Josie Long is no stranger to funny, first performing stand up at the age of just fourteen years old. If you’re a fan of Josie’s work you’ll know that her character naturally makes a room full of people feel at ease, which was exactly the case at the evening with her at The Biscuit Factory, where it felt like we were all having a casual natter with a friend. However, this event wasn’t to discuss funny, but her debut collection of short stories in ‘Because I Don’t Know what You Mean and What You Don’t’. The debut bears a stark contrast to Josie’s usual material exploring more ‘serious’ emotional issues such as motherhood, mental health, and climate change. Josie explained how, since childhood, she has always enjoyed reading bleak stories, and this book has given her an opportunity to further scratch the itch by touching on issues that don’t quite fit into a stand-up set. It seems from listening to Josie that this book has been empowering for her, both in processing her own experiences, but also a way to negotiate the political climate her and her children now live in. It was a privilege, to not only be in the same room as a comedic genius and incredibly versatile creative, but also just a genuinely lovely person.

Imogen Mole