I’m delighted that my article about women in comedy was published in the Irish Daily Mail’s ‘You’ magazine on Saturday, 14th June 2025. I write about women in comedy, the issues we face and the importance of comedy in our lives. See below.
Did you hear the one about the accountant who became a comedian? No? Not many have. I was an accountant for 20 years, and we are not renowned for our sense of humour or sparkling personalities, which I feel is a little unfair. Accountants are people too, you know. What’s not to like about spreadsheets, income statements and VAT returns? Never mind, you don’t have to answer that.
However, when I left the world of numbers and balance sheets, in a move to quash this unfair stereotype, I decided to experiment with a new career as a comedy writer. I saw being an accountant as an advantage, as it firmly ranked me as an underdog because no one ever expects accountants to be funny.
I get it, there are slim comedy pickings in the world of finance. Or are there? Last year, I was the ‘best person’ at a wedding, and in my speech, I described the couple’s wedding day as the day they are officially entitled to be jointly assessed for tax purposes. See, we can be funny.
My comedy writing journey began when I joined Writers Ink, an online writing group moderated by bestselling crime writer Sam Blake and journalist and communications consultant Maria McHale. Joining the group was a game-changer on several fronts.
It was in the safety of this writing community that my evolution to a comedy writer began. I wrote my debut commercial fiction novel and secured a literary agent. Through the group, I also found my comedy co-writing pal Orla Diamantino, and together we wrote a comedy drama screenplay which went on to be longlisted in the Female Pilot Club’s screenwriting competition.
But there was one more itch to scratch. I figured the best way to determine if I was funny or not was to try stand-up. As I approached my 50th birthday, I did just that. Making a room full of people in a comedy club laugh is a whole different ball game and way more craic than debits and credits.
I have always been drawn towards comedy in all its forms: French and Saunders, Scrap Saturday, Keeping Up Appearances and Fawlty Towers, and more recently, Michael McIntyre, Joanne McNally, Deirdre O’Kane, Live At The Apollo, Derry Girls, Bad Sisters and Young Offenders. Writing comedy is a craft, there is no doubt about that. Really skilful comedians make it look effortless. But I’ve learned that it takes a lot of effort to make something look effortless.
But is comedy art? Apparently not in some sectors because, believe it or not, comedy is not listed as a form of art in the Arts Act 2003. Shakespeare wrote comedies – are we saying that’s not art? The consequence of that omission is that comedy is ineligible for funding from state bodies, such as the Arts Council. Last year, legislation was introduced to amend the Arts Act to include one word, ‘comedy’, into the Act. Nine procedural stages are required in the Dáil and Seanad before a Bill can be sent to the President for signature. The Recognition of Comedy Bill stubbornly remains at stage two, not for the want of effort from the comedy community.
What about gender equality in the comedy industry? Following my stand-up debut, I connected with Lynne Parker, who founded Funny Women more than 20 years ago, a time when there were fewer opportunities for women in comedy compared to today. Funny Women is a leading all-female comedy community whose purpose is to encourage women and female-identifying performers into the comedy industry in a supportive way and to promote gender equality. It’s my view that there are fewer barriers to women entering the comedy industry today, but there are hindrances to sustaining a career in the industry. It’s a late-night industry, not ideally suited to women commuting alone or those with young children. It’s also an industry in which precious ten-minute slots for newcomers and more experienced acts on the circuit are typically unpaid, and one that’s excluded from state funding.
Social media has had a positive impact on the industry. It enables content creators to find an audience and develop their craft from there. This route has launched incredible comedians like Enya Martin, Emma Doran and Serena Terry aka Mammy Banter. But for the most part, creatives are uploading content for free, and unfortunately that doesn’t pay the bills. In my view, there is nothing quite like live comedy. It’s an opportunity to head out for a night, to check out of your life for a few hours and to spend time with people whose only purpose is to make you laugh.
We all know that laughter is the best medicine and at a time with such heavy stories in the news cycle, I argue that we need it now more than ever.
Engaging with Funny Women was a game-changer. I’m now a regional producer for the organisation in Ireland. With Orla, we co-host all-female stand-up comedy showcase events in Whelan’s on Wexford Street. We have had comedy goddesses such as Deirdre O’Kane, Emma Doran, the Dirtbirds and Justine Stafford on the bill. But these Funny Women shows also act as a springboard for new talent. We invited author and broadcaster Barbara Scully to take part in one of our shows because we feel that we can spot comedy talent when we encounter it. And we were proven right.
‘Doing stand-up comedy was never on my to-do list,’ says Barbara, a familiar voice on TV and the radio. ‘But I was “encouraged” in a “won’t-take-no-for-an-answer” manner by Val and Orla, and so I took a chance.’
Barbara brought the house down with her hilarious take on the joys and freedoms that come with growing older. Following her eureka moment on stage at the Funny Women night, Barbara is now touring Ireland with her own one-woman show, Older Bolder Wiser, a combination of stand-up comedy and storytelling and a follow-up to her book Wise Up, which was published in 2022.
‘When I realised that I could make people laugh, comedy seemed like a great way to continue to deliver my message of positive ageing,’ she says. ‘Funny Women changed my life and I am loving it.’
Comedy is reflective of who we are and where we are in our stage of life, and is a reflection of the society we live in. Comedy is subjective, not everyone enjoys the same thing. But in comedy, there is something for everyone from the sublime to the ridiculous, from slapstick to satire. If live comedy events are not part of your socialising repertoire, why not check it out? The worst thing that might happen is that you’ll laugh.
Funny Women, a not-for-profit organisation, is probably best known for the annual Funny Women Awards, which are sponsored this year by BBC Studios’ digital comedy channel, Funny Parts. The awards are a platform for new and emerging voices to break into comedy. Former winners and finalists include Sarah Millican, Katherine Ryan, Sara Pascoe, Kerry Godliman and Rachel Parris. But in almost 20 years of the competition, there has never been an Irish winner of the Stage Award. We came close – Sharon Mannion and Aine Gallagher were past runners-up. How can that be when we know that Ireland is jam-packed with funny women?
This May, I hit the airwaves to increase awareness of Funny Women and to encourage the hilarious women of Ireland to enter the competition. The deadline for entry has just closed, and the 2025 awards have had the highest number of entries in their history across all award categories. Could 2025 be the year when we finally crown the first Irish winner of The Stage Award?
I will be hosting the Dublin heat of the awards on Tuesday, 24 June, in Little Whelan’s, Wexford Street in Dublin, which is guaranteed to be a fun night as a whole new batch of female stand-up hopefuls test their comedy chops on stage. Who knows, perhaps the next Joanne McNally, Rachel Galvo or Kyla Cobbler might emerge from the heat and progress onwards to the final this summer. Come along to find out because we can all benefit from having more funny women in our lives.
Link to published article here.
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