Leah opens her diary for a date in Kirkcaldy with a song and a smile

Leah is best known for her roles in Scottish soap opera River City and award-winning Scottish sitcom Gary: Tank Commander.

But if you don’t know her from her television roles, you may have seen her popular stage show 51 Shades of Maggie which sold out at theatres across the country during three Scottish tours.

Now Leah is back with a brand new offering, My Big, Fat, Fabulous Diary, which is coming to the Adam Smith Theatre in Kirkcaldy on May 10.

Her one-woman show is packed full of hysterical stories, comedy songs and belting ballads.

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First performed at a handful of sell out performances in Glasgow and Ayr in 2018, this new show includes laugh out loud stories like ‘Cleaning Cupboard First Winch’ and ‘The Hold-In Pants Naked Truffle Shuffle’ - taken straight from the pages of Leah’s “own” diary.

Fans of Leah’s on-stage work, her TV roles and her presence on social media, know she’s not afraid of playing funny, quick and very real characters.

But audiences will be in for a surprise when she performs some huge songs and locals will really get to know the cheeky side of Leah as she delves into the pages of her Fabulous Diary and shares her stories.

Leah told the Press what audiences can expect: “It’s definitely a show for everyone. The people who come to see it are of all ages – a really mixed audience. It is a very conversational piece and a light-hearted comedy.

“There are songs in it and funny stories that we can all identify with – stories about going to the gym, about your clothes not fitting you, what you did when you were at school and heartache, all that kind of stuff.

“It’s a one-woman show with lots of big songs and it has two acts. It is a very positive show though and is all about accepting yourself, not taking yourself too seriously and following your dreams – not letting anybody tell you that you can’t do something.”

She revealed some details about what the ‘Cleaning Cupboard First Winch’ and ‘The Hold-In Pants Naked Truffle Shuffle’ sketches are all about: “One of the funniest parts of the show is a story about me getting stuck in a support vest. In the advert we say it’s hold-in pants but it is actually a support vest I get stuck in. It’s about what happens when things like that happen to you.

“That is a big set piece towards the end of act one about what happens when I get stuck in front of a friend when I am younger, in a state, annoyed, in a mood and then panicking because I can’t get out.

“While the Cleaning Cupboard First Winch is about your first love, someone you fancied all along and then you finally get to winch them and then if they break your heart, stuff like that.”

Leah said some of the stories featured in the show are most definitely true, some are true but have been made more dramatic, while others are made up – she said the fun of it is to work out which bits are based on real-events and which aren’t!

She is hoping to build on the success of her first stage show - 51 Shades of Maggie - which she took on tour back in 2013/14.

Leah said; “I was doing a lot of singing after 51 Shades of Maggie, cabaret-type things with other people – like a night at the musicals. I was doing bits from Les Mis and then I was singing a more comedy song, and I would speak in between, but I found I was speaking more and more.

“The show came from the success of Maggie but one thing I felt the audience was really craving from 51 Shades of Maggie was more music in the show. When people find out I can sing they are really surprised.

“It’s nice to bring the songs into the comedy.”

Leah said work on the new production was gradual, taking around six months, but it was interrupted when she snapped her leg on stage when she did the show for the first time.

She had to adapt parts of it after that happened but she said the incident actually gave her new material to work with.

“It was something I had worked on for a while to decide what I wanted but when I did 51 Shades of Maggie I knew I wanted to write my own one-woman show.”

Many people might recognise Leah from her role as Ellie McLean in River City. She has played the part for five years. And Leah still really enjoys it: “I love it – it’s absolutely the best job in the world and I am very lucky to work in a continuing drama. My bosses are all brilliant giving me the time to do my own show.

“To be able to be on stage and work in television is just a dream.”

She also enjoyed doing scenes with Greg McHugh in Gary: Tank Commander when she played the part of Julie Jackson: “Gary is my favourite Fifer!

“He is my one and only and Julie is my favourite character,” she said. “She was written for me and is loosely based on me when I was younger.

“I was just so young and enthusiastic and very like her, she is a challenge to play but I love her a lot.

“I do think there will be a day when we see all of these characters again, that’s my hope anyway.”

She is excited about performing at the Adam Smith Theatre this May: “I genuinely love people from Fife – I love their banter and their accent.

“A piece of Fife will always be in my heart from Gary: Tank Commander - I am really looking forward to coming back to the Kingdom.”

For tickets visit: www.onfife.com