#Interview with Writer/Performer Leigh Douglas on Political Satire Stage Show – Receptionist of the United States (ROTUS) @leighdouglascomedy @ParkTheatre #Theatre #Stage #Satire #ReceptionistOfTheUnitedStates

Interview with Leigh Douglas
Receptionist of the United States
(ROTUS)

Interview by Louise Cannon

20th January – 7th February 2026 at Park Theatre, London

After a successful run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, today, I present an interview I did with writer/performer Leigh Douglas on her political satire, Receptionist of the United States, set to be staged at Park Theatre, Finsbury Park, London in February 2026. (ticket link after the interview). We talk about American politics, the conservative women behind those corridors of power, the internal journeys in those corridors, the contradictions, her views on Donald Trump and more…

Receptionist of the United States is said to be “A sharp, satirical and very funny look at the conservative women behind America’s corridors of power, ROTUS follows Chastity Quirke, a White House receptionist and staunch Republican as her blind faith in the system begins to crack and she’s forced to reckon with the consequences of her own complicity.”

Thank you very much for your time, let’s begin…

What or who inspired you to become a comedian and do political satire?

Coming from Ireland, there’s an explicit link in 20th century Irish history between art (theatre especially) and politics. My granddad lived through a lot of that history, born in 1929. He grew up with several relatives who signed with a mark as they couldn’t read or write. My granddad himself was self-educated from the age of 12 onwards and was one of the most well-read and funniest people I’ve ever known. He went on to write for the stage as well as radio, and he instilled in our whole family that literacy is power. My granddad and I were very close, and until he passed away in 2024, he would often be one of the first to read a new piece of my work. He didn’t pull punches with his criticism, even when I was a child. There is no doubt much of my love of the theatre came from him. I was at the Edinburgh Fringe doing a split-bill with my fellow comedian, Sophie Garrad, when I got the call to say he had gone into hospital. He told me not to come home; the show must go on. In terms of stand-up and comedy, I was raised on the likes of French and Saunders, Kathy Griffin, and Smack the Pony. In university, I studied Brecht and discovered The Thick of It. I knew I wanted to make work that brought together a feminine sensibility but tackled politics.

You take a funny look at the conservative women behind America’s corridors of power: what fascinates you most about them?

I’m not above aesthetics and there’s no denying that the aesthetic of American conservative women is compelling and aspirational. If you’re in any way drawn to glamour, there’s something about powerful American conservative women that will always be compelling. This is no accident. A huge part of their calculus is to fulfill some kind of patriarchal fantasy of what a woman should be. Then there’s the delicious hypocrisy of their stated goals and views, dripping in self-righteous moral superiority and privilege. It’s camp. Their gender performance is almost as studied as a drag queen persona. As a lesbian who spends quite a bit of my time stomping around London in Doc Martens, it’s enormous fun to drag up as one of these women.

Receptionist Of The United States (ROTUS) is about Chastity Quirke, who is a White House receptionist who is fiercely loyal to the Republican side and its President in a “blind” manner, who then reluctantly becomes self-aware. How do you think that feels, and how important do you feel it is to show how paths of sheer certainty can still change.

When we give up on hope for humanity, we might as well give up and go home. Everyone comes from a context, and no matter what their political beliefs might be and no matter how misinformed they are, everyone has a reason for believing what they do which is grounded in something true to the reality of their lived experience. In writing Chastity, I wanted to come to understand what circumstances might create a woman with diametrically opposed political views to my own. I could then game out where those views might lead her, not to mention what it might take for the bubble to burst for her. If Chastity Quirke is an anti-feminist Scrooge, what three ghosts might come to visit her? If the spread of right-wing fascism is going to be stopped, we have to hope that some of the foot soldiers are redeemable under the right set of circumstances. Otherwise, we’re writing off half the population forever.

How did you go about working out where the internal journey begins and how it ends?

