Double Talk - partners in comedy

Bringing a show to the Edinburgh Fringe can put a strain on the strongest relationships. But what happens when there are two of you doing the showbusiness thing? CLAIRE SMITH met Mark Watson and Emily Watson Howes, and Nina Conti and her partner Stan Stanley, in the Pleasance Courtyard.

CS Did you all meet through comedy?

Stan Stanley: We met in an open-spot night – I was trying jokes out on the stairs and it was rubbish.

Nina Conti: He said to me: "We don't normally get anyone so glamorous here."

SS: She liked that.

Mark Watson: I first saw Emily on stage when we were both at university. I thought: "That is the sort of girl I would marry."

CS: And the story of your proposal has become a Fringe legend.

MW: The more I tell it the more it sounds like an urban myth. It was 2004, the first time I had done a 24-hour show. Every time Emily went out of the room I talked to the audience about whether I should propose to her. By the end of the show I didn't feel at my most marriageable – I was sweaty and disgusting. But at the last minute Paul Provenza (comedian and producer of The Aristocrats) called out: "What about you proposing to Emily?" So I had to explain and ask her: "How do you feel about it?"

Emily Watson Howes: I thought that was the nicest bit. I sort of melted. I was very tearful. People asked me if I minded – but I was too tired. All our friends were there, which was special.

MW: That was really great. How many people propose and have 200 people there waiting to celebrate? And I like the fact that within ten minutes everybody knew. My Dad found out on Teletext.

NC: We also had an Edinburgh-based story because we found out I was pregnant in the Gilded Balloon. That was where I first found out I was pregnant with Arthur (now aged four) – and that we were together for life.

CS: How is Arthur enjoying Edinburgh?

NC: He doesn't really know I've got a show on because it upsets him when I go out. I put him to bed every night and he goes to sleep. He doesn't even know why we are in Edinburgh.

CS: How do him and the monkey get on?

NC: He sometimes asks for Monk to read him some stories. One time Monk suggested it was bedtime and he looked very hurt. You could see him thinking: "You are working for her."

CS: So what are the advantages of having a partner who is also a comedian?

MW: You're much more likely to understand each other's problems and to make allowances. If I had been a comedian all this time and Emily had been doing a normal job we would never see each other – but also we would be on a different wavelength.

EWH: Overwhelmingly it is very positive but it definitely causes problems when you are downcast. If one of you has a bad review you are doubling your despair.

CS: Comedy is a notoriously tough business – has that ever put a strain on the relationship?

NC: I remember feeling a bit of jealousy at the beginning when I first had Arthur. You have to relinquish your position – you are not the main person any more. I remember seeing Stan going to gigs and feeling: "I'm just being normal and being a Mum."

EWH: I graduated after Mark and everything I did was two years after him. I was 100 per cent invested in supporting him. But when I had a normal job I did find a lot of people were less interested in me.

I got to a point where I was really lacking in confidence.

SS: We did some gigs supporting each other and that was horrible. If I had been out in front of the audience and I didn't enjoy it I couldn't help but relay that to Nina – and that wasn't really very helpful.

CS: Do you try out material on each other when you are writing your shows?

MW: I suffer from a lifelong dread of showing anyone my work before it's ready. Emily is the opposite – she runs everything past me. I'm very touchy about it.

NC: We are always bringing out our half-baked stuff and asking for help. But it can go wrong – if you are in the middle of some domestic drudgery and the other person starts talking about an idea and you inadvertently diss it.

MW: We have just bought a flat and we now have different rooms to work in – which is better.

NC: I must admit we have sullied our living room by doing our stuff to each other. We have our own little comedy club – but it isn't really a good thing. Your home ought to be a haven away from all that.

SS: Yes it's like having a home birth. You don't want to be sitting in your living room and remember all that blood and screaming.

CS: Is it ever difficult to switch off?

NC: We went out for dinner the other night and you have to stop talking about work. If you get all worky you can't digest.

EWH: Sometimes I can't work out if it calms me down – other times you have to stop.

CS: Comedy can be competitive. Is there an element of competition between you?

NC: Absolutely not. There is no-one I would rather see succeed than Stan. But we haven't seen each other's shows because we are on at the same time.

MW: We always support each other's shows. I've seen the Umbrella Birds 11 times – I find it therapeutic. If you are wrapped up in the other's show it takes the pressure off. When Emily does a show I feel like it's me.

EWH: It adds another dimension to the relationship. In any life event or drama, Mark would be the first person I'd call.

Mark Watson: All the thoughts I've had since I was born is at Pleasance Courtyard, until 25 August, 8pm. Nina Conti: Evolution, Pleasance Courtyard, until 25 August, 8:25pm. Emily Watson Howes stars in Umbrella Birds, Pleasance Courtyard, until 1 September, 6pm. Stan Stanley – Vintage Andrew, Holyrood Too@Faith, until 24 August, 9:15pm