Live webchat with Jenny Eclair, Thursday 27 September 10-11am

Cheers all, if you have a nice little theatre near you, do check and see if Im on, if Im not go and see some other live comedy- we need your bums on those seats, also if you dont fancy going out, then curl up with Life Death and Vanilla Slices, if you need some persuading check out the Amazon reviews!
Jx

katysgran

How many years have you been touring for? Does it get easier or harder? What do you like (or dislike) most about it? I think I would miss my own bed too much

Ive been working for thirty years, you just get used to it, I don't miind the one night stands, I get driven- because driving myself, doing a show and then driving again would be dangerous, I like my driver, i have an iPad and do you know some hotels have got much posher mattresses than I have at home. I quite like the freedom from adult resposibility and now theres an M and S at most motorway service stations, touring is much tastier

bakergran

When you were in the jungle for I'm A Celeb, Jenny, what did you miss most about home?

I am never sure if I would miss my family the most or whether I would JUST WANT A FLUSHING TOILET NOW, if forced to choose.

yes the loo was quite traumatic and Im a real bath girl, so I do remember coming out and needing 7 baths before I felt vaguely human, I didn't really miss home, because I kept expecting to be out the next day and I knew whatever happened it couldn't go on forever, but it's a v surreal experience and much more hard core than I ever expected

beeble

Ooh I love Jenny Eclair!!

Jenny - I noticed on twitter you describe yourself as a geriatric stand-up comic. Do you think your age is affecting your career (in a positive or negative way?)

Both, I think its given me a niche and my audience certainly reflects who and what I am- but I worry that the telly offers will dry up, Im not a new name and I think telly can sometimes be obsessed with 'new'- Oh listen I'm freelance, if I'm not paranoid about my age, I'll be paranoid about something else, its tough out there for a lot of people regardless of age- anyway I could lie- look at the state of me, Im so obviously 52!

plainbellysneetch

Hello Jenny!

Just how tired are you of being asked by lazy/misogynist journos (and the editors who commission them) to comment on 'are women funny/whither female comedy?' features.

Yes it does go on, but there is an interesting debate about comedy and gender, its just that the same things tend to get said. It is weird that young men particularly still dont rate female comics, Ive seen some terrible stuff on twitter, but i think the actual industry is changing and there are a lot more good working women comics around at the moment and I think Sarah Millican's Tv success is a real door opener- the worry at the moment is the sheer number of comics trying to get work, i never thought Id be in an industry that was over subscribed- but I think due to the recession, there are a lot of young bright graduates who - for lack of job offers- are giving it a go, this is both a good and bad thing, the business is bursting at the seams with talent and everyone is fighting for an audience

barbarab

I think I've heard you say your daughter is a student? But do you hope she will make you a grandma one day?

PS Am I allowed to ask that?

She finished last year and has boomeranged back home for the time being! She has a years contract with Battersea Arts Centre and does some Tv running work, she makes me laugh more than anyone but she also makes me worry myself sick, its time for her to move out but London rents are so mad - as for the Grandma thing, I wouldn't dare ask, but in the meantime I have started looking at dachshunds

effblinder

Seconding melly's question.

And also, I like your glasses. I am so bad at choosing frames, I always end up disappointed and buying something boring and safe. Any tips for getting out of my comfort zone?

Its so hard isn't it because theyre such an expensive mistake if you go wriong. I go to Cutler and Gross but I always take the old man wo is a designer and just good at knowing what suits me, I actually only have about three pairs and the thought of losing or breaking them, makes me feel sick. O occasionally wear lenses but i can read in them - so i wear them less and less, vari focals are beckoning, but Im resisting

melly

I like the title of your new book. Did you come up with it? Also - Gransnet is renowned for talking about cake - so can I ask whether you prefer vanilla slices - or eclairs?

Oddly enough, i don't eat cake - never ever ever, I had an eating disorder years ago and the one thing I never got over was cake/pudding/biscuits- I dont have a sweet tooth and I actually dislike chocolate, Id much rather have cheese

I did like cake when i was younger and growing up in the North a cream cake was a big treat, given the choice or be shot against a wall - Id rather the vanilla slice

Elephantgran

I saw on your blog that you bought a walnut with and Adam and Eve inside for your husband's birthday. How did that go down?

Very well - last year he got a stuffed squirrel - he always wants a Bentley Continental but as Mich Jagger once sang "You cant Always Get what You Want'

tidymind

How long does it take you to write an entire standup show? Isn't the thought of keeping everyone laughing for an hour or whatever completely terrifying?

I do an hour and a half- leave them wanting nothing more
This one has taken three months on and off, but Im always doing other things alongside- so its v tricky, the show is never set in stone, new bits come with the performance and I drop stuff once I get bored of it

firenze

Do you think you can train yourself to be funny? How should I go about being wittier?

Oh - hmmm now then....er no!
I think one is born with either funny bones or not, but I think wit can be practised, I think women tend to be funnier when they are in the company of people they trust, when they know they are going to be given the time to finish their anecdote without someone trampling all over it, the trick is not to waffle around the edges too much, stick to the story and dont forget the punchline- if you cant be funny or witty, be fascinating and if you cant do that sit back, shut up and look mysterious

CariGransnet

A question from our Facebook page:

Lucy Zelazowski: Morning! Jenny do you miss doing stand-up? & what your favourite sandwich?

Baclk on tour on Saturday- if you happen to be in Leeds, after that there are a further 39 dates of 'Eclairious' all around the country, all details on my website

as for my favourite sandwich I like the Pret bacon and scrambled egg if I'm in town of a morning and at home I will pile anything in, though i try and avoid bread as much as poss as I get a bit bloaty- at the moment I'm v big on goats cheese, beetroot and pine nuts, with spinach- a nice sturdy leaf which will withstand a heart filling

ellasgranny

I saw you on Masterchef recently. Were you disappointed not to make it further in the competition?

No, to be honest, I'm a liability in the kitchen, it was an utter cheek to even have a go, Ive barely cooked since- in some respects it was a relief for once and for all to realise i dont like it very much and Im not very good at it, however I do a fab hefty salad and my actual diet is quite healthy, I just dont have the cooking gene

minette

What was it like being in Grumpy Old Women? I imagine rather like being on Gransnet but on the telly. I do love a good rant

I had the time of my life doing the live shows, we travelled round the Uk and toured Australia, the show was translated into Finnish and Icelandic so we got to go over there to see foreign female comics perform our words- which was ace.
The telly prog hit such a nerve it was great to be part of this battalion of women that form the back bone of the country, we are currently in talks about a third touring show poss for next year

JO4

I just googled to see who this is.

I haven't got a question.

have a look at my website, you will learn all and more than you need to know!

Greatnan

I enjoy all your TV and radio appearances, Jenny. Were you worried about the constant portrayal of men in a bad light on Loose Women? Many people remarked that if a panel of men were as critical of women they would be in deep trouble! It made me laugh, but also feel rather guilty.

I was very keen not to play it that way, i hope I didn't, I have been with the same man for thirty years and he's far too good for me. I hope I managed to get that across whenever possible, I find the slagging off of men lazy and dull, although on stage I will sometimes fire something across the bows, Ive got some new material about how unobservant men are generally and I think it gets a big reaction because its true. I generally reckon that we are wired slightly differently but i think respect is due on both sides. I also think my generation of women are more suspicious of men than we need be, I went to an all girls grammar school and it took me a long time to realise its ok to have boys as friends- waffling now!