Name: Queer Folks' Tales
Start: 2025-10-09T19:30:00+01:00
Location: Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43 High Street

Queer Folks' Tales 4th anniversay show with Turan Ali, Orla Shortall, Giulia Galastro and Themo H. Peel.
Welcome back to Queer Folks’ Tales after our hugely successful Fringe 2025 run!
***** “Triumphant.” (All Edinburgh Theatre))
MUST SEE “Legendary” (Fringe Review)
Queer Folks’ Tales continues its hit 2025 run with another queerer-than-queer line up. As always, LGBTQ+ storytellers galore from around Edinburgh and Scotland share stories of queer lives, past, present and future. Sometimes hilarious, often moving, occasionally shocking, the mix of true and fictional stories is as varied as the range of storytellers we invite. Household names feature alongside new and diverse queer storytellers from the different communities of Scotland. Many of the stories told on Queer Folks' Tales evenings will be true stories of LGBTQ+ experience in Scotland today. Hosted by Edinburgh’s Turan Ali, who is joined on October 9th by poet and writer Orla Shortall, stand up Giulia Galastro and Themo H. Peel.
Turan Ali has been a producer, director and writer of BBC radio dramas and comedies for over 25 years. He’s been a stage storyteller since 2012, and a stand up since 2021. He tours internationally and has two sell out monthly storytelling shows in Vienna. He’s the creator, producer and host of Queer Folks’ Tales for which he won the Creative Edinburgh Leadership Award 2024. QFT now tours across Scotland and is Creative Scotland funded.
Orla Shortall is a writer, performer and academic originally from Ireland and based in Aberdeen. She is a spoken word artist and has performed stand-up comedy. She co-hosts the popular monthly spoken word night Speakin' Weird in Aberdeen which she founded in 2017. Her narrative non-fiction book about dairy farming is to be released in spring 2026.
Themo H Peel is a writer and illustrator based in Edinburgh. He has published 2 young adult science fiction novels. His poetry appears in many Reviews and Journals internationally. As an artist and tutor he has a passion for inspiring diverse (minority, LGBTQ+, neurodiverse, disabled) young people to use art as a tool for self-actualisation. He was a featured poet at Glastonbury 2025 and has performed at Edinburgh Fringe and around Scotland.
Giulia Galastro says she’s a "tiny Edinburgh-based comedy person" and a trainee clown. She is a prolific and much-in-demand stand-up comedian, performing widely. She hosts regular Scottish comedy nights. Her “Open Comedy” has won two Chortle Awards: Best Open Mic Night, Scotland, 2023 and 2024. “Giulia Galastro is a shining light on the current Scottish comedy scene” The Skinny.
Queer Folks' Tales is supported by Creative Scotland