Persistent and Nasty

Persistent and Nasty

Persistent and Nasty is a script-reading, debate and art as activism initiative for women and gender minorities in the stage and screen industries. We are committed to an intersectional approach and aim to use the space we’ve created to provide a platform for the spectrum of marginalised voices in our culture. Through a series of script readings, live debates and a regular podcast series, we aim to amplify the unrepresented voices in theatre and film. Our goal is to create a project that is safe and supportive, but that is also an act of protest. Persistent and Nasty is about changing the cultural narrative through the stories we tell.

  1. 3 hr ago

    Episode 312: Edinurgh Festival Series - Where We Choose to Stand

    Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2026 series Elaine chats with Penny Chivas about her show Where we Choose to Stand which has finished it’s official run at the festival but is part of the Fringe Fragments. Where we Choose To Stand @ Fringe Fragments Assembly Dance Base 24/25 August 13:15-14:15 & 17:30-18:30 both days Where We Choose to Stand is an ambitious dance-theatre work inspired by climate activism amid political upheaval. Embedded in Nicolette Macleod's evocative soundscape are first-hand accounts from people from across the UK who have been involved in direct action, amplifying the voices of those often silenced for their actions. Through audience interaction, the work challenges audiences to reflect on where they stand, asking how we position ourselves in moments of crisis. Fringe Fragments Dance Base Festival 2026 in partnership with Assembly Festival presents Fringe Fragments on 24 and 25 August 2026.Produced by Dance Base, Fringe Fragments is a pitching platform showcasing dance talent from around the world. Designed as a public event and industry showcase in one, audiences can see several excerpts from tour-ready performances by international and UK dance artists, each presented with a short artist talk and hosted by Artistic Director, Tony Mills. This year, Dance Base is collaborating with Nordberg Movement (Sweden) and Kultur | lx—arts council Luxembourg, to present artists inspired by activism, Hip Hop and Merce Cunningham. Artists include: Penny Chivas Where We Choose to Stand (Scotland). A dance-theatre show inspired by activism and political change, blending movement, music, real stories and moments of audience connection. Alicia Cano-Smit and Benoît Callens Echos Infinis (Luxembourg). Bound by a constant physical connection that shifts its point of contact, Benoît and Alicia move through cycles of conflict, support and loss of control to reveal the ways we become trapped, evolve and reconnect. Philip Berlin La Ronde (Sweden) Performed by Philip and Louise Dahl, La Ronde is explosive yet minimalist. An investigation into circular and rotating dance material, expect spherical leaps, sudden accelerations and a thrilling physical claiming of the entire space. TICKET LINK -https://assemblyfestival.com/whats-on/fringe-fragments No Palantir in our NHS - https://www.amnesty.org.uk/issues/international-crisis/no-palantir-in-our-nhs/ SAVE THE CCA – https://saveourcca.com/ OUR WEBSITE - www.persistentandnasty.co.uk IPA GUIDES: HIPA GUIDES Equity Toolkit: Link Stellar Quines: Link Persistent Pal & Nasty Hero - Pals and Hero Membership Email – persistentandnasty@gmail.com Instagram - @persistentandnasty Twitter - @PersistentNasty Coffee Morning Eventbrite - Coffee Morning Tickets LINKTREE - LINKTR.EE Resources Samaritans - Rape Crisis Scotland - Rape Crisis UK ArtsMinds - BAPAM Freelancers Make Theatre Work Stonewall UK - Trevor Project - Mermaids UK Switchboard LGBT+ - GATE PLANNED PARENTHOOD DONATE - DONATE ABORTION SUPPORT NETWORK UK - ASN.COM- DONATE

    Episode 312: Edinurgh Festival Series  - Where We Choose to Stand
  2. 4 days ago

