Helen Keen has a relative who was stranded in the Arctic on a whaling ship in the 19th century. Amazing huh? The Channel 4 New Comedy Writing winner has made a show of it. So interesting, as well as funny.

What is your show (The Primitive Methodist Guide to Arctic Survival) about?
How to survive, what survives of us, the 19th century Arctic, some of the local authority temp jobs I've had...

Why did you decide to do a show about this?
My great, great, great, grandfather was on a whaling ship stuck in an Arctic ice floe in 1866, and finding out about that sparked my interest.

How ready is it?
It'll be fine, I hope.

If your show was a dog, what kind of dog would it be?
A loyal husky who would pull your sled and keep you company and then – when you ran out of pemmican – tasted delicious.

Complete this sentence: "If you like (blank) then you'll like my show"
...eating your poor, roasted dog whole at 40 below zero in an orgy of hungry despair...

Is the Edinburgh Comedy Award important to you?
As important as seal oil was to Solomon Andree's ill-fated balloon expedition to the discover the North Pole in 1897 (they used it as a carminative).

What is the most frightening thing about the Edinburgh Festival?
That all the self-aggrandizing blurb we write will be on the internet until the end of time, or at least until computers become self aware and start deleting it (I imagine they'll need the server space when they launch Armageddon to exterminate all human resistance to their mighty binary will.)

Which other acts would you recommend this year?
There are too many excellent acts to mention and so I worry about the people who get missed off... Try to see stuff by newer acts especially on the free fringe and £5 Fringe. If I really really had to pick one show then Pay Peanuts (Free Fringe, Beehive Inn at 6.30pm) – between them they have some of the most beautiful jokes in the world, but I bet they will never get round to writing a press release...

Any tips on where to get the best pint or pie in Edinburgh?
Greggs used to do a very tasty cheese and vegetable pie-ish thing. I don't really drink pints but would (loyally) imagine the Gilded Balloon Library Bar pulls a grand one (NB that may not be the correct terminology).

Sum up the festival in one word
Terrific.

Helen Keen: The Primitive Methodist Guide to Arctic Survival is on from August 5-31 at 12.45pm at the Gilded Ballon Teviot. Click here for tickets