This week on Miriam Meets.... Miriam O'Callaghan talks to Cobh-born comedienne Maeve Higgins and her sister, blogger Lilly Higgins.
They tell Miriam about their idyllic childhood in County Cork. They are from a family of eight children, with only one brother. They had a very happy childhood. Together with their siblings, they spent hours playing long, involved games, minding the younger children, climbing trees, baking and picking fruit. Later in life, when they met people of their own age who had tough, urban childhood experiences, they played down the happiness of these early years.
Their parents gave them a great sense of themselves. Maeve told Miriam "Our mother emphasised our intellectual qualities, we were nearly geniuses. And when we were bored in school, it was because we were too clever, not because we couldn't understand the maths!" Lilly explained that on leaving school she trained in graphic design, but when she told her parents she really loved baking, they immediately wanted her to go to the best place to study. They sent her to Ballymaloe, reassuring her "You'll be brilliant".
Maeve was working in a clothes shop when she entered a radio competition for stand up comedy. Although she lost, she continued to appear in comedy clubs, building her name. She has just returned from touring Australia and New Zealand. She describes returning home to an Irish audience as a "treat."
These days, Lilly works in her father's construction business by day, occasionally appears on stage with her sister and has launched her own blog with recipes, crafts and stories.
Maeve explained that she tricked Lilly into joining her on stage at the Edinburgh Festival four years ago and they have worked together occaisionally ever since. Their successful television programme Fancy Victuals is currently re-running on RTE television.
Lilly explained to Miriam that although she doesn't know if she will marry, she intends to spend the rest of her life with her boyfriend Colm. He shares her interest in food and fits into the family. "He is able to talk to Daddy for twenty minutes about rhubarb"
Maeve is single, but not looking for love, which both sisters agree would be creepy. "You just have to do the things you love and hopefully you will meet someone who loves them too", advises Lilly.
Lilly's blogsot is lillyhiggins.blogspot.com and Maeve is appearing at this year's Carlsberg Cat Laughs comedy festival in Kilkenny.