The interesting thing in writing about complicity, culpability and political criminality is that no one in Chastity Quirke’s world is going to say exactly what they mean. Those who say the quiet part out loud will be weeded out as disloyal or set up as the fall guy. Chastity, as someone who thrives in this world, is reading between the lines all the time to work out where she stands, what exactly is being asked of her, and what chess move she should anticipate next. She begins with absolute certainty that she knows what move everyone else will make next. Her internal journey begins the first time someone makes a move she doesn’t see coming. As the show progresses and Chastity loses control, she is surprised more and more frequently by the actions of others. Her internal journey ends when the rules she’s been playing by are thrown out the window by the most powerful players and she realises she never had any control at all.

The play is partly inspired by real people. How did you research those people for the play to ensure you got their part of the story right in how they are portrayed?

Of course I went to traditional primary sources like Cassidy Hutchinson’s memoir, Enough. The way she wrote about her time in the Trump White House and her ultimate decision to testify to the January 6th investigation was the initial inspiration for much of the show. However, I then also scrolled all the way back in time on Karoline Leavitt’s Instagram to see how she was presenting herself online years before she was ever White House Press Secretary. I listened to right-wing podcasts like Sincerely American to make sure that Chastity’s vernacular and mode of expression was authentic. I also drew inspiration from the way conservative influencers present on social media and in reality TV. There is an indisputable link between the glamorization of conservative lifestyles in shows like Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, social media accounts like Ballerina Farm, and the presentation of conservative women working in the White House. It’s all promoting the same conservative values and politics.

Where do you stand on politics and President Donald Trump?

Safe to say, I think Donald Trump is a menace and I find the state of what’s happening in the United States currently demoralising, frightening and dangerous. I wrote ROTUS in January 2025 as he was being inaugurated for his second term as a way of processing my grief. The Democrats have their own problems, of course, but, in my view, they’re a right sight more compassionate, capable and compelling than the alternative we’re living through now. I was working as a barmaid in a North London pub when Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was first elected to Congress; if she ever runs for president, she’d get my vote. To me, she’s always represented the working woman living under capitalism. I’d also love to cast a vote for Jasmine Crocket or Pete Buttigieg.

What do you feel the pressures, contradictions and moral consequences faced by young women operating within hard-line conservative politics are, and how do you use this in your show?

The contradiction at play for young women operating in conservative politics is that Republicans are the party of Christian fundamentalism. The rhetoric of the hard right is that a woman’s greatest priority should always be her role as a wife and mother. Therefore, if you’re an ambitious young woman in right-wing spaces, you have to go husband hunting in a manner befitting a Jane Austen novel in order to remain in line and on message. You have to tell other young women that having a career is a distraction, whilst you yourself pursue a demanding career. Balancing your career and having a family cannot be perceived to be a struggle. You have to portray yourself as superwoman, effortlessly fulfilling both roles perfectly. If you admit to struggling or just not wanting a family, you’ve failed as a woman.

ROTUS was highly successful at the Edinburgh Fringe, what did that feel like and what are you looking forward to most at Park Theatre?

It was incredibly meaningful to me that Chastity and the show connected with people. It was exhilarating to feel like a piece that I’d written, partly as a way of processing my own grief at seeing Kamala Harris lose the 2024 presidential election, was also an outlet for audiences. In Ireland, we have wakes when someone dies that are often some of the most riotous, most brilliant parties you’ll ever go to. Something about the experience of doing ROTUS at Edinburgh felt cathartic in a similar way.

Where can people follow you on social media?

@leighdouglascomedy

ROTUS: Receptionist of the United States is at Park Theatre from 20^th January – 7^th February 2026. Tickets available HERE.

