CERYS NELMES

JANE DUFFUS INTERVIEWS CERYS

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Local talent Cerys is a dedicated member of the What The Frock! family. Having joined us for quite a few shows in 2013 (both in Bristol and further afield), the outspoken comedian is now one of our two resident acts.

Cerys says: "I'm so excited to be taking over the MC residency at What The Frock!. Because it's my home turf, the audience are always fabulous and the calibre of acts - who come from all over the UK - are always amazing. I'm proud to be a part of such a great night in Bristol!"

However, Cerys hasn't always been a comedian. In fact, she only made her move into comedy in 2011, having previously been a firefighter. "We live in a small community and our fire station is staffed by retained fire fighters, which includes a few friends of my family," explains Cerys, who lives in Wooton-under-Edge. "I was a single parent at the time, and as I lived and worked in the town, as did my friends and family, it felt like looking after your own people. When you save somebody or stop a building from collapsing, you feel good about what you’re doing. But when I’m cutting my friends out of cars, that’s the mental thing – you’re always prepared to be turning up to something that your friends are in. That’s why I decided to stop doing it."

After fighting fires, Cerys went along to a comedy workshop... at which she was offered her first ever five-minute spot just one month later at the Leicester Comedy Festival. She explains: "I didn’t have a clue about writing comedy or doing anything funny. I knew I was funny and could tell a story, though."

What advice does Cerys have for women who fancy having a go at comedy? "Write your first bit of material and work the open mic circuit to see what does and doesn’t work," she says. "Record everything you do, all the time, however long you’ve been doing it. When you’re on stage, you can’t hear what works and what doesn’t. If you’ve got a certain type of material and keep going down that line, it’s not going to work. There should be a trigger joke, if they don’t go for it, don’t go down that route."

When she's not at What The Frock! or another comedy gig, Cerys is glued to Big Brother... and is a regular on shows like Big Brother's Bit On The Psyche, joining other telly pundits to talk about the contestants. "I love Big Brother!" she says. "I’d like to be on it ideally, but I’d also love to go in and just have a poke around the house. I’ve applied a few times and been through various audition stages… and then they go and pick crazy people!"

Next year, Cerys, next year...