Hattie Hayridge (born 17 December 1959) is a British comedian and actress, best known for the role of the female version of Holly in ''

Red Dwarf ''Red Dwarf'' is a British science fiction comedy franchise created by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, which primarily consists of a television sitcom that aired on BBC Two between 1988 and 1999, and on Dave since 2009, gaining a cult following. T ...

'' during the third, fourth and fifth series. She was described as a "cult figure in a beloved sit-com" by '' The List'' in 2007.

Career

Hayridge was a part of the late-1980s/early-'90s wave of alternative comedians on the British comedy circuit, appearing alongside Lee Evans, Jack Dee,

Julian Clary Julian Peter McDonald Clary (born 25 May 1959) is an English actor, comedian, novelist and presenter. He began appearing on television in the mid-1980s. Since then he has also acted in films, television and stage productions, numerous pantomim ...

, Paul Merton, amongst others. Julian Hall of ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' later commented in August 2007, "Boom there it is, the deceptive and surprising edge for which she is renowned and applauded by so many of her fellow-comics." Hattie Hayridge 1988

Following a spontaneous five-minute spot in a London club, after "a bad day at the office", her first open spots were in a cabaret show (run by comics Cliff Parisi and Andy Lyndon) at the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...

in 1986, which then led to gigs on the London comedy circuit and an award for the

Hackney Empire Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in the London Borough of Hackney. Originally designed by Frank Matcham it was built in 1901 as a music hall, and expanded in 2001. Described by ''The Guardian'' as ‘the most beautiful theatre in Lon ...

New Act of the Year (1987). In April 1988, she appeared on '' Friday Night Live'' hosted by Ben Elton, and was spotted by the producers of BBC's ''

'' for the episode " Parallel Universe" (Series II) to play Hilly, the female equivalent of the male computer, Holly (

Norman Lovett Norman Lovett (born 31 October 1946) is a British stand-up comedian and actor best known for his portrayal of Holly, the ship's computer in ''Red Dwarf''. Career Lovett became a stand-up comedian in his thirties, initially supporting punk ba ...

). The same year, Hayridge received positive reviews at the Montreal Comedy Festival and appeared on the related televised '' Just For Laughs'' programme In 1989, after the departure of Norman Lovett from ''Red Dwarf'', Hayridge took over the part of Holly, appearing in ''Red Dwarf'' series III, IV and V. She continues to be a guest at conventions and comic cons around the world. Her television appearances include '' Have I Got News for You'', '' Space Cadets'' with

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...

and a winning performance on

Celebrity Mastermind ''Celebrity Mastermind'' is a celebrity version of ''Mastermind'', a British television quiz show broadcast by BBC television. It began in 2002 as a one-off special, expanding to the current arrangement of 10 episodes, broadcast during December a ...

(2010). As a guest on ''Robert Llewellyn's Carpool'' in March 2010, Hayridge said that the previous year she was asked to tell a joke at

US Immigration Immigration has been a major source of population growth and cultural change throughout much of the history of the United States. In absolute numbers, the United States has a larger immigrant population than any other country in the world, ...

to prove her occupation as a comedian, she told the official: "The reason I'm here is I want to go to Disney Land. The nice bits obviously, not the touristy bits". Acting credits include '' Jonathan Creek'' (Series 3 episode 6, "The Three Gamblers") Lexx and various characters with

Jon Culshaw Jonathan Peter Culshaw (born 2 June 1968) is an English actor, comedian and impressionist. He is best known for his work on the radio comedy '' Dead Ringers'' since 2000. Culshaw has voiced a number of characters for ITV shows including ''2DT ...

''Alter Ego'' (1999) and

Kevin Eldon Kevin Eldon (born 2 October 1959) is an English actor and comedian. He featured in British comedy television shows of the 1990s including ''Fist of Fun'', '' This Morning with Richard Not Judy'', '' Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge' ...

, ''It's Kevin'' (2013). In 2015, Hayridge had a small cameo the film ''

SuperBob ''SuperBob'' is a 2015 British low-budget superhero comedy film about a Peckham postman who develops superpowers after having been hit by a meteorite. The film premiered in London on 16 October 2015, after having first been shown at the London C ...

''. In 2009, she performed in the UK tour of the American show, ''Totally Looped'', where performers including

Phill Jupitus Phillip Christopher Jupitus (, ''né'' Swan; born 25 June 1962) is an English stand-up and improv comedian, actor, performance poet, cartoonist and podcaster. Jupitus was a team captain on all but one BBC Two-broadcast episode of music quiz ''N ...

Humphrey Ker David Humphrey Rivers Ker (; born 11 October 1982) is a British actor, writer and comedian who is a member of the sketch comedy troupe The Penny Dreadfuls. Early life and education Ker was born to David Peter James Ker, a fine art dealer, ...

, Marcus Brigstocke and

Sanjeev Bhaskar Sanjeev Bhaskar (born 31 October 1963) is a British actor, comedian and television presenter. He is best known for his work in the BBC Two sketch comedy series '' Goodness Gracious Me'' and as the star of the sitcom '' The Kumars at No. 42''. ...

improvised live dialogue to film clips. She supported Alexei Sayle on his comeback tour in 2013. Her stand-up television appearances include ''Live at Jongleurs'' (1997), ''Rove'' (Australia ) 2002), and ''

The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson ''The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Scottish actor and comedian Craig Ferguson. This was the third iteration of the ''Late Late Show'' franchise, airing from January 3, 2005, to December 19, ...

'' CBS in 2009 and Stewart Lee's ''

The Alternative Comedy Experience ''The Alternative Comedy Experience'' is a stand-up comedy show that premiered on 5 February 2013 on the Comedy Central channel in the UK. It features live comedy shows, filmed in July 2012 at The Stand Comedy Club in Edinburgh, and behind-the-sc ...

'' on

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...

in 2014. Her autobiography, ''Random Abstract Memory'' tells the story "from her birth as a suspected appendicitis to her spontaneous leap into comedy" (RAM 1997).

Books

* ''Random Abstract Memory'' (autobiography) Penguin (UK), 1997. * ''Sit-Down Comedy'' (contributor to anthology, ed. Malcolm Hardee & John Fleming) Ebury Press/Random House, 2003.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hayridge, Hattie Living people Actresses from London Alumni of the University of Sussex Comedians from London English stage actresses English stand-up comedians English television actresses English women comedians 1959 births