An Audience with Jo Martin
What was your first acting job?
One of my very first acting job was for T.V the Real Mccoy. The character was called Botney a East Ender spoof Ruber Dub in Space an East Ender Spoof.. The spoof was entitled Rubber Dub in Space. I use to write and act on the ‘Real MCcoy’. I also did plays at Theatre- Royal Court and Theatre Royal Straford. For example I went on to play Lenny Henry’s Mistress in Chef, the mum in the Crouches a Black sit-com on BBC1. I was one of the main characters with Robby G. It was about our family.
What is the worst show you have done?
Oh, that’s a difficult one, I can remember I did a film that never got released, Johnny Vegas was in it and was produced by Trudi Styler Sting’s wife. I don’t think anyone knew where the film line was going, and the knock on effect was that as an actress I was uncertain where we were going with it. There was some really great actors in it and some great producers. But it just could not be pulled together in a meaningful way.
Acting in The Crouches was not easy either, a lot was riding on The Crouches being a success, because there was so few Black shows on the T.V. We had to tick every box, and one show can not tick every box. It simply wasn’t enough just having rice and peas on the table in a sketch. This sit com came along after 25 years, I don’t think it was specific enough and lacking the Caribbean elements. This is maybe where we went wrong. To be specific, I think it was perhaps the intention not to bring out too much of the Caribbean culture in series, but create a universal situation that would apply to any family no matter where they were from. There was a lot riding on the success of this sitcom, and certainly I felt a lot on my shoulders too. It wasn’t the worst job I had, but it was just very difficult at the time.
What inspired you to create Aarawak Moon Production Compnay?
We could see a gap in the market where certain things were not being produced in the industry. I got the opportunity to appear on the ‘Comedy Store Players’ This event has been going for years. It’s still happening now live at the Comedy Store in Leicester Square in London. Josie Lawrence, wanted someone to fill the spot, I was invited down. I did it for a good few times, saw how they did their show and then I was inspired to create our own production. I recall, there were no Black people in the audience, only Black person I saw was a doorman, who wished me luck.
The name ‘Aarawak’ came about after a conversation we had. As Jamaicans we were reflecting on how things become extinct, you know such as the ‘Aarawak indians’ of Jamaica. Yet despite the absence of these things, they are still running through our bloodline. Our bloodline, it is kind of like the arts, groups such as‘ Posse’, ‘BB Crew,’ and individuals like Angie Lemar have kept this alive. These were some of the things that inspired ‘Aarawak Moon Production Company’. Over the years, Aarawak has grown quite a following comprising of people from all cultures.
Do you aim your material at women?
My play, Shoot 2 Win is about netball. It is an all female story. We geared that towards our female audience, sad parts, but fun too. But Blaggers is for a mixed audience.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I suppose so, I seem to write better in the dead of the night. Sometimes I sit there in the day and eveything is blank, at 10 at night I get a surge of energy I am a roll. Nowadays, with family life and children it’s much harder, I have to set aside times to write. Having babies; they demand a lot of time day and night.
What are you proudest of achieving?
Having the ‘Aarawak Moon Productions Company’ makes me really proud and performing with the Royal Shakespeare Company for two seasons. One season is that when I was in my early twenties, and other about 2 years ago. I had the opportunity in one season to travel to New York with them; it was great. Many of the Hollywood stars came to see the show, it was awesome working with the Shakespeare Company.
Another moment for me was through my involvement with Theatre Royal Stratford I started my career there. Without this experience, I don’t think I would be the actress I am today. It is very dear to my heart. I use to be a board memebr of Theatre Royal Stratford, I directed many shows there, e.g.’The Posse’ and Angie Le Mar’s ‘Funny Black Women’. Angela Bassett came down to see our show.
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