In the space of a decade, Roisin Conaty has gone from struggling comic to one of Britain’s best-loved stars. As the writer, creator, star, and producer of GameFace, she is rapidly on the way to joining the likes of Julia Davis and Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge as one of the new queens of confessional comedy. Learn more with these ten little facts.
1. Love at First Bite
Conaty wasn’t someone who grew up dreaming of being a stand-up, or even with that much interest in comedy. At the time of her first-ever routine at an open-mic night in London’s Crouch End (a routine she wouldn’t have even attempted had she not been slightly tipsy at the time), the only standup she’d ever seen was Richard Pryor and Joan Rivers on TV. But when the bug bit, it bit hard. “It was like love at first sight,” she’s since said. “It felt terrifying and it mattered immediately.”
2. The Dolly Parton of Comedy
If you’ve seen the smoky eye makeup and beehive ‘do of Marcella, the out-of-work actor Conaty portrays on GameFace, you’ll know she favours the big ‘n’ bold look for her characters… something she’s also a fan of in real life. “I like a lot of makeup and I like big blonde hair,” Conaty told The Guardian. “Life’s too short for the natural look. Slap it on.” Little wonder then that when she was growing up, her mother nicknamed her the Dolly Parton of London.
3. London Born, Irish Heart
Even though Conaty was born and raised on a council estate in London, she considers herself more Irish than British, something no doubt explained by the influence of her Irish parents. “I still identify as Irish,” she says. “But I’m a Londoner too. It really is a great place to grow up. I grew up on a council estate and I met people from all over the world and tried food from all over the world before I was 10. It means I can travel the world and I don’t feel like it’s a strange place. Of course, there’s poverty and racism here which makes you wonder if it’s just nostalgia. But as a country, I still feel more Irish than British.”
4. Comfort in Comedy
ATV+isn’t quite as aesthetically driven as film, but there’s still pressure on actresses to look a certain way, and, if at all possible, to never age a day past 25. Comedy is different, and it’s the all-embracing nature of the medium that Conaty loves. “Stand-up is one of the art forms where you don’t have to look nice, and I hope it stays that way,” she’s told the Independent. “I’m an overeater and my weight goes up and down – I have been aaalll the weights. Comedy is one of the few places in entertainment at present where it’s good for women to be, as no one is telling you that you’re too heavy or too old.”
5. Hero Worship
Stand-up may still be viewed as a male-dominated field, but over the past few decades, women have been making their mark, with comics like Jo Brand, who rose to fame in the 90s with her sharp wit and down-to-earth persona, being a major source of inspiration for Conaty. “I found Jo’s comedy to be so impactful, since no one in the history of entertainment ever went on stage as a woman to be heard,” she told The Independent. “This woman went on stage and said, ‘Listen to my words,’ which drove people crazy. It was such a groundbreaking feminist act, and it was the bravest thing to do.”
6. Panel Show Queen
Despite receiving widespread criticism for its “all-male” bias, Conaty made her first real taste of fame on panel shows in the early days of her career. She became something of a panel show queen, regularly appearing on shows such as Have I Got News for You, 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, Insert Name Here, A League of Their Own, Would I Lie to You? and Room 101.
7. Doing it for the Girls
Conaty began performing as a comic at the age of 24, but it was a hard 7-year slog before she finally created her first solo show, Hero, Warrior, Fireman, Liar. The years of practice clearly paid off, however: after performing the show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, she ended up winning the Best Newcomer Award, becoming one of only five women to have received an Edinburgh Comedy award over the past 30 years.
8. Look Away Now
Despite their reputation for egotism, you’d be surprised at how many actors can’t stand to watch themselves on screen. It’s a trait Conaty shares, as she explained to Comedy UK. “It’s really awful, actually,” she said. “It’s really unnatural to be in a room full of people watching you on screen. It’s exposing. Your little imaginary world is up there on the screen. They can see what I’ve been thinking about! It’s very odd.”
9. A Baking Disaster
She may be comedy gold, but as Conaty proved in 2018, she’s no domestic goddess. Along with Ruth Davidson, Jamie Lang, Teri Hatcher, Harry Hill, Stacey Solomon, Ricky Wilson, Tim Minchin, Nick Hewer, Melanie Sykes, Martin Kemp, Lee Mack, Kadeena Cox, Joe Lycett, Griff Rhys Jones, Ella Eyre, Perri Kielty, Bill Turnbull, Alan Carr, and Aisling Bea, the actress made a guest appearance on a celebrity edition of The Great British Bake Off in aid of Sports Relief. Judging from what emerged from her oven, Mary Berry need not worry about losing her “Queen of the Cake” title anytime soon.
10. Drawing from Life
Although GameFace is not entirely autobiographical, Conaty has acknowledged that certain aspects of her life have occasionally crept into the script. The ex-boyfriend story arc, for instance, was inspired by a long-term relationship she had in her twenties: after the relationship ended, she was so heartbroken and unable to move on that she had to move back in with her mother.
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