Latest news with #DionaDoherty
Scotsman
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Diona Doherty explores Motherhood, Identity and Flamingos in Fringe debut
Best known to TV audiences for her scene-stealing roles in Derry Girls and Soft Border Patrol, Northern Irish comedian Diona Doherty is swapping the small screen for the Edinburgh stage this August as she makes her stand-up debut at the Fringe with Get Your Pink Back! at Monkey Barrel. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, 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... Drawing inspiration from an online clip about flamingos losing their colour after becoming parents, Doherty's show delves into the reality of modern motherhood and the struggle to rediscover yourself amid sleepless nights and endless laundry. It was the unexpected analogy between drained birds and drained mums that sparked something for the performer, prompting her to re-evaluate what had happened to her once-vibrant self. The show is part confessional, part comeback. In the hour-long set, Doherty recounts taking on a mix of new hobbies—from Zumba to choir practice, Kerby to silent retreats—all in the name of reclaiming her sense of self. Alongside the humour, the show doesn't shy away from heavier themes either, reflecting on her experiences with post-natal depression, infertility and IVF. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad No stranger to a punchline, Doherty has been a familiar face on the BBC's The Blame Game since 2020 and recently returned to the BBC New Comedy Awards as a judge, following her own run to the finals. She's also made appearances on Radio 4's The News Quiz and Breaking The News, and her writing credits span radio plays, theatre commissions and viral sketches. (c) KHARA PRINGLE Yet Get Your Pink Back! feels like a personal milestone for the Derry-born performer. After years of scripted roles and character work, this is a rare glimpse of Doherty as herself—tired, honest and funny, with just the right amount of glitter. Diona Doherty's debut stand up show 'Get Your Pink Back!' will be at the Monkey Barrel 2 for the entire fringe for tickets go to
Sunday World
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Sunday World
Derry Girls star had 15 year phobia after her legs were criticised on TV show
She says leaving the hurtful comments behind also underlined that she's on the right career path after early modelling ambitions. Derry Girls star Diona Doherty says podcast pals helped her overcome a 15-year phobia about exposing her legs. And since she's shared her decision to shrug off criticism from judges on Britain and Ireland's Next Top Model, other women have followed her lead. Diona, who's set to star in the new series of Blue Lights, says it was the energy of The Girls Groupchat podcast with Q Radio's Jordan Arnold, Olivia McVeigh and Shannon Mitchell which helped rebuild her body confidence. The comedian also shares the stage with Jordan at EastSide Arts next month. 'When I was 21, I did Britain and Ireland's Next Top Model, and a remark was made about my legs, and again at FashionWeek, 'don't be putting a skirt on her', and it stuck with me,' says Diona. 'I genuinely never wore shorts or a skirt since. I would go on holiday and not get my legs out or go to the gym in leggings. 'Through the podcast I now feel like I have this girl gang and a female dynamic which has given me the confidence to wear all the things I have avoided. 'I can now wear skirts and shorts, and since I shared that the amount of people who have got in touch saying someone made a remark about their arms or their nose, and how something like that can divert the course of your life.' The 36-year-old says leaving the hurtful comments behind also underlined that she's on the right career path after early modelling ambitions. She had a memorable role as Ukrainian teenager and Chernobyl child Katya on Derry Girls and starred in Soft Border Patrol. Diona, from Derry, is also in the next series of the Bafta-winning Blue Lights. 'I feel like I'm going to stay in comedy and acting. 'Blue Lights is a fun cool role and hopefully it has legs. I'm really excited for everyone to see it,' she says. 'I always saw myself doing a detective show or a cop drama because I'm a massive fan. 'I'm only in a couple of episodes and I remember thinking how lucky it was to be there on one of the most hard-working, efficient sets I've ever been on.' 'And what better time to join than when they've just won a Bafta?' Girls Groupchat. From left, Jordan Arnold, Olivia McVeigh, Diona Doherty and Shannon Mitchell Diona is also in Art Detectives, a UK-made drama which is currently only available on Acorn TV in the US. She filmed it in Belfast, playing a curator in the Titanic Museum working with a group of detectives pursuing stolen art and artefacts. 'I auditioned for it, and some of them you get and most of them you don't,' says Diona. 'I don't know if it's going to be shown in the UK. Maybe I'm a huge star in America and I don't even know it.' In another packed year the mother-of-two is currently writing an adult panto for Christmas, Red Riding Hoods, with husband Sean Hegarty, while preparing to take her Get Your Pink Back stand-up show to the Edinburgh Fringe for a month. The title is a reference to flamingos who lose their pink colour when they become mothers. With four-year-old daughter Winter and son Rocky (2), she set out to find her pre-parenthood self – and make it funny. 'The show is about explaining who I was before kids,' says Diona. 'This will be the first time I have done a stand-up show for a month in Edinburgh, and this time it feels like business. 'I'm really hoping someone knocks on my door afterwards with a nice opportunity that wouldn't have come otherwise.' Spotify has already come knocking following the success of the podcast, offering a partnership thanks to the listener numbers. The company also brought Diona over to its London headquarters and plugged the show on a massive billboard ad. Actress and comedian Diona Doherty. Photo byThe star came up with the idea of a female-lead podcast which had the feel of a group of girls chatting in a bathroom on a night out. 'You'll end up sharing make up brushes and tampons and secrets and crying with someone you've never met before. 'You share silly stuff and serious stuff. Sometimes I forget people are listening.' Following a family holiday recently Diona shared that while she was away she'd had a seizure which caused a fall. She's had them since her teens, when epilepsy was ruled out, and now doctors are starting investigations again to find the cause. 'I fell and smacked my head on holiday, which was quite dangerous. 'I've taken them on and off since I was 13 but I haven't had one since 2020 and I thought motherhood might have saved me. 'I have no idea why I take them, and now we're back to the beginning again. 'I don't know what triggers it, and I do get a bit of warning, but I'm usually too tired to tell anyone,' says Diona. Diona Doherty in Conversation with Jordan Arnold is on July 24 in Shorts Sports and Recreational Club as part of EastSide Arts.
