TMC interviews… Zoe Lyons

by Devil’s Food Cake and MoonCake

Who doesn’t love a funny lady? We at TMC have a particular weakness for girls who make us laugh, and there’s nothing funny about that. So when we got the chance to meet the marvellous Zoe Lyons in the flesh, we jumped at it. Zoe headlined at Laughing Cows, a monthly line-up of some fabulously funny women, and after a pretty fab warm-up by the preceding acts, she managed to end the night to raucous laughter.

Zoe Lyons, for those of you not in the know, is a veteran on the comedy circuit, having performed all over the world. She currently runs two brilliant comedy nights in London as well as having appeared on a slew of TV and radio shows. Her 2007 debut garnered a nomination for Best Comedy Newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars of Comedy, and that very year she was invited to become a patron of Pride. A woman after our own hearts, we just had to ask some questions….

When did you realise you were funny?

Ohh… that would be in primary school, when parents were waiting to drop their kids off and I’d make them all laugh.

What do think about women in comedy?

I’ve heard people say some off things before – “I’m not paying a pound to see a woman trying to be funny” – but I don’t know why. In my experience, audiences are generally 50/50. The mechanics are all there, in terms of women comics.

In light of that, have you ever had a bad experience onstage?

Once, I went on and all the men in the front row got up and went off. Just walked off.

What did you think about that Vanity Fair article, the one that said women weren’t funny?

I just don’t get that really. Maybe in a traditional, original or historical context, there was just an assumption that women weren’t funny – because most comedians were male. And in the 60’sand 70’s, a lot of comedy was performed in working men’s clubs, which just didn’t have doors open to women. So assumptions like that probably stem from then.

How’s that changed since you started in the business? Do you reckon there are a lot more lesbians in comedy nowadays?

Well, there’s been a palpable change. I’ve been doing it for six years and there’s a lot of travelling that goes with it. I’m on the road a lot and I like it, though I guess that doesn’t appeal so much to some women. People tend to think that if you’re onstage or if you’re a ballsy woman, then you must be a dyke anyway.

Who’s your favourite comedian?

Wanda Sykes

Oh, she’s a lesbian! She came out quite recently…

Really? I didn’t know that!

What’s your creative process? Where do you find you get inspiration for your material from?

Usually I just sit there hoping something comes out. I watch TV and use Google and sometimes I just have to force it out. Sitting and writing can be very sporadic and frustrating, but sometimes it just comes.

What’s the worst joke you’ve heard?

What’s an oxymoron? A stupid cow.

Oh NO. What’s the best?

Well there was that Amy Winehouse one I told (for which she won funniest joke at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe). If I had to tell one now… well, I had a big lesbian following, but I put salt down and that stopped her.

What’s the worst interview you’ve ever had?

Well there was this one I had today… this woman called me from a Welsh newspaper and she was so off with me… at one point she said, about my ‘lesbian angle’ – ‘don’t you think it’s boring and won’t it get old?’. I mean, I don’t have a lesbian angle, I don’t know what that’s supposed to mean.

What was your first time onstage like?

I went blind in one eye. It was so immense, so psychologically immense, and I just went blind in one eye out of fear, out of self-created fear. It was great though.

Do you get a lot of women throwing themselves at you at your shows?

No not really, actually, which is disappointing. My partner would probably stop all that anyway.

And finally, what’s your favourite cake?

That would be… lemon meringue cake.

Zoe performs on the 8th of April at the Bloomsbury Theatre, as part of her Miss Machismo Tour. You can find the rest of her gig list at her website.

Laughing Cows is on every first Thursday of the month at the Green Carnation.