Alison Spittle admitted she got a “total writer’s block” when it came to her comedy shows after filming her new series Nowhere Fast.
The six part series, which will debut on RTÉ2 this year, ended up having a pretty big impact on the Westmeath native’s day to day life.
She said to Her:
“I couldn’t do stand up during [filming] – and my mam got married in the Canaries.
“I had to fly over one day to see my mam get married, then fly back.”
But the comedian found herself facing a bit of writer’s block when it came to her comedy gigs once filming wrapped.
She explained:
“It’s very hard to write stand up when you write a series.
“When I’m trying to write funny things, I can only write it one way or the other.
“The different styles of writing clash so much, I got a total writer’s block doing stand up.
“So this summer, when I’m not writing the TV series when I don’t know what I’m going to do, I write all my stand up and try and save it.”
Nowhere Fast is a female led comedy starring Alsion, Moone Boy’s Clare Monnelly and Red Rock’s Cathy Belton.
The six part series, airing on RTÉ2 later this year, tells the tale of a girl who has to move back home after she makes a huge error at work – and how she reconnects with her loved ones.
The Westmeath native added:
“It’s about a girl who really fecks up at work.
“She kinda feels like she’s living the best Dublin life that she can and she has to move back to Westmeath then.
“It’s six episodes where she reconnects with her friends, reconnects with her mam, and tries to settle back into living in the Midlands.”
Alison also explained how – like her lead character – she ended up moving back home in her mid 20s. Though it was for an entirely different reason.
She said:
“I had to move back from Dublin to Westmeath in my mid 20s, about 5 years ago, and assess what I wanted to do with my life.
“I think a lot of people have that, where my generation are told, ‘you’re not going to get a house unless you stop eating avocados and chasing your dreams!’
“It’s kind of about our place in the world.”
And the comedian offered her advice to anyone who had moved home – or is thinking about doing so.
She added:
“Don’t beat yourself up would be the number one advice.
“Look after yourself, and your mental health.”
