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-Richard-Jarmy-1.jpeg%3Fwidth%3D1200%26auto%3Dwebp%26quality%3D75%26trim%3D1209%2C0%2C1569%2C0%26crop%3D&w=3840&q=100)
Scotsman
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Edinburgh Fringe Comedy reviews: Joe Tracini
Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Joe Tracini: Ten Things I Hate About Me Underbelly, Bristo Square (Venue 302) ★★★★☆ I'm old enough to recall being at a BBC recording that Joe Tracini mentions in this affectingly candid, exhaustive exposure of his troubled mind and soul. On the cusp of a big break that never materialised, as his father Joe Pasquale's once did, he paid too great a homage to the material of stand-up Michael Redmond. Yet little did I know at the time that Tracini was a serious drug addict with complex psychological issues. Joe Tracini: Ten Things I Hate About Me | Richard Jarmy In active development for half a decade, the former Hollyoaks actor and viral lockdown dancing sensation's struggle to perform Ten Things I Hate About Me has already featured in a Bafta-nominated Channel 4 documentary exploring the debilitating effects of his Borderline Personality Disorder, and his efforts to communicate them. Featuring suicidal impulses, successive stints in rehab, a heart attack and some disturbing recurrent behaviour, on paper it's not for the potentially triggered. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad And yet this is as light-hearted a lecture as the above could conceivably be. Blending confessional, ukulele tunes and even the accursed magic tricks that blighted Tracini's adolescence as a painfully precocious nepo baby, the barest mention of his family here is not an encouraging sign. For both his and his audience's benefit, he's carefully structured the show as a PowerPoint presentation of his Ten Things. And he trails the contents at the top of the hour, the discipline and framework freeing him to be a sprightly, unencumbered guide to his disordered brain. Virtually all the humour emanates from bleak places. But Tracini doesn't flinch from sharing his lowest ebbs or making himself seem unattractive, sharing a previously unbroadcast, off-colour remark that he made about the passing of the Queen in an interview. There's some redemption in the meet-cute of finding his girlfriend. And he earns his ovation for more than just getting through the performance, having elicited consistent laughs while educating. JAY RICHARDSON until 24 August Jessie Nixon: Don't Make Me Regret This Assembly George Square (Venue 8) ★★★☆☆ Still in her twenties, Jessie Nixon has a way of talking which is utterly eccentric but also delightfully representative of her generation. She squeaks, she coos, she reads poetry from an embossed book. Her script, you suspect, may be partly written in emojis. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Her subject is sex, the male gaze and how, as a large girl commonly described as 'striking' she navigates the issues of body image, shame and general horniness. There's a lot of stuff about internet dating, swiping left and right, and being ready to 'me too' unattractive suitors on a whim. Jessie is fascinated by the power dynamics of dating and attractiveness, and she's refreshingly frank about her own desires. The poetry is laugh-out-loud funny, peppered with Jessie's bizarrely affected pronunciation of certain words and strange verbal shorthand which may, or may not, be peculiar to her. Bristol born, she also swears creatively (even swearing mid-word, which takes some doing.) There's an undercurrent of feeling dispossessed – of being priced out of the grown-up world – which runs through all her observations. She's child-like, despite all the talk of sex, and I thoroughly enjoy the abundant silliness of her debut hour. CLAIRE SMITH until 24 August Kieran Hodgson: Voice of America Pleasance Courtyard (Venue 33) ★★★☆☆ In delivering this interesting new show about his evolving personal, political and professional relationship with America, Kieran Hodgson goes all in with his presentation. In Springsteenesque denim, he bounds into a hyped-up room that feels like a US political party event, then paces the stage in the manner of a New York stand-up in front of a giant Stars & Stripes. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Kieran Hodgson - Voice of America | Matt Stronge It's a typically clever hour from this thoughtful and talented British comic and actor, with tales of his youthful perception of the super-power – gleaned mostly from popular culture – and how an attempted Spring Break trip didn't go to plan. As well as talking about landing a small part in superhero movie The Flash, he illustrates the ways in which his feelings about the US shifted. As his understanding of its complexities deepened, he learnt what his father really meant by 'American rubbish', realising that the supreme goal is the retention of power, regardless of which ostensibly decent figure is in the White House. A masterful voice artist, he does some great impressions