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The top 10 kids' shows at this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe

If you’re taking the kids to the fringe this summer, here are some of the best shows to take them to

Baby Loves Disco

The Jam House, 6 to 26 August, various times

It's true, they do. This family experience has now sold out at the fringe eight years running, and is the ultimate day-clubbing experience. DJs mix from Twitter via the hashtag #babylovesfringe, while there's plenty going on for the little ones, from face-painting and dress up to arts and crafts and a selfie booth. There are also special bingo and silent disco editions running during the festival.

Brave Macbeth

Gilded Balloon at the Museum, 4 to 16 August, 12.00

Gilded Balloon at Rose Theatre, 18 to 27 August, 10.15

If you want to introduce your kids to Shakespeare this summer, look no further. Captivate Theatre, who are the group behind Shakin' Shakespeare, tell the Scottish play for everyone aged three and up. If you were hoping to raise a stagey baby, this would be a very good place to start.

Card Ninja

Gilded Balloon Teviot, 2 to 27 August, 17.30

This is a card show that's less about magic, and more about ninjas. Javier Jarquin uses his cards as ninja weapons in this one-man comedy show which follows his journey from mild mannered card player to silent assassin. But be warned, don't try to recreate any of these stunts at home (unless you're a real-life ninja).

Comedy Club 4 Kids

Assembly Roxy, 4 to 27 August, 17.40

Some of the biggest comedians at the Fringe give up their time to squeeze in an extra show aimed at kids aged six-plus. In the past, comedians performing strictly pre-watershed material have included Nish Kumar, Josh Widdicombe and Phil Jupitus dressed up as a panda. Keep an eye on their website for this year's confirmed acts.

The writer and comedian David Walliams
The writer and comedian David Walliams whose bookThe First Hippo on the Moon has been adapted for the stage at Edinbrugh
(© Dan Wooller for WhatsOnStage)

The First Hippo on the Moon

Pleasance Courtyard, 2 to 20 August, 12.00

Based on David Walliams' 2015 picture book, The First Hippo on the Moon is about Hercules Waldorf-Franklin III and Sheila who are on a mission to, you guessed it, be the first hippos on the moon. The show will have puppets created by Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell, who worked on War Horse and The Lorax, and has been touring the UK since Christmas last year.

The Giant's Loo Roll
The Giant's Loo Roll
© TaleGate Theatre

The Giant's Loo Roll

theSpace @ Venue45, 11 to 26 August, 10.00 and 14.30

Who could turn down the chance to witness 'the biggest loo roll ever on stage'? This musical, which ran at the Arts Theatre in London last year, sees a giant lose his bog roll, only for it to be found by a town at the bottom of his hill. The townsfolk find a whole host of uses for it, and have a suggestion or two for the incapacitated giant, too.

Peter and the Wolf

Assembly George Square Gardens, 3 to 17 August, 11.00

Peter and his granddad embark on a camping trip in the forest, but Peter has other ideas when he decides to wander into the wilderness and bumps into a wolf. A light-hearted, musical story based on the Prokofiev classic for everyone aged four-plus.

How To be a Kid
How To be a Kid

How To Be A Kid

Roundabout @ Summerhall, 4 to 20 August, 10.45

How to be a Kid is about Molly. She cooks for the family, does the dishes, gets her brother ready for school, and she's only 12. She doesn't really feel like a kid, but, now her mum is feeling better, things can get back to normal again and Molly can be a kid again. Paines Plough's production promises dancing, chocolate cake and an epic car chase. What more could you want?

The Showstoppers' Kids Show

Pleasance Courtyard, 2 to 20 August, 11.40

The hilarious Olivier Award-winning improv company are back at the Fringe this year with their flagship improvised musical, but they will also bring their kids show to Edinburgh. The cast will act out anything suggested by the children in the audience, so you choose who they meet, where they go and what they do. Let your imaginations run wild.

Trash Test Dummies

Underbelly’s Circus Hub on the Meadows, 5 to 25 August, 13.00

Putting the bins out is a boring job, right? Wrong. Not when Jamie, Jack and Simon are giving you a hand. Their funny circus show sees them pop out of dustbins and perform acrobatics whilst rummaging through the bins. It will leave you grabbing the nearest hi-vis and juggling banana skins in no time.