    Episode 310: Edinburgh Festival Series - I am Johnny

    Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2026 series Elaine chats with the brilliant Tessa Parr about their show I am Johnny. I am Johnny Summerhall, Red Lecture Theatre Dates: 6 - 31 August (not 17, 24) Time: 18:15 (60 mins) “Boys, are you shirkin for a gherkin?” Tessa Parr is Johnny the Biblical Rapper. I AM JOHNNY sees the acclaimed actor and theatre-maker transform into a white male 30-something poet-manchild. Navigating the world from a place of vulnerability doesn’t come easy to Johnny, but poetry speaks to the soul, so he’s found the perfect medium. Johnny is fresh from the gym, found his spotlight and is willing to give it a go. After all - it’s what the people want. Strikingly timely in light of the rapidly widening class divide and the evolving discourse around troubled masculinity, Parr presents a gripping and intimate exploration of masculinity, emotional exposure, and the quiet expectations that sit beneath honesty. TICKET LINK - https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/i-am-johnny No Palantir in our NHS - https://www.amnesty.org.uk/issues/international-crisis/no-palantir-in-our-nhs/ SAVE THE CCA – https://saveourcca.com/ OUR WEBSITE - www.persistentandnasty.co.uk IPA GUIDES: HIPA GUIDES Equity Toolkit: Link Stellar Quines: Link Persistent Pal & Nasty Hero - Pals and Hero Membership Email – persistentandnasty@gmail.com Instagram - @persistentandnasty Twitter - @PersistentNasty Coffee Morning Eventbrite - Coffee Morning Tickets LINKTREE - LINKTR.EE Resources Samaritans - Rape Crisis Scotland - Rape Crisis UK ArtsMinds - BAPAM Freelancers Make Theatre Work Stonewall UK - Trevor Project - Mermaids UK Switchboard LGBT+ - GATE PLANNED PARENTHOOD DONATE - DONATE ABORTION SUPPORT NETWORK UK - ASN.COM- DONATE

    Episode 310: Edinburgh Festival Series - I am Johnny
  3. 5 days ago

    Episode 309: Edinburgh Festival Series - Turn The Cloth

    Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2026 series Elaine chats with co-founder of Cutty Sark Theatre and writer Eve Miller. They are joined by Molly Cavanagh who is sound designer and technician on Turn the Cloth Turn the Cloth Gilded Balloon Teviot, Turret 5-31 Aug (not 12, 26) 2:30pm (50 mins) “A queer Scottish folk horror about tradition, superstition, and Elvira” 1989. The first storm of winter hits a small Scottish town, bringing with it obligation, tradition, and a spirit hungry for a wife. Bonds are tested, secrets revealed, and the ghosts of the village’s past invade the present. Darkly funny, unsettling, and atmospheric, the Charlie Hartill Shortlisted play Turn the Cloth dissects defiance, girlhood, and the rituals that shape us. For centuries, young women have gathered in the village hall during the first storm of winter to complete a tradition warding off a kelpie who seeks to abduct an eligible bride. But when one of the girls doesn’t show up, the others fall to gossip, in-fighting, and debate over whether anyone could still believe in this fabled beast. Teenage heartbreak, eldritch horror, and Blockbuster video collide in this treacherous ritual that has the power to save or unmake four futures. TICKET LINK - https://tickets.gildedballoon.co.uk/event/14:6746/ STRUT SAFE – https://linktr.ee/strutsafe?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAcGRvZgJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA85MzY2MTk3NDMzOTI0NTkAAad29y9ugqwt1Yak5f3ChVWdyConD1_9OFYkccDGqzKEvfFcZN7ZUzdlVN8ELQ_aem_LgvJU0G-XGKR5kcB365GVQ SAVE THE CCA – https://saveourcca.com/ OUR WEBSITE - www.persistentandnasty.co.uk IPA GUIDES: HIPA GUIDES Equity Toolkit: Link Stellar Quines: Link Persistent Pal & Nasty Hero - Pals and Hero Membership Email – persistentandnasty@gmail.com Instagram - @persistentandnasty Twitter - @PersistentNasty Coffee Morning Eventbrite - Coffee Morning Tickets LINKTREE - LINKTR.EE Resources Samaritans - Rape Crisis Scotland - Rape Crisis UK ArtsMinds - BAPAM Freelancers Make Theatre Work Stonewall UK - Trevor Project - Mermaids UK Switchboard LGBT+ - GATE PLANNED PARENTHOOD DONATE - DONATE ABORTION SUPPORT NETWORK UK - ASN.COM- DONATE

