Case in point, is it any surprise people are now turning to streaming services and away from analogue TV to see a more clear idea of fair representation. I admit that since I wasn't very familiar with Gina's beginnings in UK comedy, I found myself zoning out during the latter half of the book. An incident that highlights racist attitudes at the time really poignantly is the following: when Gina was 9 years old she happened to be leaning on a car when a grown man's voice was heard: 'Get the fuck off my car, you black bastard! I knew very little about Gina Yashere beforehand but after reading this I'd want to be a fan of hers even if I weren't familiar with her professional work.

I never even heard of her until I seen her on the CBS hit series Bob <3 Abishola, a show she co-created. She’s not shy about the bitching and backbiting she experienced on the circuit (and there’s some fun to be had guessing the comics she’s talking about) and why her ambition took her to America when she hit the glass ceiling here.Unfortunately it ends as she moves to the US; from the epilogue it's apparent that Gina hopes to publish a second volume at some point. ACT Contact / FAQ About Events / Videos Merch / Subs Sign in/up Cack-Handed : A Memoir Gina Yashere More by this author. From birth, Gina carried a similar birthmark – a sign that she was her grandmother’s chosen heir, and would fulfil Patience’s dreams.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go get caught up on her appearance in Season 2 of The Standups on Netflix. The memoir is about the history of the author's life and what it was like growing up as the daughter of two Nigerian immigrants in the U. I won't explain too much because I don't want to spoil anything but her childhood was not that nice. I first saw Gina Yashere's comic routine on YouTube several years ago so I was happy when the publisher offered me a copy of her memoir. She’s also very clear on the institutional racism handed out by employers, the police and the British entertainment industry, coming over as fair and fairly angry and giving a lot of extra value to the book.The first half of the book is about her upbringing in a British Nigerian family and the conflicts and cultural differences that come with living with an immigrant parent, but the second half is very much a deep dive into how Gina cultivated her comedy career. I've always found her comedy hilarious and the times when her mum has been in an audience have added to her stories. I appreciate how patiently Gina inserts littles lessons on West African culture and history throughout the book, knowing that Western schools and media often get the narrative wrong.