Sue Perkins' live show brimming with wit and stories

Comedian, broadcaster, actor and writer Sue Perkins is promising a night of sparkling wit and great stories from her best-selling memoir.
Sue PerkinsSue Perkins
Sue Perkins

She told us what is in store for the audience who will be attending her show at Buxton Opera House on September 14.

Q. What prompted you to hit the road with your new tour, “Live! in Spectacles”?

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A. It’s a good time to look back on my life so far. I fully intend to live to the age of 92, so this is half-time. Essentially this tour is handing out the orange segments.

Q. Tell us more.

A. Writing a memoir begins a process that doesn’t necessarily end with publication. You begin to think about family life and stories and relationships, and those are ongoing. A big, technicolour puke of thoughts. Perhaps I should put that on the poster…

Q. What do you particularly like about interacting with the audience?

A. It enriches me. What I have done lately has been TV-based, so I haven’t had the same feedback as I get live, and that’s what I love. I don’t encourage hecklers, but sometimes a heckler is the funniest person in the room - why not embrace that? The audience is a big pool of fun you can swim around in.

Q. So what subjects will you be covering in the show?

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A. Births, deaths, lemon drizzle. I’ll talk a lot about the catastrophising that went on in my family. There was always a sense that something awful, that imminent doom, was around the corner. It came from my mum – she’s a worrier. Everything was a potential trip to A &E!

Q. You will be giving each ticket-holder a copy of your book, Spectacles. What’s the thinking behind that?

A. It gives me the opportunity to meet the whole audience one by one afterwards during the signings. It’s as much about how people respond to the material. My memoir is a story of family andchildhood, and everyone has had one of those. Mine is not the definitive version of childhood, but it’s a great way to start a conversation. I love it when someone says, “It’s weird. I lived next to an electricity substation for 20 years as well.” Or, “We had a cat that dragged our turkey across the room at Christmas and we had to eat boiled eggs for our lunch instead.”

Q. Why do you think The Great British Bake Off has proved so popular?

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A. I think the chemistry between the four of us – Mary, Paul, Mel and I – works so well. But the real reason why the show is so successful is the twelve people who come to bake every year.

Q. Finally, do you believe that a sense of humour is vital?

A. Of course. Life is boring without the punctuation of punchlines. If you laugh at a joke, it’s because someone has put something you already know in a way you had never thought of before.

l Sue Perkins Live! in Spectacles is at Buxton Opera House on September 14 at 7.30pm. Tickets £27.50. Contact 01298 72190 or www.buxtonoperahouse.org.uk

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