683 - MAISIE ADAM - Pochettino's Wedding Gift, Panel Show Secrets, & Accidentally In A Panto

25:08So people go Pannell. Pannell. Right, okay. What's the best thing about Pannell? You just said it was Pannell, then you've instantly gone Pannell. I can tell you the best thing about Pannell. It has a pantomime every year. Don't worry, there's more. Guess when the pantomime is? February. Why? I don't know. Always has been. They did a really good production of Shrek. Yeah, it's never a normal pantomime. It's not like, you know, Mother Goose or... It's not festive though. No, no, no. They'll just do like... Often like Disney. Yeah, just in like the Village Hall. Yeah. That's odd. Do you go still?

25:44Do you still go? What, yeah? No, I haven't been in a while. Would you be in it if they asked you? Yes.

25:55Sure. I actually, here we go. Do you want to clang? I actually was the voice of a golden, I don't know, what was it? Golden egg? A golden, oh, golden harp in the Harrogate Pantomime last year. Were you? Yeah. The voice. Yeah. So I was doing a gig there like in September and they were like, can you just do some voice? Like, can you just say these scripts? And I was like, yeah, fine. And then literally a week later they were like, delighted to announce Masey Adam is playing the harp. And I was like, what? I was just in a room a week ago just saying these weird sentences. And then I had like... You've been roped into that.

26:31You've been roped into that. I would love to be in a panto. I think it's my dream. Apparently you make a killing in it if you're more than just the voice of a harp. You don't have to be a good actor either, do you? For panto. No, I think... Not for panto. I don't know. I quite like some of them. Like, you've got to be able to sing as well, haven't you? I couldn't do that. Are they musicals, are they? Yeah. They always put, like, whatever's big that year in as well. So, like, I bet this year it was all that K-pop Demon Hunters song. Right, or La Boo Boo's. Six, seven references. Because it's all for the kids, isn't it?

27:04They always do, like, a kind of, yeah. I would so like to be in one. I said we should do it for a video, try and get in one. To be in a panto. I think people, like, belittle them. Well, I love them. Yeah, right. The Norwich one is Trasini, isn't it? It's Joe Trasini. And he's brilliant as well. Message him. See if he can get us in. Get the cameo. He does Norwich every year. The theatre. Theatre Royal. Whoa. Yeah. Big time. Big time. Big time. When you say that this one in, what was it called? Panel. Panel. Is in February. Yeah. Does it start in December but run? No, just exclusively February. Okay, maybe that's the video.

27:41Like a little Valentine's one. Yeah, maybe that's the video. So you went to St Aidan's, is that right? And I read that you were head girl. Yeah. Evening. Buyer's remorse. Buy a new car? I'll be moving in. Let's get started. Uh, sorry, I think there's been a mistake. I bought it from Carvana. You what? Yeah, great price. I even have seven days to love it or return it. So there's no... No, no buyer's remorse. More like buyer's rejoice? I guess I'll let myself out. Congratulations. I mean it. Buyer's rejoice. Buy your car today on Carvana. Limitations and exclusions may apply. See our seven-day return policy at Carvana.com.

28:19This episode is brought to you by ChatGPT. Hey, it's Bill Simmons from the Bill Simmons Podcast. Have you guys heard about ChatGPT work? It's the new way to use ChatGPT for bigger multi-step projects. And when you need more than just answers, give ChatGPT work access to your apps and files, and it can create real work documents like spreadsheets, slides, and structured reports. Get started at ChatGPT.com by selecting work mode available on Plus and Pro Plans. I see you. Avatar Fire and Ash is now streaming on Disney+. It's the film critics are calling the best Avatar yet. Go, go, go, go! A true epic and completely jaw-dropping.

29:02This is the only purest thing in this world. Return to Pandora on Disney+. It will be an adventure for the whole family. And watch the Oscar-winning phenomenon at home. This is sick! Avatar Fire and Ash, now streaming on Disney+. What powers does it give you to be a head girl? Not as much as I'd hoped. I remember thinking, like, if I get this, I'm going to rule the world. And then we had to go to meetings every week with the head of Sixth Floor. It would be like there was a head boy, a head girl, and then they referred to it as the Senate, which felt excessive. But it was really just trying to organise the school prom, which is less fun than you'd think.

29:46I don't think that's fun. Yeah, but I'm a bit of a, like, snid. I was like, what can we do this time? Yeah, yeah. Every person had to do... It's really embarrassing, actually. I wouldn't do it now for obvious reasons. Everybody had to go up and do a speech of, like, what they'd do. And I... Oh, it's so cringe. Why have you asked this question? I did a rap. What? That was the last thing I was... Do you remember it? No. You do, don't you? Your lips quit. You literally went to say yes. Yeah. To Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Fuck me. Really bad. Really bad. What about why you should? Yeah. And they voted you.

30:26I've raised it. Yes, so they voted me. And this is how bad I was as a head girl. The head of sixth form who hated me. Because it was always quite similar people that were head boy and head girl. Quite like, very academic. Very like, the head boy I'm still really good friends with now. He's like one of my best mates. but he like Old Caravan he's so Old Caravan he's like dead clear he went to Cambridge a summer and he now he's got a mad job whereas like I was just like the weird kid doing drama rapping to the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and the head of Sixth Form changed it after my year to be that now it'll be appointed by members of staff rather than voted yeah but can you still rap?

31:12no I couldn't rap then what was the rapper about like why you should vote for me like what kind of stuff i'd do it must have worked though well it did work didn't it yeah it did work but it was um yeah i think it was to be honest i think it was just like an opportunity to make people laugh and i think that's sort of like why i've ended up doing what what i do now like right it's just a i was just a classic drama kid what did you this'll be a laugh did you know even that like how how old were you then 16 so did you know then that you wanted to be a comedian? No, I just liked being like, I was just like into drama, performing.

