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RTÉ News
15 hours ago
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Taylor Tomlinson on turning personal trauma into comedy gold
Sínann Fetherston speaks with comedian Taylor Tomlinson about her Save Me Tour, and how therapy has helped her turn personal trauma into comedy gold. "I had a lot of religious trauma to work through because of the way I grew up," Taylor Tomlinson tells me, speaking over Zoom from her New York home. The comic is set to play Dublin's 3Arena on Sunday, 13 July, as part of the Save Me Tour, a show that details her sheltered childhood in a devout Christian household, where things like Harry Potter were banned because Dementors were seen as being too similar to the devil. Although her faith waned when her mother passed away when she was just eight years old, the church did eventually lead to an unlikely career in stand-up. As a teenager, she signed up for a six-week stand-up course, which led to a successful run on the Christian comedy circuit. Eventually, the performer outgrew the church-approved constraints, and a seemingly tame joke had her in the bad books. ("In bed, I am a wild animal... I'm way more afraid of you than you are of me"). From there, the then 21-year-old stepped out into the mainstream circuit and hasn't looked back - until now. "My twenties were about untangling myself from all of that, and now I'm 31 and I have a much more balanced, nuanced view of religion and belief," she explains. "I promise it's funny," she adds, laughing. Since 2020, the California woman has shot to stardom, with the Hollywood Reporter naming her as one of the "100 most powerful women in Hollywood" and Variety listing her as one of their "10 Comics To Watch" in 2024. As well as delivering three Netflix stand-up specials in this short time - Quarter-Life Crisis (2020), Look At You (2022), and Have It All (2024) - Tomlinson became the only female host on late-night television in the US when she presented the panel show After Midnight. Off-stage, these years were equally as transformative: she broke off an engagement, went to therapy, received a bipolar II diagnosis, came out as bisexual, lived bi-coastally, and toured constantly. These incredibly personal topics quickly became fan-favourite material, with audiences applauding the standup's intense vulnerability and wit, but they have come at a cost. "I've been running a hundred miles per hour for 10 years because I've been scared and striving," she admits. "I'm reaching a point now where, hopefully, I'd like to prioritise my health and wellbeing and personal life a little bit more than I have." A comedian to her core, Tomlinson says the jokes (as well as a lot of therapy) decide when she's ready to open up. "I think therapy is big," she says, "and also, once I have written a great joke about something, it kind of doesn't matter if I'm ready or not. I'm like, we better get ready because I really want to tell this joke!" At the same time, thanks to said therapy, she's happy to pull material if it doesn't feel right during a performance: "I think you just kind of know.; it's kind of like baking, you stick the fork in and see if it comes out clean." With great fame comes a great many podcasts, and Tomlinson has quickly learned that the conversation around her material rarely ends when the curtain falls. If a public figure cracks the door open to their personal life, journalists, podcasters, and fans will always be ready to push for more. "The way you speak about things on stage is a very specific, honed version of your feelings," she agrees. "You get it down to the least amount of words possible and tie it up in a nice, neat bow. Having conversations with people face-to-face is a lot trickier and feels a lot more vulnerable, weirdly enough, than doing it in front of thousands of people." Religious trauma and therapy aside, Tomlinson says that the emotional minefield of dating will play a big part in the show because, as many of us know, trying to find love through swiping is rife with material. Particularly as a celebrity. And even more so as a comedian who cracks jokes about her broken engagement. "I don't know what to blame it on," she says of the current dating scene. "I don't know if it's being more of a public figure, being a little bit older, having standards, being comfortable alone, or is it just that it's generally difficult to date now with social media and apps? It's probably a combination of all of it, but everyone I know who is dating is not having a good time." "It's bad out here," she adds, grimly, "but then I look at my own social media and I'm like, ugh, this is people's first impression of me? It's just a nightmare out here." On the plus side, a nightmare date is a goldmine for material, and Tomlinson promises plenty of jokes: "That, I can guarantee".
USA Today
27-03-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Taylor Tomlinson's late-night show 'After Midnight' canceled after 2 seasons
Taylor Tomlinson's late-night show 'After Midnight' canceled after 2 seasons After two seasons on the air, Taylor Tomlinson's late-night game show "After Midnight" is going dark. The CBS talk show, which filled the network's 12:30 a.m. slot following James Corden's 2023 departure from "The Late Late Show," will air its series finale in June, a year and a half after the program's January 2024 debut. Although "After Midnight" was renewed for a third season, Tomlinson is departing the show to focus on her stand-up comedy career. "Hosting 'After Midnight' has genuinely been the experience of a lifetime, and I'll be forever grateful for the opportunity to be part of this incredible journey," Tomlinson said in a statement. "Though it was an extremely tough decision, I knew I had to return to my first passion and return to stand-up touring full-time. "I appreciate CBS, Stephen Colbert, the producers, and the entire 'After Midnight' staff and crew for all the love, support, and unforgettable memories." Fellow late-night host Stephen Colbert, who serves as an executive producer on the show, thanked CBS in a statement for its "constant support and invaluable partnership on 'After Midnight,'" as well as the show's staff for its "amazing dedication." "While we were excited and grateful for our third season to start in the fall, we respect Taylor's decision to return to stand-up full time," Colbert said. "After Midnight," which drew inspiration from the Comedy Central game show "@midnight," saw Tomlinson lead a panel of comedians through a series of arbitrary games and quizzes for points. Review: Taylor Tomlinson tries something new with 'After Midnight.' It's just OK. While the series could charm with its "occasionally chuckle-worthy and entirely inoffensive" programming, USA TODAY's TV critic Kelly Lawler called "After Midnight" a "half-baked cable timeslot filler." "It's an outright crime that CBS took its first female late-night host and gave her a crummy, cheap format," Lawler wrote. "On the outside, it seems forward-thinking, breaking free of the desk-and-couch format that has dominated the genre for decades. But what it really does is restrict Tomlinson." Tomlinson is best known for her Netflix comedy specials "Quarter-Life Crisis" and "Look at You." The comedian is currently performing on her headlining Save Me Tour, which kicked off on Jan. 30. She's set to take the stage in San Antonio on Friday. Contributing: Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY
