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Home > Knowledge & support > Resource hub > Comedy and connection: comedian Sam Morrison on life with type 1 diabetes
Credit: Andrew Patino
‘Sugar Daddy’ takes us through some extraordinary moments in your life; from love, to loss, and a shock diabetes diagnosis. When did you realise all of this could be a show?
It honestly wasn’t my intention to make a show. I’m a comedian, and I tend to just talk about whatever’s happening in my life and these topics were sort of all I was thinking about at the time. After trying out bits on and off for about a year, I got hit with a festival deadline coming up. I came up with this very dumb pun that somehow connected diabetes, grief, and daddies…so I registered Sugar Daddy for the Edinburgh Festival.
The journey of getting the show from pen to the stage, what’s that been like for you?
Call it deflection or processing, I was joking from the moment the nurse taught me how to inject insulin in the ER. For better or worse, comedy is the way I process most everything in life. Not that it went well, but I think it was like three days after I got diagnosed, I was on stage joking about it. Then it became the usual process: trying things, bombing, rewriting, and slowly figuring out what worked. Quickly I realised that this material was different and when the performances are hitting on all cylinders it can feel really cathartic and intimate.
How important is representation and authenticity in your work?
When I started joking about my glucose monitor, it was just a coping mechanism. I had no idea the amount of people that would connect to it. The reaction was truly overwhelming. At shows I would suddenly have people flashing their devices at me on the way out, and my DMs were full of people with T1D and their parents talking about feeling seen. As much as I’d love to say I set out to focus on representation, I really didn’t. I was just trying to make sense of my own life.
When I first started comedy, I was performing at a lot of old-school comedy clubs on lineups with almost entirely middle-aged straight guys and I tried to fit in as much as I could. Over time, I’ve realised that more important than being similar to your audience is being honest and specific. The more personal I get, the more people seem to see themselves in it, even if their life is totally different from mine. As a formerly closeted gay kid growing up in Florida, I absolutely understand the power of seeing someone like you on stage/screen, but until I find an audience made up entirely of anxious, asthmatic, ADHD, gay, type 1 diabetic Jews, this is kind of the approach I’ve got.
A type 1 diabetes diagnosis can be difficult, how did you navigate it and how are you doing now?
The first year felt like going to med school cos you’re forced to learn so much about nutrition, but more specifically how things affect your body. Diabetes is one of the most researched and understood diseases on earth yet still completely personal and just inexplicably weird! For me at least, I wanted to control this as much as I possibly could but anyone with this disease knows that’s impossible.
I don’t know if I’m any better at managing my blood sugar, but I have been working hard at forgiving myself when I mess up. Diabetes is a daily reminder that I am not in control. All I can do is try my best to respond and take care of my body, but forgive myself when I inevitably do it all wrong. Also I’m an insane person who will just scream at my glucose monitor like it’s a sibling. That helps.
What part of living with T1D do you wish more people understood?
For the love of god, please stop suggesting I eat more cinnamon.
‘Sugar Daddy’ is of course deeply personal but is also raucously funny. How has humour shaped your approach to life and performance?
Doing this show really changed me as a performer. Especially today, I think people really value live shows not just to see the artist but to feel a part of a community. My favourite comedians are a part of the room. I really try to be present, talk to, and react to the audience. When it works, it’s not just that they feel connected to me, it’s that they start to feel connected to each other.
What’s the audience reaction been like, particularly from the communities you belong to?
Incredible! I’m not just saying this. Type 1 diabetics are absolutely my favourite audience (sorry gay Jews, love you). We are so hype. There’s this immediate sense of excitement and community. Honestly my favourite might just be connecting with other type 1s and complaining. When we spot each other in the wild, we get obnoxiously excited and suddenly have a million inside jokes with a complete stranger. It’s like finding someone in a foreign country who speaks your language.
You’ve had an incredible run of your show in London this spring. How did you find it?
London audiences have been incredible. They’re very smart, open, and down to go on the ride. I’m also excited to actually experience the city a bit. I’ve been playing tennis on these gorgeous courts, wandering down little alleys, and I’m weirdly very into the tube!
You can follow Sam Morrison on instagram – @samuelhmorrison
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