#Interview by Lou with the Countess Dracula, A Gothic Comedy, Actress, Joanna Holden premiering at Camden People’s Theatre Halloween 2025 #Dracula #Halloween #Theatre @CamdenPT @CamdenPeople

Interview with Actress, Joanna Holden
on the play Countess Dracula, A Gothic Comedy
Premiering at Camden People’s Theatre 29th Oct – 1st Nov 2025
see further details after the Q&A

Interview by Louise Cannon (Lou), Bookmarks and Stages

Countess Dracula is primed and ready for Halloween. Just what does this fabled creature have to do with the Menopause? Inspired by Bram Stoker’s famous Dracula, the play turns everything on its head as it promises to explore it all in a uniquely entertaining way.

I recently had the privilege of asking some questions about the play to Joanna Holden. First, here’s a little bit about her working class background and what she’s become renowned for, then we shall begin with the questions. After this, you will find a link to how you can see this play at Halloween.

Joanna Holden is a renowned performer with over 25 years experience as an actor, director, clown and facilitator. Born and raised in a working class family in Scunthorpe, despite a career spanning the globe she has never lost her northern roots. A long time collaborator with Told By An Idiot and John Wright she has also worked with Directors such as Roxana Silbert, Stephen Daldry, Cal McCrystal and Angela De Castro. In an extensive career Joanna has worked with companies including Cirque du Soleil, Kneehigh, The RSC, The National Theatre, Bristol Old Vic, Hull Truck, Soho, The Royal Festival Hall, York Theatre Royal, Theatre By The Lake, Bolton Octagon, Northern Stage and Sheffield Crucible.

What attracted you to the role of Countess Dracula?

The idea that a woman could play one of literature’s most terrifying characters and express that cold blooded, dark, evil soul was exciting to me, especially as a woman of 57. I might not have lived thousands of years, but there’s an awareness of the years I’ve lived, if that makes sense. Going through the menopause, other Dracula characteristics resonated with me: an acute sense of my mortality, a fear of ageing and feeling like the living dead, and the horror that is the menopause for some women. The lack of sleep, what can I do with that nighttime wakefulness and the madness that comes with it! On a more positive note, it has also been interesting to explore the power that Dracula has over his world and the people in it, at a time when I felt I was losing power in my own life. What delight can I find in that, and what lessons can I and we, the audience, explore in that!

There have been many adaptations of Bram Stoker’s original creation of Count Dracula, from stage to film to even a cartoon on TV when he’s a duck. What drew you to the classic book and then to put a whole different spin on it, and do you think Bram Stoker would approve if he was alive today?

One day I was slumped on the underground, holding up my chins, contemplating my tiredness and lack of libido. Who was this person I didn’t quite relate to? The thought of sucking young men’s blood for their testosterone came into my mind, weird as it may sound, and I started to contemplate the idea of a female Dracula allowing her rage, her appetite, her need to survive to be let loose on the world. I started to read the novel and also spoke to other menopausal women who seemed to relate to this comparison, and so began to explore the role of Countess Dracula through the gaze of a menopausal woman. The Dracula or vampire myth is a fertile genre to be played with, adapted and explored, and it continues to fascinate us, which is why I guess there are so many adaptations. I think women in Bram Stoker’s time were viewed, unfortunately, very differently. I would hope Bram would be open minded enough to be excited by the idea!

Do you feel plays that re interpret a classic character draw not only something different from the original text, but draw people to be curious about it again, whether they already know it or are newcomers to it?

I think it draws out recognisable elements from the text and observes them through a different lens for a new audience, using those elements to explore a new angle in an ever changing world. Dracula is in all our psyches, everyone has a notion of who he is and what it’s about, so we are given a head start there and are able to subvert this to say something new. I hope that makes sense. At the same time, the piece should also hopefully stand alone, whether you have read Dracula or not.

The play confronts the menopause and all that it can bring, its rage, sadness, madness and humour. What do you hope to get across to the audience with this essential topic and mixture of emotions?

Half of the audience will go through this or will have been through it, and the other half will have mothers, lovers, etc., who will experience this transition in one way or another. We ran some workshops in Scunthorpe with menopausal women, and they had so much to share and say. They all had different journeys, but there was an overwhelming sense of the need to share, to laugh, to talk, to cry, to be open about their fears, and the sessions were so cathartic. I hope that we can find some of that in our show. It is a journey, and you are changed by it, so how do we embrace that, find acceptance, and at the same time harness the power that comes with the experience?

