Diminutive Scottish comedienne Susan Calman has been on the fringes of my awareness for a few years as I have seen her crop up on various TV shows which I have watched such as 'Would I Lie To You?' or 'Mock The Week', and have listened to her on BBC radio 4's 'I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue'; but am rather ashamed to say that I knew little else of her, what I find out to be quite an extensive and varied, body of work; everything from stand-up comedy tours, appearing on Strictly Come Dancing (a show I have never once watched!), and writing books; the reason for her chatting this evening with Erica Wagner as part of the Manchester Literature Festival.
In this one hour conversation we learned much about Calman, and the more she chatted, the more I warmed to her. She came across as a very honest and down-to-earth person, with, as my mum would undoubtedly say, her head screwed on right! She is promoting her second book 'Sunny Side Up' at present, but before that, it would be good to have a little idea of her first book, 'Cheer Up Love' and what brought her to where she is now.
For those that don't know, Calman is openly gay and went through a rather depressive and traumatic time as a youth growing up in Glasgow in the late 70s and 80s. She tried to commit suicide at 16 and felt very alone and alienated. On her father's 'recommendation' she went into law and became a lawyer specialising in copyright, a subject and job which she found singularly boring and unedifying.
Her decision to 'jack it all in' and try a different route through life proved serendipitous and fruitful, but her first book was written at a time when she was both angry and not at one with the world around her. 'Cheer up Love' then, was her own inward cry for help, and perhaps a little self-therapy in order for her to face the issues that had blighted her formative years, writing things in that book that she had never admitted to anyone before, but recognising that she needed to change her life. 'Sunny Side Up' however is a complete opposite stand-point, and takes the view that we all need to be friendlier, happier, and more helpful towards each other. Life should be lived with joy (a word that she would use repeatedly throughout the interview), and we need to help each other and spread the happiness. She expressed the opinion that most decisions we make about people and ideas are 'binary'; ie 'he voted Labour therefore I hate him' - however she asks us all to take a holistic view of people and not judge them simply on what decision or what view. Don't judge people on one 'negative' and don't live your lives in anger and mistrust. Do we simply have to accept that we live in an isolating and frightened society which prefers to gloat over bad news in preference to hearing good?!
She described her time on 'Strictly Come Dancing' as 'joyous' and 'the most fabulous experience of [her] life', and even for someone who has yet to watch even a clip from the show, her anecdotes were both heart-warming and hilarious.
Before taking a few questions from the audience Calman mentioned she was a massive Doctor Who fan, praising the new female doctor, and glorifying in the fact that women's voices are being heard more and more, and that, when asked why she didn't represent the LGBT community on Strictly by dancing with a woman her acerbic and intelligent reply was, 'This is 2018 and I was the first lesbian to perform on the show. Men can marry men; women can marry women, but we are all humans, and we all have the right to do what we want. I am a lesbian and am dancing on the show - what part of that is not representing the LGBT community?!'
In conclusion, Susan Calman presented herself as a hugely approachable, sensible and sensitive lady with a large heart. Her anecdotes were sharp and funny, and her message clear: go out there and improve your life by improving others'! Turn your life the Sunny Side Up!
Reportage - Matthew Dougall
on - 13/10/18
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