of past presidents, and, despite making a show of not wanting to do the incumbent, he does allow himself a few lines of Trumpspeak – much to the delight of the audience. Hodgson is, however, at his best when being his sweetly bookish self. ASHLEY DAVIES until 24 August Molly McGuinness: Slob Monkey Barrel Comedy (Cabaret Voltaire) (Venue 338) ★★★☆☆ Ultimately getting her happy ending and ride into the sunset, Molly McGuinness has had a tough road getting to Edinburgh for her Fringe debut. The Salford-born stand-up paints a grimly entertaining picture of her soul-destroying employment, dating history and friend group position as 'the funny one', aka the liability, and recounts it with ironic good humour. As an amiable and seemingly fairly passive participant in her own life, the men she draws to her tend to be of a certain vintage and somewhat strapped in their economic instances, while her hospitality jobs were characterised by their pointlessness or weirdly exploitative nature. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Opening by trying to coerce the crowd into sampling a middle-class buffet spread she's laid on, starkly contrasting the bizarre slop she's been treated to at northern funerals, she's a winning anecdotalist, softening the edges of her autobiography with absurdist details. And if a sense of drift accompanies her tales of getting drunk and stumbling into a television audition, or a frustrated date that saw her travel doomed from Manchester to London, it's likely because McGuiness knows that she has a trump twist in her back pocket, which she introduces towards the end. The medical emergency was the rottenest luck but it brings upbeat recovery. JAY RICHARDSON until 24 August Ismael Loufti: Heavenly Baba Studio Five at Assembly George Square Studios (Venue 17) ★★★☆☆ Ismael Loufti tells a beautifully nuanced story about growing up Muslim in Florida, which takes some genuinely unexpected twists and turns. His dad was a fundamentalist Muslim, who didn't believe in evolution and drove around town in a bashed-up car decorated with homespun Islamic and political slogans. Photos of the vehicle take centre stage in the slides which illustrate the show. And it's easy to see why young Loufti, after an early period of ardent religiosity, was mortified by his father's mode of transport. Loufti tells a familiar story of finding his individuality through comedy, but he also recognises how he once exploited his background to get a laugh from redneck crowds. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad He's smarter than that now. And he's built his Edinburgh debut around his fascinating quest to find out what led his Dad to create such a spectacle of himself. Loufti's journey of self-discovery is deeply touching and engagingly told. And it turns out his father was a far more complex character than he ever imagined. It's an extraordinary story, but one in which Loufti finds a way to fully embrace his culture, his love of comedy and his deeply bizarre but very loveable father. CLAIRE SMITH until 24 August Only Grans The Street (Venue 239) ★★☆☆☆ Very little offends me. This almost gerontophobic show did. Droopy (fake) old lady breasts are jiggled, geriatric attempts at twerking and slutty dancing are hindered by creaky joints and the need for a sit down, and the whole show is offered in a whistley 'ill-fitting-dentures' voice. Red top headlines about drag priests and killer lesbians outrage her, 'socialist' media is misunderstood, Tinder connection is attempted on a dial-up phone and oh how we laugh when she thinks her online MILF is a man. Natalie Renwick is a talented performer, but a few grey lines drawn round your mouth are nothing more than ageist blackface ... and we have got past that. KATE COPSTICK until 15 August
Indian Express
28-07-2025
- Health
- Indian Express
Living in the age of diagnoses
I am writing about something that has been on my mind for a long time. There are questions that have churned me, kept me awake at night and knocked around in my head. What is wrong with our culture that there is so much yearning for psychiatric diagnoses? How did we reach this stage? Who does it harm and how? Can we be innocent bystanders in this, or do we need to question this idea or trend, a potentially dangerous one, that has become the zeitgeist of how we live, relate and understand ourselves and each other? Let me step back a little and give a little context. Mental health has a dark history, and I will cite a few examples. Many celebrated psychiatrists played a significant role in carrying out the atrocities of eugenics in Nazi Germany. The pioneer of frontal lobotomy (a discredited and damaging neurosurgical treatment that spanned over 40 years) was awarded the Nobel Prize. More than 30 years ago, when I began my journey as a clinical psychologist, homosexuality was considered a sexual deviance and conversion therapy was standard practice. I am sure variations of these dark practices still persist. I got into trouble for questioning then, and despite the ripples