Katherine Ryan

Not to be confused with Kathryn Ryan.

Katherine Ryan
Ryan in November 2014 at the Adelphi Theatre
Born
Katherine Louisa Ryan

1983 (age 40–41)
Sarnia, Ontario, Canada
Citizenship
  • Canadian
  • Irish[1]
EducationRyerson University (BA)
Occupations
  • Comedian
  • writer
  • actress
  • presenter
PartnerBobby Kootstra (cp. 2019–present)
Children3

Katherine Louisa Ryan (born June 1983)[2] is a Canadian comedian, writer, presenter, actress and singer.[3][4] She has appeared on British TV and radio panel shows, including 8 Out of 10 Cats (as a regular team captain), Never Mind the Buzzcocks, A League of Their Own, Mock the Week, Would I Lie to You?, QI, Just a Minute, Safeword, and Have I Got News for You. In 2015 she replaced Steve Jones as the presenter of Hair on BBC Two. As an actress, Ryan has appeared on several television sitcoms in the UK, including Campus, Episodes, and her Netflix show The Duchess.

As a stand-up comedian, Ryan has appeared on the BBC's Live at the Apollo, both as a featured act and as a lead act. She has had two live stand-up specials released on Netflix: Katherine Ryan: In Trouble (2017) and Katherine Ryan: Glitter Room (2019).

Early life

[edit]

Ryan's father, Finbar,[5] is a draughtsman and owner of an engineering company who originally emigrated from Ireland to Canada.[6] Her mother, Julie McCarthy, owns an IT consulting company.[7][8] Ryan and her two younger sisters were born and raised in Sarnia, Ontario.[9]

Ryan's parents separated when she was a teenager.[10] When she was 18, she chose to study city planning at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) in Toronto.[11][12] While attending university, she worked at restaurant chain Hooters, and she then began training other waitresses.[13] In her spare time she performed at open mic nights for her own entertainment, and by graduation she had developed a basic comedy routine.[8] She was one of the many dancers in MuchMusic's Electric Circus program.[14]

Career

[edit]

After graduation, Ryan continued working for Hooters as a corporate trainer, travelling around Canada to train other waitresses, and helping to open the then-only UK branch in Nottingham. Her partner at the time wanted to explore London, so she agreed to do so for an initial month from summer 2007, moving there permanently from January 2008.[8][4]

As a comedian

[edit]
Ryan performing stand-up in 2012

Ryan won the Funny Women award in 2008. Rachel Stubbings and Sara Pascoe were runners-up.[15]

Ryan first appeared on television as herself in episodes of the Canadian music video review show Video on Trial between season one in 2005 and her last appearance in 2008 in season three. After relocating to the United Kingdom, she first appeared on Channel 4's 8 Out of 10 Cats in 2012. She had previously appeared in the cast of Channel 4's Campus.

On 23 February 2013, she appeared as a celebrity contestant on BBC One's Let's Dance for Comic Relief as Nicki Minaj dancing to "Starships". Ryan reached the final, and finished in fourth place.[16] Ryan was later featured on the Whitney Cummings Just for Laughs 2013 Gala that was taped before a live audience on 28 July 2013.[17][18] She has since taken new routines to the Edinburgh Festival.[8]

In 2015, Ryan replaced Steve Jones as the presenter of Hair on BBC Two. Also in 2015, Ryan became a panellist for Tinie Tempah's team on Sky 1's music/comedy panel show Bring the Noise and on the ITV2 show, Safeword.[19] In 2016, Ryan appeared on series 2 of Taskmaster. She beat Doc Brown, Joe Wilkinson, Richard Osman and Jon Richardson, to win the season.[20]

Ryan went on a comedy tour in 2016, called Kathbum, a name her toddler sister used to call her.[21] In February 2017, Netflix released Katherine Ryan: In Trouble, featuring her stand-up comedy live performance at the Hammersmith Apollo in London, during that tour.[22][23]

She joined Jimmy Carr in 2017 to host four series of the reboot of Your Face or Mine?. In 2018, Ryan joined American comedy panel show, The Fix as a team captain. In July 2019, Netflix released her second live stand-up special, Katherine Ryan: Glitter Room.[24]

Actress

[edit]

As an actress, Ryan has appeared on numerous television series in the UK, including the sitcoms Campus,[25][26] Episodes[27] and Badults.[28] Ryan starred in the Netflix comedy The Duchess, based on a single mother's life in London; she is credited as its writer, executive producer, and creator.[29]

Other work

[edit]

On 6 June 2014, YouTube comedy duo Jack and Dean released a music video for their song "Consent" featuring Ryan in an acting role.[30]

In 2015 and 2016 Ryan wrote a weekly column in the British entertainment magazine NME.[31] In 2016 she featured in Disney XD and Teletoon's animated television series Counterfeit Cat, where she voiced Ranceford, the stuck-up, white, odd-eyed cat and leader of the Sunshine Circle for Cats.