I have no idea if you’ve been through menopause yourself or not. If you have, is there anything in the play you could relate to, or what research did you feel you had to do so the message was authentic?

I am post menopausal, as are many of my friends, and of course on our team there are partners of menopausal women. The brain fog, the memory loss, the lack of self esteem and confidence, the questioning of who you are, the being disappeared and wanting to disappear, the wanting to shout expletives, they were all there whilst making the show, so they’ve become part of the show. And also, the delightful opportunity to play Countess Dracula with all her power and not give a monkeys what the world thinks!

This adaptation playfully interrogates society’s treatment of ageing women. How is the playful nature achieved, and how important do you feel it is to bring humour to quite serious topics?

I guess we know that it can be a difficult journey, but we don’t want to go to the theatre and see exactly our own lives. We want to be able to laugh at the ridiculous elements, the mad situations when you can’t remember a name, or you’ve put the TV remote in the fridge, or you’ve set off somewhere on the wrong day for the wrong meeting. Through entertainment, we can find a united laughter of recognition and community.

What do you like about Halloween, and do you have any traditions or superstitions you follow?

The opportunity to be naughty, to be outside of etiquette, and to trick or treat, and the opportunity to scare and be scared. It’s the end of the summer, and the dark nights are coming in, with the exciting fear of what happens in the darkness, whether there are ghosts and evil spirits in that darkness. I like to have a tin of sweets by my door for the youngsters, but I can’t fit into my skeleton costume anymore!

Where can people follow you on social media?

@ofthejackel on Instagram is the best way to keep up with everything that is going on with the show.

Countess Dracula will run at Camden People’s Theatre from 29 October – 1 November 2025. Ticket link is HERE.

#Interview with comedian and actor Lucy Pearman with Lou on new show, Lunartic #LucyPearman #Lunartic @sohotheatre 29th Sept – 4th Oct #comedy #theatre #stage

Interview with comedian and actor, Lucy Pearman Lunartic

Interview by Louise Cannon

It gives me great pleasure to be interviewing about her new comedy show, Lunartic, which is transferring from a sold out shows at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival Theatre to Soho Theatre from Monday 29 September – Saturday 4 October 2025 at 9:15pm. Please find how to book at the end of the interview.
Thank you and welcome to Bookmarks and Stages, Lucy Pearman.

Lucy Pearman’s latest show, Lunartic was nominated for the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality and nominated for Best Variety Show at the Leicester Comedy Festival Awards.
She has also wrote and starred in BBC Three’s Please Help, which was nominated for a BAFTA following its release. She has appeared on Red Dwarf and other tv shows. She was nominated for Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards in 2017 for her debut full-hour show Maid of Cabbage.
She has successfully had other shows transfer from the Edinburgh Fringe to SoHo Theatre, such as Baggage.

Before the interview, which contains fascinating and entertaining insights into the themes of the play, the BAFTAs, Red Dwarf and some humour, here is a bit about Lunartic.

In Lunartic, the Moon is putting on a show. But, as the Sun keeps reminding her, the Moon will never be a star – and without him, she’d be invisible altogether. Through her trademark blend of surreal character comedy, joyful audience participation and prop-fuelled silliness, Pearman takes us into a huge-hearted story about loneliness, big dreams, and wanting to be seen. As the Sun threatens to switch off the light altogether with a total eclipse, the Moon faces the dark – and the audience is invited to join her in a wonderfully daft celestial adventure.

Without further ado, here is our interview:

Lunartic, it’s a clever, playful, fun name, what inspired you to call your show this?

I quite like using references to madness because I’ve very often been called those things. My 2018 show was called *Fruit Loop*. So I think the titles just come from all the things I’ve been rightly or wrongly called along the way.