it has created, I persist in questioning to date. Because, as the French philosopher, Michel Foucault commented, 'People know what they do; frequently, they know why they do what they do. But what they don't know is what what they do does.' I am sure, unwittingly, I have participated and gained in building of this 'mental health industrial complex' (an idea I borrow from child & adolescent psychiatrist, Sami Timimi). I heard an astute young man recently comment, 'Nowadays everyone has some 'thing'. … It is as if we are seeking labels as a way to fit in a world that is so broken.' What happens when we or our children do not fit into the normative measures of worthiness, success or productivity? We find solace in diagnoses, as then we can explain why we are not measuring up to some unreasonable standards. We cannot even point a finger as we are all part of the policing system – mental health professionals, social media, academia and so on. We are surveilling each other and ourselves. The high yearning for self-diagnosis is a clear sign that the 'industry' is thriving. 'I am Borderline Personality Disorder. I also have Bipolar, PTSD, Generalised Anxiety disorder, and maybe Autism,' Shania counts them on her fingers while sharing this with me. Something in the way she shares it with me makes me wonder if this is something she has had to do multiple times. After all she has been to so many psychiatrists and therapists. Each one adding a new diagnosis to the list. 'They have all given up on me. There is no hope for me.' After understanding some of her struggles, I was curious to know, 'What would it be like if there were no diagnosis?' Head bent down, deep in thought, she sighed and said, 'Without them, I would have no excuse for being such a failure in life.' Shania had been sexually abused as a child. She lived in silence about it for years, and finally, when she did share with her parents, they tried their best to get her help. She was in Grade 12 and struggling to manage her academics and navigate the complexities of high school life. Her teachers had declared that she would not pass her boards, and no college would accept her. Recently, she had taken to cutting herself and raging against her parents. Shania's distress is real. She is not failing the system; the system is failing Shania. Every time I ask a young person, 'How does getting a diagnosis help?', their answer ranges from 'It is such a relief that it is not my fault,' or 'I finally have a label for what I am going through,' or 'I feel seen and understood.' Imagine if we lived in a culture where children and young people did not need diagnoses to be seen, understood or believed in. Where they could access help or get accommodations without first getting a diagnosis. Where they could opt out of the rat race without internalising it as their failure. As Suzanne Sullivan puts it in her book, Age of Diagnoses, 'Wellness culture has made us expect a lot from our bodies and our minds…Perhaps what they need from a diagnosis is a permission to do less in a world that only values a particular type of success.' How can Shania believe that she has the ability to influence her own life, make decisions with confidence when she sees herself as an assortment of all these diagnoses? In therapy, we gently unpacked Shania's belief that 'something is inherently wrong with me.' And how diagnoses rarely change, but humans do. We could zoom out and look at the gender politics behind the diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder, and that maybe the rages and self-harm were responses to the abuse and adversity she had experienced and not due to 'mental illness.' We worked together as a team, along with her family, to support her through her board exams. As she claimed agency of her own life, she decided to take a gap year and work in an animal rescue centre. I marvel at the robustness of the human spirit that shines through every time she talks about her work with sparkling passion. I would also like to clarify that it is fine if you are living with a diagnosis that works for you. My only hope is that you will not take it as the ultimate truth about yourself. Maybe you could poke holes in it, let it sit beside you as you carry on with your life and not let it define you or make predictions about your future. Keeping history in mind, today's so-called science can be dismissed as quackery tomorrow. Resistance is building, change is happening, and there is a movement that is growing across the world against pathologising, dehumanising 'doings'. Narrative practice, Power Threat Meaning Framework, Soteria Model, Open Dialogue, and in India – Mariwala Health Initiative and other organisations are questioning the dominant and expert-led 'mental health industry'*. We have to question the system that makes us believe we are sick. I often think of Jiddu Krishnamurti's quote, 'It is no measure of health to be well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society.' Composite stories and pseudonym are used to maintain confidentiality.
