One Night Only?

WRITER'S NOTEBOOK: Or how I came to perform stand up at the Glasgow International Comedy Festival...

Image: Glasgow International Comedy Festival

It all started back in December 2025.

There I was, one damp Scottish afternoon, mindlessly scrolling through X, when I spotted a post from the Glasgow International Comedy Festival (GICF).

I’m a big fan of watching comedy, whether live or on telly, and for years have secretly harboured an ambition to do stand up.

So, I decided to go for it and sent off my application to this free course for women and marginalised genders, which was being delivered as part of GICF 2026. Almost 60 people applied, and it was a gobsmacking moment when I found out that I’d been selected as one of the 16 participants.

Every Thursday for the past few weeks, we’ve all been busy attending comedy writing and performance skills workshops, led by the legend that is comedian Viv Gee.

My short-form fiction writing experience turned out to be pretty handy when it came to creating a stand-up routine, which is basically a story that takes the audience on a comedic journey. The lightbulb moment came during our second workshop, when I delivered an improvised piece on why I love Paddington Bear that was greeted with genuine laughter from the group. Perhaps I possessed the embryonic makings of a comedian?

Over the next four sessions, we honed and rehearsed our routines. A group chat was created so we could brainstorm ideas and support each other, both between workshops and ahead of the much anticipated/dreaded end-of-course showcase: First Time Funnies.

Thursday 19 March seemed to come around pretty quickly, meaning it was time for me and my amazing new pals to assemble at The Social Hub, where we had an audience of actual paying punters waiting to be entertained by our comedy (and not all of them were friends and family, either).

Now, it’s safe to say that my default setting is 95% super-shy and 5% outrageous show off, so having to stand alone on stage, mic in hand, for 5 minutes was a really big deal. Nerves needed to be wrangled but I think I got through it with my dignity intact. Even Mrs Menopause Brain didn’t let me down with her usual forgetfulness nonsense (no notes or prompts were allowed on stage).

It was all over in a flash but I’ve been buzzing ever since, so perhaps this won’t be a ‘One Night Only’ thing. After all, there are plenty of open mic sessions going on in Glasgow, and the group chat is already filling up with potential venues where we could perform. Watch this space…

Big thanks to GICF, Viv and the gang for getting me to this unexpected point. And, of course, to Paddington Bear for being my comedy muse.

The beat sheet for my First Time Funnies routine (Photo: Vicky Heath)