Katherine Ryan's Untold Story: From Hooters Waitress To Comedy Stardom

Katherine Ryan is a comedian and writer, best known for her appearances on 8 Out of 10 Cats, Taskmaster and her stand-up special on Netflix, Glitter Room.
Originally from Canada, Katherine made the bold move to London in 2008, and shortly thereafter had her first daughter. Becoming a single mum at the age of 25 and isolated from family, Katherine shares with Jake and Damian how this experience fuelled her determination and resilience.
“When I had nothing, I had everything”, Katherine’s focus and dedication to her daughter's well-being gave her the strength to fearlessly pursue her stand-up career.
In this episode, Katherine takes us behind the scenes of her comedy path, reflecting on her journey from scraping by as a single mom to her decision to create space for women in the industry by stepping away from Mock the Week. She offers insights into finding positivity in life and leading with gratitude, and sheds light on the reality of hard work.
Join us to hear Katherine’s laughter-filled journey, her resilience, and her valuable life lessons.
Download The High Performance App by clicking the link below and using the code: HPAPP www.thehighperformancepodcast...
0:00: Trailer
1:41: Start
11:58: Leaving the herd
19:20: Sexism in comedy
22:10: Mock The Week
29:50: Self-doubt
40:20: Hearing differing opinions
49:20: Authenticity
54:35: Parenting
1:00:00: Quickfire Questions
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[@courtneyacoleman]

She’s fortunate that she got her core values in place early, and has a supportive family. But it’s her own innate intelligence that allows her to be aware of her strengths and unique talents. Her tenaciousness and hard work and gratitude have all paid off. She’s a good role model for young women.

[@htmc2022]

Droning on & on & on. Editors - sheesh!

[@84homey]

for anyone

[@steveprice24]

What a refreshing and honest outlook on life Katherine has, loved this episode

[@HighPerformancePodcast]

We are so happy to hear that, thank you 🙏

[@nartarlyiatremaynne1239]

Steve I concur with your sentiment 100%♡

[@bodytrainer1crane730]

I love how she acknowledges her privilege and that gives her power.

[@bob-zi1eb]

You mean being white?

[@rudysal1429]

Lots of privilege

[@EvaMavis]

For what it's worth, I loved The Duchess and I'd love to see a 2nd series

[@esikazemese]

Saaaaaaaaaaaaame!

[@ethanwhitlock]

I’m so pissed it got cancelled

[@user-nr9mm1hx3q]

Thank you for such an informative interview with Katherine, I lived in Canada (Toronto) for 35 years, and loved her work (Both on stage and television). She is the ULTIMATE ambassador for that wonderful country!

[@DaveToneMusic]

Great interview. I love her no bullshit attitude, it's a breath of fresh air. No hype, no nonsense. Bravo!

[@Chris-xb6be]

Fascinating to see the person behind what you see on telly. Completely different than what you expect in a really good and positive way. Her parents should be incredibly proud.

[@dag681]

Great show. Smart, interactive interview. Katherine is wonderfully brilliant

[@AchieveBorkState]

Ryan knows what she's about, fearless, funny as hell. Just a great all-round human.

[@lydiataylor4598]

a great talk, she is so self-aware and inspiring without being condescending

[@stregalilith]

"yes, and..." is really important. And I love Katherine Ryan!

[@Kirsten_is_cursed10]

It’s always interesting to see comedians outside their normal environment. I’m so used to her having clever comebacks and jokes but there is a lot of wisdom here.

[@esikazemese]

The thing about being different is that it's scarry, but when you choose to be different, you realize that people look up to bravery. And instead of an outstander, you become a leader.

[@seandyckhoff7063]

I Think Katherine Ryan is absolutely brilliant, really enjoyed this episode and seeing a different side to a brilliant comedian

[@mjwchapman]

right off the bat, "competence and relentlessness" - love it

[@HighPerformancePodcast]

🙌👏

[@misscogito9865]

Katherine Ryan, a dream bestie :) I can see her delivering brilliant comedy in many years to come.

[@estheranthony7539]

There is such depth to this person. She is very practical, grounded, open-minded, adventurous, curious, and clever. When you marry all of these qualities with the fact that she likes to perform and is unapologetic about it, I think that makes her an engaging performer. I was fascinated by how down-to-earth and self-aware she is. I appreciated how she could articulate who she is without verbosity or fakeness. The excellent questions and insights from the interviewers did a great job of showcasing her.

