CQD to SOS: A Titanic Story
★★★☆☆ Haunting
Greenside @ Riddles Court (Venue 16): Mon 17 – Sat 22 Aug 2026
Review by Rebecca Mahar
Bringing the Edinburgh Rep Company’s lineup of six centuries in six shows at the Fringe into the 20th century is CQD to SOS: A Titanic Story, a glimpse into the infamous sea disaster through the eyes of its wireless operators: two on Titanic herself and one on Carpathia, racing through the ice-filled night to render aid.
Like the stokers and engineers who fought the water belowdecks and kept Titanic’s power on until the last possible minute, wireless operators Harold Bride and Jack Phillips are figures in the history of the sinking that have attracted more attention and interest in recent years.
Stephen McParland and Daniel Drever in CQD to SOS: A Titanic Story. Pic: Edinburgh Rep.
Bride and Phillips sent the distress calls, first the old-style CQD followed by the then newly adopted international standard SOS which summoned Carpathia until Titanic’s failing electricity weakened the signal into uselessness and the water rose around their feet. Aboard Carpathia, operator Harold Cottam received the call and ran to convince his captain it was genuine, and that Carpathia should make for Titanic at once.
These three men are the focus of CQD to SOS, written and directed by Oliver Giggins in a co-production with Erstwhile Media. At a table on one side of the stage are Philips and Bride, on the other side, Cottam behind his own table
Daniel Drever as Harold Bride serves as the story’s narrator; a natural position, given that many of its lines are derived from an interview he gave to the New York Times following the disaster. Bride was also the younger of the two Titanic operators, and Drever’s youthful charm in the part heightens the tragedy of his situation.
doomed
Philips is played by Stephen McParland, who thoroughly assumes the aura of the somewhat put-upon more senior operator, carrying the responsibility of leadership at just twenty-five: he celebrated his birthday aboard Titanic on the second day of the voyage.
Drever and McParland share a believable professional camaraderie, with a good contrast between Phillips’s seriousness and Bride’s light-hearted air. They are however at their best after it has become clear that the ship is doomed, and they must do their part to try and save as many of the souls on board as possible.
Declan John Anthony in CQD To SOS. Pic Edinburgh Rep
Meanwhile, Declan John Anthony puts in a sterling performance as Cottam, alone and unable to physically or visually interact with his fellow actors. Mirroring how the operators themselves were only able to communicate through sound, Anthony responds to Drever and McParland with intensive listening, and skilfully takes up the task of addressing the other, disembodied characters of the Carpathia.
There are moments where each of the performers truly shine, but there are also stretches, particularly in the Titanic corner, where things flatten out somewhat, partially due to stiltedness in the script and heavy-handed expositional narration.
Some technical aspects also could be improved: fitted sheets serve as both a tablecloth in the Titanic’s wireless room and as Bride’s bunk, obvious and awkward items that, even on a Fringe budget, could easily have been substituted for something less noticeable. The “wireless headsets” are clearly modern headphones. And when the Titanic is sinking and atmospheric sound design of hissing steam is employed, the voiceovers of Captain Smith (Paul Giggins) range from barely- to in- audible.
compelling
Despite these bumps, CQD to SOS is a compelling piece of new theatre, providing a haunting and personal look into an event that, as it grows ever more distant in the past, can be easy to depersonalise.
History, even its firsthand accounts and other primary sources, can only provide part of the story and certain perspectives. While it is never possible to fully recover the past, work like CQD to SOS allows us to synthesise and reflect on it in new ways that may allow us to more thoroughly humanise those who were lost, those who survived, and all those who would never be the same.
Running time: 55 minutes (no interval).
Greenside @ Riddles Court (Willow Studio), 322 Lawnmarket EH1 2PG (Venue 16).
Monday 17 – Saturday 22 August 2026.
Daily: 5.30pm.
Tickets and details: Book here at EdFringe.com.
Facebook: @Edinburgh-Rep-Company
Instagram: @edinburghrepco
Linktree: @edinburghrepco.
Facebook: @Erstwhile-Media
Instagram: @erstwhilemedia
Linktree: @ErstwhileMedia1.
ENDS