31:48I loved making people laugh, but you never think you're going to be a comedian. Because even if you're into drama, people are like, oh, you're going to be an actor. And obviously we all know like the odds of being an actor is so slim. But at least like that did seem an actual job. You can go and be in the theatre. You can, like we'd go on school trips to the theatre and you could be like, that's what I want to do. We never went on a school trip to a comedy club and you were like, oh, I'll be that. So you don't ever think you'll be a comedian. But I did want to go into performance. And also, like, my grades were shit.

32:19So I certainly have other options. Are you good at acting then? I've actually realised the more and more, no. No, I just like performing. But I would be in, like, plays at school and stuff. And then, like, my drama teacher took me aside and was like, you should apply for a drama school rather than university. Right. Because if you go to uni, they have you like writing dissertations and stuff. And it's a bit more academic. And she was like, in the nicest possible way, she was like, you're not academic. We both know that. It was a really nice, it was like one of the best chats I've ever been given by a teacher.

32:52She was dead supportive and she really helped me like practice my auditions and stuff. And she told me which like schools were good. And like, she was really, really like one of those teachers is quite influential in your life. Yeah. And applied for all these drama schools, didn't get into NA, took a year out, worked in fat face did camp america and then went again and got into i think three and i went with this one east 15 yeah which is like kind of like it's a bit of a loopy school like it's got quite a rep of um like method acting like all of that this is what i wanted to ask you about when obviously we've never been to a drama school acting school i imagine it as like slam poetry and like pretend to be a paper bag in the wind yeah totally is it that yeah yeah yeah and all these auditions I can remember going for them and like it is like what you see in films of like people doing high kicks in the corridor and like people going like in the it like whilst you're there trying to learn your life it's so fucking awful what what did you do in your audition you had to do a piece for you had to do a piece from Shakespeare and a and a modern play piece as well And it's so terrifying because, like, you're just watching people come out of the room being like, yes, like that, and you're like, oh, fucking hell.

34:10It's so scary. Oh, they tell you in the moment? No, they're just like, oh, nailed it, like trying to get in your head. And you're like, all right. I'd shit myself. Yeah, it's really, like, really scary. I auditioned for Skins when I was younger. Did you? Fuck me. So bad. It's terrifying. I had to lip sync. I've said it before on the pod. Do you remember? I had to lip sync one of the Queen songs. And I know it's the Queen song where Freddie Mercury's sweeping up. I Want to Break Free. That. Yeah. I had to lip sync that. I had to get out of bed lip syncing it. That was never in the show. No. So I don't know why.

34:47No. I think, was it definitely an audition? Don't know. Just a man in a show. Just want you to clean his house. Yeah, and it was online as well. Yeah, yeah. And I had to wear like a frock and stuff. Just a little pinny. yeah that was a weird time my mum said to me she went you won't get it you're too ugly whoa yeah that's good that's good i rate that though yeah wow but in the end i got grounded i got the lead in this is england in the end so no problem yeah how you so you didn't you didn't graduate did you because you let yeah no oh you did graduate how how do you qualify you know what i mean because yeah like i was i was sort of confused about that yeah because there's no like written exam is there no you've got but you do have to like we did have to write like little and you were assessed on like we're like my degree was like community theater so it was like acting and then it was community theater so you do your acting lessons and stuff and you were judged on like you'd have like articulation lessons or dialect coaches and like trying to get an american accent out of you and they'd rate they'd literally score you on how your accents were and stuff how are your accents not great like can you give us an american no absolutely not can you give us a rap no did you see me in last one laughing i was like how they're trying to do like property stuff but like they do it like that and then like community theater that was like um you know when you go into like care homes or like uh young offenders institutes and like try and like put theater into the community and like help people so we'd be helping elderly people with their memories through theater wow you'd go into like but yeah that like i remember you know sometimes it's like i remember going into a a crew like a pupil referral unit for like kids who'd been too naughty in school and stuff and you'd like they're so uninterested and your job is that you know you're you're this like young kind of like come on what they're like what do you want to do and they're like well I don't know I'm in here for setting a car on fine you're like great let's make a movement piece about that like and they're literally like I hate you um so you're marked on like those sorts of things but like it was a really strange the first year was really like full of everything I loved at school it was like you know throwing yourself into plays and and acting kind of the sort of stuff I wanted to do at that time and then second and third year just got really weird because of the kind of school it is just very method like very as you say pretend to be a paper bag right and um yeah i remember doing an audition for one drama school and they asked me to be pink fluff huh yeah that's what i said what did you do i think i like sort of like just wisped wisped around it i didn't get it how'd you get pink fluff what do you mean you didn't get it as a role no like i didn't get in i thought you meant i didn't get the role of pink fluff No, it's like, I don't know.

37:41They're just weird places, aren't they? Yeah, I'm fascinated by that world, though, because I think everybody thinks they can act. Do you? I think everybody deep down thinks they can act. Well, I think I can. No! You can't. You didn't get the rolling skins, mate. Yeah. Why do you think you can act? What's made you think? No, I just think sometimes when I'm at home and I look in the mirror... What are you doing? Do you do little scenes in the mirror? Sometimes, yeah. That's nice. Yeah, a taxi driver it up or something. then i am guilty of like if you're listening to a sad song yeah like looking at the window just a little bit like yeah sort of pretending i'm in the breaker that's kind of my point i think everyone thinks yeah i do know what you mean yeah do you know what you mean do you not think you can act no we mate we tried it on stage give me give me a give me a scene oh i can't um well oh it's like bad improv yeah this is i don't think i could do it i'm hung over enough i'll do it go on go on give me a scene what's happened what's he doing okay let's do a scene together you're a you're a man who's been broken up with but you've seen your ex for the first time and you still want to do it together should we bat it off so maize is the ex it's toe curling isn't it here we go maize is the ex yeah jack maizey recently broke up with you it's been two weeks do i want her back yeah i want her back yeah that's all that's all you've ever wanted you're in a coffee shop maizey i don't know why that hurts so much just um the poignant do i want her back.

