One of the hottest comics on the island, Vicky Mullaley talks relatable comedy, battling nerves and Newfoundland storytellers in this candid one-on-one
Vicky Mullaley’s life in comedy has only recently cleared the three-year mark, but she’s the go-to for laughs, yucks and gut-busting stories on the island today, if you ask those in the know.
Yes, Mullaley is making it impossibly hard to be ignored these days, being named Best Comic/Funny Person by The Overcast in their annual year-end People’s Choice Awards.
AN INSIDE JOKE
So what is it about this humble and unapologetically real and honest comic that is catching fire? Personal touches help, deep dives into reality that you and the lady next to you can relate to as an inside joke gone outward.
“I really like storytelling, bringing up things that have happened in my life,” Mullaley tells The Herald. “I aim for the relatable stuff, because it’s fun to say the thing out loud that people don’t. That’s what I love the most.”
Mullaley first took to the stage in September of 2015 while studying engineering at Memorial University.
“My classmates would always tell me that they wished I was on This Hour Has 22 Minutes,” she shares.
And how, pray tell, did those early sets go? Were there bags and boatloads of nerves? “I can’t really remember the first one, because I had an adrenaline blackout,” she laughs. “I’m told I did five minutes and I know what material I did, but I can’t for the life of me remember how it was received. I can’t remember if people laughed at any of it.”
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Mullaley’s desire to induce tummy-aching fits of laughter is not new by any stretch, despite her relative infancy to the game.
“People consider you the goofy one in the friend group. I’d find that when I’d tell stories of what would happen to me, funny stories, that they went over really well,” she explains. “I thought maybe this is something I should be doing. I had that yearn to make people laugh. I need to make people laugh to be happy.”
THE GIFT OF GAB
True, Mullaley has always had the gift of gab. She’s one of a long line of Newfoundland storytellers, a power many of us have buried deep within, but few of us ever truly tap into.
“We’re the funniest place on the planet, I am convinced,” she shares. “I haven’t really met many Newfoundlanders who don’t like talking. If you want to be heard, a lot of times you’ll be heard the most if you’re being funny. Even just people who I know in my family and friend groups. The funniest people I know aren’t comedians. Newfoundlanders are just the best. It’s a comedy goldmine here. You go to the grocery store and you end up getting five minutes of material.
“Ten times out of ten I’d choose to be in a room filled with Newfoundlanders to just have a good laugh,” she adds.
Watching her contemporaries like Mike Lynch, Colin Hollett and Brian Aylward hit the road to massive success last year, coupled with our lasting legacy of nationally acclaimed comics from Mary Walsh to Rick Mercer and more, Mullaley is inspired and motivated heading into 2019.
“If I had to boil it down to one thing it’s all the fellow Newfoundlanders who have found success through being funny,” she says of her motivations, adding that the local comedy scene continues to thrive against stacked odds.
‘NEWFOUNDLAND COMEDY’
“The Newfoundland comedy community as a whole has really banded together and hasn’t stopped hustling. There’s an open mic almost every night of the week.”
And while the call of the road and national stages may beckon sooner rather than later, The Rock, with its storytelling legacy, will always be home.
“Here is always going to be home,” she says. “I’ll always find my way back here.”
For viral videos, performance dates and more visit Vicky Mullaley on her official Facebook Vicky Mullaley Laughs and other social media accounts.