Anna Lou Larkin on Le Wine Club

Popular Glaswegian cabaret performer Anna Lou Larkin takes the role of sommelier as she brings her solo show, Le Wine Club, to Edinburgh for a mid-afternoon wine tasting paired with a murder mystery. Theatre Bubble spoke to her about theatre, wine and home-cooked meals:

Describe your show in five words or less

Wine, crime, and saucy rhymes.

How did you get into cabaret?

I wanted to regain ownership of my work- as an actor you don’t always feel you have much control and so I started learning the accordion and writing my own songs. I saw a lot of cabaret at the Fringe back in 2005 and thought “Yes! That’s what I want to do!” I spent some time busking on the streets and doing spots at burlesque shows and it went from there.

What made you want to study wine and do you have any recommendations?

I ‘ve always loved wine and I started wanting to be able to explain my own preferences and maybe discover new wines I’d never even heard of. There are so many things that make a wine taste the way it does- natural factors, human factors, our own perceptions- and it’s so exciting to explore it. For value for money, I’d look out for lesser- known regions and grape varieties- don’t be scared to take a chance, you might discover something you love. There are also some really exciting wines from the UK now and what’s lovely with homegrown wines is visiting the vineyard, chatting to winemakers, and getting a real sense of the wine’s place and history.

What would you like the audience to take away from your show?

I’d love them to know a few things about wine that they didn’t know before and to feel a bit less intimidated- it’s supposed to be fun after all. If they were singing a few of my tunes too that would be magic too!

What are you most looking forward to about the Fringe?

I’m looking forward to meeting in person all the other Fringe folk that I’ve been connecting with online. It really is a community. As a Scot I’m also looking forward to a few home-cooked meals from my mammy and spending a bit of time in a beautiful city.

Le Wine Club is on at Gilded Balloon, Patter Hoose 2 – 27 Aug, 3pm https://tickets.gildedballoon.co.uk/event/14:4950/