Camden People’s Theatre’s SPRINT Festival returns with a packed programme throughout March. London’s “best-established carnival of new and unusual theatre” features artists with bold ideas, artists who don’t play by the rules, and artists, in many instances, making their first professional work.
This is the second of a series of interviews highlighting artists and work within the Festival, as I chat with Verity Sharpe about her show, Landlord’s Wer Dream.
“Charismatic and chaotic” (Binge Fringe) comedian Verity Sharpe brings her debut show to CPT. Landlord’s Wet Dream is a bold and hilarious deep dive into the realities of renting—damp walls, exploitative landlords, and the looming threat of eviction- offering a silver lining of laughter to the dark cloud that is temporary housing. Sharpe also squares up to the wider issue of profit-driven housing, wielding jaunty punk poetry, razor-sharp stand up, and anthemic original songs . Come for the comedy, stay for the biting capitalist critique. Or, come for the biting capitalist critique but be warned… you will laugh. Hard.
Where: Camden People’s Theatre, Main House
When: 5 Mar, 7.15pm
Ticket link: https://cptheatre.co.uk/whatson/Verity-Sharpe-Landlords-Wet-Dream
Your comedy show, Landlord’s Wet Dream, is showing at SPRINT next week. What can you tell us about it?
Landlord’s Wet Dream is a solo comedy show about just how absurd housing can be: from slimy landlords, the fetishisation of guardianships, and the process of gentrification. The material is rooted in my personal experience, but it is by no means unique.
The show taps into the experiences Millennials and Gen Z have in their newfound adulthood. Now let’s not forget it is a WET dream. The theme of water seeps into this show, through voicemails complaining of a neglected leaky ceiling in my London house share, and the story of unprecedented flooding in my hometown.
I weave the story of my family being flooded out of our rented social housing 10 years ago. This natural disaster showed me just how much it means to feel at home.
How did you start in the business?
I have always been enamoured with comedy, obsessed with stand-up since I was a teenager. I did my first set accidentally. I took a trip to a storytelling night in London, whilst at university, they had sign-ups and I thought ‘why the hell not?’. After telling a story about my mum’s preoccupation with greetings cards, many people ask where else I do stand-up gigs. I said ‘I don’t’ and thought ‘maybe I should’.
I had a lovely start on the scene with a very supportive open mic in Southend-On-Sea, run by Little Smash Comedy. Since moving to London in 2022, I have regularly been gigging. I have been lucky enough to train at institutions such as East 15, Soho Theatre Labs, and Ecole Philippe Gaulier. This training taught me to cross-pollinate practices and take creative risks.
How did you develop this show, and what should audiences expect from it?
Landlord’s Wet Dream is my first show, and the culmination of my first years in comedy. From a creepy house viewing to living with ghosts in a care home, I realised much of my stand-up material centred on the theme of housing. In 2024, I undertook a residency with Ugly Duck, which offered me rehearsal space to explore these ideas.
At that time, I had a leak in my bedroom ceiling. This was the impetus. It lit an anger in me. I started to piece together all of the unbelievable episodes and funny stories that showed just how fucked this system is. This attitude is evident in the show; it takes an episodic approach, moving from sharp stand-up to punchy poetry to down-to-earth anecdotes, backed with a Riot Grrl soundtrack.
How has your show evolved since it was first planned?
It’s like I was trying to write a manifesto (but make it quippy). How do I balance humour with social commentary? So, I didn’t. I just let the cursed anecdotes and filthy humour and jaunty poems about housing speak for themselves. What emerged was the feeling that the UK housing system is strange, broken, and laughable.
The show was still missing something… the dream. So, I dream I am Geoff The Landlord, I dream I will inherit a Camden flat. I dream I will be in a punk band. I dream I am John Cooper Clarke, through clowning, poetry, original songs, and character to create a fast-paced show that I love to perform.
What’s next for you?
Following SPRINT Festival, I will be doing Landlord’s Wet Dream at Brighton Fringe on 28th & 29th May, 7:30pm at The Actors Theatre, Brighton. I am so looking forward to returning to Brighton Fringe with the show. Then, I am planning to take Landlord’s Wet Dream to the Edinburgh Fringe in August 2026.
Until then, I will be gigging in London and hosting and producing Knickers Cabaret. This is a semi-monthly comedy cabaret at Multistory, Peckham Levels, Peckham. I do encourage comedy fans to keep their eyes peeled (@knickerstheatre) for our next date.
You can follow Verity on @verityspagerity/