39:02It's like, you'd be bloody well lucky to have me back, thank you. The guy decide if you get me back. I was absolutely gut ready. Do I want her back? Am I still interested in this? Okay, you're sat there. You're sipping your iced vanilla latte. Yeah, looking out the window. Maisie walks through the door. You hear a little bell go off at the door and you look up and scene. Am I English? No, you're Indian in this You're Indian I'm not Indian Please don't be Indian Please don't be Indian Okay, you're you Fuck me Right, I'm doing this You asked for this Right, and what's Maisie's role here? The ex I'm the ex And she gets to decide whether she wants you back Yeah Maisie, it's me Why would you say it's me?

39:52It's been two weeks It's me Maisie it's me this is why I left you you've got the memory of a fish I'm seen is that what you say oh trust you to rock up here that was so bad that was so bad one more go oh trust you to rock up here you want her back oh one more go third time's a try baby that was gross So we've gone from Maisie as me, trust you, to walking in, baby. Your skin, you look like your skin actually crawled. Yeah. I think I recoiled. I've come into the cafe, I'm immediately leaving. Right. No, you're right. You're great. Yeah, really good. Don't you stop. Don't you stop. Shall I just lip sync to I want to break free or something like that?

40:45Yeah. Right, back to you, Maisie. And less of that nonsense. Sorry. Fucking hell, that was bad. How did you get into comedy? so I graduated and then was like going up for acting jobs and when I say not getting anything like I was applying for every single acting job going nothing coming back I didn't have an agent and some people that graduated got agents and got them through the door whereas I'm like I'm going to these open castings where like you're just sat in this room with like a hundred other people and a lot of it like there's a scene in la la land where emma stone goes for an audition and everybody in the audition room looks like emma stone because they'll have been like like like uh you know five foot four slim uh redhead lady yeah and that's what you're going up for like so i can just remember being in these rooms with people that like we just looked like various versions of each other and you're like fucking hell like i haven't got a chance in hell here um what is it for like what you're doing adverts tv show whatever like whatever yeah um not anything like certain films i wasn't doing but um um but like it yeah and then i'd moved back home in panel with my mum and dad and like all my friends had moved to london and it felt like they were they were either getting acting jobs or they were like just at least in the sounds so stupid but like the big city and like had these little like you know they were working at the west end theaters and being around it and i was like back in my village like just applying and trying to work out what to do but it wasn't going anywhere and i was just getting like really frustrated and i'd always liked comedy like i'd always gone and seen it and whenever i was casting plays at school or at drama school like i was always the funny character right and i was always told I had good like comedic timing and stuff and it was always the bit that actually and that's what I really I don't think I realized at the time but I realize it now what I loved wasn't acting what I loved was getting the laugh so I loved that if I was cast as something there was I could think of ways that could make this character funnier or like maybe she was she was like she was always uh distracted by things or like she like there was always ways to I grew up watching people like lee evans who was so physical that like he was funny before he got to the microphone he was funny before he'd said something about how he was acting it out yeah the the embodiment that he was doing a bit so i really loved that and i think i just you know when sometimes you just i think it sounds really cringe but i was so desperate to like feel the thrill of performing again and there was no plays happening near where i was because it wasn't february but like But genuinely, there's not much around where I'm from in terms of, like, opportunities for a newly graduated acting student to throw herself into the arts.

43:39So I was like, I'm just going to try stand-up a go. And stand-up, like, the stand-up circuit. In Manchester, pretty good, but that's quite a stretch from where I was. Leeds, like, there were stand-up comedy nights, but even then they had, like, they were professional comedians on it. There wasn't many open mic stuff. Right. And so I couldn't find where to give it a go. And then there was this, I was like volunteering at the Ilkley Literature Festival because I thought it'd be good to just keep my CV filled with like arts. Yeah. And then one day I was like looking at the leaflet for the Literature Festival and they were like, oh, we're doing a fringe.

44:16So like, it's not just professionals. We can have local people perform whatever they want. If you want to do spoken word, if you want to do a dance show, if you want to do like, yeah, whatever. They were like, just apply online. So I applied online. I was like, oh, I'd really like to do stand-up. Thinking like, well, I don't know. I just thought I'll do stand-up. And then they replied and they went, yeah, cool. Here's your spot. It's Thursday night in this theatre, seven o 'clock. How long did you have to do? It was an hour. An hour, right. But I didn't know that was weird because when I'd gone to see shows, I'd gone to see tar shows.

44:53So I thought when you start in comedy, you start writing a show and then you take it, like, higher and higher. I didn't really know there was that much of a difference between that and, like, the line-up stuff. I've since learned that you're meant to start with five, then go up to ten, and then maybe a 20. And really, it's only the 20s that get paid. I did... You did an hour. Yeah, I used to, like, when I was working at Fat Face, I used to, like, work on the men's floor because I was not very good at that job either. I was always hung over and I was always on my phone and not bothered. And my manager used to put me on menswear out the way.

45:30And I always used to like print off the till roll and like write little ideas and then just put them in my drawer and like never really do anything with them. And then when I got this, it was like such a, like, you know, when you've got a deadline and then you've got to like actually do it. I was like, right. So I can remember it so clearly, getting out all these little pieces of like till roll and joining them up together to something that I was like, I reckon that's an hour. Memorised it, made a ton of flyers and just put them around all the shops around like Harrogate, Panel, Yorkshire, like Ilkley, around there.

