Edinburgh Fringe preview: Bianca Boorer on ChatLGBT

Bianca Boorer, Jordan Bonner, Willow Marler, and Robert Gould bring their queer, drag comedy night, ChatLGBT to the Edinburgh Fringe this year. Expect a lively roast in response to the questions you ask!

“ChatLGBT – the queer answer to all your questions. Put away your phone and come along to ask your burning questions to a bunch of sassy comedians! Why ask AI when you can ask the best source of advice – Slay.I? Artificial intelligence will never replace the queens of this world. Caution: unlike AI, who will coax your ego, Slay.I may roast you for comedic value or give you terrible advice in order to make the plot more exciting!”

Where: Main Room at Laughing Horse @ Coco Boho

When: 11-16 Aug

Ticket link: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/chatlgbt

What can you tell us about your show? What is it about and where did the idea come from? 

ChatLGBT is a comedy show featuring four queer comedians who will be your SlayI assistants. Why ask AI when you can ask the gays? The audience can bring their burning questions, life problems, and salacious gossip for the comedians to dig their claws into. Expect camp dance routines, belly laughs, and terrible advice.

The idea came from wanting to do a gossip panel, which then blossomed into an alternative to AI. The comedy portion combines all of our sets representing different parts of the LGBT community. 

How would you sell it to audiences in one paragraph?

Ditch the phone. Enter the chat. You can’t trust AI – but you can trust your SLAY.I Assistants to serve up a fabulous evening of comedy, gossip and terrible advice. ChatLGBT will see four queer comedians spill the tea across side-splitting comedy sets – and you won’t even have to enter a prompt! From neurodivergent adventures to scandalous sexcapades, Barb Barrick, Jordan Bonner, Bianca Boorer and Willow Marler will run the gamut of gossipy goodness. For the big finish, you’ll be invited to submit your own gossip – or genuinely important life questions – for our outrageous Agony Aunts (and Uncles and Enties) to dissect and devour. ChatLGBT is a judgement-free zone where chaos is encouraged, so don’t hold back. Your gossip can’t be any more salacious than ours… can it?

Do you enjoy participating in the Fringe? And do you have any moments you particularly remember?

We took the first iteration of this show, originally called Bianca’s Gay Agenda, to the Lambeth Fringe last year. This year we gave the show a revamp by getting a new member of the team, Willow Marler, and changing the name. Our first show with our new cast was at The Two Brewers in Clapham. We did two shows at the London Queer Fringe this month and will be at Edinburgh Fringe on 10-16 August.  

The gossip panel is always different, given we have no idea what the audience will put in the hat. At The Two Brewers, someone asked what to do if your partner has crabs. Willow made an excellent joke about if you get a steak, you could make a good surf and turf. When JK Rowling goes to the beach, she does a surf and TERF (trans-exclusionary radical feminist). You can watch the clip here. 

What are you looking forward to the most in Edinburgh?

I’ve always dreamed of taking a show to Edinburgh Fringe. It’s such an amazing festival that we are all very excited to be a part of. I’m looking forward to living together at the Queer Comedy Club accommodation, which is student halls in the middle of the city. It will be like being back at university during freshers week! We really want the show to give representation to queer communities and spread awareness about what it’s like to be queer and hilarious to the masses! 

What’s next for the show? 

The sky’s the limit! We all work together really well, each of us with different roles off stage as well as gelling on stage. We will continue to learn ridiculous dance routines and write jokes about being queer and fabulous. Book us for a raging camp time!