Rosie Holt (born 1985) is a British actress, comedian, and satirist. She started her satirical videos, ''Woman Who...'', released on her

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

feed, during the 2020

COVID-19 lockdown During the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of non-pharmaceutical interventions, particularly lockdowns (encompassing stay-at-home orders, curfews, quarantines, and similar societal restrictions), were implemented in numero ...

. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' newspaper noted her "strong line in parodies of the ype ofpolitical speech that veers into drivel."

Early life

Holt originates from

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, in the west of England.

Career

In August 2013, Holt's entry in '' The Sitcom Trials'', 'Never Better', was selected as winner. Holt jointly wrote and performed as part of the double act Holt and Talbot, alongside Christian Talbot, at the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as the Edinburgh Fringe, the Fringe or the Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest performance arts festival, which in 2024 spanned 25 days, sold more than 2.6 million tickets and featur ...

in both 2017 and 2018. Holt is one of several satirists who subsequently found a popular online niche for her art during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

Radio

She appeared on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

's ''

The Museum of Curiosity ''The Museum of Curiosity'' is a comedy talk show on BBC Radio 4 that was first broadcast on 20 February 2008. It is hosted by John Lloyd (producer), John Lloyd (Professor of Ignorance at the University of Buckingham, and later at Solent Unive ...

'' in February 2023. Her hypothetical donation to this imaginary museum was "the unwritten second half of Coleridge's ''

Kubla Khan "Kubla Khan: or A Vision in a Dream" () is a poem written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, completed in 1797 and published in 1816. It is sometimes given the subtitles "A Vision in a Dream" and "A Fragment." According to Coleridge's preface to "Kub ...

''".

Online work

In October 2021, Holt was interviewed about her success online as part of a ''

Backstage Backstage may refer to: * Backstage (theatre), the areas of a theatre that are not part of the house or stage Film and television * ''Back Stage'' (1917 film), a silent film starring Oliver Hardy * ''Back Stage'' (1919 film), a silent film starri ...

'' magazine article. She also appeared in an online educational workshop aimed at

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

schools, using the short-form comedic video as an example of a new method of communication. In August 2021, Holt was featured in a newspaper story in the ''

Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily Tabloid journalism, tabloid newspaper. Founded in 1903, it is part of Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), which is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the tit ...

'' after the dating app

Hinge A hinge is a mechanical bearing that connects two solid objects, typically allowing only a limited angle of rotation between them. Two objects connected by an ideal hinge rotate relative to each other about a fixed axis of rotation, with all ...

suggested that her 'most compatible match' would be her brother, Charlie. Her tweet relaying the story attracted 23,000 likes within two days. January 2022 was a period of intense political controversy about

Partygate Partygate was a political scandal in the United Kingdom about gatherings of Government of the United Kingdom, government and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party staff during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, COVID-19 pandem ...

, and an official report was expected from the

Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for supporting the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister and Cabinet ...

Second Permanent Secretary, Sue Gray. In a satirical video sketch released to

, Holt played the part of a

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

MP being asked by an interviewer whether she had or had not attended a Downing Street party. The video was created by splicing the interviewee's responses with actual footage of questions from a

Sky News Sky News is a British free-to-air television news channel, live stream news network and news organisation. Sky News is distributed via an English-language radio news service, and through online channels. It is owned by Sky Group, a division of ...

reporter to

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...

, in which he had dodged questions about whether he had gone to the party. Her response – that until Sue Gray completes her report "your guess is as good as mine: I don't know whether I attended the party" – generated an outraged response from some viewers who missed the satire and who thought that the interviewee was a real MP.

Personal life

As of 2024, Holt is in a relationship with fellow comedian

Stewart Lee Stewart Graham Lee (born 5 April 1968) is an English comedian. His stand-up routine is characterised by repetition, internal reference, and deadpan delivery. Lee began his career in 1989 and formed the comedy duo Lee and Herring with Richard ...