In 2021 Ryan hosted the six-part reality competition All That Glitters: Britain's Next Jewellery Star on BBC2.[32] Also in 2021 she presented the ITV2 dating show Ready to Mingle.[33]

In November 2022 Ryan was the subject of an interview in the BBC series Louis Theroux Interviews... with Louis Theroux, [34] during which she told Theroux about the "open secret" of an alleged sexual abuser who was a prominent TV personality.[35][36]

In January 2023, Ryan appeared as "Pigeon" on the fourth series of The Masked Singer.

In 2025, Ryan is set to act as a judge on the fifth season of Canada's Got Talent.

Recognition and public controversy

[edit]

For her comedy work, Ryan won the 2008 Funny Women Award and was described as "the funniest new female stand up in Britain" by a national newspaper.[37]

In February 2023, Ryan won the Outstanding Female Comedy Entertainment Performance award at the 2023 National Comedy Awards for Backstage with Katherine Ryan.

Racism Scandals

[edit]

In 2013, Ryan was the subject of controversy over her participation on Mock The Week in a segment "Unlikely Lines From a Cosmetics Commercial", where one of her jokes was "We don’t test any of our products on animals. We use Filipino children." Filipino groups held silent protests at the BBC office to demand an apology from her.[38][39] In another interview, she was accused of racism by some viewers on social media when she attempted to encourage a female Sri Lankan designer by saying "You need to really back yourself. Do you know how confident a straight white man would be right now? Think about Boris Johnson, how pleased he’d be right now." The BBC responded that such a comment was in line with reasonable expectations of Ryan's humour.[40]

Personal life

[edit]

Katherine had a relationship with American comedian Alex Edelman.[41]

Ryan gave birth to her first child, a daughter, at age 25.[42]

In 2019, Ryan entered into a civil partnership with Bobby Kootstra. The ceremony took place in Denmark in the presence of her elder daughter. The two had dated in Canada as teenagers and were reunited when Ryan returned to her hometown while filming an episode of the TV show Who Do You Think You Are?[43][44] Her second child, a son, was born in June 2021.[45] Her third child, a daughter, was born in December 2022.[46][47]

Filmography

[edit]
Year Name Role Notes
2009–2011 Campus George Bryan
2012 Episodes Merc's assistant
2012–2014 Never Mind the Buzzcocks Panelist
2013 Count Arthur Strong Tourist woman
Badults Lucy
2013, 2017 QI Contestant
2013–2021 Have I Got News For You Panelist 8 appearances
2014 Duck Quacks Don't Echo Panelist
Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled Panelist
Live at the Apollo Guest With host Jack Whitehall and fellow guest, Rich Hall
2015 Hair Host
Bring the Noise Panelist
Live at the Apollo Host With guests Henning Wehn and James Acaster
2015–2016 Safeword Team captain
2015–2017 Jack Dee's Election Helpdesk Regular panelist
2016 Sunny D Kerry
The Chase Contestant
It's Not Me, It's You Guest team captain
Comedy Central at the Comedy Store Host, self
2016–2017 Counterfeit Cat Ranceford, Nelson, various
2016, 2017, 2019 Taskmaster Contestant Series 2 champion
Contestant in two-part Champion of Champions special
Stand-in for Katy Wix in Series 9 episode
2016, 2018 Would I Lie to You? Panelist
2017 How'd You Get So Rich? (UK) Presenter
The Big Fat Quiz of Everything Contestant
The Fake News Show Team captain, panelist
All Star Driving School Narrator
Tipping Point Contestant
Insert Name Here Panelist
Noel at the Apollo Host with Marlon Davis, Joel Dommett and John Robins.
2017–2019 Your Face or Mine Co-presenter with Jimmy Carr
2018 Dara O Briain's Go 8 Bit Panelist
Beyond Bionic Narrator
The Fix Self, co-captain
2020 The Duchess Katherine
Urban Myths Joan Rivers
2021 All That Glitters: Britain's Next Jewellery Star Host With judges Shaun Leane and Solange Azagury-Partridge[48][49]
Ready to Mingle Host
2022 Backstage with Katherine Ryan Katherine Ryan
Big Zuu's Big Eats Herself [50]
All That Glitters: Britain's Next Jewellery Star Host with judges Shaun Leane and Dinny Hall
Louis Theroux Interviews Katherine Ryan Herself With Louis Theroux[51]
Big Fat Quiz of the Year Panelist With Maisie Adam[52]
2023 Romantic Getaway Alison [53]
The Masked Singer Pigeon Unmasked in episode 5[54]
Celebrity Gogglebox Herself Alongside her partner, Bobby Kootstra
90 Day Fiance UK Host
2024 Katherine Ryan: Parental Guidance Herself [55]
RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World Herself (Guest judge) Series 2
Out of Order Co-host Alongside Rosie Jones and Judi Love[56]
Joe and Katherine’s Bargain Holidays Co-presenter With Joe Wilkinson[57]
Cooking With The Stars Contestant Series 4[58]