[@LuLuBeeBah]

I love listening to Katherine's perspective, she's so inspirational. I actually really enjoyed The Duchess, wish there had been a second series.

[@reebuch]

She has the same vibe as my aunt that prevent me getting married at 19! Love her!

[@Gypsywandering400]

I wish you could bottle her self-belief. It’s inspiring.

[@dhp5789]

SHE'S GREAT! thanks for sharing and having her on. Sara Pascoe next?

[@stuartwisbey8687]

Listened to the pod this morning, now watched it and it hits a little different. Love it! Thanks JH, DH and KR!

[@doceyes6533]

Hey Katherine Your amazing eloquence and smarts you disguise very well on TV shows. This is the 1st time I’ve seen this side of you and you are interesting, educated and curious person. I am so glad that I’ve seen this. Your comedy is hilarious so seeing this multifaceted you is very cool Keep flying!! D

[@andrewsema359]

Another great episode. Thanks Jake and Prof. Damien

[@HighPerformancePodcast]

Thank you so much 🙌

[@laurarobinson917]

I’ve always loved Katherine, I 💯 see the authenticity in her. Loved the interview

[@1701enter]

And I decided to share! Excellent interview

[@HighPerformancePodcast]

Katherine was brilliant! What did you make of the episode?

[@Trenchant468]

So much to learn from her. Great interview. More women, please. We need role models, too.

[@mfdinak]

Outstanding. The respect, introspective evolution of questions, and genuine care taken to produce a meaningful interaction was delightful. Katherine will always expertly express herself under any conditions, I knew she’d nail it. Surprise to me, I almost didn’t notice that I quickly stopped distrusting that the interview(ers) would be typical of my preconceptions, and relaxed to enjoy this immensely. Well done. Followed for sure.

[@CameronF1.]

What an absolute legend. We must protect her. That this podcast only has 13k views says is an absolute travesty. Thank you.

[@Ponkelina]

it now has 42K views one month later from broadcast. September is a super busy month for many

[@ellentaylor4351]

Excellent thanks👀💕📣

[@angelakenyon7490]

Special ,young lady. Interesting , relaxed chat. ☀️🇬🇧

[@Dontbeadumbass2024]

I have always found her funny, but this interview sells me on liking and respecting her as well. Well done, lads.

[@danielbarrios2655]

I absolutely love her

[@loreleiwebster9347]

Love Katherine Ryan, shes my spirit animal!! And i love that people seem to hate on her so much less these days-- because when i use to comment how much i loved her- i would get so many haters, hating on me because i think shes brilliant!! Even had one person try to convince me jow horrible she was as a comidianne. But i ended up converting him to how great she really is-- theyd never seen some of her best work, just her on 8 out of 10 cats, theyd never cjecked out her live at the Apollo or even her on QI!! I'm happy that she's on your show, because its made me find your program.. which i made sure to subscribe to y'all- because i like your interviewing style- very relax and it helps bring Katherine out more than I've ever seen before in interviews.. Thanks for interviewing a wonderful comedienne !! I cant wait to see who else you have on.

[@sophien117]

I like that she says, “yet”.

[@Pippi-rippi]

Love her!

[@mfdinak]

I knew I loved Katherine, I wasn’t always sure why. A lot of the time it was the F you in the face of male dominated media, or take a dig using herself to eliminate that low hanging fruit from the male response to her presence and audacity in their world. Katherine is never going to lie to us, but the space that was created for her to speak so freely without opposition or resentment, quieted unnecessary noise and interference women are used to. Her phrase language economy sent me. Great questions and very thoughtfully conducted. Katherine explaining mindful gratefulness as a part of character integrity that is always open to improvement is a life hack.

[@alanp2953]

Phenomenal lady !!!

[@alinam7432]

Our very own queen of comedy

[@natashafaizi6333]

loved the duchess wish they would pick it up sgain somehow

[@beckymcaulay6382]

Love you Kathrine

[@GlynTaylor]

Katherine Ryan is a absolute g

[@Bari_Khan_CEng_CMarEng]

Gratitude. When i had nothing I knew I had everything.

