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Front Row: Welsh Fleabag, Social media and comedy in Edinburgh;  Moon Palace in Leeds

Welsh Fleabag, Social media and comedy in Edinburgh;  Moon Palace in Leeds

BBC Radio 4 - Front Row, Welsh Fleabag, Social media and comedy in Edinburgh;  Moon Palace in Leeds

Welsh Fleabag, a star-gazing Moon Palace in Leeds, the impact of social media on comedy.

A new Welsh version of the comedy hit Fleabag is about to premiere at the National Eisteddfod in Boduan.  Branwen Davies’ adaptation of the one-woman show for Theatr Clywd has been given the thumb’s up by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who wrote and starred in the original version ten years ago at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It was later turned into an award-winning BBC television series. Davies says she wanted to create a Welsh voice for Fleabag rather than do a word-for-word translation. Her Fleabag talks about her interactions with men in English – but it’s the Welsh language she shared with her dead mother that reveals her most honest and vulnerable moments. 

Just over halfway through Leeds2023, the city's year-long celebration of culture, Nick visits one of the major commissions - Moon Palace.  A new social sculpture and working mobile observatory created by artists Heather Peak and Ivan Morison.  They took inspiration from the man known as the "father of civil engineering", John Smeaton, who was born in East Leeds nearly 300 years ago and as well as building his own observatory, designed and built many bridges, canals, water mills, and lighthouses across the UK. 

And how is social media transforming comedy?  Comedian Abi Clarke who’s in Edinburgh did standup for a year but gained more than 900,000 followers on TikTok after posting sketches since the pandemic.  Comedy promoter Toby Jones believes it’s a bigger revolution than television and takes comedy directly to consumers, helping to improve diversity and build audiences without so much financial risk.

Presenter: Nick Ahad
Producer: Ekene Akalawu

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