Pepper&Salt is joined by Kwami Odoom and Jack Henry to talk all things double bills; their Edinburgh Fringe show, ‘Support Group’, their comedic partnership and whether Agony Aunts are truly as helpful as they seem.
How would you summarise your show, both overall and individually?
Jack: Support Group is about nice boys trying our best to be good at something we thought would be a lot easier to be good at.
In my section I talk about the balance of being gay, staying sane and trying to be sexy for the first time, I talk about my divorce, re entering the gay world at 30, identity and all the anxieties it causes.
Kwami: I talk about my worries that I won’t be a good father via discussions on social issues likerace and gender, stories from my own life and examinations of my own parents.
At the beginning of the show we ask the audience to submit their problems and at the end of the show we go through and try to solve as many of them as we can in the time remaining, because it’s important to us, as a Support Group, that everyone feels supported.
We just need to feel supported first!
If you don’t mind me asking, why did you choose to do a split bill instead of individual shows?
K: An hour long show is a really big step up for comedians. If you’re gigging in clubs, at the kind of level where you haven’t done an Edinburgh show, you’re most likely doing 10 minute spots. And club sets don’t have the same pressure to weave narrative in. So going from that to an hour is tough. Split bills allow you to stagger that by working on doing a 25 ish minute version before doing the whole thing!
J: Also Edinburgh is a lot mentally for a month, doing it for the first time as a pair gives you, well, support (Group).
“Even from the first one it was really amazing how naturally we work together. I think we’re a really good blend.”
In your opinion, do you think two-hander/ split bill fringe debuts will become increasingly common in the future?
J: I think they’re a pretty established step for a lot of newer comedians, they’re a great opportunity to share your voice and story with a crowd without the intimidation of that ‘debut’, I went to a load last year when I was in Edinburgh and really enjoyed them, it’s like a 2 for 1 on comedy
How would you describe your style of comedy?
J: Short form, punchy storytelling that’s me, and therefore, queer focused – an unserious take on serious topics delivered in a way my nan described as ‘delightful to watch’.
K: Ah man, I suck at this. I would also say I like to take serious topics and find the silliest angle. I do a lot of misdirects and I tend to get fairly absurd. I do love to tell a good story as well. It’s funny because from these descriptions you’d think we were really similar but I think we are very different. I guess to fully understand your readers will have to come see us for themselves!
What was your writing process like, have you coordinated at all when writing your material, either to draw parallels, continue bits, write callback etc. ?
K: Yeah for sure. I don’t think either of us has written material in order to line up with the other’s but naturally I think there are some fun overlaps, particularly because I think we (on paper anyway) are quite different people.
J: What links us is our attitude and perspective, so although our sets are separate in the show, covering our separate lives and observations – we’ve been able to help each other along the way.
After every work in progress and preview we’ve watched it back together and given each other feedback. Kwami is an incredible storyteller, so he’s really pushed me in that element, and I, as more of a short form comic, have been able to help him with that. So although it is a meeting of two worlds, we’ve been able to work together to make this feel like one collaborative piece.
K: We start and end the show on stage together. We discuss what we’ll do but have never sat down to formally write it but even from the first one it was really amazing how naturally we work together. I think we’re a really good blend.
What made you choose the other to share a split bill with?
J: OOOh, we’ve had this conversation before and our recollection of events is a bit different but I’ll tell you mine because it’s probably the most romanticised. I saw Kwami headlining at one of my first ever gigs, immediately I thought he was brilliant, we kept crossing paths around the scene and every time just got on well. On the way to Centre Parcs last year (long story) I listened to an episode of a podcast that Kwami was on about stand up, I found his approach to comedy and writing so articulate and interesting I sent him a 4 minute long voicenote over Instagram out of the blue telling him all that and more, and to my shock I got a 4 minute long voice note back that was equally kind and that included the words ‘split bill’. Kwami won the Max Turner Comedy Competition in 2025 and his prize was an hour in a theatre and he chose to share it with me, we did a super loose WIP there, had such fun doing it that we decided to go for Edinburgh ‘26 and the rest is history, it’s been such an easy and enjoyable process working with him. If you need a shorter answer – he’s incredibly funny, incredibly nice and incredibly easy to work with.
K: I couldn’t possibly disagree with such a beautiful story. The only thing I’ll add is that I remember Jack’s set at that first gig we met at and thinking he was incredible. He then invited me to do his gig in Tunbridge Wells and was just so lovely and wonderful to gig for. My favourite thing in the world is talented people who are also lovely people. I was just gassed he wanted me to gig for and then with him.
Also, our initials together are JK. You don’t get clearer signs than that.
What are you looking forward to about the Edinburgh Fringe?
