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. Thanks to a grant from the National Heritage Lottery Fund we have created a new digital archive. Read more about the award here
So dive straight in and explore the shows
The Laurel and Hardy of literary deconstruction
The Guardian
In terms of comic inventiveness they are an unstoppable force
Time Out
Funny Stuff Exhibition Film
Take your own personal tour of the Funny Stuff Exhibition in the comfort of your own home. Get up close and personal with some of the whacky props and costumes made for LipService by hugely talented puppeteers and designers
Watch here
BSL version
Captioned coming soon
Audio Described version
Funny Stuff-40th anniversary tour & exhibition
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
Tour dates:
Sale Waterside Arts Centre 17 October
Theatre Royal Dumfries 18 October
Hebden Bridge Little Theatre 25 Oct
To celebrate our 40th anniversary we’d love you to send in your memories. It may be you were in a community choir for Desperate to be Doris, or you were a virgin sacrifice in Hector’s House or you just had a good night out with some mates, we want to hear from you!
Oral History Collection
Maggie Fox & Sue Ryding in Coming On Late 1985
So where did LipService come from? Well, we launched in 1985, one of over 20 companies who formed part of the Manchester Fringe Forum. Three of those original companies had a 40 year career, including LipService, the Whalley Range All Stars and Avanti Display. The work created by these companies reached all parts of the globe. We employed 5 contemporary emerging artists to interview 1980’s artists and the result is incredible. A highlights reel is coming your way soon but the full collection of over 30 interviews will be housed at Archives+ at Manchester Central Library
Theatre maker and oral history intern Jonny Cordingley with director Rikki Tarascas, original Fringe Forum member, director of Fusion
Library sessions:
Tuesday 4 & 11 November 10.30am-1pm
Tues 18 November 1-3pm
Tues 25 November 6 - 8pm
Tea, cake and chat guaranteed
Get Involved
Join us at Manchester Central Library for our “sewing bee” sessions. We are transforming old Barbie and Ken dolls into LipService show characters. These will form part of the Funny Stuff Exhibition at Manchester Central Library in January & February 2026. Tea, cake and chat guaranteed. If you’d like to join in remotely and post us a doll, do get in touch!
LipService is awarded a grant from the National Heritage Lottery Fund
“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".
