Don’t miss Des Bishop’s show Mia Mamma, inspired by the ‘star’ of his life, his mother, who died in March 2019.

I am often asked “where do you get your material from?” The truth is really that I try to see the funny in everything. My mother died in March 2019 and, of course, it was sad, and grief can be tough sometimes, but I saw a lot of funny in that too. Since death comes to us all and grief is something most of us will experience I thought there must be plenty of people who would like that funny to be shared. Also, I did a show about my Dad being sick back in 2010 and I couldn’t face my mother in the afterlife because I know her first question would be “your father got a show, how come I didn’t get one?”

I think it’s tougher to lose your mum. My Dad was the best supporting actor. My mother was an actress in a leading role. You are never ready when the star of the show dies.

So this is a show about MY mother. It’s a show about motherhood and sacrifice, anxiety and grief, the mistakes you make as a mother and a son and the hard road to forgiveness and finally it’s about loss, grief and the chaos that surrounds it.

Where do I get my material from? Life and death.