My friend Thom wrote a very funny play at university that felt like The Thick of It – and I had a great part in that. I really wanted to pursue comedy at the time and hoped it would go up to the Fringe but people moved on to different things.
I remember thinking I needed to start my own projects, and songs were something I could do on my own as I already played guitar and that meant I could go to open mics (music ones initially) and have my own job around it (tutoring, nannying, etc.).
I think writing your own material is so empowering as you can work to your own schedule, harness your own voice, and it means my comic skills formed naturally out of songwriting.
Scratch nights at the Peckham Pelican
Camden Peoples’ Theatre
I’d moved to London and my friend Saskia was running a scratch night at the Peckham Pelican. I’d been writing quite earnest songs about women characters who I didn’t feel had their own voice in the original plays and books I’d borrowed them from, and she asked if I’d like to perform some of them as well as some conversation around them on the theme ‘what feminism means to you.’
I’d always seen feminism as something I’d studied but that brief made me think about how I could use my own life to look into friendships and relationships.
I remember performing a song called ‘Coffee Morning With The Girls’ based on the seemingly polite conversations that women can have while hiding how they’re really feeling, and found it way more fun to perform as it was relatable.
Soho Theatre Writers’ course
Soho
I was so delighted when I got accepted onto this course as it really encourages writing outside the traditional play and experimenting with new styles of performance.
It gave me the desire to combine the songs I’d written based on my own life, but turn them into fiction so I could heighten my own personality through characters.
I read this thing that Sophia Coppola said about setting her films in airports or hotels or ‘liminal spaces’ because the characters are all in places of change in their lives.
I liked that idea and placed my songs and the central character of my Vault Festival show ELSA in a coffee shop, as it felt like a space people pass through, where someone could breeze in for a few moments of interaction and the impression they make upon the character Elsa could be played out into a whole scene or narrative.
Roundhouse Residency
Camden
I got to spend time writing music in their studios and the producers there set me up with gigs supporting Camille O’Sullivan and The Tiger Lillies, which I loved as they’re very theatrical acts but were performing in music venues.
I played all different styles of songs in bars, music spaces and theatre so it helped me experiment with various styles, without specifically thinking ‘this is comedy’, I just focused on making a range of songs and seeing how that felt in front of different audiences
I enjoyed performing in comedy and theatre venues a lot more than bars so I think that pushed me to write a show, rather than go down the musician route.
Ten-minute gigs
This has been a game-changer, actually, as I was more accustomed to doing long-form songs that needed context than a shorter set with disparate songs, which felt like more of a challenge.
Usually people start at open mics, but I’ve gone from a full hour show to doing ten-minute gigs. It’s meant I’ve had to talk as myself in between songs rather than rely on a script and be much more present to the energy in the room.
My favourites this year have been Knock2Bag at Moth Club in London and Down the Hatch at Komedia Brighton.
Jungle Run
ITV, age 11
I just bumped into a friend, told her I was doing this article, and she said I should definitely mention being on 1990s children show Jungle Run as we ‘never find out what happens to those kids’.
In case anyone watched one episode of Jungle Run in 2001 and saw me absolutely boss the climbing wall in 45 seconds, I’m now heading to the Edinburgh Fringe to do a comedy show, so you should check that out, too.
I have a song for every feeling or thought you’ve ever had or your money back. My show How To Be Content is on at 5.50pm in Pleasance Courtyard from the 2-25 August. Book your tickets here.