Stand-up specials

[edit]
Year Title Platform Ref.
2017 Katherine Ryan: In Trouble Netflix [59]
2019 Katherine Ryan: Glitter Room Netflix [60]
2022 Katherine Ryan: Missus Sky Comedy [61]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Katherine Ryan: Your questions answered". The Guardian. 9 May 2014. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  2. ^ "Katherine Ryan - Who Do You Think You Are - "My daughter gives me a hard time about not being English. Well now I can tell her I am English – and from a castle no less..."". www.thegenealogist.co.uk. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  3. ^ Moore-Bridger, Benedict; Groskop, Viv (7 August 2014). "TV Katherine Ryan gives her cheating boyfriend a star role in new show". London Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  4. ^ a b Dessau, Bruce (25 March 2014). "New Interview: Katherine Ryan". Beyond The Joke. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  5. ^ "Series 6, Episode 7". Room 101: Extra Storage. 7 September 2018. BBC One.
  6. ^ Power, Ed (8 September 2020). "Katherine Ryan on her Cork roots and new Netflix show The Duchess". Irish Examiner. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  7. ^ Harding, Oscar (13 January 2013). "Exclusive interview with Katherine Ryan". What Culture. Archived from the original on 22 April 2016. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  8. ^ a b c d Viv Groskop (7 August 2014). "Meet the queen of confessional comedy: Katherine Ryan". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  9. ^ Tripathi, Prizmi (11 September 2020). "Is Katherine Ryan Married? Does She Have Kids?". TheCinemaHolic.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  10. ^ Demchuk, Colin (producer, director); Ryan, Katherine (writer, performer) (14 February 2017). Katherine Ryan: In Trouble (Television production). Netflix. Statement occurs at time 57:25.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ Hayes, Martha (30 March 2019). "'Anyone else would have kicked him out': celebrity flatmates reveal all". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  12. ^ Chiu, Sheri (10 May 2017). "interview | katherine ryan". Schön! Magazine. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  13. ^ Bunbury, Stephanie (30 March 2015). "Melbourne International Comedy Festival: Why Katherine Ryan owes her comedy career to Hooters". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  14. ^ "The Bringer Of Spiders". Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled. Season 1. Episode 3. 18 June 2014. Event occurs at 4:21. Dave. Archived from the original on 22 July 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  15. ^ Guide, British Comedy (18 April 2016). "Funny Women Awards". British Comedy Guide. Archived from the original on 6 August 2022. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  16. ^ Groskop, Viv (7 August 2014). "Meet the queen of confessional comedy: Katherine Ryan". London Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  17. ^ Duguay, Denise (29 July 2013). "Just for Laughs closes with ... sex". Montreal Gazette. Archived from the original on 7 September 2019. Retrieved 2 August 2013.
  18. ^ "Whitney Cummings Gala Press Release". Hahaha.com. Archived from the original on 27 June 2013. Retrieved 2 August 2013.
  19. ^ Dessau, Bruce (4 June 2015). "New Game Show For Katherine Ryan, Rick Edwards, David Morgan". beyondthejoke.co.uk. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  20. ^ Lee, Ben (11 March 2016). "Richard Osman will take on Katherine Ryan in Taskmaster". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 21 November 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  21. ^ Demchuk, Colin (producer, director); Ryan, Katherine (writer, performer) (14 February 2017). Katherine Ryan: In Trouble (Television production). Netflix. Statement occurs at time 57:05.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  22. ^ Wicks, Amanda. "Katherine Ryan Doesn't Bite Her Tongue". pastemagazine.com. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  23. ^ McCarthy, Sean L. (17 February 2017). "Cheeky Comedy Doesn't Get Katherine Ryan into Too Much 'Trouble' For Netflix". Decider | Where To Stream Movies & Shows on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Instant, HBO Go. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  24. ^ Husband, Andrew. "Katherine Ryan Is Up For The Challenge Of Winning Over Her 'Glitter Room' Audience". Forbes. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
  25. ^ Mellor, Louisa (12 April 2011). "Campus episode 2 review: The Culling Fields". Den of Geek. Archived from the original on 21 August 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  26. ^ "Channel 4 goes off Campus : News 2011". Chortle. 29 June 2011. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  27. ^ "Slipping makes her smile – Arts and Comedy". The News. 1 February 2013. Archived from the original on 23 July 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