45:58And then it was free. So like it filled up. And yeah, I did an hour. That was my first show. That's mad. And I mean, honestly, lads, if I watched it now, it would be probably a good 10 stretched over 53 minutes. But like it didn't go bad. Oh, okay. And I was like, and I had this real buzz from it. And I remember coming off stage being like, I just want to keep doing that over and over and over again. You knew instantly that was it. So then I was applying for gigs and people would go, yeah, have you got a clip? And I was like, yeah, sure, I'd send it over. And it'd be an hour long. And then the promoters were like, well, she's doing an hour.

46:33She must be good. So I started getting gigs like down in London. I would work at Fat Face Monday to Friday, get the Megabus down to London, do the gigs and then come back up. Wow. And yeah, then like within six months, someone was like, oh, you should do the newcomer competitions. That's how you get noticed. and so I entered this one called So You Think You're Funny which like you look at who's won it and it's like it was just my DVD collection of comedians. Like it was all of them and I was like oh I'll enter that and I fucking won it. I couldn't believe it. Like I literally was like maybe I'll make a quarterfinal or a semi-final.

47:08Like I just want to work out where I'm at. So how long did it take you to win that from your first gig? So that first gig in Ilkley was October, 13th of October and So You Think You're Funny was August. so it was like 10 months yeah yeah did you have any bad shows between yeah of course of course like i was going down to london as i say all the time and you're on these like if you ever you it'd be great stuff for you to go do like to go and do a proper open mic night there's like 18 people on the lineup some of them you've they're called bring a gig so you have to bring somebody so the audience isn't exclusively just people waiting to perform other comedians waiting to go on right You bring a friend.

47:50And as I say, all my friends lived in London. So I would like rotate sort of good three of them as my bringers being like, oh, would you mind coming to this gig and being my bringer? And they loved it because they were like, they loved watching people die on their ass sometimes. Like my friend Luke, he couldn't stop laughing at some of them because people were just having such a doubt. I was like, stop laughing, you're being rude. But then like the open mic circuit is so mad. Some people thought, oh, I'm getting a really good laugh from that bloke. It's like, no, you're having the worst gig of your life.

48:20I would certainly take it. That's why people at the back are giggling. Yeah. But it's full of delusional people, but it's also full of people at the very start of something. So it's a really special place. I don't think there's anything like the open mic circle. I'd shit myself. How do you push through it when you're having a bad one? Because I would just, I'd die inside. Yeah. And I'd never do it again. It is all you can think about, the whole journey home. Is it? Yeah. Well, even now, at your level now? Yeah, like if you have a bad gig, or like it doesn't quite go how you want or you remember that you like missed something that you should have put something like that is all you're thinking of right but um there's a really good rule in comedy that everybody lives by called millican's law or millican's rule and you know sarah millican it's hers and it's if you have a good gig or a bad gig so regardless of if you smash it or if you die on your ass you can only sit in that feeling till 11 o 'clock the next day so if you absolutely roof it sure like go out celebrate think you're the best thing ever yeah but only until 11 o 'clock next day and then put it aside and carry on.

49:18I think that's the mentality you have to have, like doing stand-up. You can't sit and have a pity party for too long because sometimes it just goes that way. What is the worst moment you've had on stage? This episode is brought to you by ChatGPT. Hey, it's Bill Simmons from the Bill Simmons Podcast. Have you guys heard about ChatGPT work? It's the new way to use ChatGPT for bigger multi-step projects. And when you need more than just answers, give ChatGPT work access to your apps and files, and it can create real work documents like spreadsheets, slides, and structured reports. Get started at ChatGPT.com by selecting work mode available on Plus and Pro plans.

50:02I see you. Avatar Fire and Ash is now streaming on Disney+. It's the film critics are calling the best Avatar yet. Go, go, go, go! A true epic and completely jaw-dropping. This is the only purest thing in this world. Return to Pandora on Disney+. It will be an adventure for the whole family. And watch the Oscar-winning phenomenon at home. This is sick! Avatar Fire and Ash, now streaming on Disney+. Rated PG-13. And we're back. Streaming on Peacock. May I present to you the award-winning staff of the Toledo Truth Teller. Slap me. Let's jar something loose. Ay, yes! I like that. The certified fresh series returns.

50:43Your boss, you always like this? Or is this just an act? Oh no, this isn't it. Oysters, everybody! It has to have a house! There is a certain satisfaction when you work with someone. Maybe we could be a family. You sadistic pig! The Paper. New season streaming September 9th, only on Peacock. This show gives me a reason to live. We were talking earlier about different places in the UK that are really good. So like Norwich, always great. I love Norwich. Bristol, always a laugh. A lot of comedians start their tour in Norwich. Is that just for location? I don't know. I have no idea. But maybe it's because it is a lovely one.

51:19So as your first tour date, it just fills you with a bit of like... It's your boost, yeah. I've always consistently found Guildford to be horrific. And when I started, after Say You Think You're Funny, I started doing paid gigs. And there was a comedy club night there once a month. and it was a comedy and curry night. So you'd get curry as part of your ticket. Sounds all right, that. And I remember like the MC, who was a really good comedian, he was going on and he was getting nothing back. Then he brings on this opener. So usually it's like a very professional act as the opener and very professional act as the headliner and then a newer act in the middle.

51:57So I was that new act in the middle and I'm watching this seasoned pro MC get nothing back. I'm watching this opener who's like done the circuit for 20 years, Kind of do all right, but like he came off like, good luck, love. I go up. Absolute silence. This is how silent it was. At one point I told a joke and the only sound I heard was somebody snapping a poppadom. That was the only sound. It was, and sometimes, sometimes when I'm like struggling to fall asleep at night, that's what I hear. It's really bad. Wow, this is the thing that impresses me so much about comedians. When I was younger, I wanted to be one.

