Interview: Lizzy Hoo

“I'll still be going on rides after the show to wind down – I know, crazy!”

Going on show rides might not be the first thing that springs to mind when asked about what comedians do after a show, but for Lizzy Hoo, it’s nothing new. 

Hoo mixed comedy and adrenaline in her show Ride Queens with Geraldine Hickey, with the two going on rides immediately after sets. While that show has not made a return in 2024, this year, Hoo is performing solo for the first time at the Adelaide Fringe, bringing her new stand-up special, Hoo’s That Girl, to The Howling Owl. It’s the first time Adelaide gets to experience what Hoo calls “60 minutes of just me!”

“I'll miss my comedy mates side of stage but I'm looking forward to showing Adelaide a little bit more of me. This is my fifth solo show and Adelaide [finally gets to] see one!” she explains. 

Hoo’s That Girl is naturally quite different to the insanity that comes from mixing rides with comedy, with Hoo talking about tackling a bigger roller coaster – turning 40. 

“I always have some sort of Hoo pun and I love the 2001 [R&B track] by Eve – ‘Who's That Girl’ and I thought I'd love to walk out to that song. It just so happens to tie in with the theme of the show as well which is a lot about being in my 40s and not being where I thought I'd be,” Hoo says.

“If you told 20-year-old Lizzy she'd be a single comedian when she turned 40 I wouldn't have believed you. I grew up in Brisbane and went to a Catholic school for 12 years. I thought I'd be married with kids and working in finance. Life is weird.” 

Focusing on life after 40 and the turbulence of a big break-up is a step in a different direction compared to Hoo’s more light-hearted material, so what can we expect from this year’s effort?

“I guess this show is closer to what you'd find me talking about with my girlfriends after a couple of wines. It feels more authentic if I'm honest,” she says. 

“I have thought when I've been writing this show – ‘Geez Lizzy, there's a lot of dick and poo in this show!’ I'm just going to go for it and if people don't like it I won't care too much. I've always spoken about what's happening to me at the time. 

“My comedy's always been relevant to what I'm feeling and that happens to be about a 40-year-old single woman living her best life.”

In what has been a traditionally male-dominated industry, Hoo thinks that comedy is now better reflecting just how diverse Australia is. “There are comedians for all interests. You can see whomever you want. If you want more alternative comedy that's available, if you want to see a white dude do crowd work then go see that,” she says. 

“Comedy is like TV streaming – just watch what you want to [watch]. I think it's up to the audience to decide what they wanna watch as much as it's the providers' responsibility.”

Between releasing a special on Amazon Prime, becoming a regular on Have You Been Paying Attention and hosting a travel show for Channel 7, Hoo had a bumper 2023, so what’s next for the comedian?

"Oyster farming on the NSW south coast? You never know!”

She adds: “I'm just going to keep doing comedy. I love the challenge of comedy. I like the people you meet. I'd love to write a TV show or have my own travel show. I got to host a Getaway episode last year and Channel 7's Escape To... – getting paid to travel and eat is a dream job.”

Lizzy Hoo – Hoo's That Girl?, The Howling Owl, until 24 February