7 Questions with Chloe Radcliffe
Photo: Mindy Tucker
What’s your show about?
I’ve cheated in almost all my relationships. No subtlety here. But it’s not just about cheating - it’s about not knowing when a relationship is enough for you, it’s about a desperate need to be in control, it’s about desire and avoidance. And it’s about when I shagged a FedEx guy.
What’s the edgiest topic in your show?
Besides that I’m a big cheater and I’m okay with it and I’m talking about that publicly? Probably the story of a stranger c*mming on my face. Or that I competed in speech and debate for a decade. Take your pick.
Who are you comedy heroes?
Eddie Izzard is the singular voice who shaped my comedic sensibilities when I was young. When I was watching her specials (all of which I can still recite top to bottom) as a preteen and teenager, I didn’t even realize that what I was seeing was standup - I placed it in some other weird incredible performance category. The standup I saw on American television was a lot of “isn’t my wife a bitch,” and I was too young to realize that that wasn’t the ONLY kind of standup out there. So Eddie was like a magical guiding light toward something more inspired, and much more interesting to me.
What excites you about the Edinburgh Fringe?
I cannot wait to see what my show looks like at the end of 27 days. My favorite thing is knowing that I have absolutely no way of knowing what’s to come this month. Oh, and the parties. I love parties.
What scares you about the Edinburgh Fringe?
When I started writing at The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, I was pretty underprepared, but I figured, hey, I’m smart and funny and charming, I can blag it. (Am I using that right? I learned that word today.) But then when I got there, I realized EVERYONE is smart, funny, and charming…so I can’t skate by when that’s the baseline. And I feel like that coming into the Fringe: there is SO much talent, so much hard work, so many extroverts who built their entire personalities around tricking strangers into immediately liking them, that I can’t just skate by on my winning smile. It’s terrifying to realize that you’re not special when everyone around you is special, too.
If you could wave a magic wand and revolutionise the Fringe, what would it be like?
Cheaper housing with more toilets! Just sliiiightly warmer weather! I would have a longer torso! That’s not about the Fringe, just something I’d do if I had a magic wand.
Who’s show would you recommend and why?
One of my dearest friends from the US is also doing Fringe this year: Patrick Susmilch is running a show called Texts From My Dead Friends at Just The Tonic at the Caves. The title is…incredibly self-explanatory. The show is so funny, and I haven’t seen anyone else dealing with death in the age of the internet in the ultra-wry, bittersweet way Patrick is. Go see it!
Chloe Radcliffe’s debut stand-up show ‘Cheat’ is at the Pleasance Courtyard - Bunker III at 7.15pm from 2nd – 28th August (not 14th) for tickets go to https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/chloe-radcliffe-cheat