Image Credit: Francesca Moody, founder of Francesca Moody Productions. Photographed by Rich Lakos.

If you’ve spent any time around the UK’s Fringe scene over the past decade, chances are you’ve felt Francesca Moody‘s influence – even if you didn’t realise it. As the founder of Francesca Moody Productions, she’s built a reputation for spotting extraordinary talent before the rest of us catch on, helping launch artists including Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Richard Gadd from intimate theatre spaces to global screens.

Yet what makes Francesca particularly compelling isn’t simply her track record. It’s her belief in abandoning cynicism and embracing what she describes as work that feels “messy, raw and unfinished”. As a teenager discovering the Fringe for the first time, she learned that creativity doesn’t need permission, polish or perfect conditions to thrive. Sometimes you simply need to get into the thick of things, have a go, and follow the ideas you love.

That philosophy runs through everything Francesca does today. It’s there in the artist-first values of FMP, and it’s at the heart of Shedinburgh – her growing love letter to the Fringe. Now in its second year in Edinburgh and heading to London’s Young Vic for the first time, Shedinburgh arrives at an intriguing moment. Since the closure of Vault Festival in 2024, London’s fringe ecosystem has been searching for new spaces and new energy. Could Shedinburgh become part of that story?

When she’s not championing the next generation of theatre-makers, you’ll likely find Francesca walking through Walthamstow Wetlands, enjoying a Friday evening at Wilton Way Deli & Wines, or taking a chance on something unexpected at Soho Theatre.

So here’s your invitation: step inside the Shed. Whether you’re heading to Assembly Checkpoint in Edinburgh (7-8 August) or the Young Vic in London (19 Sep-10 Oct), expect wild ideas, future stars and plenty of familiar Run Riot favourites – including Bryony Kimmings, Sara Pascoe, Deborah Frances-White, Bourgeois & Maurice, Sabrina Mahfouz, Inua Ellams and many more. Pull back the curtain and dive in dear Player – it’s showtime!

You’ve spoken before about discovering the Edinburgh Fringe as a teenager and realising there was a world beyond traditional theatre institutions. Looking back now, what do you think that younger Francesca understood about creativity and opportunity that many people working in the arts still overlook today?

I think probably one of the reasons that first Edinburgh Festival was so formative for me was that it exposed me to the idea that you can make work that feels messy, raw and unfinished and that can be a good thing. It inspired me to the idea of just getting into the thick of things and having a go, throwing caution to the wind, following the things I really loved and not being too cynical about the work – essentially not approaching it with the mindset of I have to do this thing in this way in order to make this thing a success. I think that’s important because the less cynical you are about how you make the work, the more successful it will ultimately be. The industry can feel so saturated and in my career the shows that have shone through are the ones that were built on a passion for the idea not for the end goal.

Image Credit: Bryony Kimmings, Photographed by Rosie Powell. See Bryony Kimmings at Shedinburgh, Young Vic, London, 9-10 October. youngvic.org

You’ve backed artists such as Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Richard Gadd and countless others long before they became household names. Beyond instinct, what are the practical signs that tell you an artist has the potential to create something truly special?

In my experience, great artists are often great orators in their social lives. If someone can tell me a good story over dinner or people flock to them at a house party because they have the best anecdotes that can indicate real potential. Great artists are also often perfectionists, sometimes to their detriment, but when I am wrestling with someone over a change to a script that they’ve made multiple times and I think it’s there and they don’t, it probably means they’re making something brilliant. Ultimately, I think any artist is capable of creating something special if the thing they are writing comes from a deep desire to make that piece, if it’s the thing they are compelled to write/make more than anything else.

Image Credit: Sara Pascoe, Photographed by Alexandra Cameron. See Sara Pascoe at Shedinburgh, Young Vic, London, 24 Sep. youngvic.org

Fleabag and Baby Reindeer both travelled from stage to screen and reached global audiences. Do you think Britain does enough to nurture those kinds of pathways, and what would you change if you were designing a stronger pipeline between grassroots theatre and the wider creative industries?

There’s plenty of work other than Fleabag and Baby Reindeer that has been adapted from stage to screen – it’s in many ways, a well trodden path and there are lots of brilliant production companies and broadcasters who have created space for the development of writers through multiple mediums. In the context of the move from stage to screen I would certainly like to see a more holistic approach. As theatre producers we are often there at the beginning of an idea, we nurture something, and honestly, put blood, sweat and tears into birthing it out into the world only to have a TV or film company swoop in and take it off our hands for development for screen. Not all TV/Film companies I hasten to add. But there has certainly been a culture of that historically. I’d love to see more hand holding between Theatre and TV/Film companies at a grassroots level. For my money (no pun intended) that means that the economics could feel more circular and theatre could keep investing in grassroots work to feed the pipeline to TV/Film.

