After 23 years as a stand-up comedian and 55 years on the planet JoJo Smith has decided to perform her first solo hour at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival as part of the Laughing Horse Free Festival.
It's a limited run, 15-28 August 2016, as JoJo freely admits that since she gave up partying the 'thought of being in Edinburgh for the whole festival sober would be hell'. She's willing to risk a fortnight.
Back in 1998 she did her first fringe as part of the Screaming Blue Murder Big Value Comedy Show, performing 20 minutes a night, but she's never performed a one hour solo show.
So why now? Why not? Last November she was coerced into doing an hour show as part of the Sheffield Comedy Festival, her first time standing on any stage, anywhere, talking for a whole hour. Contrary to her expectations both she and her audience loved it.
She freely admits it was fear that held her back for so long. "What if nobody comes?" "What if it's shit?" "What will I talk about for an hour?"
Well now she knows. This year marks the 40th anniversary of Punk and JoJo was 15 when it happened. Punk rock saved her soul.
She saw the Sex Pistols on So It Goes, and woke up. She tried singing in a band with other enlightened souls in Preston but that didn't work so she started a fanzine, The Ligger. In 16 months she'd met just about every major player in the world of punk.
It wasn't enough. She knew that she had to leave town and at the grand old age of 17 she found a way to do it with her parent's blessing. An advert for Nat West in her local job centre, meant within a few months of her birthday she was living in London with Sting as her next-door neighbour, and her idol
Mick Jones of the Clash as one of her customers at the bank branch she was placed in.
The sub-title 'sex&drugs&rock&roll&menopause encompasses the topics she'll be covering in the hour. There's a million tales to tell so no two shows will be the same, but they'll make you laugh. That's a promise.
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