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Jack Rooke looks back: ‘Nan was a real prankster. I took the show we made together to Edinburgh’
The standup and Big Boys creator on experiencing grief at a young age, his mischievous grandmother, and why he refuses to learn to drive
TL;DR
- Jack Rooke, born in 1993, is a comedian, actor, and writer whose career began in standup in 2014.
- His show 'Good Grief,' co-written with his grandmother Sicely, documented their experiences of bereavement after his father Laurie's death.
- Rooke is an ambassador for the suicide prevention charity Calm and is taking an updated version of 'Good Grief' on a UK tour.
- He reflects on his grandmother Sicely's playful nature, her influence on his emotional availability, and her use of food as a love language.
- The isolation experienced after his father's death and his grandmother's subsequent death inspired the creation of 'Good Grief.'
- Rooke credits his grandmother for his career, stating that her emotional availability and encouragement allowed him to be creative professionally for the first time.