Louise Atkinson is a stand-up comedian. Since she started performing in 2017, she has reached the finals of the Amused Moose National New Comic and Harrogate New Comedian. She has recently toured with the likes of Sarah Keyworth, Esther Manito, and Catherine Bohart. She is bringing her debut Fringe show ‘Mates’ to the Gilded Balloon. We spoke to Louise about her show, insisting she’s the sensible one in her friend group, and being compared to Victoria Wood.
Can you tell us about ‘Mates’?
The hope is to try and focus around the concept of friendships and what role they play in our lives. We have many types of friendships, each of which provides unique benefits and characters to talk about. A thoughtful friend, an energetic colleague, a person who vomits over a bouncer after half a WKD, all play a unique role in our lives. Friendship is something we all experience, whether it’s falling in love with a friend or breaking up with one, but we don’t really talk about it, so I thought I’d have a crack at starting the conversation.
Also, it’s an excuse to talk about all the daft things my mates have done and try to pass it off as ‘art’, so that’s handy.
How candid are you when talking about your friends on stage? Are they chuffed to get a mention, or is it a ‘names changed to protect the innocent’ scenario?
It’s very 50/50 to be honest. I have mates who say ,’If you turn that into a bit on stage, I will end you’. Then I have the ones who say to me every time we speak, ‘Hey Lou, you can do this as a bit, you could do a whole show on my life,’ and it’s like, Lisa, you went to the corner shop to buy bread and accidentally came back with a Calippo, it’s hardly Charlie Chaplin is it? Reign your neck in.
Are there any moments where you’ve been the crazy or badly-behaved friend?
So, I would say I’m usually the one who’s together and ends up looking after everyone else. However, when I ran this past my best mate, she did say, ‘And does that include the time you drank half a bottle of gin, did five Jägerbombs, projectile vomited in the nightclub, literally cleared the entire floor, and three of us had to take you home?” To which I responded that no, it didn’t include that.
With your conversational style, you’ve been compared to Victoria Wood. Is this a compliment that boosts your confidence? Who are your other influences?
Of course it’s a compliment that boosts my confidence! It’s bloody Victoria Wood. Unfortunately, I don’t think I’m worthy of it. I don’t think anyone can compare to Victoria Wood to be honest with you, she’s one of a kind. Both of us are stand-ups, but I think that’s where the similarity ends. It’s like she’s a Michelin starred chef cooking a tasting menu and I’m in a greasy spoon trying to make sure I don’t microwave my beans for too long; both cooking, but very different styles.
Terms of other influences, whenever my family gets together, we watch all the greats in action. For as long as I’ve been alive, Morecambe and Wise have played on repeat in our house, followed by Spike Milligan, Monty Python, and French and Saunders, among many others. Not a bad household to watch telly in, to be fair.
This is your debut Fringe show. What are your hopes and expectations for August?
In all honesty, I’d like to make sure I’ve learned how to write an hour-long show that an audience can enjoy and leave feeling better than when they came in. Live comedy is amazing when you get to watch someone who’s mastered their craft and knows how to entertain that particular audience in that particular room, at that particular time. So my hope is that someone comes up to me after a show and says, ‘You know, your show really cheered me up today, thank you’, and that will let me know I’ve done my job correctly.
I also have a hope that Chris Hemsworth will decide to come watch my show and offer to run away with me, but according to my mates this is an expectation that may be regarded as ‘unrealistic’.
Beside ‘Mates’, can we expect to see you performing elsewhere during August?
Oh 100%. Pretty much any other compilation show there is, I’ll be there. On stages, in bars, in karaoke booths, broom cupboards, an occasional toilet cubicle, I’ll be performing at all the classic Edinburgh Fringe locations. For anyone keen, I will be updating my social media where and when I’m performing.
Apart from your show, what else are you looking forward to (or even perhaps dreading) about the Fringe?
I’m excited to triple my step count for August, but I’m not pleased that two thirds of that count will mostly be uphill. Edinburgh utterly baffles me with this. How can you walk one route to your destination and it’s all uphill, then walk the exact same route back and it’s still all uphill? Isn’t that against physics? Or some sort of geology? It’s against something.
Are there any other acts at the Fringe that you would recommend audiences see?
Go and see Josh Baulf! He’s hilarious and going to be huge, so seeing him play a room in Edinburgh is something you’ll be able to boast about in years to come. Also, if you do see him, can you remind him that he owes me a pint, please? Will save me walking up yet another hill in Edinburgh.
‘Mates’ runs from Wed 2 Aug to Sun 27 Aug 2023 at Gilded Balloon Teviot – Wee Room at 15:20
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