    Episode 309: Edinburgh Festival Series - Turn The Cloth
  4. 6 days ago

    Episode 308: Edinburgh Festival Series - Roger Prick: Sexopolis

    Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2026 series Elaine chats comedian Han Whyte about their debut at the Edinburgh Fringe with their show Roger Prick: Sexopolis. Roger Prick: Sexopolis Underbelly Cowgate (Jelly Belly) Dates: 5-30 August (not 18) Time: 18:55 (60 mins) “How could I be sexist? I’ve got tons of girls in my books” Sexy, seedy Soho in the 70s. What a time to be alive. And what a time to be Roger Prick, the UK’s number one pornographer, erotic novelist and dirty old creep. Because of woke, feminism, and the #MeToo movement, Fringe 2026 is the perfect time for Prick to relaunch his seminal work for a new generation. Influenced by the burgeoning alternative comedy scene in the 1980s which rose as Soho’s reputation fell, Sexopolis is a deftly crafted, tightly written, laugh-out-loud ode to sticky floors and even stickier pages. An extravaganza of character, drag, time travel, cardboard and cartoons, Roger Prick puts the novel into novelist in his debut Edinburgh outing. Roger Prick is the creation of drag king, character comic, cartoonist and Leicester Square Theatre Sketch Off finalist Han Whyte who brings sleaze kicking and screaming back to the Edinburgh Fringe. She is also a Soho Comedy Plus Lab alumni and comedy history buff with particular interest in the UK’s alternative comedy scene TICKET LINK -https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/roger-prick-sexopolis OUR WEBSITE - www.persistentandnasty.co.uk IPA GUIDES: HIPA GUIDES Equity Toolkit: Link Stellar Quines: Link Persistent Pal & Nasty Hero - Pals and Hero Membership Email – persistentandnasty@gmail.com Instagram - @persistentandnasty Twitter - @PersistentNasty Coffee Morning Eventbrite - Coffee Morning Tickets LINKTREE - LINKTR.EE Resources Samaritans - Rape Crisis Scotland - Rape Crisis UK ArtsMinds - BAPAM Freelancers Make Theatre Work Stonewall UK - Trevor Project - Mermaids UK Switchboard LGBT+ - GATE PLANNED PARENTHOOD DONATE - DONATE ABORTION SUPPORT NETWORK UK - ASN.COM- DONATE

    Episode 308: Edinburgh Festival Series -  Roger Prick: Sexopolis
  5. 6 days ago

    Episode 307: Edinburgh Festival Series - Whale Fall or Song To Dance With My Death

    Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2026 series Elaine chats with performer, writer and clown Bruna Longo about her show Whale Fall Or Song To Dance With My Death which is currently playing t the Edinburgh Festival 2026. WHALE FALL OR SONG TO DANCE WITH MY DEATH Part of São Paulo Showcase 2026 Lindisfarne Room at St Cuthbert’s Church Dates: 10 - 27 August 2026 Time: MON-THRU 12:00, FRI-SUN 20:00 (80 mins) WHALE FALL OR SONG TO DANCE WITH MY DEATH “A woman dies and seeks to mourn her own passing in this deeply human meditation on mortality, weaving together anthropology, philosophy, and theatre” Part of the much-anticipated returning São Paulo Showcase, Whale Fall or Song To Dance With My Death is a performance about the taboo of death in everyday life, the process of eliminating funeral rites in Western capitalist societies, silence, and denial. Yet, above all it is a performance about life inspired by the death of actress Bruna Longo's father. Co-directed by Vitor Julian, the production has been acclaimed by audiences and critics in São Paulo, Brazil. Staged within the historic St Cuthbert’s Church, filled with echoes of its centuries-old graveyard, Whale Fall is a contemplation of mortality; a ritual inspired by Longo’s own experience of loss and grief. Faced with the inescapable, she imagines her own death and attempts to mourn herself - the one thing we, as humans, cannot do. Exploring the funeral rites from diverse cultures, and their philosophical and practical implications, Longo draws from her intimate experience to create a reflective surface: what might we see when we confront our fear of dying? For Western societies, death is perhaps the last insurmountable taboo - we don't talk about it, and we don't know how to deal with it. Death’s mysterious and unknown character inspired the first human ceremonies, hieroglyphics, and campfire stories; it has given us philosophy, religion, art, and mourning, shaping how we live collectively and individually. Whale Fall reminds us that death is our only, and unavoidable, certainty. TICKET LINK -https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/whale-fall-or-song-to-dance-with-my-death OUR WEBSITE - www.persistentandnasty.co.uk IPA GUIDES: HIPA GUIDES Equity Toolkit: Link Stellar Quines: Link Persistent Pal & Nasty Hero - Pals and Hero Membership Email – persistentandnasty@gmail.com Instagram - @persistentandnasty Twitter - @PersistentNasty Coffee Morning Eventbrite - Coffee Morning Tickets LINKTREE - LINKTR.EE Resources Samaritans - Rape Crisis Scotland - Rape Crisis UK ArtsMinds - BAPAM Freelancers Make Theatre Work Stonewall UK - Trevor Project - Mermaids UK Switchboard LGBT+ - GATE PLANNED PARENTHOOD DONATE - DONATE ABORTION SUPPORT NETWORK UK - ASN.COM- DONATE

