That's Why Mums Go to Switzerland

We are seeking support to bring an award-winning independent theatre production to the Edinburgh Fringe 2026 – a darkly funny, deeply human play about mothers, daughters, dementia, assisted dying, and what love looks like under pressure.

• Selected by Underbelly for the 2026 Edinburgh Fringe -- the world's largest arts festival.
• Winner: Best Solo Show at Riverside Studios Bitesize Festival 2024.
• “Truly life — and death — affirming.” -- Polly Vernon (The Times, Grazia)

THE SHOW

That’s Why Mums Go to Switzerland is a sharp, deeply human solo play about three generations of pissed-off women living under one roof -- and a trip to Dignitas.

Written and performed by Bonnie Oddie and drawn from lived experience, the play explores caregiving, ageing, dependency, relationship breakdown, motherhood, autonomy, and assisted dying through the lens of one family.

Told through the eyes of a middle-aged woman caught between the generation above her and the teenage daughters below her, the play avoids easy answers and political binaries. Instead, it invites audiences into the messy, funny, contradictory reality of family life.

And of course, there's the dog. Who knew everything. Because dogs always know everything.

At a moment when assisted dying proposals are moving through the UK Parliament and public conversation around end-of-life choice is becoming more and more urgent, the show offers something still surprisingly rare: an honest, intimate glimpse of what these conversations actually look like inside a family home.

Audiences consistently tell us they leave the show wanting to call their mothers, speak more openly about ageing and caregiving, or reconsider assumptions they previously held about assisted dying and family responsibility.

THE JOURNEY SO FAR

That’s Why Mums Go to Switzerland began through True Story London as a short, true, personal story before evolving into a full-length one-woman play.

The play premiered in London in 2024 then transferred to Brighton Fringe and Riverside Studios, where it won Best Solo Show at the Bitesize Festival.

(Above) Bonnie sharing her true, personal story for an audience for the first time at a True Story show in London in November 2022.

That's Why Mums go to Switzerland debuted as a "scratch" performance in February 2024, then premiered at Riverside Studios' Bitesize Festival followed by the Brighton Fringe.

In summer 2025, we took the show to the Edinburgh Fringe for the first time in a deliberately exploratory run. We learned a tremendous amount. Edinburgh’s scale is exhilarating, but visibility is everything, and strong work alone is not enough without the right infrastructure and support around it.

So we made a decision: we would only return if we were accepted by one of the top four Fringe venues.

And we were.

For 2026, the show has been selected by Underbelly -- one of the most respected producing organizations at the Fringe (and the original launch home of Fleabag in 2013).

After seeing the production in 2025 as a reviewer, Alan Grant was so moved by it he has joined the team as PR for the 2026 Fringe run. Alan is a widely published political columnist and communications strategist with deep roots in Scottish media and years of experience observing the Edinburgh Fringe. His belief in the production –artistically and culturally– has become an important part of this next stage.

“This show, merging achingly funny comedy with a devastating flurry of gut punches, all delivered in Oddie’s lovable, cheeky, highly sympathetic style, is magnificent.”

–Alan Grant, Scottish Daily Express

With the support of Underbelly, a full festival run, and a significantly stronger producing and publicity strategy, 2026 represents a major opportunity for the show to reach wider audiences, critics, presenters, and future touring, transfer, and production partners beyond Edinburgh.

WHAT CRITICS SAID IN 2025

FringeReview ★★★★★ Outstanding

“This is one of the best-crafted shows at the Fringe… Within the first moment of Oddie speaking, there is a sense you have the privilege of witnessing an exceptional piece of theatre.”
–Danielle Solof, FringeReview

"A beautiful, unexpected, compassionate, honest and deeply moving piece of work. Oddie flips from hilarious to devastating and back again in a heartbeat. Truly life – and death – affirming." –Polly Vernon (The Times, Grazia)

“This show, merging achingly funny comedy with a devastating flurry of gut punches, all delivered in Oddie’s lovable, cheeky, highly sympathetic style, is magnificent.”
–Alan Grant, Scottish Daily Express

EDINBURGH 2026

The production runs 5–31 August 2026 at Underbelly Bristo Square (Clover), Edinburgh, with previews 5–7 August and performances throughout the festival (except 17 August).

WHY WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT

We are seeking support for a piece of theatre that trusts audiences enough to grapple with complexity. This production creates space for reflection, conversation, laughter, disagreement, compassion, and genuine human connection around experiences many families quietly navigate behind closed doors.

We are raising $20,000 to support a full four-week Edinburgh Fringe run at Underbelly Bristo Square.

Edinburgh can be transformative for independent theatre-makers, but it is also financially demanding, particularly for independent productions. (Accommodation alone represents nearly a third of the costs of a full Fringe run!)

Your contribution will directly support:

• Fringe venue hire and Underbelly production fees
• Accommodation for the full festival run
• Artist fees for Bonnie Oddie and the creative team
• Rehearsal and technical preparation
• Professional PR and media outreach
• Marketing, print, and publicity materials
• Audience development and engagement
• Travel and logistics
• The many behind-the-scenes costs required to sustain ambitious independent theatre

HOW TO DONATE

The red "donate" button on this page will allow you to donate via Network for Good, which works well for donations under $1000.

For donations larger than $1000, please consider sending a check made out to “Creative Visions Foundation” with "That's Why Mums Go to Switzerland" in the memo section and mail to:

Creative Visions
℅ Grace Breuer
1047 Ford Drive
Nipomo, CA 93444

To make a donation by wire transfer or via a Donor Advised Fund, please email: michelle@truestorylondon.com for more information.

THE TEAM

Bonnie Oddie (Writer & Performer)
Dance theatre artist and storyteller. That’s Why Mums Go to Switzerland is her debut as a playwright.

Steve Medlin (Director)
Artistic Director of Collage Arts and founder of Unclassified Arts; a leading figure in UK physical and devised theatre.

Elsa Pahl (Producer)
Theatre producer and designer whose credits include You Me Bum Bum Train and The Lion the Witch and the Westway.

Alan Grant (PR)
Founder of Alan Grant Communications; columnist for the Scottish Daily Express, The Times, and The Scotsman.

Michelle Toth (Executive Producer)
Founder of True Story London, a live storytelling and performance platform and producer of regular shows, workshops, and podcasts in London, New York, and Boston.

THANK YOU

Thank you for considering helping us bring this story to Edinburgh and beyond.

Every contribution -- at any level -- genuinely expands what is possible for independent work like this.

If you would like to support the production, we would be deeply grateful. We are also very happy to speak further about the project, the Fringe run, or other ways to support the work beyond financial contribution.

• michelle@truestorylondon.com
• mumsgotoswitzerland@gmail.com
• Instagram: @thatswhymums