2. Lunartic was a sell-out show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and has now transferred to Soho Theatre. How does that feel, to know your show has life beyond a major festival, and what does it take to tour it?

Incredible! I’m so, so happy that I get to make what’s in my brain and people fancy coming to watch it.

I think the key to touring something is being sure people will come. I’ve started a mailing list, maybe that will help!

3. Interestingly, the characters in this play are the sun and the moon, with the moon putting on a show and the sun reminding it that it is also required. What inspired this concept?

Well, I sort of thought about the moon and wondered if she minds that, if the sun switched off, she’d just be a sort of big rock in the dark.

I’ve had times where I’ve felt a bit like a big old rock in the dark, so I sort of connected with that idea.

I like the thought that everybody loves the sun so much and is so happy when it’s around, but what if he was a bit of a dick, the villain of the piece I guess.

4. The themes are loneliness and big dreams. How did you weave these into such a celestial storyline, and why do you feel they’re important themes to focus on?

I have always felt like the moon looks so isolated and sad… I would always talk to the moon after gigs like a really trusty nocturnal colleague.

I liked the idea that she worked nights but also love the way she pops out in the day sometimes, and I imagined the sun being a bit cross about that, like she’s stepping on his shift a bit.

5. Since your show covers big dreams, what is one of your big dreams and why?

I had an actual dream that I was a clown wobbling around Liberty, that was quite nice, that feels within my reach. But career dreams… I would love to work with Julia Davis or make film, but also, hand on heart, I’d like to buy a pig.

6. What do you hope people take away from the show?

Well, nothing, because I will need all the props for the next night. It’s too stressful when people take everything home with them.

7. You were BAFTA nominated for Channel Three’s *Please Help*. Did you go to the party, what was that like? If you didn’t, what did it feel like to know you were nominated for such a prestigious award?

I did go to the party and I felt like a competition winner, but it was bonkers and amazing.

My mum lost her shoe, not because she’s such a liability, but the cloakroom threw them away, which wasn’t ideal, to be honest with you.

8. You starred in Dave’s Red Dwarf feature-length special. What was your best experience within this show?

Oh God, walking on set, meeting the cast, wearing fake custom made fang teeth, pretending I was in space. But my favourite bit was probably eating croissants with Craig Charles.

9. What’s next for you in your successful career?

I think it’s: buy a pig, then off to Hollywood… with the pig. Me and the pig, the pig’s flying and I’m holding on for dear life… could happen!

You can take a trip to the moon, via Soho theatre by checking out the box office here: https://sohotheatre.com/

Follow her Lucy Pearman here:
Instagram: lpeaman
Website: lucypearman.com

#Interview with Lorna Rose Treen By Lou about 24 Hour Diner People #RoseTreen @Instalorns @sohotheatre #24HourDinerPeople

Interview with Lorna Rose Treen
about 24 Hour Diner People

Soho Theatre – 8th – 13th September 2025

Interview conducted by Louise Cannon

I had the pleasure of interviewing the award-winning actor Lorna Rose Treen about her popular show, 24 Hour Diner People now at Soho Theatre, London. In August 2025, it sold out all 30 shows at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, coupled with many glowing reviews, it’s the successful stage show you don’t want to miss!
Find out a bit about it below and then onto the interview. At the end of the interview, you can find out how you can get your hands on tickets so you can see the show yourselves and the awards won.
*Please note, I am not affiliated to anyone or anything.

24 Hour Diner People offers up a full-fat collection of eccentric, escapist, and delightfully silly characters – all served with a side of proper jokes. Expect to meet a waitress who dreams of flying, a trucker with unusually long arms, a woman who’s kept her umbilical cord, a 1960s spy on a caffeine high, and a teenager giddy from her first kiss – all somehow coexisting in a strange, time-warped roadside diner.

1. You sold out at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and had to add extra dates due to demand for your show 24 Hour Diner People. What did that feel like at the largest festival in the world and what are your hopes as your tour it to Soho theatre, London?