    Episode 307: Edinburgh Festival Series -  Whale Fall or Song To Dance With My Death
  6. 17 Aug

    Episode 306 : Edinburgh Festival Series - the Bob Ross Effect

    Elaine chats with writer and performer Sarah-Louise Young about her latest show The Bob Ross Effect which is curretnly at the Edinburgh Festival. THE BOB ROSS EFFECT Assembly Gardens, Piccolo Wednesday 5th - Monday 31st August 2026 (not 18th) 4:05pm (70 mins) “We don’t make mistakes, we have happy accidents” Fringe favourite actor, writer, director and internationally renowned cabaret performer Sarah-Louise Young (An Evening Without Kate Bush, Cabaret Whore, The Silent Treatment, Julie Madly Deeply) makes a much-anticipated return to this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe Festival with The Bob Ross Effect, a brand new show presented with Suzanna Rosenthal Productions. Artist, animal-lover and unlikely sex symbol Bob Ross brought art into the living rooms of millions with The Joy of Painting, one the most watched TV art shows in history and now an online phenomenon still getting millions of views decades later. With his instantly recognisable big perm and soft-spoken encouragement to paint "happy little trees", Bob Ross has taught generation after generation to embrace their creativity. Tickets - https://assemblyfestival.com/whats-on/1652-the-bob-ross-effect OUR WEBSITE - www.persistentandnasty.co.uk IPA GUIDES: HIPA GUIDES Equity Toolkit: Link Stellar Quines: Link Persistent Pal & Nasty Hero - Pals and Hero Membership Email – persistentandnasty@gmail.com Instagram - @persistentandnasty Twitter - @PersistentNasty Coffee Morning Eventbrite - Coffee Morning Tickets LINKTREE - LINKTR.EE Resources Samaritans - Rape Crisis Scotland - Rape Crisis UK ArtsMinds - BAPAM Freelancers Make Theatre Work Stonewall UK - Trevor Project - Mermaids UK Switchboard LGBT+ - GATE PLANNED PARENTHOOD DONATE - DONATE ABORTION SUPPORT NETWORK UK - ASN.COM- DONATE

    Episode 306 : Edinburgh Festival Series - the Bob Ross Effect
  7. 17 Aug

    Epiosde 305 : Edinburgh Festival Series - Pink Rabbit

    It’s the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2026 series Elaine chats with writer and performer Farah Asraf about her show Pink Rabbit. PINK RABBIT Underbelly (Daisy) Dates: 5 - 30 August 2026 Time: 16:15 (60 mins) “Validation is addictive, what could go wrong?” At its heart, Pink Rabbit is a story about a mother and daughter who love each other deeply but cannot speak honestly about the things that matter most. A fierce, funny and emotionally devastating solo play by actor and writer Farah Ashraf, Pink Rabbit explores the complicated inheritance of shame, the search for female pleasure, and what happens when generations of silence collide. Directed and dramaturged by Soho Theatre Creative Associate Alessandro Babalola (Flesh and Bone, 2017 Fringe First winner), this bold coming-of-age story examines faith, sexuality and the intoxicating power of being seen. Eighteen-year-old British-Pakistani Amna has perfected the art of performance. At home she is the good Muslim daughter: polite, modest and obedient. Online, she becomes PersianBaby, cultivating intimacy and desire through an OnlyFans account her strict mother knows nothing about. As Amna moves between mosque and webcam, family expectations and digital validation, the gap between the person she performs and the person she longs to be becomes impossible to sustain. But beneath the secrets lies another story. Mother and daughter are connected by an unspoken experience that neither has the language to confront—a shared relationship to pain, shame and a body that has never felt entirely their own. As buried truths begin to surface, Pink Rabbit asks what is passed between generations when conversations about sex, pleasure and desire are replaced by silence, and whether breaking that silence might be the first act of liberation. Blending lyrical spoken word, sharp audience address, flashbacks and live interactions with PersianBaby's online clients, Farah Ashraf creates an intimate portrait of a young woman negotiating the impossible expectations placed upon her. The play explores the tension between faith and female autonomy, the pressure to embody the ideal of the "good Muslim girl", the seduction of online validation, and the emotional cost of living multiple lives. With wit, vulnerability and unflinching honesty, Pink Rabbit moves beyond familiar narratives of cultural conflict to explore how shame shapes women's relationships with their bodies across generations. It asks who gets to experience desire without guilt, who is allowed pleasure without punishment, and how inherited silence can fracture even the closest relationships. Tickets - https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/pink-rabbit OUR WEBSITE - www.persistentandnasty.co.uk IPA GUIDES: HIPA GUIDES Equity Toolkit: Link Stellar Quines: Link Persistent Pal & Nasty Hero - Pals and Hero Membership Email – persistentandnasty@gmail.com Instagram - @persistentandnasty Twitter - @PersistentNasty Coffee Morning Eventbrite - Coffee Morning Tickets LINKTREE - LINKTR.EE Resources Samaritans - Rape Crisis Scotland - Rape Crisis UK ArtsMinds - BAPAM Freelancers Make Theatre Work Stonewall UK - Trevor Project - Mermaids UK Switchboard LGBT+ - GATE PLANNED PARENTHOOD DONATE - DONATE ABORTION SUPPORT NETWORK UK - ASN.COM- DONATE