[@jessbelen]

that was obviously about not focusing on the bad stuff

[@Pamps10]

Her story would make a good movie

[@scottandrews5638]

I have seen a lot comedy acts in variety of venues and Katherine is the only one that I want really to see again

[@pigboypunk]

sister grrrl!

[@oxcart4172]

It couldnt have hurt that shes very pretty!

[@johnnyleon9218]

I heart @hatherineryan because she litterally just gave me my resume summary..."'High performance' Bilingual English/Spanish Leader of diverse global teams who 'is competent and relentless', seeks to grow passion for marketing, research, and analysis. Thrives in creative, technical, and operations spaces, is results driven and solutions-focused with superior communications skills. Collaborative, analytical, and multi-tasker is adaptable and organized with superior time management skills who hits the ground running in fast-paced and evolving environments. Rises to tackle and manage challenging projects that require demanding multiple deliverables within time constraints."

[@DaisyHollowBooks]

I'm a grumpy old (American) white guy. I think there are lots of funny people from all walks of life. I'm watching this interview because you're on it.

[@DaisyHollowBooks]

I totally respect your decision about 'Mock the Week.'

[@KRO-SOTV]

Get Birmingham’s New owners on… go for Garry Cook (CEO) Tom Wagner (Chairman) Tom Brady ( chair of advisory board) either one would be a great watch!!

[@HighPerformancePodcast]

Thank you for your ideas 👌

[@gavrowe1095]

Really good - would have liked to know if she was the breadwinner of her family tho

[@HighPerformancePodcast]

Thank you for your feedback 🙌

[@ladyflimflam]

Yes, she is.

[@danarzechula3769]

I was always quite spicy😂

[@nartarlyiatremaynne1239]

Beyond fabulous interview. I am a Huge Fan of Katherine; she is Joyous and Incandescent which is a brilliant way to traverse through Life. Her Bravery makes me smile and warms my Heart♡

[@assettocorsaking]

Katherine would be an amazing person to .. really know... great intellect. I would watch her on her own late show no worries. Give her her own show you Exec's! :P Superior female Sigma.

[@nzlemming]

Wow, so intelligent and self-aware. Damn shame she's already married.

[@sunseeker9581]

Isnt strictly a saturday night tv show?

[@leo_rojas]

Taylor Tomlinson now has her show at night

[@davidferguson6698]

wow what a highly inteligent woman and pretty too

[@COM70]

Love Katherine, but didn’t Sarah Millican have her own show ? Maybe it was Friday night ? Anyway, I’m not sure I agree 100% or even know enough about the industry. I would watch anything Katherine, Sarah or Fern Brady produce. Love Aisling Bea too.

[@kevinkelly5780]

Marti Caine had a couple of Saturday night TV shows. New Faces and stand up, far as I remember. Janet Brown and Faith Brown had shows. I thought moderns were more accepting of women doing stuff, or so they keep telling me

[@jackbassett9365]

Taylor Tomlinson as a woman has broken into the late night bracket in American television. It remains to be seen How it will play out.

[@johnnymoondog]

0.95x

[@yarasub]

love this strong and intelligent woman,did I mention damn fine as well?😄

[@NeilRossHistoryComedyPoetry]

So which of you spilled coffee on her?

[@7732147]

A few things about this podcast. 1, I love Katherine Ryan. 2, Her stand up is multi layered, nuanced and comes from a deep sense of understanding her craft and understanding her audience. But, I hated The Duchess. My wife hated The Duchess. Why? Katherine was "punching down" and she is so much better than that programme. The use if foul language was gratuitous and quite nasty in some places. Now I love the use of swearing in comedy. Billy Connolly, Chappele, even Katherine herself (in her stand up). But the dire tion and content of The Duchess just didn't work for me. Aisling Bea got if soooo right in This Way Up almost in direct opposition to the way Katherine got it wrong (for me) in The Duchess. But at the end of the day I still love you KR, especially when you did Louis Theroux's programme. Look as Roosevelt once said "it is not the critic who counts", if she reads this I'm sure she'll think I'm full of S#1t but I hope she knows I love her. Just don't tell my wife.