It felt like an administrative error! But no it was honestly so nice to see the tickets flying, especially because no one had seen the finished show yet so it was mostly selling because people wanted to spend time with me whatever it was I was gonna do. What a lovely compliment!

2. You have some eccentric characters in your show. Are there particular people or idiosyncrasies you’ve observed in human behaviour to create your characters?

I love watching documentaries and imitating the way we used to speak in the past. I am a nightmare to watch TV with because I parrot whatever is being said and try to copy the intonation. My grandma taught me this, we were a nightmare duo.

3. What inspired you to create characters that are seen as being “voiceless” and giving them a voice and in a comical way?

I like watching the background characters in films and TV, especially from years gone by. I love giving a 5 minute monologue to a character who is a background character for a reason. So often these are women, whilst the men get to be funny in the spotlight, so it’s fun to put the attention on the women and make them get the laughs.

4. The diner you’ve created sounds brilliant fun. You say it’s a fantasy Americana seen through your Midlander eyes. What was the pull for you to build this type dineras the premise for you show?

Fringe is long, and if your show has life after fringe – it’s even longer. I wanted to build an environment I wanted to lock in and spend a lot of time in. Americans who’ve seen the show have commented that I clearly love the mundanity of the day to day, but for me a diner in America is a most exciting place to be. Growing up there were diners in every sitcom, drama, musical and film. Even though they weren’t real, they hold a place of play and joy andescapism built entirely from fiction and dreams, that you just couldn’t get in Redditch’s (now defunct) Chicago Rock Cafe.

5. If you could meet anyone in a diner, who would it be and why?

I’d like to meet James Broom from sixthform because he still owes me £20.

6. You’re no stranger to comedy and have worked with Emily Atack on her show (ITV), Time of the Week (BBC R4), true crime mockumentary, Criminally Untrue and more… what was it like to work on such huge hits and people and how do you take those experiences forward into your expanding comedic career?

Time of the Week is my radio show I co-created with Jonathan Oldfield. We star in it alongside Sian Clifford, who is unbelievably funny. It’s such an honour to be stupid alongside her. She’s like, properly properly good. Series 2 is coming out later this year, and I can’t wait for everyone to hear the nonsense we have written and made Sian say. The writers room and cast are made up of people we not only find incredibly funny, but also people who we love working with. I think sometimes solo performing can feel a little lonely (not when you’re on stage connecting with an audience, but all the organising and writing process). So time of the week is a real beacon for me to connect with my fellow character colleagues like Ada Player and Alice Cockayne, Jodie Mitchell, and Jonathan. And touch base with some of the best new writers like Priya Hall. It’s a real delight to bounce your ideas off someone you think is the funniest person in the world. There’s a reason why American comedy is so successful and I think a big factor is the writer room culture. It really grows and nurtures talent.

7. Going back to 24 Hour Diner People, what do you hope people will take away from it.

I just want them to have had a stupid nice time. I don’t think my comedy will ever make you learn nothin.

8. Where can people follow you on social media?

Instalorns on instagram

LornaRegionalTransport on TikTok

Deborah Meaden on Linked in

Lorna Rose Treen will be performing 24 Hour Diner People at Soho Theatre from 8^th-13^th September. Tickets here – https://sohotheatre.com/events/lorna-rose-treen-24-hour-diner-people/

Chortle’s Best Alternative Act 2024 – Winner

Channel 4 Sean Lock Award 2023 – Finalist

Dave’s Best Joke of the Fringe 2023 – Winner

Chortle’s Best Newcomer 2023 – Winner

BBC New Comedian 2023 – Semi Finalist

Funny Women Stage Award 2022 – Winner

Funny Women Comedy Shorts Award 2022 – Winner

#Interview By Lou with the Tony Award Winning Actor, Laura Benanti on new show Nobody Cares @laurabenanti #NobodyCares #comedy in #Soho #London at #Underbelly on 2nd Sept #Theatre

Interview with Laura Benanti
on Nobody Cares

Interview by Louise Cannon

Welcome, Laura Benanti, to Bookmarks and Stages and thank you for the opportunity to interview you.