52:36Yeah. I couldn't. But when you're in that moment and you want the floor to swallow you up, how do you still plough through? I don't know. Right. I guess money. I guess you go, well, I'm contractually obliged to get to the end of this 10 minutes. And I'm sure I've done eight. And you look at your watch and you've done two. COVID was a weird one for that because we had to do gigs online, you know, on Zoom. I've heard about these infamous Zoom gigs. Oh, God. And every Zoom gig was different because we were all still working it out together. And some people who were running them would mute the whole audience to make sure that you didn't get lost on your mic.

53:16But that also meant you didn't hear any laughter. Oh, my God. And then others would have it total open access, which meant that, you know, if it was on speaker mode, all you had to do was have somebody cough and you disappeared from the screen. And it was some bloke, you know, sat having his dinner on his lap. and you're like, oh, no, back to me, please, if that's okay. And, like, I can remember doing one gig and they went, please welcome Maisie Adam. And I came on and I just heard a bloke slapped his legs like that and went, not for me, and got up and walked out of his living room. But because he slapped his legs like that, the camera went to his thing.

53:53So he went, please welcome Maisie Adam. And all everybody saw was just a man going, not for me. Oh, no. It was so bad. and I was just like, okay, so how's everyone's week been? I couldn't think of anything worse. We tried to do pods on Zoom back in the day. It just didn't work. Did you hear about the outdoor gigs that then started happening like in car parks? You know when the restrictions were lifted and you were allowed to go outside but in no more than groups of six? Yeah. Obviously the live comedy industry was really struggling. Yeah. So they started putting gigs in car parks that you could drive up to, like a sort of drive-in movie theatre.

54:33But because you're in your car, the comedians can't hear you laugh, so they were like, if you find it funny, beep your horn. No. Yeah, it was really bad. This is a whole new one. I didn't know about this. Yeah, yeah. So you're trying to do your material and you're just going... Yeah, yeah. Fucking hell. Which isn't a sound you associate with. I'm really enjoying your work. It's a sound you associate with being like, fucking dickhead. Get out the way. Yeah. Wow. That's mad. When did you feel, because you didn't have the traditional years and years of doing it, you won, so you think you're funny pretty much.

55:06It went quite quick, yeah. So did you feel that success came? I don't think so, to be honest with you, because everybody was telling me at the time, oh my God, you're going quick through the ranks. But I never felt, you can only go off your experience as well. So you're like, well, I haven't done 20 years on the circuit, so I don't have something to compare it to. And I think we all know by the fact that I started with an hour shows, I didn't really know the route. But I also think that that's the brilliant thing about comedy is there isn't, like there are general ways that most people do it, but I get really frustrated when people try to sort of say, you need to do this and then do that.

55:47There's sometimes a bit of ownership from people of like, now you've got to do the circuit for at least five years before you then go to Edinburgh and do your debut hour. And you're like, if you're ready, go for it. That's exactly what I was going to ask. And if you're not ready, it will become abundantly clear and you won't get booked for stuff off the back of it. So it's not like you're jumping the queue. You still have to be good. Yeah. I've heard that there might be like the comedian circle is quite close-knit. Yeah. So did you feel like the quick rise was validating because you wouldn't have been able to rise if it were you not good?

56:18Yeah. Or did you feel more pressure to kind of like prove yourself because of how quickly it happened? I only had other people's word going off that it was happening quick, but I was like, I don't know how much quicker than most people. And also I knew as well, it wasn't like I'd won a competition having done three gigs and then was on eight out of cats. I was doing, as I say, the Megabus down to London and I would gig three, four times that night, stay on a mate's sofa or I used to say this hostel in Camden for£12 a night that had 18 people in a room. Wow. And then you'd do four gigs the next night and then get the six-hour megabus back up to Yorkshire again.

56:57So it was like, oh, I know I've done the work. Like I was doing all the circuit all the time. Yeah. And I was really, you know, putting a shift in. It wasn't like I'd sort of blown up. And even then, like there's still quite, I think, a snootiness now around people that go viral and then are booked on things. And you're like, but they're making work. They're making work. And if they are shit, if it was just a one viral, like thing and it went really well and then they get an opportunity that maybe they're not ready for they'll find out very quickly as well like they'll feel uncomfortable about it i think sometimes the stand-up comedy industry because it's changed so much in say the last 15 years it is no longer this thing where you do the club circuit and then build up to edinburgh and then you hope that an edinburgh a good edinburgh used to make you explode into like mcintyre you know not necessarily overnight but like that was the way now look at people like munya chihuahua you make consistently good content that you can do from your own home yeah and it you blow up rightly so because he works really hard and it's going really well I had a chat with Munyu and he'd he tried to do stand-up and he was like it's not really my forte it's not my format he admires it and he likes doing it but he was like I want to get and he was still trying to learn it and still grafting but like I just think stand-up comedy it's the closest thing to a meritocracy that you you can get really because ultimately if you do get an opportunity too soon it will humble you equally as quick right so i knew it was happening fast but i never felt it was either unmerited right or that i was skipping a cue course i felt just really lucky yeah that every time it was that every time the hard work was paying off right because i'm also very aware there are people who have been doing stand-up on the circuit for 25 years, and they should be household names.

58:53And for whatever reason, it just didn't happen. Right, right. So there's an element of luck mixing with hard work. You make your own luck, though, don't you? You really do make your own luck. Do you think? Yeah, you're graft enough. People can say it's luck. And you couldn't win a competition without being good. Well, that's it. I feel like that was always a good thing to have in your back pocket. Yeah. Like it was voted and judged and stuff. Yeah. Do you know what I mean? Can we ask, because you mentioned eight out of 10 cats, right? So you've done some of the best sort of comedy shows out there.

