Suzy Eddie Izzard is open to being tested for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) after being told her identity as a gender fluid trans woman could be linked to the neurodevelopmental condition. Izzard, arguably one of the most talented stand-ups of her generation, identifies as gender fluid, uses she/her pronouns and since 2023 has adopted the name Suzy.
She now believes the characteristic traits that made her a star could be linked to ADHD, a condition she has never previously been tested for. Appearing on the latest instalment of the I'm ADHD! No You're Not podcast with comedian Paul Whitehouse and his wife Dr Mine Conkbayir, Izzard, 64, agreed that she met the criteria after being given a checklist of typical behaviours — among them lateral thinking, hyper focus and rapid pattern recognition.
Referring to a potential connection with gender identity, Conkbayir added: 'The non-conformity being less affected by social expectations, specifically regarding gender roles, which as we know leads to higher rates of gender, non-conformity, a diffuse sense of self. So for me, I was picturing you as Edward, but then to Ed and now Suzy Eddie.'
According to Conkbayir, an average fifty percent of those diagnosed with dyslexia also have ADHD. 'The experts like yourself could check me all out and say, actually you have these traits and these extra traits,' replied Izzard. 'Because the people came to me when I was doing stand-up and said, "I think you're dyslexic."'
Izzard previously said that her decision to stick with straight male or trans roles comes from there being too much politics around the subject and described the debate around biological sex as a 'minefield'. 'My line on all of this is that women’s rights are human rights, and trans rights are human rights and we have to live together,' she told The Telegraph in 2024. 'I’d fight like crazy for women’s rights, but I don’t want to get into the biological-determinism argument, because it’s a minefield. I just keep sailing on. I don’t think I’m doing any harm to anyone.'
The comedian has previously spoken out in support of Harry Potter author J K Rowling and other gender-critical feminists who believe that sex is biologically determined. Izzard first identified as a transvestite in 1985 but said she has known that she wanted to be a girl since the age of four. However, she admitted that she didn't tell her father about her gender identity until just before she made it public.
Izzard was born in Aden, which is now modern-day Yemen in 1962 but her family moved to Bexhill, on the East Sussex coast when she was seven. The comedian previously said that she has always fancied women over men and her last known relationship was with singer Sarah Townsend.
Appearing on the Rosebud podcast with Gyles Brandreth, she said: 'I would be very happy to have children. But at the moment it's not there. Never say never. I am trans, but I fancy women, I've always fancied women, never fancied boys or men, it just doesn't work for me.'
While discussing her love life and hopes for the future, Izzard said that she is not actively looking for love right now because she is 'happy' in her own company. She revealed: 'I'm not going to go into lots of relationships. It is tricky — having relationships if you're a trans person that's going to be tricky, but I'm quite happy with my own company. I'm very happy in the position that I am at the moment so I'm not looking. If someone comes along and we click very well — then absolutely.' She continued: 'But I'm not actively going to discos. I do believe at some point the right person could be there and we could click.'
I’m ADHD! No You’re Not is available on all podcast platforms every Thursday.
