Writer and performer Olly Hawes presents Old Fat F**k Up at Riverside Studios, a darkly comic take on masculinity and middle age. The show considers how men navigate failure, responsibility and change in a world that often expects them to keep performing. We spoke to Olly to find out about the inspiration behind it.
For people who might not usually go to the theatre – how would you describe Old Fat F**k Up in a sentence?
Ummmmm… It’s kind of like a sort of masculine Fleabag meets Fight Club, but with parenthood thrown into the mix, but instead of all that happening on a screen, it’s really happening in front of you, all performed by one of the world’s sexiest men. (Some of that sentence may be untrue)
What made you want to write about middle age and fatherhood?
I’m middle aged, I’m a father, and I’m both narcissistic and lazy. What the hell else was I going to write about?
The show sounds really honest – were you ever nervous about putting so much of yourself on stage?
Ha ha, in an age where more and more the case that what appears to be true is valued more than what is actually true, honestly is an intriguing commodity. The show plays with the truth. I like keeping an audience on their toes in that way. In some ways it’s based on the truth in that it’s based on things that have happened in my life, in other ways it’s based on the truth in that it’s based on my greatest fears. This is both a terrifying thing to do, but also pretty cathartic.
You talk a lot about money, pressure and modern life. What’s the hardest part about being a grown-up right now?
That it’s so fucking hard to actually grow up. We’re poorer than our parents, we’re told that everyone hates everyone else, and that we have no right to expect better, whilst the richest 1% destroy the planet and build survival bunkers. I mean, for fuck’s sake! We’re financial incels! (This answer is quite sweary, sorry about that)
You used AI as part of your writing process – how did that actually help you?
Honestly? It was like having a co-writer with zero talent but infinite enthusiasm. I used it as a sounding board, to clarify thoughts, summarise messy notes, or give me back what I’d already said but cleaner. It’s a bit like working with a dramaturg who’s never been to the theatre but really wants to please you. This entire answer was composed by ChatGPT.
How does Old Fat Fk Up build on what you did in Fking Legend?
On the face of it, Fking Legend feels like a wilder show, there’s more sex, more drugs, more violence, more action, so it would be easy to conclude that it’s more daring, but really what it did was lay the ground mark for me to be more emotionally confronting and more technically crafted with this show. Legend was about coming out swinging, Old Fat Fk Up is a bit more of a cold stare, a whispered confession, an unsettling grin. And it’s great that people can actually see that shift play out. Fking Legend is coming back for four performances only and playing on the same night as Old Fat Fk Up. I’m going to be knackered after that.
When people leave the show, what do you hope they’ll be thinking or feeling?
Despite his aging, pudgy body, my god that man was sexy. Either that or they’ll be thinking, it was funny! It was unexpectedly tender! It was a searingingly honest exploration of the crisis of masculinity! I was provoked and moved and I have so much to talk about! And my god that man was sexy! Yeah, it’s bound to piss a few people off, and that’s fine by me. I’m not out to prove anything; I just want to hit on a feeling that loads of us have but rarely say out loud. I think people will be talking about men. What the fuck are we going to do about all the men? There’s a bit in the show I still can’t get through without flinching. I honestly don’t know how it’s gonna go down, could be silence, could be laughter, could be both. But honestly, it’s not just about men, it’s about anyone who’s ever looked at their own life and thought, how did I get here?
If your younger self could see this show, what do you think he’d say?
My god that man was sexy!
Old Fat F**k will be at Riverside Studios over 25 performances from 5th November – 20th December. Ticket link HERE.