A Piggy Interview WithJojo Sutherland (Fanny’s @ Five)
Performer: Jojo Sutherland Photograph by: Trudy Stade Show: Fanny’s @ Five Venue: Stand Comedy club (Stand 2) Promoter: Sweetfaye Online: Box Office Facebook Website
Tell me about your Edinburgh show.
A pair of fannies, fannying about for an hour – it’s funny, spontaneous, nonsense from myself and the other grand dame that is Susan Morrison. We make jokes – remember them?
Tell me about your first gig.
Don’t shoot me but I did a comedy course in 2001 and we had a graduation show/first gig – terrifying, exhilarating and ultimately addictive.
Do you have any rituals before going on stage?
I need to win a game of spider solitaire otherwise the whole gig will be shit – never been wrong yet and I’ve lost quite a few games.
Tell me about your best and worst review.
Best review – I was amazing
Worst review – I was shit
During this Edinburgh run, do you plan to read reviews of your show?
Damn right – how else will I know who to make voodoo dolls of?
How do you feel about reviewers generally?
Much the same way I feel about paying tax – unavoidable, sometimes painful but occasionally reap the benefits
In April 2018, YouTube comedian, Markus Meechan (aka Count Dankula) was fined £800 for training his girlfriend’s pug dog to do a Nazi salute with its paw, in response to the phrase ‘Gas the Jews’. Do you believe Meechan committed a criminal offence, and why?
Nope – The outcry was more obscene than the “crime” That’s quite often the case now, I find people’s vindictive, blood thirsty, mob mentality reactions to be far more offensive. Whatever happened to “none of your business” ?
Are there any subjects that are not suitable for comedy?
Depends who you ask but given that you’re asking me then No, nothing should be off limits but it should be funny but then who/what defines funny? Comedy is subjective so my funny might be different from your funny and then you just think I’m being offensive but someone else thinks I’m being hilarious – it’s a fucking minefield where no-one will ever be right so just say what the hell you want to say until such time that it’s a criminal offense and you get arrested.
Have you ever gone too far?
Well I’ve never been arrested so I’m going to say no
Looking back over your time as a comedian, tell me about the best gig of your career.
Belfast Empire Jan 2018, notoriously one of the toughest gigs in the country and I got a standing ovation, A STANDING FUCKING OVATION… I’ll say that again A. Standing. Ovation but I don’t like to mention it.