Comedy production company Objectively Funny is collaborating with mental health charity CALM at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe to offer support to people with mental health issues.

Objectively Funny will liaise with a number of mental health and wellbeing organisations in Edinburgh to share spaces AND run workshops

Martin Willis, who founded Objectively Funny saYS: “The Fringe is a stressful place for people throughout the industry, with long hours, huge pressure, poor pay, a drinking culture and wide-open vulnerability going into every show. And that’s notwithstanding the fact that performers are often more susceptible to experiencing poor mental health without the internal and external pressures of the festival. Mental health is thankfully getting spoken about more than ever, but it seems that we still don’t really know how to help one another. We’re hoping to train people within the industry to get better at spotting when people could do with support, and to provide that help or connect to professional bodies that can.”

The Objectively Funny team will host two very special comedy fundraising nights – An Objectively Funny Night – at the 160-capacity Gilded Balloon Patter Hoose on 8th and 15th August. The show will feature Ahir Shah, Maisie Adam, Rosie Jones, Pierre Novellie, John Robertson, Laura Davis and Sadia Azmat and more to be confirmed. Plus guest spots from acts Objectively Funny is producing at the Fringe including Harriet Braine, Tom Mayhew, David McIver, Yasmine Day and sketch duo Siblings.

Proceeds from both charity nights will be split between CALM (The Campaign Against Living Miserably) and producing materials and training to provide support on the ground at Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2019 which will involve:

– Creating and printing a performer’s survival guide in collaboration with the support services already in the city, to be distributed for free around Edinburgh.
– Training performers, producers, flyerers and other members of the comedy community in mental health first aid, to better support one another at the Fringe.
– Renting space in Edinburgh to provide workshops and sessions to promote mental well-being for any interested performers.
– Paying professionals who provide or support these workshops and sessions a fair and decent wage.

You can donate directly to help Objectively Funny provide mental health support services at the festival here.