LipService Theatre – Britain’s favourite literary lunatics

LipService is thrilled to announce an award of £46,197 from the National Heritage Lottery Fund for a new heritage project, Funny Stuff. A full press release with details of the award and the project can be read here.

These are the headlines. The grant supports the wraparound exhibition that accompanies the Funny Stuff show tour, a digital archive with show recordings, scripts, reviews, fan mail to be launched in early autumn, a physical archive of props, costumes, bespoke items to be housed at Manchester Central Library in the space that was the Library Theatre, a film of the exhibition with full access for Deaf and disabled audiences, and a symposium at the end of the project. We are looking for volunteers to help box list archival material so please email info@lip-service.net if you’d like to be involved. Full training provided, plus cake and conversation. Basically, lots of fun sorting through the funny stuff! Sue Ryding, LipService Artistic Director said "I’m so thrilled to be creating a lasting legacy for the company and for Maggie, and I’m grateful for the support of the National Heritage Lottery Fund, made possible by players of the National Lottery".

LipService Theatre was created by comedy duo Sue Ryding and the late Maggie Fox. During a 40 year career together they created 22 original comedies for the theatre, won multiple awards, plus a series on Radio 4 and many TV appearances.

"The Laurel and Hardy of literary deconstruction" The Guardian

"In terms of comic inventiveness they are unstoppable force" Time Out

To commemorate 40 years of LipService, Sue is touring a new show, "Funny Stuff". In 2022 her comedy partner Maggie Fox died and Sue was left with a shipping container full of stage props, costumes, wigs, hats, shoes, sheep, you name it. This show looks at all the “stuff” we accumulate, hoard and hate to let go. In this humorous and creative response to grief, Sue struggles to part with a life sized stuffed sheep, a badger onesie, some ruby slippers, a sinking bog, Charlotte Bronte’s knickers and a host of soft toys. Touring anecdotes are combined with archive footage from LipService shows. The Spring tour has elicited rave reviews from our audiences.

It was the most heartwarming show, it made me laugh, it made me cry , was so beautifully scripted and thought out. Thank you for sharing your journey of loss and grief and equally thank you for keeping Maggie’s memory alive.

A spectacular performance

Funny Stuff is back on tour in October

Welcome to LipService Theatre!

LipService is awarded a grant from the National Heritage Lottery Fund

Funny Stuff trailer

Funny Stuff, a new show written & performed by Sue Ryding

LipService Upcoming Shows & 40th anniversary exhibition