Rosie Wilby

Last updated

Rosie Wilby (born 1970 in Liverpool) [1] is an English comedian and singer songwriter based in South London.

Contents

Career

Born in Liverpool, Wilby grew up in Ormskirk, and studied at the University of York, where one of her contemporaries was fellow comic Zoe Lyons. Moving to North London in 1993, Wilby secured a place on the ft2 Film and Television freelance training scheme and worked on shows including Later... with Jools Holland , and was an extra in British television drama The Politician's Wife . She went on to work on the BFI/Maya Vision co-production A Bit of Scarlet, [2] before becoming a trainee reporter on BBC Radio 5's Out This Week. Between 1997 and 2000, she was a regular music journalist for Time Out London , as well as writing for NME , and had her own column called "Rosie's Pop Diary" in the now defunct Making Music magazine. [3] As a music journalist, she interviewed, among others, Beth Orton, Suzanne Vega, Stereophonics and the band Muse.

Music

In 1996 she formed a band named Wilby, which released an album entitled Precious Hours [4] in July 2000 on her own label, Cat Flap Recordings. The album launch gig at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club was reviewed in The Guardian , who praised Wilby's "glorious" voice. [5] Rosie went solo and supported artists including Bob Geldof, Jamie Cullum, Midge Ure, Glenn Tilbrook and John Grant's band The Czars. [6] She also performed on the Left Field stage at the Glastonbury Festival in 2005. [7]

Move into comedy

In 2004, after positive comments about her between song banter, she entered the stand-up competition So You Think You're Funny and got through to the semi-finals. She also reached the Laughing Horse competition semi-finals in 2005 and then the Funny Women final in 2006, [8] held at the Comedy Store, compered by Shappi Khorsandi. Other finalists that year included Holly Walsh and Susan Calman. In 2007, Wilby reached the final of the Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year and the semi-finals of the Amused Moose competition. [9]

She has taken several shows to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and on tour around the UK, including a spoof lecture about memory called "I am Nesia" [10] and another spoof lecture about sex, "The Science of Sex", which won a Fringe Report Award 2010 [11] and saw her being invited on to BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour [12] and Loose Ends. [13] The show was revived in 2012 for two performances at the 2012 Green Man Festival in Wales. [14]

Her follow-up show, "Rosie's Pop Diary", was based on her music career [15] and later became "How (not) to Make it in Britpop". She spoke about it with Libby Purves on BBC Radio 4's Midweek . [16]

In 2011, she co-wrote and co-starred in the short film The Bride and Bride, alongside fellow comic Sarah Campbell, which was screened at the 2011 London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival.

In 2012, she appeared at the Bloomsbury Theatre alongside Jen Brister, Zoe Lyons and Susan Calman in aid of a Stonewall UK charity event that was headlined by Sarah Millican. In August 2012, Wilby appeared alongside Jenny Eclair and Ellie Taylor at the Hackney Empire, part of the season "Ha Ha Hackney". Every year from 2006 to 2012 she appeared at Homotopia Festival in Liverpool, where Diva Magazine editor Jane Czyzselska described her as a "lesbian Eddie Izzard". [17] She now performs in comedy clubs across the UK and has also performed at Polari literary salon with Paul Burston in 2012 and at the South Bank Women of the World (WOW) Festival in 2013. [18]

Radio & Podcasts

Wilby has appeared on BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour and Loose Ends, BBC Radio 5, LBC and BBC London, but is best known for presenting a weekly LGBT magazine show, Out in South London , on London-based non-profit community radio station Resonance FM. [19] Notable guests on the show have included k.d lang, Sarah Waters, and Peter Tatchell. Wilby appears in the Sound Women 200 List featuring women working in the audio and radio industry. [20]

Wilby created her podcast The Breakup Monologues in Dec 2018. Famous guests include Dolly Alderton, Brett Goldstein, Katy Brand, Richard Herring, Helen Lederer and Samantha Baines. [21]

Personal life

Wilby has written about being an openly lesbian performer, [22] and her sexuality features heavily in her creative output. She wrote an article for The Guardian on being a lesbian comedian [23] and an article in the Independent Online about "coming out". [24] In 2011 she performed a fusion of stand up and film called I'm Dreaming of a Pink Christmas at the Rich Mix in East London, [25] which explored why Christmas is a far from conventional time for people who are LGBT.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linda Smith (comedian)</span> English comedian

Linda Helen Smith was an English comedian and comedy writer. She appeared regularly on Radio 4 panel games, and was voted "Wittiest Living Person" by listeners in 2002. From 2004 to 2006 she was head of the British Humanist Association.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarah Millican</span> English comedian

Sarah Jane Millican is an English comedian, writer and presenter. Millican won the comedy award for Best Newcomer at the 2008 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. In February 2013 she was listed as one of the 100 most powerful women in the United Kingdom by Radio 4's Woman's Hour, and in the same year she married fellow comedian Gary Delaney. Her first book, How to Be Champion, was published in 2017. Millican has performed on various tours, mainly across the United Kingdom, over the years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zoe Lyons</span> British comedian (born 1971)

Zoe Ann Lyons is a British comedian and TV presenter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seann Walsh</span> English comedian and actor

Sean Christopher Walsh, known professionally as Seann Walsh, is an English stand-up comedian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Calman</span> Scottish comedian

Susan Grace Calman is a Scottish comedian, television presenter and writer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gemma Whelan</span> English actress (born 1981)

