Fan Friction

It’s never easy navigating the loss of a parent, but when your mother was a famous comedian whose parasocial relationship with her fans blurred the boundaries between personal and private, things can get truly bizarre.

Ashley finds her grief – and outfit choice - under scrutiny, as she wins a clutch of coveted awards, just week after her mum dies. As an autistic woman who finds being all emotional “gross” and is inclined to be funny rather than talk about how she really feels, she finds herself being glib when answering journalists' unhinged questions, and bemused as an old Ozzie comedian calls to say he’s being haunted by the ghost of her dead mum. Apparently, she really wants Ashley to read his script…

However she’s kept busy dodging her feelings (and the demands of bereaved fans), pondering whether she can one-up the ‘dead mum’ fringe show with other branding opportunities, and fantasy and reality collide as she finds herself face-to-face with the real-life hunks that inspired some of the action in her wildly popular, but very secret spicy fictional works.

Produced by Julia Sutherland
Sound Design by Sean Kerwin
Featuring Craig McGinlay
A Dabster production for BBC Radio 4