Adam Kay brings This Is Going To Hurt, the stand-up show, to Perth

Not many people willingly want to spend much time at a hospital. Unless, it seems, it is on a screen. Or in a book. Medical dramas crowd out our TV schedules even if the real-life version is something people would rather avoid. “It’s literal life and death, so that makes good drama. And it’s always going to be relatable whether we like it or not,” says Adam Kay. The comedian has had plenty of time to ponder the public love-hate relationship with hospitals. He trained and worked as a doctor in the UK’s NHS system for a number of years before stepping away in 2010 after a traumatic medical episode he dealt with as a doctor left him with symptoms of PTSD. He wrote a book about his experience as a junior doctor, This Is Going To Hurt, released in 2017, which was a surprise runaway success, selling 2.5 million copies and being translated into 37 languages. In 2022 it was turned into a TV series starring Ben Whishaw as Kay, bringing the story to an even wider audience. “The TV show was quite highly fictionalised in order to make it a good, interesting drama, particularly in the portrayal of me,” Kay says. “So in terms of what people think of me based on the TV show, he (the TV version of Kay) is much more of an arsehole and sort of quite a difficult character but he’s extremely attractive. I think overall I’m happy with the world thinking that I’m a bit of a bastard but very good-looking. So that’s the main differences.” Kay has since built a new career for himself as a successful author, TV writer and comedian. In the UK he has also become something of an unexpected campaigner for better working conditions for medical professionals. “I’m committed to doing it because I think, particularly when it comes to the mental health and suicide within the healthcare professions, it’s a huge crisis and not enough is being done,” he says. “I’m very lucky I have this small public platform that I can use for good, and bang this gong and doctors will listen to me. But at the same time, I’m not the best person to talk about it. I’m not in any way an expert. I’m just a person who did the job, who can recognise there’s a big problem in terms of stigma and shame and taboo, and not enough is being done. So I’m a very willing advocate for mental health for doctors.” Despite the seriousness of his topic, Kay has carved out a niche for himself as a comedian and regularly sells out major venues in the UK. Having not worked as a doctor since 2010, Kay says he is branching out from medical-focused stuff, but he’s not straying too far. His first fiction book is due out later this year and he believes it is “the best thing I’ve ever written”. “It’s called A Particularly Nasty Case. It’s medical crime. There has been this whole genre of cosy crime which we’ve seen a lot of in the past five years or so. This is whatever the opposite of that is . . . I’m really pleased with it. It’s definitely the funniest thing I’ve ever written.” Kay toured Australia for the first time last year and was blown away by the reception. He is now returning for a bigger tour, and bringing the family for a holiday too. He says, “The show I’m taking out to Australia is my first show, which is called This Is Going To Hurt like the book and the TV show, and that is very much centred on life on the wards and all my silly, funny, disgusting stories, but hopefully some stuff to think about as well.” Adam Kay performs as part of the Perth Comedy Festival on May 3 and 4 at the Regal Theatre.

Adam Kay brings This Is Going To Hurt, the stand-up show, to Perth

The No. 1 source of news for every West Australian

Everyday Digital

Everyday Digital + Weekend Papers