACE pantos or any of his other stage outings, you will know that he has funny bones. He's glorious here as Cathy's nemesis who dares to be protestant in her very Catholic household.

Cathy's granddaughter Amy is played by Chloe Hodgson, and this is the only role in the play that feels a little underwritten. The reasons for Cathy and Flo's clashes are never fully explored.

Sally Reid completes the cast as a wonderfully warm, eccentric charity shop manager. Loan presents all of these beautifully relatable characters with a generosity that makes me hopeful that they really are based on actual people.

Cathy is a darkly funny, character-driven play that isn't plot-heavy. But that works for me when the characters in question are as captivating as they are here.

Kenny Miller's set is fun, but it did seem a little unwieldy at times as he attempts to do too much in the space, and for the 65-minute runtime. It is, however, all beautifully lit by Grant Anderson, whose keen eye adds a brilliant burst of sparkle in all the right places.

Cathy is a wonderfully entertaining new comedy play, with a laugh-a-minute script from one of Scotland's best new playwrights. It's a fitting premiere for TravFest26 and its programme brimming with female voices and new writing. ★★★★☆

• Cathy is at Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh until Sunday 30th August 2026

• Read more reviews from TravFest26 here: https://www.lisainthetheatre.com/blog/tags/travfest26

• Find all my Edinburgh Fringe coverage here: https://www.lisainthetheatre.com/edinburgh-fringe