Listen to this article:A drag bingo fundraiser in Totnes has raised more than £1,600 for this year’s Totnes Fringe Festival, giving the volunteer-run event a much-needed boost ahead of its return in July. The event took place on 1 April at the Royal Seven Stars Hotel, and 130 people turned up to support the festival and enjoy an evening of bingo, music, comedy, and prizes.
The evening was hosted by South West drag performer Roberta Calamari, with DJ Zaid Al-Rikabi helping to keep the atmosphere lively. A number of exciting prizes were donated by local businesses, including a wine tasting evening, a carving course, cinema tickets, sauna vouchers, and a glamping stay.
The money raised from the bingo night will go towards helping to run the Totnes Fringe Festival 2026, which is due to take place from 9 to 12 July. The festival is a four-day programme of live performance across Totnes, with shows taking place in theatres, pubs, gardens, historic buildings, and other unexpected spaces around the town.
Drag Bingo fundraising is always a good idea, as people enjoy the fun and atmosphere these events create.
In many ways, the fundraiser reflected the tone of the upcoming festival. According to those who attended, it was a high-energy evening full of comedy, live entertainment, and audience interaction, which is very much in keeping with what Totnes Fringe is aiming to achieve more broadly, namely to put on works that are bold, inventive, and rooted in live performance.
Danielle McIlven, a director of the festival, said:
“The night captured exactly what Totnes Fringe is about: creativity, connection and a sense of shared joy. Seeing so many people come together to support the Festival in such a fun and generous way was incredibly special, and we are very grateful to the local businesses who donated prizes and everyone who came along and made it such a success. It gives us real momentum as we build towards July.”
The fundraising is vital as Totnes Fringe is not backed by core public funding. Rather, it is independently funded and volunteer-run, and relies on fundraising events, donations, small grants, crowdfunding, and sponsorship from local businesses.
The money raised will go towards paying artists fairly, keeping ticket prices low, supporting young and emerging creatives, and covering production, marketing, and accessibility costs.
The Totnes Fringe festival is still relatively new. It first ran in 2025 as a grassroots festival with a focus on live performance, experimentation, and making use of the town itself as part of the event.
This year’s programme is set to include theatre, dance, comedy, spoken word, family work, and other performance-led pieces. Performers for 2026 were invited to apply to appear across 15 venues and creative spaces, including pub theatres, churches, outdoor locations, shop fronts, launderettes, and even telephone boxes.
Last year’s festival was hugely successful. The 2025 event featured more than 60 shows across 11 venues, all delivered by volunteers, with more than 3,000 attendees and 11 sold-out shows. The team now wants to make 2026 “even bigger, braver and more gloriously off-beat”.
Putting on such a successful event is not cheap, which is why events such as the drag bingo fundraiser in Totnes are so essential. The organisers have explained that support from businesses is vital, not only because it helps fund artists and programming, but also because the festival brings people into town to watch shows, eat, drink, and spend time locally.
Following the fundraiser and with the festival in Totnes, county of Devon, due to return from 9 to 12 July, the organisers now have a bit more money behind them and have shown once again that bingo can have an important role in every community.
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