. She previously shared a house with comedian

Harriet Kemsley Harriet Kemsley (born 21 June 1987) is an English stand-up comedian. Early life Kemsley grew up in Canterbury, Kent. She studied English literature at Kingston University. Career Kemsley began stand-up in 2011 and within months won the Funny ...

Credits

Television

* 2019 ''Bounty (pilot)'', Jess,

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

* 2021 ''

The Russell Howard Hour ''The Russell Howard Hour'' is a British topical comedy news television series that premiered on Sky One on 21 September 2017. The series is hosted by Russell Howard where he gives his thoughts and opinions on current topics as well as featuring ...

'', Margaret/Jenny, Avalon/Sky

Theatre

* 2005 ''

Prometheus Bound ''Prometheus Bound'' () is an ancient Greek tragedy traditionally attributed to Aeschylus and thought to have been composed sometime between 479 BC and the terminus ante quem of 424 BC. The tragedy is based on the myth of Prometheus, ...

'', Chorus, Sound Theatre * 2005 ''Myth Propaganda and Destruction'', Marguerite,

Contact Theatre Contact is an arts organisation based in Manchester, England. Established in 1972, as a center for young artists to create and learn, the theatre remains in its original building and is a part of the Arts Council England, the University of Man ...

* 2010 ''Lashings Of Whipped Cream'', Trixie, The Nursery Festival * 2011 ''

Wuthering Heights ''Wuthering Heights'' is the only novel by the English author Emily Brontë, initially published in 1847 under her pen name "Ellis Bell". It concerns two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moors, the Earnshaws and the ...

'', Catherine Earnshaw, Aberystwyth Arts Centre, National Tour * 2011 ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'', Juliet, New Triad Theatre, European Tour * 2015 ''

Treasure Island ''Treasure Island'' (originally titled ''The Sea Cook: A Story for Boys''Hammond, J. R. 1984. "Treasure Island." In ''A Robert Louis Stevenson Companion'', Palgrave Macmillan Literary Companions. London: Palgrave Macmillan. .) is an adventure a ...

'', Jim /Gemima, Creation Theatre * 2019 ''The Crown Dual'', HRH Queen Elizabeth II,

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of Arts festival, arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the ...

* 2019 ''The Crown Dual'', HRH Queen Elizabeth II, Wiltons Music Hall

Comedy

* 2014 ''Fall Girl'', Writer / Performer,

Canal Cafe Theatre The Canal Café Theatre is a 60-seat fringe theatre venue in Little Venice, London, England, specialising in comedy performances. Location The theatre is above the Bridge House pub on the corner of Westbourne Terrace Road and Delamere Terrace, a ...

* 2014 ''Fall Girl'', Writer / Performer,

Gilded Balloon Gilded Balloon is a producer and promoter of live entertainment events, based in Edinburgh, Scotland, and best known as one of the Big Four venue operators at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe each August. The company has its origins in a venue kno ...

* 2017 ''Holt & Talbot Can't Stand The Sight Of Each Other'', Writer / Performer, Edinburgh Fringe * 2018 ''Some Like It Holt'', Writer / Performer, Edinburgh Fringe * 2018 ''Mansplaining Feminism'', Writer / Performer, Bath

Komedia Komedia is an arts and entertainment company which operates venues in the United Kingdom at Brighton and Bath, and a management and production company Komedia Entertainment. Beyond hosting live comedy, the venues also host music, cabaret, theat ...

* 2018 ''Mansplaining Feminism'', Writer / Performer, Edinburgh Fringe * 2020 ''Webidate'', Writer / Performer, Web Series * 2021 ''Woman Who...'', Writer / Performer,

* 2022 ''The Woman's Hour'', Writer / Performer, Edinburgh Fringe

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:holt, rosie 1980s births Living people Actresses from Somerset Alumni of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art British comedy writers Year of birth missing (living people) Comedians from Somerset British women comedians English podcasters