Our Story...

"Someone should organise a comedy festival about this sort of thing..."

Matt Harvey is from Totnes. (He didn't know this until his late teens when he moved there and found himself where he was meant to be.) He is a poet*, comedian, Radio 4 presenter and conference facilitator.
 

Mandy Williamson is the Chief Executive of MIND in EXETER & EAST DEVON who organises conferences sometimes.

During an idle chat at one of these conferences they started talking about the many links between mental health and the world of comedy - positive and negative. These included the fact that many people in the world of comedy have ‘come out’ as having mental health problems and are not discriminated against because of it, unlike most areas of employment and activity. They also mused on the traditional links - the tears behind the mask of the clown, etc. It came up too, how they were frustrated about the way comedians can reinforce wrong and negative stereotypes, which got them excited at the potential to use comedy to challenge discrimination in the way that alternative comedy has tried to challenge racism and sexism over the last two decades. Then there was the thought that the multitude of comedy mediums had the potential to reach every part of society and raise awareness of mental health and the power of laughter. And to make lots and lots and lots of people smile, chortle, giggle and guffaw. To make lots of people feel like they "are swimming with endorphins", as the poet and Totnesian in Matt would have it.

As they couldn't think of the somebody who should organise the now obviously essential comedy festival, they decided to do it themselves... with the help of the many, many others in the worlds of arts, comedy, good mood food and sports who proved keen to be part of it.

It worked! Now the third festival launches, and launches something even more - an all year round programme of off the wall. Welcome and please join in. It's good for you!

* We suspect Matt would like us to add that his recently published book of poetry 'The Hole in the Sum of my Parts', is available from the The Poetry Trust www.thepoetrytrust.org and other places too.