    Epiosde 305 : Edinburgh Festival Series - Pink Rabbit
  8. 17 Aug

    Episode 304: Edinburgh Festival Series - The Subplot: A Hyperfixation on the Titan Submersible

    It’s the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2026 series Elaine chats with writer and performer Sophie Smyth about her show The Subplot: A Hyperfixation on the Titan Submersible which is a Best Theatre, Melbourne Fringe 225 nominee. The Subplot: A Hyperfixation on the Titan Submersible Summerhall - Former Women's Locker Room 6- 31st August (Not 12,17,24) 15:20 (60 minutes) “Get in, babes, we’re going to the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean” Multi award-winning neurodivergent singer, actor, writer and sub expert Sophie Smyth brings her new immersive, multi-media (literal) deep dive into the 2023 Titan Submersible implosion to Summerhall this Fringe. The Subplot: A Hyperfixation on the Titan Submersible is a deeply personal, dark comedy exploration about legacy, hyperfixation and human connection. Directed by Casey Gould (Little Squirt, Conk: Man Sings The Same Song Over And Over Again For An Hour). June 2023. Remember those five days the whole world waited when a manned submersible touring the Titanic wreckage went missing and imploded? Sophie hasn’t. Armed with a laptop, Logitech F710 controller and autism, she's spent three years (and counting!) diving deeper and deeper, descending the depths of the internet and herself. Now Captain S. Smyth, resident Titan expert, shares her findings at this year's Edinburgh festival guiding you through what started as memes and morbid fascination towards monotropic interest that threatens to consume every part of her life. Looking at the moral and ethical questions the disaster raised to the world and to Sophie’s spiral into obsession, The Subplot plumbs the depths of this stranger-than-fiction tragedy, while taking you on board that final fateful dive. Emotional and existential, The Subplot is a dark multi-media comedy about neurodivergence, mortality, and the risk/reward of going too far. Tickets - https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/the-subplot-a-hyperfixation-on-the-titan-submersible OUR WEBSITE - www.persistentandnasty.co.uk IPA GUIDES: HIPA GUIDES Equity Toolkit: Link Stellar Quines: Link Persistent Pal & Nasty Hero - Pals and Hero Membership Email – persistentandnasty@gmail.com Instagram - @persistentandnasty Twitter - @PersistentNasty Coffee Morning Eventbrite - Coffee Morning Tickets LINKTREE - LINKTR.EE Resources Samaritans - Rape Crisis Scotland - Rape Crisis UK ArtsMinds - BAPAM Freelancers Make Theatre Work Stonewall UK - Trevor Project - Mermaids UK Switchboard LGBT+ - GATE PLANNED PARENTHOOD DONATE - DONATE ABORTION SUPPORT NETWORK UK - ASN.COM- DONATE

    Episode 304: Edinburgh Festival Series  - The Subplot: A Hyperfixation on the Titan Submersible
5
out of 5
47 Ratings

About

Persistent and Nasty is a script-reading, debate and art as activism initiative for women and gender minorities in the stage and screen industries. We are committed to an intersectional approach and aim to use the space we’ve created to provide a platform for the spectrum of marginalised voices in our culture. Through a series of script readings, live debates and a regular podcast series, we aim to amplify the unrepresented voices in theatre and film. Our goal is to create a project that is safe and supportive, but that is also an act of protest. Persistent and Nasty is about changing the cultural narrative through the stories we tell.