I am absolutely delighted to interview Laura Benanti about her new show, Nobody Cares, which had a hugely successful run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. It has now directly transferred to:
Underbelly Boulevard Soho, London on 2 September for two performances only.

See after the interview for ticket details.

Laura is best known for her show-stealing performance as Louise in Gypsy alongside Patti LuPone on Broadway. For this role, Laura won a prestigious Tony Award.
She is also known for her recurring role impersonating Melania Trump on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, alongside other major Broadway such as Eliza Doolittle in my Fair Lady and more. She has also appeared in tv shows, such as Nashville, Gossip Girl, The Gilded Age and more…

Here’s a little about Nobody Cares before we talk about it interview, finding humour in being a former people pleaser and in the perimenopause, Melania Trump and why she impersonates her, connecting with audiences and more… The answers are fascinating and insightful.

Nobody Cares, is a hilarious, heartfelt, and sometimes brutally honest autobiographical hit charting Benanti’s journey from an 18-year-old ingenue to a recovering people pleaser with all of the missteps and marriages (three!) along the way. Her comedic take on everything from motherhood to perimenopause is yet another star turn.

Your show, Nobody Cares had a successful run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, you’ve stepped onto the glitzy stages of Broadway, huge tv series and won a Tony. What inspired you to choose the Edinburgh Fringe Festival to showcase Nobody Cares and what did you like most about your time there?

I’ve always wanted to perform at the Fringe! Being at a festival full of theatre nerds was a dream come true!

2.You bring Nobody Cares to intimate stages, what do you enjoy most about this and are there any challenges, compared to big Broadway stages?

I enjoy connecting with the audience in a completely different way. I can communicate with them. It’s a much more relaxed vibe.

3. You bring comedy, ranging from parenthood to perimenopause, they can be inherently funny subjects, but what do you feel is important that we find the humour, even in the most challenging of times of being a women?

I endeavor to see the world through the lense of a sense of humor. For me, it’s the only way through. Humor eradicates shame.

4. You tackle being a former “people pleaser”, how did you overcome people pleasing?

I’m still working on it! I actively work on it during the show! There are definitely people who come to the show thinking I’m going to sing Broadway music and instead I deliver original comedy and songs that has very adult themes and language. I find myself wanting to apologize to them for that, or wondering what they’re thinking. I have to tell myself to let it go and be present.

5. What’s one of the funniest moments of the peri-menopause? Frankly, I ask as I am one of those women hurtling ever closer to that age and stage of life.

I think embracing that you will, at some point, look for your phone and it will be in your hand. Brain fog is real!

6. After London, what’s next for you in your illustrious career?

The day after I land I film a few days on a very sweet movie called “the Ditch” and then we take our show to Berkeley, California.

7. On a side note, us in the UK often have an eye on US politics. You’re known for impersonating Melania Trump on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, which is incredibly funny, even from a single pose. What inspires you to do impersonations and kick ass out of politicians? We also have many comedians doing this, it’s often clever.

First of all, I want to apologize on behalf of America that some of us voted for our current POTUS (pervert of the United States. Doing this impression is an act of rebellion and a way to keep people laughing during what is a very serious time.

You can catch Laura Benanti in Nobody Cares by finding out more details and booking here: https://underbellyboulevard.com/tickets/laura-benanti-nobody-cares/

#Interview by Lou with Max Fulham about his show Full of Ham at #EdFringe @ThePleasance @maxfulhamcomedy #Comedy

Interview with Max Fulham about Full of Ham

conducted by Bookmarks and Stages – Louise Cannon

It gives me great pleasure to welcome Max Fulham to Bookmarks and Stages for a Q&A session on his comedy act, playfully named, Full of Ham.