59:25Can we ask you to, we're going to do a blind ranking. Oh, great. Okay. So I've got 10 shows that you've appeared on. Okay. And we want you to put them from one to 10. We're not knowing what's coming next. Sure. So how should we do it? Let's do it based on how much you enjoyed the show. Okay. Right. So it might be tough. How much I enjoyed being on the show. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Cool. um well let's start with eight out of ten cats yeah eight out of ten cats was my first ever panel show i was absolutely terrified and i was so glad i was on with sarah pascoe because she consistently kept i kept going to go and say something and like panel shows are brutal that like people just talk over you and she kept going what was that you were saying maisie and it's always meant the world to me yeah never forgotten it since so purely for that experience of being with sarah pascoe i would say eight right eight eight out of ten yeah well so so people will just jump in and it's brutal you don't have your set no no really jimmy's obviously trying to be like um what do you think about that and that's when you've got to really take it but like largely it's a discussion but it's it's comedians who've written gags and they want to get their gags in so it's very like elbows out wow and i remember a few times i would like start saying something people would just talk over you and it's like loudest voice wins but like sarah is amazing and she's she's been for a long time longer than me the only woman on panel shows so she knows what it's like and i think she was very i don't know if this was her thought process but she was like this kid is is coming up through the circuit and i don't want her to have the experience that i had and have to like fight twice as hard she just really there was little things like i had my notes at the side of stage and the floor manager was like right so um you're gonna be sat there we're gonna clap you out in a second and i was like but then the audience will see i've got notes they're like that's all right but i was like no i can't and um sarah pascoe just went and she didn't know she just was like give me your notes i'll take them out and put them oh bless and she walked out and i was like she just she was just one of those people that like really looks out for you when you're an up and coming you need that mentor yeah yeah love it um mock the week mock the week was probably like the one that that got me you know touring and and selling tickets like and i was consistently on it so i really really enjoyed it actually mark it was it was a huge part of like how i came up through i should have i should have put eight out of ten cats lower and it are but i don't know the other to i'm gonna have to go seven for mock the week only because you have to do so much prep the day before right it is a whole day and night writing yeah do you have a team that help you write no and you're doing it and then you get there in the day and they're like oh yeah we've we've dropped that uh prince andrew story and you're like but i i wrote i wrote 12 amazing jokes for him yeah or like oh yeah the um uh the queen's died so we're now doing it all about that or something and you're like, oh, fuck.

1:02:29Right. Like, okay. So it was always a bit stressful in the run-up. Okay. Last one laughing. Last one laughing. So fun to watch. Horrific to do. Like, because you're in a room with your comedy heroes who you have grown up watching. Like, when I said about that DVD collection, like, I had Alan Carr and his live shows, like, at home. I would watch them. I grew up loving Mel and Sue. I grew up adoring Romesh. Like Bob Mortimer, shooting stars is like still quoted in my family. And you're telling me I've got to spend, well, what's advertised as six hours, but we were told in our contract it would really be 10.

1:03:10And actually on the day it was 13. Wow. 13 hours. In one day? Yes. In a room with like, no disrespect, lads, this sort of lighting. No natural light. Yeah. just what feels like dying on your arse in front of your favourite comedians. Can I ask, does it feel easier because you know they're actively trying not to laugh? No, you'd think it would, and you have to keep telling yourself, they're not laughing because that's the aim of the game, but there's still nothing as debilitating as doing a good gag and getting, especially like Diane Morgan, I love Philomena Cunk, and that is her bread and butter, isn't it?

1:03:51Like, to stay in deadpan. Deadpan, yeah. But like, she's got such a deadpan face. It would sometimes feel like you were like, you were an idiot for trying to make her laugh because she'd just be like, right, okay. But that's why she's so brilliant. But you then are there like, oh God, it's just like, I might as well have heard the snap of a poppadon on that show. So I would give Last One Laughing for what it's given me. And when I watched the show, I was like, this is brilliant. Well, you stole the show, really. You had the best scene in the whole. it was a good exit it was a good exit yeah but we all came out of it going that was horrific like i don't think they've got anything to work with there like we all were like oh my god um i remember chatting to harriet kemsley who was in series one she was like i had the exact same thing i came out of it was like oh because we're so used to going on panel shows and counting how well you think it did by how many big laughs or applause breaks you get yeah so you come out of a record going that went well or then we went all right this silence for hours you're like i've just had the worst gig of my life and it's on amazon prime wow yeah i hadn't thought of it like that but you you can't your brain forgets that that's the the the objective of the show right how hard is the other side of it where you're trying not to laugh or smile so then really really easy if you're i found it really easy if you're around the dead panners like largely yeah it was being around Alan, who always looked like he was about to giggle, Bob, who always said something with a twinkle in his eye, Mel, who just says everything like a sort of naughty, sort of like carry-on character.

1:05:27Like the giddy one, Amy Gledill, really, really funny to be around. Whereas like the deadpan ones of Romesh and David Mitchell and Sam Campbell, I was all right with. I was like, oh, you just have to reply with facts. That's like their tactic is just reply, I'd go, well, that wouldn't actually happen, would it? What is Sam like? He's fascinating. Sam Campbell is exactly how he appears. Is he, right? Off screen as well. So unusual to watch. I was just thinking, I can't tell. I couldn't work it out. I couldn't work him out. Yeah. I think the first time I gigged with Sam, it was like, you might know, like Bristol Comedy Garden.

1:06:05It's once a year in this big circus tent. We get put up in this hotel, and I'd never met Sam before. and he just came in and he had a fake thumb on that he kept pulling off. And then I was like, oh, you're all right, amazing. Like, shook his hand. And then he was like, are you staying at that hotel? And I was like, yeah. And he was like, so many doors. I didn't know what to say to it. I was like, like all the hotel room doors? He was like, yeah, a lot of doors. A lot of doors in that place. And I was like, I don't know if he's doing a bit. But the more time I've spent with Sam, I'm like, that is just the kind of thing he'll think.

