21st April 2006
JANEY GODLEY
by David Baldwin
No one embodies
the phrase ‘laugh your troubles away’ more than Glasgow comic
Janey Godley. It might seem like going over old ground, but her past
is so much a part of what makes her a fine stand up comedian, there’s
really no getting round it. Without delving
too deeply into the depressing details (pick up a copy of her Dave Pelzer-style
autobiography, Handstands In The Dark, for those), it takes in
poverty, heroin and sexual molestation – making her success as
a comic even more astonishing. As you might expect,
Godley is one tough lady: late last year, she performed her Edinburgh
Fringe show Janey Godley is Innocent to 100 prisoners at Glenochil
High security prison in Stirlingshire. Recently though
she has added another string to her bow, and her online blog has become
popular on the web for its random anecdotes about her life. Jumping from the BRITs to the most mundane self grooming issues, it’s all enlivened by Godley’s fiery spark. There’s also the odd reference to her 19-year-old daughter. Whose recent exploits include planning to annoy pious abstainers at a Christian Speed Dating event by asking if they fancied sex. Nice to see mischief runs in the family. |