Like so many of her fellow Scots before her, comedian Fern Brady is discovering with each trip that we’re a weird mob here in Australia.
“I think Brits have the wrong idea about Aussies because all the stuff we get shown over here is basically dumb people on beaches,” Fern says. “Then when we got to Australia we found out you guys don’t really watch ‘Neighbours’ or ‘Home And Away’, or you think it’s sh.tty,” she laughs. She is reassured that yes, we do think it’s sh.tty.
“So over here when we were growing up we watched ‘Neighbours’, ‘Home And Away’, ‘Heartbreak High’, so we just thought Australians were beautiful people that were always on the beach.”
Though not entirely wrong on that point [checks look in the mirror], Fern goes on to say that her time spent in the country shattered any of her preconceived notions of Australia and its people.
“The main difference about meeting Aussies in person was, well they weren't strippers and generally... I didn’t have any negative experiences,” she says. “I thought there were going to be sharks and snakes and spiders everywhere, and then there wasn't. In fact the only time we saw any wildlife was in Brisbane.”
Fern returns to Australia in March with her new stand-up show ‘Power & Chaos’, including performances at Adelaide Fringe Festival and Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
“I usually don’t like talking about being Scottish, but I’m talking about it in relation to Brexit because basically Scotland didn’t vote for Brexit, and usually Scotland has low self-esteem as a country but now we're getting really smug because we didn’t vote for it and the UK is a mess,” Fern explains about what she’s presenting in ‘Power & Chaos’.
“Also I’m talking a lot about sexuality, bisexuals and gender stuff, which is something I usually do material on. Some stuff about mental illness; I hate when people talk about it in a heavy way and I want to talk about it in a funny way. Those seem to be the main things in the show at the moment.”
Known for an acerbic wit and never afraid to go dark with her comedy, as a still relatively fresh face in Australia she’s still getting used to the shifting landscape of Australian humour.
“I remember last year I had some of the best shows of my life in Melbourne but I remember there was some stuff I said and [the audience] would flinch,” she says.
“It’s interesting finding out what hits a nerve; like, I came over doing abortion jokes not knowing it's still restricted in a lot of Australian states. You’re a very interesting country.”
Cultural pitfalls aside, what Fern seems to appreciate most about Australians is our uncanny ability to be forthright in our lines of questioning.
“Another thing I really liked about Australia is… The way they talk about stuff on the news is so funny, and the way you talk about politics is super casual, and there's also a lot more casual swearing on daytime TV,” she says with approval.
“I was doing a radio show when I first got to Australia to plug my show, and I was talking about being a stripper. In the UK they would never ever bring this up in an interview, or they'd bring it up really nervously; in Australia they brought it up on morning radio, like 'so, you're a bloody stripper are ya?'” she laughs. “I just loved it.”
Fern Brady Tour Dates
4-17 March - Garden Of Unearthly Delights (Adelaide Fringe)21 March - HOTA (Gold Coast)
22-23 March - Canberra Street Theatre (Canberra Comedy Festival)
28 March-21 April – ACMI (Melbourne International Comedy Festival)
27-28 April - Enmore Theatre (Sydney Comedy Festival)
