It’s the one question that has plagued humankind since the dawn of time…what happens when you put three funny women in front of microphones and ask them to talk about technology?
Back in 2018, a fledgeling indie producer (hi) decided to create a podcast to try and answer that question once and for all. Or at least until his funding ran out. Six episodes, almost 5000 downloads and a brief spot at number four in the iTunes tech charts later, we now know the answer – it’s actually rather good!
Series one used song, sketch and stand-up to take a swipe at the sexism faced by Grace Hopper (a pioneer of computer programming), helped the audience realise Hedy Lamarr was much more than just a pretty face (she helped invent wi-fi) and looked at how AI was reflecting society’s gender imperfections.
Making the show was a challenge, but a small team of women (and a few token men) brought something new and exciting to life whilst helping address the gender imbalance we too often see in comedy…and technology. An all-female line-up making jokes about science, technology, maths and engineering? It shouldn’t be, but this a ‘thing’ – and for something that affects so much of modern life, it really shouldn’t be.
So to try and make this the norm for tech podcasts (or even just comedy podcasts?), we’re going to do it all again. Series two is happening…but we need your help! Dr Lucy Rogers (Robot Wars) and award-winning comedians Bec Hill (Go 8 bit) and Harriet Braine (2016 Funny Women Award Winner) are back, this time exploring the comedy past, present and future of some of the hottest topics in tech…and we’d really love to have you in the audience to cheer them on.
We’re recording three live shows on the 19th, 20th and 23rd of March at the lovely Rosemary Branch Theatre in London. Tickets are a bargainous £5 (plus booking fee) from https://www.tickettext.co.uk/why-did-the-chicken/ with proceeds going to Remap – a charity that uses custom tech to help disabled people live more independent lives.
It would be amazing to have some Funny Women both on stage and in the audience, so do come along if you can. What’s more, if you’re a Funny Friend then you can get in for free – simply send your name, email address and show date to info@whydidthechicken.com and we’ll do the rest.
If you can’t make it or want to do even more then we also need your gags! You can read the full writer’s brief at www.whydidthechicken.com/productions.
We’re excited to be able to evolve the format and would love you to be part of the journey. Whether it’s coming to the show, writing for us, listening to the finished podcasts or spreading the word – your support will help elevate the show to where we want it to be – just a regular ol’ podcast with an amazing all-female cast talking about mind-blowing tech.