  28. ^ Richardson, Jay (5 February 2014). "Katherine Ryan joins Badults". Chortle. Archived from the original on 28 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  29. ^ "The Duchess | Netflix Official Site". www.netflix.com. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  30. ^ Jack and Dean (6 June 2014), Consent – JACK AND DEAN, archived from the original on 29 November 2021, retrieved 26 October 2017
  31. ^ "Katherine Ryan, Author at NME". NME. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  32. ^ "All That Glitters: Britain's Next Jewellery Star Season 1". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 19 May 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  33. ^ Darvill, Josh (28 August 2021). "Ready to Mingle: ITV2's new dating game show with a big twist". TellyMix. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  34. ^ "BBC Two - Louis Theroux Interviews..., Series 1, Katherine Ryan". Archived from the original on 22 November 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  35. ^ "Katherine Ryan tells Louis Theroux about 'open secret' of alleged sexual abuser". Independent.co.uk. 22 November 2022. Archived from the original on 22 November 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  36. ^ "Katherine Ryan claims prominent TV personality is "perpetrator of sexual assault"". NME. 22 November 2022. Archived from the original on 22 November 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  37. ^ "Funny Women Awards head to Bath for talent show heat". BBC News. 4 May 2010. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  38. ^ "Canadian Comedian Catherine Ryan accused of making an Anti-Filipino Joke on the BBC". 19 June 2013.
  39. ^ Video on YouTube
  40. ^ "BBC defend Katherine Ryan's 'straight white men' joke after fan backlash". Daily Mirror. 19 April 2021.
  41. ^ Saunders, Tristram Fane (28 January 2020). "Comedian Alex Edelman on antisemitism, millennials and being treated badly by the Baftas". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  42. ^ Needham, Lucy (16 December 2022). "Katherine Ryan gives birth to third baby and shares unique name and first snaps". mirror. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  43. ^ Levine, Nick. "Why Katherine Ryan Chose A Civil Partnership Over Marriage". refinery29. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  44. ^ Barr, Sabrina (13 December 2019). "Katherine Ryan chose civil partnership as she 'didn't need to pretend to be a virgin'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  45. ^ Green, Alex (14 June 2021). "Katherine Ryan shares baby news two weeks after pregnancy announcement". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  46. ^ Dooney, Emma (21 July 2022). "Katherine Ryan reveals she's pregnant with third child at 39". Woman & Home. Archived from the original on 28 July 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
  47. ^ "Taskmaster's Katherine Ryan welcomes baby daughter - and shares sweet name". Digital Spy. 16 December 2022. Archived from the original on 9 January 2023. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  48. ^ "That Glitters: Britain's Next Jewellery Star". bbc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 20 August 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  49. ^ "All That Glitters - Meet the judges and jewellers of series two". bbc.co.uk/mediacentre. Archived from the original on 20 August 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  50. ^ "Big Zuu's Big Eats". uktv.co.uk. Archived from the original on 12 July 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  51. ^ "Louis Theroux Interviews Katherine Ryan". bbc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 22 November 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  52. ^ "Big Fat Quiz: Big Fat Quiz of the Year 2022". 26 December 2022. Archived from the original on 27 December 2022. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
  53. ^ "Katherine Ryan and Romesh Ranganathan star in Sky's Romantic Getaway". Comedy.co.uk. 24 March 2022. Archived from the original on 30 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  54. ^ "The Masked Singer: Heavily pregnant Katherine Ryan revealed as Pigeon". yahoo.com/lifestyle. 29 January 2023. Archived from the original on 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  55. ^ "Katherine Ryan joins W for Katherine Ryan: Parental Guidance (working title)". corporate.uktv.co.uk. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  56. ^ "Stream Out of Order Season 1 instantly on NOW". nowtv.com. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  57. ^ "Katherine Ryan and Joe Wilkinson to seek out the best bargain holidays for Channel 4". channel4.com. Archived from the original on 11 July 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
  58. ^ "Cooking With The Stars returns to ITV1 and ITVX for 4th Series". itv.com/presscentre. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  59. ^ "Netflix orders a Katherine Ryan sitcom". Chortle. 8 November 2018.
  60. ^ Bennett, Steve (2 July 2019). "Katherine Ryan: Glitter Room on Netflix". Chortle.
  61. ^ "Katherine Ryan: Missus on Sky Comedy". NowTV. 11 January 2024.
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