Late Shift Theatre – which comprises Edie Doherty, Millie Thomas, and Rosy Brown – are bringing their debut show, Take Care, to Edinburgh Fringe this summer.
“Follow Lilian, Richard, Cassandra, Chloe, Aidan and William as they navigate New Year’s Day working in a care home for adults with learning disabilities. While the rest of the world celebrates, they remain on shift, taking care of those who rely on them. Amid outings, new arrivals and the unexpected chaos of the day, these carers face fresh starts, mounting responsibilities, and the quiet resilience required to keep going. Thoughtful, funny and profoundly human, Take Care offers an intimate glimpse into the realities of care work – and the people who show up, every single day.
Where: Haldane Theatre at theSpace @ Surgeons’ Hall
When: 24-29 Aug
Ticket link: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/take-care
What can you tell us about your show? What is it about and where did the idea come from?
Take Care is a sitcom-style play that follows the staff of a care home for adults with learning disabilities on New Year’s Day. Having loved working together on a first-year theatre unit at the University of Bristol, Edie Doherty (Take Care’s Writer and Director) and Millie Thomas (Take Care’s Producer) were keen to focus their energies on another shared project!
Having initially discussed their common interests in neurodiversity and sitcoms, Edie and Millie struck gold as Edie shared that she’d always wanted to write a sitcom set in a care home but didn’t feel she had the necessary experience or knowledge to do so. Having spent her gap year working in a care home, Millie was able to add dramaturgical knowledge to Edie’s humorous yet emotional writing. Hence, Take Care was born!
Having developed the idea of Take Care throughout their second year of university, it didn’t come together until the powerhouse Head of Marketing and Design, Rosy Brown, joined the team! The three co-founded Late Shift Theatre in April 2025 and booked the slot at The Alma Tavern Theatre for just 6 months later, with much to do in the
meantime!
After a sold- out run at The Alma Tavern Theatre and some wonderful reviews, we decided to take Take Care to Edinburgh Fringe 2026.
How would you sell it to audiences in one paragraph?
Take Care gently undulates as it sensitively uncovers its characters’ underlying feelings and some struggles as they work in the unique environment of a care home for adults with learning disabilities whilst their family and friends celebrate the new year.
Take Care highlights how care work is essential yet is often unseen and quite isolated from the outside world. However, it also emphasises how incredibly strong relationships can be formed in this intense atmosphere as colleagues can become a second family when spending holidays and experiencing the ups and downs of life together, coming to rely on each other.
If you want a heartfelt yet gently humorous glimpse into the realities of care work, then Take Care is the play for you!
Do you enjoy participating in the Fringe? And do you have any moments you particularly remember?
This will be Late Shift Theatre’s first time bringing a play to the Fringe, and we couldn’t be more excited! Our Producer, Millie, has previously been to Edinburgh Fringe as an audience member and loved the atmosphere on the Royal Mile with everyone flyering and another memorable part of one trip was sharing a triple-decker bunk bed with two friends!
What are you looking forward to the most in Edinburgh?
Getting to spend a whole week with our wonderful team, seeing lots of theatre and sharing Take Care with as many people as possible! We are particularly excited to support other Bristol-based groups who are at the Fringe at the same time as us with productions such as the University of Bristol’s Body Parts, Bristol Spotlight’s God Complex, and The Bristol Suspensions’ 1800-Harmony-Hotline.
What’s next for the show?
We are excited to see if any opportunities arise from our trip to Fringe, as we are keen to keep sharing what we believe is a very special story with as many people as possible!