Brian Cox is going from Succession to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The stage and screen actor will join two performances of The Ayes Have It! The Ayes Have It! at the festival next month. The interactive show follows two opposing sides in the Scottish Parliament as they debate a range of issues, including Brexit and Scottish independence. The show immerses the audience in the parliamentary debate, and with each performance, the audience's vote determines the end result. 

Former First Minister of Scotland Salmond leads the cast of real-life politicians and celebrities, including current Tory Parliament member David Davis. With actual political figures involved, each performance will conjure an intense debate for audiences to have a stake in. Cox will be stepping into the role of the Speaker. At this time, it is unclear which two performances Cox will be stepping into. Playbill have reached out to the show representatives, and this article will be updated as soon as that information is available.

It's an appropriate subject matter considering Cox was born in Dundee, Scotland (and his character on Succession, Logan Roy, was also written as having Scottish heritage). Cox's stage credits include playing President Lyndon B. Johnson in The Great Society on Broadway, and playing the title role in Titus Andronicus on the West End (which earned him one of his two Olivier Awards). Cox has also been a regular Edinburgh Fringe participant—he went to his first Fringe when he was 17 and has acted in numerous Fringe plays. 

He spoke out in 2022, cautioning the Fringe against making itself too expensive for performers to participate in, saying to The Guardian, "If you see a situation where less and less kids can afford to go up there, then that is damaging. Because it’s the youth that have always supplied the energy for the festival...It’s giving the opportunity to young people—performers, actors, musicians, comics in particular, and we’re cutting off the lifeblood if we squeeze it too much. We’ve got to be careful about it.”

The Ayes Have It! The Ayes Have It! is directed by former Scottish Parliament member Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, and is produced by Cahoots Theatre Company. It will run at the Edinburgh Fringe August 4-13. For tickets and more information, visit here.

As Playbill heads into the 2023 Edinburgh Fringe, keep up with our coverage before, during, and after the festival with Playbill Goes Fringe.