Image Credit: Photo of Deborah Frances-White, see Deborah’s The Guilty Feminist Podcast at Shedinburgh, Young Vic, London, 10 Oct. youngvic.org

One thing that stands out about Shedinburgh is its artist-first model – guarantees, accommodation and travel support at a time when many creatives are struggling financially. What responsibility do you think the industry has to create conditions where artists can actually build sustainable careers?

I think many people in this industry who have been lucky enough to have some success, take the responsibility of making sure they can give back so others have the opportunities they did, very seriously. So yes, I do think we have a responsibility to create conditions where artists can build sustainable careers. The foundation of my career and my company is in the success I found making work at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe – I quite literally wouldn’t be here without it. So Shedinburgh is my version of that, a statement of intent about how we might do things differently and a model which gives artists the opportunity to make work in Edinburgh without having to worry about how they will get there or pay for it.

Image Credit: Bourgeois & Maurice Photographed by Christa Holka. See Bourgeois & Maurice at Shedinburgh, Young Vic, London, 1 Oct. youngvic.org

You describe Shedinburgh as a ‘love letter to the Edinburgh Fringe’. What was the moment when you realised celebrating the Fringe wasn’t enough – you also needed to actively help reshape and support its future?

I don’t think there was one moment. But it was cumulative over time. I lost count of the amount of times people have said to me in the last 5 years ‘what’s going to happen to the Edinburgh Fringe’ and to be honest, I got tired of it. I love the Edinburgh Fringe and all the opportunities it has given me and so many people and I want to make sure those opportunities exist for other people too.

This year Shedinburgh expands from Edinburgh into London via the Young Vic. What excites you most about bringing this model to the Capital, and do you see Shedinburgh becoming something bigger than a Fringe venue over the next decade?

In the last 15 years the space for fringe scale work has been dwindling in the city – there are less venues and there’s less money – I think we all felt the loss of Vault Festival for example. In my opinion all the best work starts in small spaces, back rooms of pubs, tiny 60 seat theatres and dripping vaults under Waterloo bridge, and with less opportunities than ever, it really is negatively affecting the ecosystem with less space for artists to develop their practice and therefore a stunted pipeline for brilliant new work. I’m excited that Shedinburgh’s residency at the Young Vic could fill a tiny bit of that gap and create a new space for fringe scale work in London (and perhaps inspire others to do the same too). As for Shedinburgh becoming something bigger than a Fringe venue over the next decade – you’ll have to watch this space…!

Image Credit: Photo of Sabrina Mahfouz. See Sabrina at Shedinburgh, Young Vic, London, 3 Oct. youngvic.org

The SHEDx Talks programme tackles everything from producing a Fringe hit to turning a stage idea into a screen success. When you meet emerging artists today, what’s the piece of advice you find yourself repeating most often – and why?

Your peers are the gatekeepers of the future. So whilst it feels like you need to bang down the door of the artistic directors and executive directors of now – remember that in a few years time those people will be the people making work with you, coming to support your shows, asking you for advice.

Image Credit: Inua Ellams Photographed by Oliver Holms. See Inua Ellams at Shedinburgh, Young Vic, London, 6 – 7 Oct. youngvic.org

When you think about the next generation of theatre-makers, producers and audiences, what gives you the greatest sense of optimism about the future of the arts?

We had over 200 applications to our Shedload-of-future Fund this year (and award for first time Fringe artists) and honestly there were so many applications brimming with creativity, weird, wonderful and original ideas and I’ve got to say I found the process of reading them incredibly inspiring. I think it reminded me that art always finds a way and that people will make their work by hook or crook. As for audiences, I think in an increasingly digital world I feel optimistic about peoples desire for live experiences in physical spaces.

And finally, beyond the rehearsal room and theatre foyer, what are the three cultural places or communities in London that you return to again and again for inspiration, connection and joy?

The Walthamstow Wetlands, for a walk or a run. You can completely immerse yourself in nature, even in the city.

Wilton Way Deli & Wines on Wilton Way, especially at this time of year when the weather is warmer. Nothing I love more than a Friday night vino and lasagne out on the street digesting the week.

Soho Theatre. I think I would take a punt on seeing anything there and I can almost guarantee I’ll bump into someone I know in the bar.

Find Francesca Moody at francescamoody.com and on Insta @chescmood and @francesca_moody_productions @shedinburgh_fest

Shedinburgh
Assembly Checkpoint
Edinburgh
7 – 8 August 2026
Tickets & info → shedinburgh.com

Shedinburgh
Young Vic
London
19 Sep – 10 Oct 2026
Tickets & info → shedinburgh.com