Belfast Telegraph
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Belfast Telegraph
‘It's Northern Ireland's Loose Women': Meet the fab four whose show has topped charts
Shannon Mitchell on joy of making show with fellow hosts Diona Doherty, Jordan Arnold and Olivia McVeigh A Belfast online content creator who is part of a podcast billed as Northern Ireland's Loose Women has said she is 'overwhelmed' at its huge success since its launch earlier this year. In less than three months, the Girls Groupchat Podcast, featuring Q radio host Jordan Arnold, writer, comic and actor Diona Doherty, make-up artist, alopecia and women's health advocate Olivia McVeigh, and TikTok influencer Shannon Mitchell, has shot up the Spotify charts, even bagging the number one trending spot in the UK.
The Irish Sun
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
‘It traumatised me' says Irish star on ‘toxic' experience on TV show that left her unable to wear shorts for 15 years
IRISH actress Diona Doherty has opened up on her "toxic" experience on a very popular TV show that left her unable to wear shorts for over a decade. The 36-year-old is well known for her hilarious role as the Ukrainian student Katya in Derry Girls but her showbiz career started long before her Channel 4 appearance. 4 Diona appeared on Ireland AM this morning 4 Diona spoke about her experience on a 'toxic' TV show 4 Diona competed in Britain & Irelands Next Top Model Series 8 Credit: Sky Living Diona was a contestant on series eight of Britain and Ireland's Next Top Model in 2012 before being sent packing by judge Elle Macpherson. The Derry beauty spoke about the less-than-ideal experience she had on the show while on Ireland AM this morning. She said: "I mean, it wasn't great, if I'm being honest Those shows are very toxic. All those makeover TV shows that we had years ago. "When you're on that as a young woman I think you think, 'Oh my goodness, this is my ticket to the fashion industry, it's going to be so exciting afterwards'. And it's very clear that they're making a TV show and it's there for entertainment purposes." read more on derry girls Host Alan Hughes remarked: "I think there's more duty of care now than there was then." Diona replied: "Absolutely, and I think that It's a sign of the times. I think that's just the way TV was back then." She spoke about how one of the judge's comments gave her a "lifelong complex". Diona explained: "When I was on that show, comments were made to me by the judges that I only looked good from the waist up and it traumatised me as a 21-year-old. read more on the irish sun "And I never wore shorts or a skirt or anything since." The Irish star bought her first pair of shorts and wore her bare legs out for the first time in 15 years last week. Muireann O'Connell replied: "On national television, they did that to you. Get the shorts out. "I can't wait until you invite Elle 'the Body' McPherson on your podcast And go for it, as to what happened to you with that." Diona also spoke about the hilarious irony that she's a Derry native yet couldn't use her accent for Derry Girls as she played a Ukranian. She said: "Isn't this what's the funny thing about acting? People say to me all the time, 'You don't sound from Derry in Derry Girls, that's so weird'. "But I auditioned for the Ukrainian part. That's what happened." "Funnily enough I remember being on a train from like Derry to Belfast. I think it was just after Derry Girls had come out and a man came over to me and went, 'Do you need directions?', and I was like, 'I'm from here!' "I was like, 'Well done on the accent'." Girls Aloud star Nadine Coyle recently spoke about Nicola Coughlan basing her accent on hers. Diona remarked: "Did you see the shade? Oh my god. I was like, 'Nadine that's not how we behave in Derry'. "She said she watched videos of me to try and do the Derry accent but I think she should have watched some more." However Diona did admit that she "loves" Nadine and used to pretend they knew each other as they went to the same school - just five years a part. 4 Diona starred as Katya on Derry Girls Credit: Channel 4
Belfast Telegraph
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Belfast Telegraph
‘It's now or never': NI comedian Diona Doherty on juggling stand-up, motherhood, and a major new TV role
In the latest Meaning of Life, Diona Doherty talks to Gillian Halliday about her upcoming projects, the 'absolutely nuts' comedic talent in Northern Ireland, and being threatened on stage while heavily pregnant Not too long into our interview, Diona Doherty contemplates on comedy's innate ability to be cathartic — and for the Derry comic and actor, it's very personal. She says: 'When I started the IVF process to have my kids, I immediately started writing down notes for jokes in the airport on the way to the Czech Republic to do the IVF, because I was like, 'I got to make this money back'. And also I wanted to be able to make light of it. 'I think here in this country, we do that so well. We have such a dark sense of humour and we're not afraid to make jokes about darker topics, because it helps us.'
