大象传媒

Jude will be performing at the Cambridge Wordfest on Saturday 29th March, 2008 at the ADC Theatre

I turn up late to Jude's house in Bassingbourn, I had never visited the village before and slightly misplaced my location in relation to the rest of the world - that's how someone who's clever with words, like Jude, might say "I was lost".

It wasn't too bad though, Jude had a late night because of a gig in London the evening before, not getting back until the God awful hour of quarter past one.

"Which isn't really late if you're trying to persuade people you've got a rock 'n' roll lifestyle," she says.

Taking the mic

Jude's face has appeared on this site before in the form of moving pictures. She performed a poem about Cambridgeshire for Video Nation, a feature where local people can make videos about themselves.

"When I thought about it this morning I thought, "Gosh that must be about five years ago". But of course it wasn't, it was only two years ago. But I suppose what that illustrates is that I have come quite a long way."

It's two years that has culminated in her taking her own brand of stand-up-poetry on a nationwide tour, featuring at this year's Wordfest and releasing a book.

"I do quite a few poems, I do a couple of songs, tell some silly stories and chat to the audience for a bit of banter."

"I suppose if you have a Venn diagram of comedy, poetry and a little bit of thoughtfulness it's that bit in the middle where they overlap."

"What I create is a kind of "Here we all are, we're all friends and we'll have a chat" sort of thing. I think it's very easy to come to my show and feel comfortable and then sometimes people join in."

"I'm welcoming myself into all sorts of people's arms and hearts."

Jude describes her new book as a true story, which deals with one group's efforts to help deprived kids in inner-city Bradford.

New show: Growing up Games

"The project's called Emerge. It's a Christian project and it explores a lot of questions about how the spiritual side of people needs to be looked after as well as the practical side."

"A lot of people look down on any kind of art or literature that's produced from a so called religious bias. But I think what this book does is celebrate life and the fullness of it really."

Before her Wordfest show Jude will be waxing lyrical with anyone who wants to learn a little more about perfecting their performance - and there will be an opportunity to put those tips into practice.

So, for example, seeing the audience in their underwear?

"You know what? I never do that. It would be too distracting in all kinds of directions."

With the tour then getting underway it's a busy spring for the lady from South Cambs, who is always happy to get back on the sofa in her Bassingbourn flat among friends, family and the villagers who remember her when she was a toddler.

"There's so much identity for me here. There's still people I say "hi" to on the way to the village shop because they knew me when I was five, which I love."