Comedy / amy mason
‘I feel proud of myself’: viral comic Amy Mason on finding freedom in her 30s
Despite achieving huge viral success with her sketches – most famously her characterisations of ‘Bristol mums’ at the school gate – Amy Mason’s journey towards standup has been a circuitous one.
“I always loved comedy”, she reflects. “I used to listen to Jo Brand’s radio show in my room when I was about 10, but never saw a place for myself as a standup.
“I mean, there weren’t many visible women doing comedy on TV until I was in my 30s.”
is needed now More than ever
Instead, Mason followed a path into writing and theatre-making, winning the Dundee International Book Prize for her novel The Other Ida (2014), writing for TV and radio, and making three autobiographical shows with Bristol Old Vic.
It is something of a full circle moment, then, to be bringing her debut hour-long standup show Free Mason to The Weston Studio in February – a show encompassing marriage separation, coming out as queer, parenting, Bristol, and the journey to living alone.
“I felt like I was starting all over again when I began comedy and I feel like I’ve finally made it my career,” says Mason, who likens the immediacy and versatility of standup to a superpower.
Amy Mason
“I’ve always loved new challenges; and new ways to write and perform have always intrigued me. With comedy I love the way you can come up with an idea in the morning and perform it that night, or come up with stuff live on stage. I love how DIY and low-tech it all is.”
Unquestionably, Mason’s social media reach – especially on TikTok, where she has amassed 11 million views, and counting – has opened her up to a new audience for her longer form standup.
“It’s definitely helped”, she admits. But that said, there is a distinction between her direction of travel in the online space, and the freedom to be more authentically herself in a live setting.
“I quickly realised that I needed to be careful of doing too much character stuff online if I wasn’t going to do it live. People were coming to my show and expecting me to do sketch comedy and not moan about my divorce.”
Amy Mason
Amy Mason: Free Mason is at The Weston Studio, Bristol Old Vic on February 14-15 at 8pm. Tickets are available at www.bristololdvic.org.uk. Follow Amy @amymasoncomedy.
All photos: Lucy Ridges
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