Gemma Elizabeth Whelan is an English actress and comedian known for portraying Yara Greyjoy in the HBO fantasy-drama series Game of Thrones. She also plays Kate in all seasons of the comedy Upstart Crow, Detective Eunice Noon on the first season of The End of the F***ing World on Channel 4, and Geraldine on the third season of Killing Eve.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT culture in Liverpool</span>

The LGBT community in Liverpool, England is one of the largest in the United Kingdom and has a recorded history since the 18th century. Many historic LGBT firsts and pioneering moments in the LGBT rights movement either took place in Liverpool or were achieved by citizens of the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homotopia (festival)</span> LGBTQ+ arts festival in England

Homotopia is an international LGBTQ+ arts festival held annually in Liverpool, England. The festival takes place in late-October and throughout November every year and features a mixture of theatre, dance, film, photography, art, cabaret and debate at numerous venues across Liverpool.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aisling Bea</span> Irish comedian, actress, and screenwriter

Aisling Clíodhnadh O'Sullivan, known professionally as Aisling Bea, is an Irish comedian, actress and screenwriter. She created, wrote and starred in the comedy series This Way Up on Channel 4. As a stand-up comedian, she won the So You Think You're Funny award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2012, being only the second woman to win the award in its then-25-year history. She also appears regularly on light entertainment comedy panel shows such as QI and 8 Out of 10 Cats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate Smurthwaite</span> British comedian

Kate Smurthwaite is a British comedian and political activist. She has appeared on British television and radio as a pundit, offering opinion and comment on subjects ranging from politics to religion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob Beckett</span> English comedian

Robert Anthony Beckett is an English comedian, actor, and presenter. He was a co-host on the ITV2 spin-off show I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! NOW! from 2012 to 2014. Since 2016, Beckett has been a team captain on the E4 panel show 8 Out of 10 Cats and the narrator of the reality series Celebs Go Dating. He presents BBC One entertainment series Wedding Day Winners and All Together Now.

Out In South London is a weekly arts and culture LGBT radio show broadcast on Resonance 104.4FM every Tuesday at 6.30pm. The show was devised and is presented by comedian Rosie Wilby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jayde Adams</span> British actress and singer (born 1984)

Jayde Pricilla Gail Adams is a British comedian, actress, writer and opera singer from Bristol. She is the winner of the 2014 Funny Women Award.

Ria Lina is a British comedian, actress and writer. She has appeared on Yesterday, Today & The Day Before, Mock the Week, Steph's Packed Lunch, The Now Show, The News Quiz, Sky News, and Have I Got News for You. In 2003, she won an Ethnic Multicultural Media Academy award for Best Comedian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane Postlethwaite</span> English actress

Jane Postlethwaite is an English comedian, writer and actor. She is originally from Cumbria, England.

Harriet Kemsley is an English stand-up comedian.

Rosie Jones is a British comedian, writer and actress. After starting her career as a writer on panel shows, she went on to appear as a guest on The Last Leg, 8 Out of 10 Cats, 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, QI and Hypothetical. She attended the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo as a roving reporter for The Last Leg.

Wendy Wason is a Scottish writer, comedian and actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ingrid Dahle</span> Norwegian comedian and actress

Ingrid Elise Dahle is a UK-based Norwegian comedian and actress.

Laura Lexx is an English comedian and writer originally from Somerset.

References

  1. ↑ Jones, Catherine. "Comedian Rosie Wilby on being a funny woman and her appearance at the Liverpool Comedy Festival". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  2. ↑ "Rosie Wilby profile British Film Institute". BFI. Archived from the original on 19 June 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  3. ↑ Smith, Dominic (1 March 2013). "Rosie Wilby – How (Not) To Make It in Britpop". Brighton Argus. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  4. ↑ Clarkson, John. "Wilby: Precious Hours". Pennyblackmusic. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  5. ↑ Clarke, Betty (26 April 2002). "Calling for Calm". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  6. ↑ Hubbard, Michael (21 December 2002). "The Czars + Rosie Wilby". MusicOMH. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  7. ↑ "Left Field Tent: 2005". The Guardian. London. 22 June 2005. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  8. ↑ "Funny Women: Past Finalists". Archived from the original on 19 December 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  9. ↑ "Rosie Wilby: Amused Moose". Amused Moose. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  10. ↑ Dessau, Bruce (5 April 2012). "Thanks for the memory jokes, Rosie Wilby". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  11. ↑ Fringe Report Awards 2010
  12. ↑ Garvey, Jane. "The Science of Attraction". BBC. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  13. ↑ Anderson, Clive. "Loose Ends". BBC. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  14. ↑ "Rosie Wilby: The Science of Sex". Archived from the original on 12 March 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  15. ↑ Moses, Caro (10 June 2011). "Rosie Wilby: The accidental comedian". Three Weeks Unlimited Media. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  16. ↑ Purves, Libby. "Midweek". BBC.
  17. ↑ Czyzselska, Jane. "Review: Homotopia". Millivres Publications. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  18. ↑ "WOW Artists and Speakers". The Southbank Centre. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  19. ↑ Mahoney, Elisabeth (24 March 2010). "Radio head: Out in South London". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  20. ↑ Sound Women 200 List
  21. ↑ "The Breakup Monologues with Rosie Wilby on Apple Podcasts". 19 May 2023.
  22. ↑ "The solipsistic lonely hearts club band". London Evening Standard. 11 December 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  23. ↑ Wilby, Rosie (3 August 2011). "It's hard for comics to come out". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  24. ↑ Wilby, Rosie (11 October 2012). "International Coming Out Day: The jokes are widespread, but there is a reality behind it". The Independent. London. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  25. ↑ "I'm Dreaming of a Pink Christmas". Archived from the original on 20 June 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.