Max Fulham likes to make people laugh through ventriloquism (vent). It’s perhaps not quite all as you’d expect. He has put his own twist on this art-form. He’s worked with some of the biggest stars in show-biz like Craig-Revel Horwood and Mel Giedroyc. He started out in Linlithgow, which is not too far from Edinburgh

Without further ado, let’s find out more through the interview.

You’re known for modernising and bringing new audiences to ventriloquism, but who or what inspired you to take up this artform and create stage shows with it?

How did you train to do ventriloquism?

I taught myself as a child and there was a little worn patch of carpet in front of the mirror in my bedroom where I used to stand and practice. My first puppet was a little pink hand puppet and it was the first of many over the years I asked for for subsequent birthdays and Christmases. It probably took me a few years before I was even half decent and I am grateful I was still a child because being a bit rubbish can be sort of endearing then!

I took up ventriloquism (or vent if you’re really cool) after my parents bought me a puppet for Christmas when I was nine. I have been hooked on it since then! Having done it for a good few years now, one of the things I realised is that a lot of audiences had never seen ventriloquism live before and also had a few preconceptions about it being a bit old and naff. I suppose that is the main inspiration for trying to take it in some new directions or simply to use it to create the funniest things I can. I have been inspired by many of the greats over the years like Ray Alan and Terri Rogers and I think looking back has what has gone before can be a great jumping off point when wanting to take things in a different direction.

Your style is very different from having a dummy on your knee. You’ve decided to create an inner monologue, use inanimate objects and expressions.

What inspired you to do it this way and what themes do you tend to lean towards in this show and why?

It’s fun to play with what people expect from a ventriloquist and twist it into something slightly different. There may be a puppet as you’d expect at one moment but it becomes something unexpected. I have also really enjoyed exploring stuff that doesn’t use a puppet, what happens if there are multiple characters onstage but I’m the only person there? In terms of themes I feel that the show really goes from the everyday to the absurd, from supermarket checkouts to a box full of intrusive thoughts.

You started life in Linlithgow and then headed to clubs and cruise ships, now home to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. How has your travels influenced what you bring to your shows?

My travels have enabled me to perform for such a wide variety of audiences which is invaluable experience for any performer. What will sometimes work in one scenario will not work in another and I hope that I am slightly better at working that out now after performing all over the place. The vibe I always want to create in my shows is a sense of unity that we are all there in a room and I have some fun things to show you.

Rowan Atkinson, Mel Giedroyc, Craig Revel Horwood and Terry Fator famously highly rate you, which is fantastic. How did that come about and how does this add to shaping your career as you progress ever forwards?

I have been lucky enough to work with or meet some phenomenal people and some true comedy heroes. I worked with Craig Revel Horwood in pantomime last year, he was the Hook to my Smee and we had a great time! I worked with Mel Giedroyc on her show Unforgivable and she has been encouraging me to do the Fringe since then! Getting to meet and work with these wonderful people is often a nice reassurance that I’m getting at least something right… it also looks good on the poster and I’m very grateful for their kind words!

You’re billed to be appearing in Panto with Alexandra Burke and Dr. Ranj, how are you preparing for that and are you able to share what it will be and where?

Yes! I’m off to Neverland this Christmas (read: Southampton). It is shaping up to be a fantastic show from what I have heard in the meetings I have had so far. One of the amazing things about panto though is that it comes together so quickly and we only start rehearsals a week and a half before the show opens so preparations come a lot later in the year!

What’s next for your solo ventriloquism shows?

I would just quite like to continue doing my nonsense and making people laugh. I am excited to see where the characters and ideas from this Fringe show go, I have a feeling a few of them may have life beyond this show!

Where can people follow you on social media?

You can follow me on Instagram @MaxFulham and on TikTok and Facebook @maxfulhamcomedy.

Max Fulham has brought his show ‘Full of Ham’ to the Edinburgh Fringe the August, every night at 6.40pm in the Pleasance Courtyard. For tickets and more information, visit:: https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/max-fulham-full-ham