Out of Order
Monday 9.00pm Comedy Central
THE COMEDIAN ROSIE JONES has entered the building. She arrives in a cluster of bags and scarves and headphones, chatting to everyone en route, then fills the huge conference room where we’re doing our interview with her energy.
It’s hard not to be swept along with her infectious laughter. The sheer joy of Jones is the reason she has been ubiquitous on television over the past year, appearing on quiz panels, stand-up shows, documentaries and even an episode of Call the Midwife.
“Sorry about that!” she jokes. “I do wake up every day and think, ‘God, people are paying me to make jokes. Have I slept in the last six years?’ No. But doing a job I love every day and having a positive influence is a dream come true. And I’d like more of the same, so I’ ll say sorry now for being on your TV a lot again this year.”
And what a year it’s likely to be as Jones will host her own panel show, Out of Order, the f irst presenter with cerebral palsy to do so. She will be joined by team captains Katherine Ryan and Judi Love, alongside other comedians who have to order members of the public in a line-up in response to questions such as “Who has been married the most?”.
Despite having become a stalwart of our screens, and with more exposure ahead, Jones maintains that she is exactly how she appears on TV. “If you think you know me, you do” – but after sitting with her for more than an hour, I beg to differ. Her comedy persona is cheeky, cheerful and a bit rude, and there is plenty of evidence of that today with a chat peppered with swear words and gags (I say I want to talk to her about her life and “how she got here” to which she replies with a cackle, “I got here on the train”).
But there is also a serious brain ticking away, a burning ambition and deep understanding of her industry, as well as a keenness to unapologetically discuss the dark times of her life. Jones, 33, didn’t breathe for the f irst 17 minutes after she was born and as a result has ataxic cerebral palsy, a condition that causes muscle weakness and slow speech.
She grew up in Bridlington, East Yorkshire, with her “brilliant” parents Andrea and Rob, both teachers. “I can’t imagine what it must have been like at 26 years old, when your first-born is whooshed away, not breathing,” she says. “To get through those initial terrifying days, and then to have me. My parents didn’t know the extent of my disability until it played out. It only became clear when I missed the milestones of rolling over then sitting up. I didn’t get the cerebral palsy diagnosis until I was three.
“Other than those physical problems my parents said they were never concerned about my intellect. Things like smiling, talking, playing games – I
