On my radar: comedian Sophie Duker’s cultural highlights

The comedian Sophie Duker was born in London in 1990. She studied French and English at Oxford, where she got into improv, and in 2018 performed her first standup show, Diet Woke . Appearances followed on TV comedy stalwarts such as 8 Out of 10 Cats , and in 2022 she won the 13th series of Taskmaster . Duker’s new show, But Daddy I Love Her – about father/daughter therapy and sugar daddies – will run at the Pleasance Courtyard Cabaret Bar in Edinburgh from 31 July to 25 August, and then tours. Her Sugar Daddy scheme will provide 250 £5 tickets via the Pleasance website to people of colour and anyone unwaged or on a low income, available with the code SUGARDADDY .

1. Bar

Bario, Amsterdam

I was doing a couple of gigs in Amsterdam earlier this month and a friend recommended I go to Bario, a bar that centres queer, trans and people of colour. Being a QTPOC myself, I was like, I’m going to check it out before my gig, because wherever the QTPOC people are, that’s where the party is. It’s a gorgeous space, very intentional and delightful to be in. I got a cocktail called Brown Bussy with creme de cacao, wild strawberries and gin, which was delicious. I went back again after my gig – twice in one day, like a real nerd.

2. Musical

Kathy and Stella Solve a Murder! Ambassador’s theatre, London

I unashamedly love musicals. This one, with northern women at the forefront, popped up at the Edinburgh fringe in 2022 and now it’s got its big run in the West End. It’s about a murder podcast where the two podcasters become part of the story. It’s nice that it’s set in Hull rather than in London or anywhere trendy – they say the phrase “Sedgefield Shoelace Strangler” in the first five minutes. The music is really good too. With comedy musicals you might be prepared to compromise a bit on quality, but the two leads really have pipes.

3. Place

Kelechnekoff pole dance studio , London SE15

I live so far from this Peckham pole studio, but I keep going back to throw myself around a metal pole like a rotisserie chicken because it’s such a great space. Pole dancing is an incredibly hard, near Olympic-level practice that should only be done by hyper-flexible children, and I have started doing it the wrong side of 30 and fallen in love with it, which is very embarrassing. For someone who has never identified as sporty, Kelechnekoff feels like a very affirming space. I always feel so happy and energised being there.

4. TV

Tuca & Bertie (Netflix )

This is an animated series starring Ali Wong and Tiffany Haddish as a couple of birds – a song thrush with anxiety and her chaotic toucan best friend – in a crazy menagerie city. The first season in particular is really magical and funny and overstimulating. You can see yourself and people you know reflected in the characters – even the very cool, zen woman with a plant for a head who lives upstairs. I just think it’s really funny and I wish we had more resources to experiment with animation like this in the UK.

5. Activism

Joe Lycett x Greenpeace T-shirt

The comedian Joe Lycett has a good side-hustle making raunchy, kitsch artworks – including a grotesque but very adorable portrait of Harry Styles that looks like a cross between the Gruffalo and a Tory MP. The story goes that he asked Styles for a Kit Kat as payment but didn’t get it so he announced that he was suing him. But it was all a stunt to expose that Shell is suing Greenpeace , and now T-shirts featuring Joe’s artwork are being sold to raise money for Greenpeace’s legal campaign. If you buy one , it’s nice to know that you’re doing a bit of good and sticking it to the man.

6. Music

Akwaeke : Stop Dying, You Were Very Expensive! EP

Akwaeke Emezi is an incredibly prolific author who was just suddenly like: “Oh, I’m going to be a musical artist,” and released a really good EP in March. Banye in particular is a banger. I enjoy watching people who are impressive in one area show their creativity in other ways. The tracks are sexy and unhinged and invigorating. When I read their debut novel, Freshwater , it was so potent that it triggered a visceral reaction in me while I was reading it – and having those impulses triggered in different parts of your body while listening to their music is a very magical thing.

7. Event

Margate Black Pride

For queer and trans people and allies, it’s so important to show up for the LGBTQ+ community, not just in London or at the big Pride events, but everywhere, especially in the current climate. The other weekend I was at Margate Black Pride and it was idyllic. It felt very intergenerational, with people holding dogs and toddlers in their arms. There was a drag king called Wesley Dykes who did an incredible performance. The visibility of those kinds of celebrations in places where it’s not normal to go down the shops presenting how you might want to present is really important – and it’s really fun.