One of the more unusual venues at this year's Fringe is The Fudge Kitchen, a shop along Edinburgh's famous Royal Mile close to the house of 16th-century reformer John Knox.
Every day at 6pm, large cutting tables are moved out and chairs are brought in, transforming the small shop into an intimate comedy venue. The smell of freshly baked fudge lingers beautifully throughout the performance for the 35 or so people who pack the venue nightly.
Called The Fudge Shop, the show is the brainchild of Patch Hyde, an employee of the chain. He is also an aspiring actor and stand-up comic who has been toiling on the London circuit for the past three years.
For The Fringe's month-long run and between the hours of 9am and 5pm, Patch can be found putting in a shift in the shop's small kitchen or serving customers behind the counter. By night, he is part of a four-man play about... fudge, alongside performers Toby Williams, Tony Dunn and David Gibson.
"I started selling fudge for the company when I was 15-years-old," Patch tells The Huffington Post UK in a coffee shop next to the venue. "I ended up going to drama school, but always returned to the company whenever I was poor or in between plays."
The 29-year-old has been to Edinburgh for the festival several times before, but has grown increasingly disillusioned with the experience.
"Every year I come to the festival to do stand-up and work in the shop. A lot of the time I was playing to small crowds in big venues. A couple of years ago me and a few friends tried doing stand-up in the shop, but it was too small, too aggressive. Then we started writing sketches, which we've turned into a play. That format does seem to work with the smaller room."
The play's narrative is littered with references to the product. It is also being put on outside the umbrella of the Free Fringe.
Having secured the permission of the company owner, the players clubbed together to buy a theatre licence, an exercise that cost them around £830. On top of that, they had to outlay on brochures and flyers, as well as cover ancillary costs, such as chairs.
Yet Patch remains adamant that the expense was worth it. "Other years I've come up to the festival and done five minutes here and ten minutes there, but this year we're in total control of what we do.“
The group is also recouping some money, with tickets selling for £7.
"It would be great if The Fudge Kitchen gave us a national tour," he says. "We could play at all eight of their shops around the UK. I think it might just be Edinburgh, though."
The Fudge Shop is on every day at 8.45pm until the 28th August at at The Fudge Kitchen.