Pierre Novellie: "Your own show can be about anything, which is an awful freedom"
Published: Thursday 13th March 2025
Stand-up comedian Pierre Novellie is performing his ninth stand-up show, Must We?, at Soho Theatre after a sold-out tour of the UK and Ireland. The show, which explores "life, fairness and expectations" received many four-star and five-star reviews during its run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe last year.
How did you first get started in the world of comedy?
I performed a huge amount as a student, mainly as a stand-up comedian but also writing and performing in several hour-long student sketch shows. I got signed by an agent by competing in the Chortle Student competition and started gigging on the circuit and earning my stripes as soon as I could. It all flowed from there.
Can you tell us a bit about the creative process for your shows? Was the process for Must We? any different?
It was the show that I wrote in the fastest time. It was my ninth hour of stand-up, so perhaps that makes sense, but it only really came together as a cohesive show around May 2024. It is also the first show where I don't explain where I am from at the start.
What is it like writing your own solo show versus writing comedy for other things like radio television shows?
If you write for TV or radio you are fulfilling a brief and often writing much more "for" someone else than for yourself. In many ways it's easier, because the brief is restrictive. Your own show can be about anything, which is an awful freedom.
What was it like performing Must We? at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe last year?
It was very satisfying in some ways, as it prefigured the assisted suicide debate happening currently, and several mental health professionals and worried parents thanked me for the ending of the show. On the other end of the spectrum, The Observer said the show was mainly about bread, so clearly I am failing to get through to the cultural elite.
What advice do you have for those who'd like to get started in comedy?
Just start doing it! The only way to learn is by doing. You can improve by tinkering away at home, but not much. It's like boxing - you need to accept that the sooner you start getting hurt, the sooner you will improve. Otherwise, you are just a guy in a gym.
What do you hope audiences take away from Must We??
A new understanding of Melanesian anthropology and some stuff about bread, apparently.
How would you describe the show in one word?
Comedy.
Must We? is at Soho Theatre until 22nd March. Tickets
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