Following a successful run at the 2022 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, comedian, actress, writer, voiceover artist and podcaster Lucy Porter is set to embark on a national tour of her critically acclaimed show ‘Wake Up Call’.
‘Wake-Up Call‘ is a show about revelations, realisations and epiphanies – both large and small. Subjects covered include: Bin collection schedules, the novels of Jean Rhys, cats, school fair booze tombolas, the Scottish Enlightenment, pressure washers and Huel. It’s an exuberant, silly show with some wisdom sprinkled on top.
The production takes its inspiration from the unwanted Wake Up Calls we all receive in life. Sometimes the universe is like the aggressive receptionist at the Guildford Premier Inn, forcing you to do get up and do things when you’d rather just stay in bed. Like a really good episode of Casualty, this show starts with a medical emergency, and then expands to talk about anxiety, grief, love, loss, shame and regret, with a bit of sauciness thrown in for the dads.
There’s also some practical advice on midlife crisis management. Lucy’s friends are crumbling around her amid the pressures of young children, elderly parents, and the depredations of age. Since Lucy’s midlife crisis has been chronic rather than acute (it started when she was about 25 and just won’t quit) she’s been dispensing tips on what to do when you realise all your achievements are meaningless, and that life is just one long banquet of disappointments on the way to the sweet release of death.
An antidote to “toxic positivity”, this show revels in healthy cynicism. The only reason Lucy has a “Live Laugh Love” sign on her house is that it’s more effective at keeping people away than “No Cold Callers”. Lucy does find joy and positivity in some of life’s bleaker moments, but she’s not going to try and inspire you – the show’s messages read less like motivational quotes, more like Country Music song titles: “It’s Hard to Have a Breakdown When You’re Already Broken”, “You’ll Never Meet a Man Called Keith who Doesn’t Own a Shed”, “If You Want a Peaceful Home, Don’t Marry a Banjo Player” etc.
Lucy is a regular face on our television screens, both with her acting work and her many appearances on some of the UK’s most beloved panel shows. She’s appeared on QI with both Sandi and Steven hosting, she’s been on Mock The Week, Have I Got News for You, and Would I Lie to You? Lucy’s acting work includes her recent stint in EastEnders as well as the stage version of One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest in Edinburgh and London, and she also has some good stories about being the reluctant star of a Japanese cartoon series.
Now Wake Up Call captures the mood of introspection and reflection that has prevailed over the last few years, but looks to the future and asks where we go from here.
Tour Dates 2023
13-Jan-23 GUILDFORD G Live
14-Jan-23 GUILDFORD G Live
19-Jan-23 CAMBRIDGE The Junction
20-Jan-23 HAVANT The Spring
21-Jan-23 HAVANT The Spring
26-Jan-23 NORWICH Playhouse
27-Jan-23 CHELTENHAM Town Hall
28-Jan-23 COVENTRY Warwick Arts Centre
02-Feb-23 BRISTOL Hen And Chickens
03-Feb-23 SWINDON Wyvern Theatre
04-Feb-23 BORDON Phoenix Arts Centre
09-Feb-23 READING South Street Arts
10-Feb-23 SOUTHEND Palace Theatre
11-Feb-23 SOUTHEND Palace Theatre
16-Feb-23 ILKLEY King’s Hall
17-Feb-23 SALFORD The Lowry
18-Feb-23 MILTON KEYNES The Stables
22-Feb-23 PLYMOUTH Quad Theatre
23-Feb-23 LAUNCESTON Town Hall
24-Feb-23 FOLKESTONE Quarterhouse
25-Feb-23 BASINGSTOKE The Haymarket
02-Mar-23 BRIGHTON Komedia
03-Mar-23 MAIDSTONE Hazlitt
04-Mar-23 SHREWSBURY Theatre Severn
10-Mar-23 CRAWLEY The Hawth
11-Mar-23 CRAWLEY The Hawth
16-Mar-23 MOLD Theatre Clwyd
17-Mar-23 COLCHESTER Arts Centre
18-Mar-23 TUNBRIDGE WELLS Trinity Theatre
23-Mar-23 BANBURY The Mill
24-Mar-23 BANBURY The Mill
25-Mar-23 BARNARD CASTLE The Witham
30-Mar-23 FINCHLEY Arts Depot
31-Mar-23 FARNHAM Maltings
01-Apr-23 TAUNTON Brewhouse
05-Apr-23 CANTERBURY Gulbenkian
13-Apr-23 EPSOM Playhouse
14-Apr-23 EPSOM Playhouse
15-Apr-23 BIRMINGHAM The Old Rep
21-Apr-23 TWICKENHAM The Exchange
22-Apr-23 DIDCOT Cornerstone
28-Apr-23 MAIDENHEAD Norden Farm
29-Apr-23 NORTHAMPTON Royal & Derngate
04-May-23 ISLE OF WIGHT Quay
05-May-23 FAREHAM Ashcroft Arts Centre
06-May-23 FAREHAM Ashcroft Arts Centre
11-May-23 BECCLES Public Hall
12-May-23 BURY ST EDMUNDS Royal Theatre
13-May-23 SOUTHAMPTON Riverside Studios
18-May-23 FAVERSHAM The Alexander Centre
19-May-23 ALDERSHOT West End Centre
20-May-23 ALDERSHOT West End Centre
26-May-23 WATFORD Palace Theatre
27-May-23 NEW MILTON Forest Arts Centre
28-May-23 NEW MILTON Forest Arts Centre
For tickets visit www.boundandgaggedcomedy.com