The Citizen
25-07-2025
- The Citizen
Johannesburg woman admits to killing 4-year-old stepdaughter in court confession
Preschool teacher Amber Lee Hughes (25), charged with two counts of rape and murder of her learner and stepdaughter, Nada-Jane Challita (four), submitted supplementary admissions at the Johannesburg High Court. According to a media statement from NPA spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane, the admissions were made after the State and defence had fully argued the case and after she changed legal representation. In her admissions, Hughes confessed to drowning the four-year-old after an emotionally charged dispute with the child's father over his infidelity. ALSO READ: Murder suspect appears in court after boy's death in Fleurhof She further stated that she suffered from Borderline Personality Disorder at the time, but maintained she was fully aware of her actions. She also detailed multiple unsuccessful suicide attempts following the incident. However, the accused denied the rape charges, claiming she had no knowledge of the allegations. ALSO READ: Child murder: When home becomes the most dangerous place The case was postponed to August 7 for closing arguments on the admissions. The accused remains in custody until her next court appearance.
Evening Standard
24-07-2025
- Health
- Evening Standard
How to tell the difference between a low mood and depression? What you need to know (and how to help your kids)
The other day, my friend's 16-year-old daughter messaged her to ask: 'Mum, do I ever seem narcissistic? I just did a TikTok quiz.' As her teen had already asked if she might need therapy for ADHD or Borderline Personality Disorder, this time my friend smiled wryly before replying: 'No, but these questions are certainly giving me anxiety.' While it's true her daughter can be as self-centred as any teenager, she certainly doesn't have a personality disorder - and at this stage of her identity development, she's far too young for even the most experienced professional to make a diagnosis. What we DO all have are smartphones, constantly serving us a carousel of social media posts offering mental health conditions like menu choices.
Pink Villa
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
DNA Movie Review: Atharvaa Murali, Nimisha Sajayan starrer is a thrilling and intense concept, troubled with outdated narration
DNA, starring Atharvaa Murali and Nimisha Vijayan in the leading roles, hit the big screens on June 20, 2025. Following a month of release, the film is now available to stream on the OTT platform JioHotstar. If you plan to watch the movie on the streaming platform, here's our Pinkvilla review for you to check out. The Plot DNA is an action thriller film that features the story of Anand and Divya. The former is distraught in his life after his girlfriend died, which leads him to turn to alcohol. As he is spiraling downward, his father views him as irresponsible and even causes Anand to humiliate himself in front of his brother's prospective in-laws. Eventually, Ananda is placed in a de-addiction center, and after his discharge, his marriage is arranged with Divya, a woman with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). Despite learning about her condition, Anand accepts her into his life, and they lead a happy marriage. However, after she gives birth to a baby boy, Divya is convinced that it is not her child and that someone has replaced her child. While everyone else refuses to believe her, even doctors label it as postpartum psychosis, Anand trusts his wife. How he and Divya manage to find the truth forms the entire movie. The Good The most significant positive aspect about DNA is the fact that the main characters are extremely well-knit. Neither the male nor the female protagonists of the movie are perfect, and the writing that went into defining them with such flaws is what makes them a watchable pair. Starting off as if it's an emotional drama, it slowly evolves into a thriller with an interesting concept. In addition to the layers of characters that unfold with each act, Atharvaa and Nimisha deserve praise for their balanced performances. Their subtlety and nuances are what made the movie strike a chord. Regarding the technical aspects, the cinematography by Parthiban is to be praised for its striking visuals. Moreover, with multiple musicians crafting the tracks, the background score by Ghibran has to be called perfect for this intense tale. The Bad: The negative factors of the film are its outdated screenplay and poor execution. The film holds together well with its concept and premise, making one feel compelled to watch it from start to finish. However, the place where it fails is maintaining consistency in its progression. A film that is so tightly knit does not seem to stand out due to the high volume of clichés it contains. While a few instances here and there would have been fine, the movie is marred by predictability, which causes it to lose the audience's attention. The Performances: As mentioned earlier, DNA holds quite a prominent role as a film due to the leading actors. Both Atharvaa and Nimisha make the best of these complex characters, bringing out engaging moments. While both of them were great, Balaji Sakthivel and Ramsh Thilak need to be mentioned as well for the standout moments. Moreover, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub also does a great job. Watch the trailer here: The Verdict DNA is an intense action thriller that undoubtedly stands out as a fresh experience from Tamil cinema in 2025. While there are moments that become a letdown while watching, it remains a fulfilling watch with powerful performances.
