Interview: Tom Wrigglesworth
IN 2009 at the Edinburgh Fringe when CityLife asked around as to which show people recommended, the overwhelming answer that came back time and time again from comedians, critics and punters alike was Tom Wrigglesworth’s Open Letter Return To Richard Branson.
And sure enough, as the Fringe went on, his posters became smothered in four and five star reviews and plaudits.
It was only his second solo outing at the Fringe, so was it a bit overwhelming?
“It was quite flattering,” he counters in his rich Yorkshire drawl.
“But you don’t really have time to do anything different. You’ve just got to do the best show you can every night really.
“It was more pressure, I guess, but I don’t know when there’d never be any pressure. If it was going badly you’d be upset about that.
“If it’s going well you’re getting all the press. Edinburgh’s never easy – it’s just whether it’s a flattering hard or a humiliating hard.”
Still, it worked out well for him. The inspiration for the show was something of a creative and comedic gift.
While travelling on a Virgin train from Manchester back to London after a weekend of gigs, the hungover Wrigglesworth heard the train guard tackle an elderly lady (whom he later learnt was called Lena Ainscow) sat nearby who hadn’t got corresponding tickets and paperwork for her booking, so he promptly charged her the full fare for the trip – over £100 – which she duly paid out of the money she had saved to buy her grandchildren’s Christmas presents.
Stirred from his hungover stupor and after failing to make the guard see his error, Wrigglesworth decided to have a whip-round amongst his fellow passengers for her – but his subsequent clashing with the guard earned him an arrest when he arrived at Euston station.
Despite the fact that most comedians can only dream of such an anecdote, Wrigglesworth can only plead that it was well into the saga that he realised there might be material there…
'Really silly'
“It was actually when he said ‘I’m going to get you arrested’ that I thought well, hang on, that’s definitely ridiculous and if something’s definitely ridiculous then you know you can get something out of it.
“So I went ‘yeah ok, do it. Let’s get really silly.’ I thought they can’t arrest me for having a whip round – I didn’t think… I was so angry when it was actually happening that I didn’t really think of anything beyond the action plan on the train.”
The resulting narrative is a beautiful piece of storytelling. It’s heart-warming, funny and whimsical – plus it’s invested with a poetic use of language.
It’s no surprise it struck a chord, including for the Edinburgh Comedy Award panel who saw fit to give it a nomination for the main award.
“It’s a basic David and Goliath story. It’s got the added bonus that it’s true and it’s got a granny in tears,” he smiles. “People tend to really love the train and those people are appalled by price structure; this story genuinely angers people, so I did have a feeling that it might strike a chord because simply at the time it had.
“When it actually happened, people were on the train infuriated and then later on in the newspapers there was just as much response to it.
“So I had a feeling it might all kick off, but I didn’t know to quite the extent it did.”
As well as creating a show from his experience, Wrigglesworth has helped changed Virgin policy with his online campaign entitled Lena’s Law (he’s still working on the other train companies).
Now anyone on the train without the correct ticket is charged the maximum standard fare for the journey, rather than the maximum peak fare. Result! Though there’s been no feedback from the rather officious guard, Richard Branson was listening and has been directly in touch too.
“I’ve had a letter from Richard Branson saying good luck with the tour and stuff,” says Wrigglesworth, who has also since been in touch with Lena.
“I spoke to her just before Christmas and her daughter came to see the show. The daughter lives in London, that’s who she was going to visit. But I’m hoping Lena will come to Salford.”
If she does, on that occasion we’ll be fortunate to have two stars of the show in the auditorium rather than just the one.
Tom Wrigglesworth brings Open Letter Return to Richard Branson (probably by train) to the Lowry on February 6, 2010.
Published: Fri, 05 February, 2010
Comment on this article
You need to be logged in to comment. Login | Register