Irish standup comedian and writer Joanne McNally has revealed that her battle with bulimia and a subsequent mental breakdown in her early 30s ultimately shaped her successful career. In an interview, the 41-year-old star of the hit podcast My Therapist Ghosted Me described her breakdown as 'the making of me,' providing the catalyst to leave her PR job and pursue comedy.
Early Life and Childhood
Born in County Roscommon in 1983 and raised in Dublin, McNally recalls a childhood marked by a love of storytelling. At age three, she would gather friends in the schoolyard to tell fabricated tales, including a false origin story about being the sole survivor of a plane crash. 'It was my first little one-woman show,' she said, 'and I liked the feeling of having an audience.'
Despite her outgoing nature, McNally struggled with body image from a young age. 'As far back as I can remember, I always thought I was fat,' she admitted. In school plays, she was often cast in male roles, reinforcing her feeling of being less attractive than her peers.
Struggles in Her 20s
In her 20s, McNally worked as a PR for a youth agency, embracing a party lifestyle with three-day benders and heavy drinking. 'I don't regret a minute of it,' she said, noting that she made lifelong friends. However, behind the fun, her bulimia was 'spiralling out of control.'
She later took a job at a mental health charity, hoping a change of environment would help. Instead, the solitude exacerbated her condition. 'I let the eating disorder take over,' she explained.
The Breakdown That Changed Everything
In her early 30s, McNally decided to 'totally succumb to the mental breakdown,' quitting her job and moving into her mother's attic. 'I lived like a mental patient,' she recalled. The experience, while harrowing, forced her to reassess her life. 'I had no mortgage, no kids. I had the financial freedom to explore what I should be doing with my life.'
McNally credits her friend Una, who wrote a play called Singlehood, with sparking her career. 'Once I stood on stage, it felt as if I was home,' she said. She also began writing an anonymous blog about bulimia, Eat the Pastry, which led to a newspaper column.
Accidental Comedy Career
Initially aiming for theatre, McNally was encouraged by comedian PJ Gallagher to try standup. 'Had he not been so encouraging, there's no way I would have stepped on stage at a comedy club,' she said. Her breakthrough came with the one-woman show Bite Me, followed by the Prosecco Express tour, which included a 78-night run at Dublin's Vicar Street.
Her podcast My Therapist Ghosted Me, co-hosted with Vogue Williams, gained a massive audience during lockdown. 'We had this trapped audience, everyone was inside and on their phones and needed company,' McNally explained. She first realized the podcast's reach when four fans asked for a photo after a gig in Greenwich, south London.
Feral Stage Persona and Audience
McNally describes her on-stage persona as 'feral,' and her audiences are equally boisterous. 'The crowds at my gigs are boozy, because I am a boozer,' she said, but noted that despite the high energy, attendees are respectful. She recalled a woman in Kilkenny who attends her Christmas show annually and presents her with a snowglobe containing their photo from the previous year.
Reflecting on her journey, McNally said that if her insecure 18-year-old self could see her now, 'her jaw would be on the floor.' But the little girl in the photo 'would not be surprised. She was obsessed with Annie the orphan and knew her destiny was treading the boards – being loud, telling stories on stage, where I belong.'
