The festive season’s in full swing and I’ve been doing my Christmas shopping. My tics add an extra layer of complexity to this, but it’s not because I have trouble getting to the shops – online shopping sorts that out – nor is it to do with actually getting the gifts – it’s about keeping them secret!…

When I was little my Gran would often talk about the ‘dawn chorus’, that moment in the early morning when the sun starts to rise and the birds begin to stir and start singing. She left me with the strong impression that this was only meant to happen at dawn.…

My niece, affectionately known as Squidge, is now six months old and she’s been desperately trying to stand for the last few weeks.

I’ve just got back from performing at the No Limits Festival in Berlin. Before we went Leftwing Idiot was teasing me that the baby’s standing was almost good as mine.…

For over a decade Mencap have run Changing Places, an amazing campaign to improve toilet provision for disabled people across the UK.

Changing Places toilets are loos that meet a specific set of criteria – they are much bigger than regular accessible toilets, have a height-adjustable changing bed, a tracking hoist, and a centrally placed toilet so that you can transfer onto it from either side.…

Two weeks ago we took over of the Barbican Centre’s Pit Theatre and surrounding spaces for two days and a night. I’ve written a detailed account of the event – Brewing in the Basement – and Guardian theatre critic Lyn Gardner has shared her perspective too.…

I’ve written frequently about pain recently, and also mentioned that I’ve been feeling sick a lot too. To start with, my nausea was just in the mornings and would get better after I’d been up for an hour or so, but now I’m experiencing it all the time, and it’s especially bad after I eat.…

This is hard. Really fucking hard.

It’s 4.18am and I’m awake again.

I’m sore and tired and lonely. I feel sick and fed up.

For months and months, pain and nausea have been eroding my sleep, which was already fairly bad thanks to my tics.…

Yesterday I stayed in bed all day. After a week of preparation and two days of Brewing In The Basement at the Barbican Centre, my body demanded a break, and for once I listened. I didn’t have a load of choice in the matter because it’d pretty much stopped working anyway.…

It wouldn’t take a very detailed reading of this blog to discover that I haven’t been very well for the last few months. I’ve been adjusting to life with chronic pain, nausea and fatigue. It doesn’t sound like fun, and there’ve definitely been times when it’s felt miserable and lonely.…

Last week I wrote about how I was coming to the end of a very long and enjoyable audio book. I asked what I should listen to next and was overwhelmed with suggestions – thank you to everyone who recommended books and podcasts for me to try.…