1:06:41He's just not doing a bit. It's just how he thinks. No, he's like, I'd love to live in his head for like a day. More than that, I think I just find it so overstimulated. It's like really unusual observational comedy. Yeah, yeah. Things no one else observed. Yeah, yeah. And I went back to that hotel that night and I was like, it doesn't feel like there's more doors in your house. But you got in your head. Yeah. You got in your head. So last one laughing, where are we putting that? You've got one. I'm going to put two because it felt so brutal. but I loved watching it. Richard Osman's House of Games.

1:07:11Big fan. Yeah. Big, big fan of House of Games. Big fan of Answer Smash. Big fan of the prizes that you can win. Because you do all, that's five? Five. Yeah. You do it in one day. Right. But like, we need more shows where you can win a fondue set and a deck chair and a suitcase. Like, really, really good. Really good. And like, I just like that there's a freedom of, because they get such a mix, you'll be on it with like a presenter and a sports person and an influencer and a radio host. Right. It's a collection of people that you wouldn't normally get. I like House of Games and I love a sort of, that style of, I'm going to go nine.

1:07:51I like House of Games. Okay. Taskmaster. Oh, Taskmaster 10. It's been my favourite one. Hang on, are you doing this, you're doing this the wrong way round, aren't you? You're putting, Why? Because one is the best, Maisie. Yeah. You're putting Taskmaster as 10? Yeah. Wait, one is the best? Oh, no. Okay. So when you put eight out of 10, Kat's eighth, you were putting it third. I think we got distracted by eight out of 10. I would give it eight out of 10. So eight out of 10 is two. Three. Mock the week is three. We can keep doing it like this. Last one laughing. No, last one laughing, it's fine, is eight.

1:08:32No, last one laughing would be nine. Last one laughing is nine. Yeah. House of Games is two. Yes. Taskmaster is one. Yeah. Okay. Yeah, so just do it backwards. Be fine in the edit, will it? This is all staying in. I love it because I knew something was up when you were like, Taskmaster's my favourite ten. Yeah, love it. Oh, no. Right, so this is what we've got so far. Yeah. So number one is Taskmaster. Two's Richard Osman House of Games. Yes. Three's eight out of ten caps. Yeah. Four's Mock the Week. Yeah. We still have 5, 6, 7, 8, and then number 9 is last one last. Great, 5, 6, 7. Okay, and then we just did Taskmaster, so next one's Big Fat Quiz of the Year.

1:09:13Big Fat Quiz of the Year. I really like that show, by the way. It's long, though. Is it? It's so long. It's something like four hours, something like that. Wow. And I like it. I do like it. I had a great time the first time I did it where it was just after the girls had won the Euros. Oh, cool. And I'm such a massive fan. Yeah. and I hadn't met any of them at any point at all and there was a sports round and they just kept asking all these questions about like sports events even though, but none of them were about the Euros and I was like, England have just won the Euros like for the first time ever at Wembley on home turf, like a record-breaking attendant, it was massive and I was getting like a bit annoyed.

1:09:55It turns out they knew that I would get like this, that I was like, why am I doing that? And then they brought out Millie Bright as a surprise to ask a question and I fully, Like, I was like, hi, here. It was so embarrassing. Didn't Georgia Stanway tattoo you? There you go. Class. Yeah. Football in a home for its coming home with the little years. She did that? She did that, yeah. That looks solid. She's got a steady hand. I was expecting that to be shit. Yeah. No, she's tattooed herself all over this style. Jessie Lingard tattooed that on me. Yeah, you can tell. Yeah. But can she actually? Has she got?

1:10:31Yeah, she's a tattooist. I didn't realise. Yeah, she's very, very good. Right. Very good. Fair enough. But it's long and it's hard to get heard on it. Oh, okay. It's like, listen, I really like it. If we can be serious for a second. Yeah. Going back to what I was saying about Sarah Pascoe doing years as the only woman on the line-up. Sometimes, like, there are some shows that have been very guilty and they've definitely got better over the years. But there's a lot of shows that have been guilty of, like, we'll get one funny lady and five funny men. Right. And then if they do get any more than one woman, it will be somebody that's not a comedian.

1:11:08So there'll be five male comedians and then they'll have like a Rasheen Conaty, you know, or a Judy Love. And then they'll have like, and no disrespect to these people, but like a Claudia Winkerman or a Stacey Solomon. You're kind of looking at it, you know, as a comedian that's trying to break through and get these opportunities. You're like, that's interesting because you don't put like a sort of, literally, I'm trying to think of any male, You know, you haven't put Roman Kemp on there. You haven't put Vernon Kay on there. Yeah, right. And Big Fat Quiz for a long time was very, very guilty of that.

1:11:42It was a bit of a blokes fest with them like, and we've got our one token lady. Or they'd be like, pat yourselves on the back. We've got two this year, but only one is still a comedian. But I did really enjoy going on it. But just so many others I enjoyed more. What numbers have I got left? You've still got 10 left. I won't give it 10. Five, six, seven, eight. Eight. Eight, okay. So we've got four more. Would I lie to you? Would I lie to you? I'll go 10. Okay. I'll go 10. Only because they did a research call with me and they were like, have you got any mad stories, you know, that could be a truth or a lie?

1:12:24And I was like, actually, yeah. Like, I remember I fancied this lad at school. His name was Matthew. and I'm still friends with him on Facebook and I fancied this boy so much. And on one of the last days of term, you know, when you could bring a movie in and teachers used to do a vote of like, what movie should we watch? Yeah. And we ended up watching the film White Chicks and there's a scene in that where like, they learn, like they do a dance off and he was cracking up so much. And like still that person inside that's there now was like, I just want to make people laugh. And this lad, Matthew, was cracking up so much at this dance.

