This week, we’re joined by Holly Hughes — a writer, poet, actor, and multidisciplinary artist — to talk about her sharp, hilarious, and thought-provoking debut show:
I Want To Speak To Your Manager (How I Was Radicalised And Became...Karen).
Originally from West Cork and now based in Limerick, Holly’s work spans poetry, spoken word, creative nonfiction, and performance. She’s been published widely in Irish magazines and newspapers since 2019, and served as The Gloss Magazine’s eco-columnist from 2020 to 2025.
Her one-woman show premiered to a sold-out crowd at Scene + Heard 2025, and now she’s bringing it to the Dublin Fringe Festival. This year, she’ll also represent Ireland at the International Slam Poetry World Cup in Paris. A 2024 All-Ireland Poetry Slam runner-up and 2023 Australian Poetry Slam state finalist, Holly’s work walks the tightrope between outrage and absurdity — taking on patriarchy, ecocide, inequality, and dating culture with razor-sharp wit and compassion.
In this episode, Holly shares how she — once mild-mannered and people-pleasing — slowly transformed into someone who demands to speak to the manager. But as she asks: with billionaires wrecking the planet and systems failing us, is being a Karen really the worst thing you can be?
We chat about female rage, complaint emails as performance art, the politics of accountability, and how sometimes, being difficult is just standing your ground.
🎭 Catch Holly’s Show at the Dublin Fringe Festival
Venue: The Pearse Centre
Dates & Times:
📅 5 Sept – 18:30 (Preview)
📅 6–8 Sept – 20:30
📅 13 Sept – 13:30
📅 13–14 Sept – 20:30
🎟 €16 (Full) | €14 (Concession) | €12 (Preview)
⏱ Duration: 45 mins
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