Comedian Lucy Porter to appear in Cambridge in March

Lucy Porter, a regular on British television, radio and the stand-up circuit, looks at what we inherit from our ancestors and what we leave behind in her new show, Pass It On, which she premiered at the Edinburgh Festival.

Lucy has inherited dodgy knees and global warming from her parents, but can she leave a better legacy for her children? The 45-year-old will be in Cambridge, at The Junction, on Friday, March 15.

After spending Christmas with her family in New York, Lucy is preparing for her UK tour, which starts in Hemel Hempstead on February 2.

“I think every single tour I’ve ever done, I’ve been to Cambridge, to The Junction, so it does feel like a second home to me now,” she says.

“There are some venues where you think, ‘I wonder what that will be like?’, and with Cambridge I can picture exactly where in the dressing room I’m going to sit. I know my route backstage, I know exactly where I’m going to have my tea before the gig – so it’s all reassuringly familiar.”

Pass It On is a show with lots of personal reflection. “It is about the legacy that we receive from generations before us and what we’re going to pass on to those who come after us,” explains Lucy, “so it sounds like quite a highfalutin, philosophical show, which in part it is, but there’s also a lot of nonsense about glass clowns, Marks & Spencer’s jeans and George Michael.”

She adds: “I never really appreciated George Michael until recently, because when he died it turned out that he had been doing loads of amazing charity work without anybody knowing, so in the show my conclusion is that we should all try and be like George – we should all try and be good people who just do stuff for other people without shouting about it.

“The comedy ending of the show is me basically saying that people won’t be able to find out about all the wonderful good deeds that I’m doing until after I’m gone, which obviously leaves open the question, ‘Am I actually doing anything wonderful, or just hoping people will think I am?’”

Lucy believes social media plays a part in this. “Everyone’s on social media and constantly worrying about how they look to other people and what other people think of them,” she says, “and I make the point in the show that there’s no point worrying about what people think of you because actually, often, in the final reckoning – when all is done and dusted – what people make of your life can be very different to what you would hope it is.

“People, I think, are so concerned about trying to manipulate their image and give a good account of themselves, when actually you should just get on with living your life and not worry too much about what people think of you.”

Pass It On also sees Lucy reflect on her age. “There’s always that,” she laughs. “Anyone who’s seen any of my shows in recent years probably knows that I’m acutely aware of the ageing process.

“It’s quite nice now because I get people who’ve seen previous shows coming back because they want to know how things are going and how my mid-life crisis is developing.

“So there’s an update on all of that, and a bit of stuff about the menopause – which I’m always hesitant to mention because I think it puts people off. It’s quite a pertinent subject and I think I am quite funny about it.

“There’s lots of things about the concerns of middle-aged people, like jeans from Marks & Spencer and parking and bins – all the things that we get excited about.”

The Junction, Friday, March 15, 8pm. Tickets: £17.
Box office: 01223 511511 or junction.co.uk.