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WHOOPI GOLDBERG

American actor and comedian Whoopi Goldberg reflects on ageing, identity, and a life shaped by instinct, humour, and hard-earned perspective.

Your voice is famously unfiltered, particularly on The View. What version of you did audiences see on this tour? 

Let me be very clear — I didn’t bring any stories from The View. That’s a whole other… that’s a different world from what I’m doing right now. I’m talking about me and the stuff that’s, y’know, got me going nuts. You know — ageing, all those great things! That’s what I’m into. That’s what I talked about. Hopefully, people will be able to relate to some of this stuff because it doesn’t really matter where you are.

That tour also included sharing the stage with Jennifer Saunders. What did that mean to you?

 I looked forward to just sitting on stage with Jennifer Saunders, who, to me, is just one of the all-time great funny women. And just talking to her. I hadn’t talked to her in forever, so I was excited about that. Very, very excited about that.

Having received some of the biggest awards in entertainment, how do you personally measure success? 

Any time I can work, it means a lot to me. If somebody gives me an award for it, you know, for ten seconds I’m sceptical, but then I figure this is what they want to do and I’m open to it. Because awards are great, but they’re subject to other people’s opinions. So I try to stick to my own opinions, and all of the awards are hidden on the third floor of my house. It’s like a treasure — you have to go on a treasure hunt! But they’re all there…

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Alicia Coppola

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More Interviews

Whoopi Goldberg

POPULAR RIGHT NOW

Whoopi Goldberg

“Awards are great, but they’re subject to other people’s opinions.”

David Morrissey

“It’s a fine line between having a structure you can build on…”

James Norton

“The more understanding we’ve of institutionalised religion, the more we can accept it.”

Alicia Coppola

“Sit down and write like everyone’s dead.”

Heida Reed

“Icelandic people can be incredibly fiery and blunt.”

Sorabh Pant

“I sound really pretentious, but I’m a dude who makes dick jokes!”

RECENT INTERVIEW

HENRY ROWLEY

UK comedian Henry Rowley built a following through character-led sketches online, turning everyday behaviour into sharp comedy, and is now taking that instinct onto the live stage.

A lot of your comedy comes from observation — where does that come from?

 It’s10 those everyday, consistent behaviours that we don’t notice because they happen so much, but when you really focus on them and bring them out, that’s where the humour is. People, like the gym — everyone’s walking around like they’re the main character, like this warrior that’s fighting a battle that no one knows about, and you think — relax, it’s a fun thing that we’re doing here. It’s not usually one person who’s completely different — it’s an amalgamation of things, these behavioural consistencies, and then just amping it up a little bit. Sometimes it doesn’t even need that.

Some of your funniest videos feel completely improvised — is that how they work?

 Yeah, a lot of them are completely improvised. I’ll think, “Right, I’m doing this character,” and see what happens — that’s why I sometimes laugh in them, because I don’t know what’s coming. Those are my favourites.

Did you ever have a long-term plan with it? 

No, not really. I think if I set a goal, you put so much pressure on it that it takes all the enjoyment out of it. The whole thing is meant to be fun, and if I’m not enjoying it, no one else will. So I’ve always just thought — do it, keep enjoying it, and see what happens. Opportunities have come from it that I wouldn’t have expected…

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