[@thepastshecouldseebutnotto3262]

Wow what she said about pedestal feminism 😢

[@tigger4011]

What you have to do to get a Sat night show is get funnier / a bigger following. It's down to popularity and audience pulling power, not the dick.

[@Gonzo4osu]

The guy on the right is putting me to sleep…zzzzz😴

[@yorkie6013]

im tired of content producers using these shouting subtitles at the start of videos, it just makes me close the video and go find something else to watch.

[@HighPerformancePodcast]

We appreciate the feedback 🙏

[@yueli1905]

@@HighPerformancePodcast it's a tough topic; some podcasts, such as Diary of a CEO, Tom Bilyeu, The Iced Coffee Hour etc do the intro trailer and swear by them, and I'm sure the subtitling is great for TikTok, but as someone who've seen hundreds of podcasts from dozens of creators, I've always found it simply annoying to include them in the actual episode. Podcasts that jump straight in - JRE, Andrew Huberman, Club Random with Bill Maher etc, allow me to queue up episodes without being blasted with loud clips at the start, and needing to go manually skip past it. People intrigued by the topic or interviewee will watch the whole thing, but there must be plenty of impatient people out there who are unable to watch without first sampling of all the soundbites. Ultimately the cost of including them is small, just know that it's annoying.

[@itzelmayoral729]

And yet you are here taking the time to comment

[@yorkie6013]

@@itzelmayoral729 its called giving feedback.

[@Revelian1982]

No woman with a Saturday night TV show. So, the two women who host Strictly don't count then..

[@itzelmayoral729]

Yes because dancing is the same as comedy

[@htmc2022]

Most men don’t want to listen to a woman’s voice - they equate that so7nd with a bossy mother or wife - they fall asleep to podcasts with a male voice drowning on & on & on.

[@HTOP1982]

Numbers. How many women are there out there every night playing for empty rooms? Heck even the % of guys that make it is so small. Smaller than women.

[@SPICYUK007]

The sad thing is is that Cath done her own thing... rather than point her out... jake.... no wonder you are obsolete

[@AbiCroCro]

Had to stop watching when two men asked Katie Ryan “why patriarchy patriarch?”

[@LWH010]

Skating past the bread dislike

[@Holcroft1969]

A lot of Female comedians are shockingly shit, and people laugh at them because it's fashionable at the moment but she is actually quite funny.

[@teresataubman2860]

You were better without all the transformation on your head x

[@elizabethporter-zb8sh]

Yes Katherine Ryan is great, witty, insightful; but who are you guys? nothing here about you, and not much on yr website either.....

[@spencerjarvis2899]

I dislike her intensely, every show I have seen where she is a guest she uses as a platform to bring her feminist (borderline sexist) views to the forefront. In taskmaster episode one she said there is nothing a strong woman cant do, 3 episodes in she was complaining that there was a task where she had to tie a neck tie and was a woman so didnt know how to do it and suggest the men should try wearing tampons! what?! , this didnt however stop her giving a male contestant a task where he had to apply makeup. She also complained that she had to lift a heavy object "this isnt fair". It seems her view on equal rights for women (which I agree with by the way) comes and goes depending on the moment and is happy to play the "im a woman" card when it suits her. There was a show she was hosting where a female contestant had to make some jewellery and couldnt get it right, she said to her "dont get upset, pretend youre a straight white man" what on earth does sexual preference, gender or race have to do with not being good at making a piece of jewellery?. The tv governing body here in the UK received hundreds of complaints. I find it strange a woman with such strong feminist views and apparent distain for sexist (and possibly all) men was happy to work at hooters.

[@seema.shirazi]

She's a comedian, not everything she says or does is supposed to be taken as the literal truth. You're going to have a very stressful life if you react to comedians like this.

[@SadieeeSweeet]

I think it was, errr, what do you call it? A joke...

[@TC8787-yq7og]

Katherine is an incredible example of how no discernible talent and swinging the pendulum with the current social pulse can send you to incredibly successful places. A dreadful female comic who is a complete rip-off of Joan Rivers and ten times less funny, comes across as extremely dislikeable and entitled.

[@AyyOlly-ry2cr]

She only got fame due to her looks 😭

[@itzelmayoral729]

And the first mysogynist is right here!!!!