1:12:57I was like, that's the way to make him laugh. And I spent the entire half term learning the dance from White Chicks. And then I came in at school, did the dance, like, on a break, just to, like, try and make him laugh. Fuck me. So, so desperate. So bad. It's so sitcom. That's worse than my little acting bit. So awful. It definitely would have looked like, you know, that scene of David Brent. Yeah. Definitely. It was so bad. And this girl was really laughing on the phone when I was telling her this. And she was like, do you think he knows? And I was like, no. Because, you know, there's that round where you bring in somebody and everybody says they know him.

1:13:28I was like, it'd be quite a good one for that. I'm like, I once learned the dance of white chicks to impress this man. And they were like, and we could get you doing the dance. I was like, yeah, great. And they were like, so do you know him? I was like, yeah, I've got him on Facebook. He like runs a gym in my hometown. Like, so I got back in touch with him. I was like, hey, Matthew, like, you might remember me from school, but like, this is really embarrassing, but I'm going on Would I Lie to You? I'm a comedian now. He was really sweet about it. He was like, yeah, I've seen that you're a comedian.

1:13:51Like smashing it, mate. Well done. I was like, thank you. and then he was like i used to have a little bit of a crush on you and i learned a dance to try and impress you you probably won't remember he was like i don't remember that but i was like would it be okay if i passed your number on and um they could get in touch with you he was like yeah absolutely gave the number gave the email address and then like three weeks passed and he like messaged and he was like is anything happening i was like uh i i don't know like like i then got in touch with the production crew and they were like oh yeah we've gone with a different person So I was like, I've just got in touch with a man who I haven't seen for 12, 13 years to go, hi, I once learned the dance from White Chicks to impress you.

1:14:33Would you be up for me doing it again for you? He was like, fine. And then I've ghosted him. Oh, no. Really bad. Awful. I was like, why have you asked me to get in touch with this man if it's not for anything? I've just told him for no reason. That deserves 10th. Yeah, that's really good. That's really good. Then we've got three more real quick. We've got Roast Battle. Roast Battle, seven. Seven. It's just not my style. Then we've got five and six left, and we've got QI. QI, six. Just, it's like, it's so clever. I love it, but it's like, it's such a nerd fest. Right. I love it. I really enjoy it, but sometimes I'm like, I don't understand what people are talking about here.

1:15:16I think it's so smart. Like, I've never been able to get into it. No. Because I just think it goes over my head. I just want celebrities lying about shit I sort of find that that's the role I end up having to play in QI because I'm like and everyone's like oh I'm amazing you're so funny and I'm like no I genuinely don't understand what we're doing and then finally the last one which has to go in number five is have I got news for you yeah five I feel like that's good for have I got news for you yeah middle of the road yeah so do you want to give us a run through at ten we finally got there would I lie to you number nine last one laughing number eight Big Fat Quiz of the Year.

1:15:52Number seven, Roast Battle. Six, QI. Five, Have I Got News for You, Champions League space now. Four, Mock the Week. And then the top three and third, we've got eight out of ten cats. Yep. And second, Richard Osman's House of Games. And number one, Taskmaster. I've absolutely smashed that. You smashed it. That is how I would rank them. Really? Yeah, 100%. You smashed it. Smashed that. Maisie, it's been a pleasure having you on. It's been such a joy. Before we let you go, talk to us about your new tour. Oh yeah. I'm going on tour. My tour is called what's her face and i'm going around oh my god like everywhere the uk just just everywhere are you doing guildford uh no i said i won't do oh yes they just were like do you want to do guildford and i was like no just do reading i get off the train at guildford and i just hear the snap of a pop is off i can't do it just yeah just come to reading honestly it's fine it'll be worth the train journey and also you live in guildford you can afford it yeah um but like yeah i'm i I really love touring.

1:16:45So I think it's 60 dates in total, starting in September, ending in March next year. Nice. And you're coming down our neck of the woods? Yeah, going to Norwich. Norwich. Going to Norwich. Is it Playhouse, Arts Centre? I don't know. Yeah. I've got two Norwich dates. Have you? Yeah. Okay. Not to brag, guys, but I'm pretty big in Norwich. You're bigger than us in Norwich, that's for sure. Everyone hates us. I'm sure that's top trick. Maisie, 2026, got anything left in store other than the tour? Anything we can keep our eyes out? Oh, yeah. Well, we're going to be back with, I do a lot of stuff with the Women's Super League and the FA Cup.

1:17:18So I'm excited to be doing that. I mean, I present it with Jill Scott, which is such a joy. That's class. Trying to not be made to laugh live on TV is basically the whole job of Jill. Love it. It's really funny. Love it. Right. This has been Jack Mate's Happy Hour podcast with me, Jack Mate. And you have really, really helped with my hangover. So thank you for that. You're looking good, mate. You don't. You're making me laugh all the way through. You haven't given a hangover vibe. How's yours, all right? I'm absolutely fine. Feeling better about the result now. Thank you very much. We have been with the wonderful comedian, podcaster.

1:17:51She does it all. It's Maisie Adam. Maisie, we always finish in the same question, with the same question, I should say. What's the meaning of life? What's the meaning of life? Ooh. Always add more gravy. You love your fucking carvage, you, don't you? We started where we... We finished where we started. I think you just ask deep questions and my brain goes to roast dinner. you were like what makes you happy and what's the meaning of life and both answers are love it

1:18:20jack mates happy hour oh that was real fun thanks really fun thank you guys this episode is brought to you by chat gpt hey it's bill simmons from the bill simmons podcast have you guys heard about chat gpt work it's the new way to use chat gpt for bigger multi-step projects and when you need more than just answers. Give ChatGPT work access to your apps and files and it can create real work documents like spreadsheets, slides, and structured reports. Get started at ChatGPT.com by selecting work mode available on Plus and Pro plans. I see you. Avatar Fire and Ash is now streaming on Disney+. It's the film critics are calling the best Avatar yet.

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