J: There’s a specific cheese toastie van I discovered last year and I’m absolutely buzzing to get back there, as well as all the comedy, art and culture. I’m looking forward to working with Kwami, developing my craft and mostly just having a good time.
K: Obviously hanging out with Jack for a month straight is the top thing. But after that, I’m really excited to immerse myself in comedy for a month and see some brilliant artists.
Apart from your own, are there any other shows that you would recommend?
J: I’m excited to see Lianna Holston: Haha, Oh God 2.0, Michael McPheat is Brutal, Carwyn Blayney’s Work In Progress and the Best Of SYTYF trio is stuffed with talent amongst so many others.
K: Agreed. Trans People Are Awful by Ros Watt (who is trans, to be clear!), Hasan Al-Habib: Stuck in the Middle (East) With You, We Are Ian by In Bed With My Brother and Christian Dart: Gumshoe. And so many more. I could fill up someone’s entire schedule with brilliant shows and artists. In fact, if you’re reading this, message me on IG. I got so many recs for you.
Why and how did you come to the decision of taking on the role of agony aunts?
J: For a show that was about our problems, we thought it would be a fun ending for the audience to share theirs, so two unqualified comedians can solve them.
K: I think with any live art form you’re always searching for a way to make the audience feel like no one else will have exactly the same experience that they did and this is a really fun way of personalising the show to the specific people we have in the audience.
Why do you think the agony aunt persona is so popular?
J: Because people need Support (Group)
K: I think people are really nosy. For most people, it’s less about hearing the solution and more about hearing the problems.
Are agony aunts actually helpful?
J: If we’re anything to go by, probably not.
K: If other agony aunts are anything to go by, probably not.
“Although it is a meeting of two worlds, we’ve been able to work together to make this feel like one collaborative piece.”
To give an example of the kind of the support (Group) that Kwami and Jack have plans to offer their audiences, we here at Pepper&Salt have sourced some Agony Aunt questions for the pair to answer and showcase their ability.
Dear Kwami and Jack, I can’t stop listening to Stupid Song by Olivia Rodrigo. It haunts me day and night and I just keep putting it on. It’s giving me earworm. Please help!
J: Dear Reader, Unfortunately I stopped listening to new music at the Age of 5 in 1998 after Cher released her hit song Believe, and I knew it wasn’t going to get any better than that, so although I’m not super familiar with the work of Oliva Rodrigo, I would say that with earworms in general, lean in, listen to only that song for a day to the point where your brain is so tired of it it deliberately expels it from your thoughts, alternatively Google suggested veterinary-prescribed spot-on treatments, oral medications, or medicated drops – but I think that was for dogs.
K: Build a time machine. Go back in time. Stop it from ever being released. Come back tomorrow. Listen to Never Gonna Give You Up instead.
Dear Kwami and Jack, is it coming home?
J: Dear Reader, That depends on if you left the catflap unlocked. I actually tried to talk to my dad about football today and he asked me if I was trying out new material, but that may have been because I asked him what the name of our player that looked like a young Princess Diana was. So I couldn’t be less qualified for this one, but maybe, just maybe, the coming home is the friends we made along the way.
K: Yes. Just not now.
Dear Kwami and Jack, I’m about to leave my company and my boss won’t schedule my exit interview. He’s completely ignoring me and not talking to me. I’m leaving soon and I’m not sure what I can do to get him to talk to me. Any advice?
J: From the evidence presented, are you sure you haven’t been fired already? I feel you may be at risk of a restraining order, if you’ve already checked and you do still work there, I’d suggest eating his lunch, because it’s win-win, if he gets annoyed, he’ll talk to you about it and then you can bring it up, if he insists on continuing to ignore you, free lunch until you leave.
K: Loudly tell everyone you’re leaving for your exit interview with your boss at the local pub. Go to pub. Have a drink. If he doesn’t show, stay there until he does.
Dear Kwami and Jack, people are being very mean to me about calling the president of FIFA to overturn a red card for my team’s best player. What should I do?
K: Call him again and tell him to tell them to stop being mean. They’ll listen to him, I’m sure.
Dear Kwami and Jack, I recently joined a DND group and I;m having a lot of fun. It’s a great group, but the guys are a little quiet and almost hesitant to talk and I don’t know if by comparison I seem like I’m taking up too much space? What would you advise me to do?
J: Dear Reader, first of all, never be concerned about taking up too much space, space is meant to be taken up, it’s why it’s space. If you’re not vibing with the group I have 2 suggestions, 1 – Find a new group (easy, simple), 2- Change your characters ability to include a clause that at any interaction with you they have to answer an icebreaker question, like ‘sure you rolled a D20, but what do you think is the biggest animal you could beat in a fight with your bare hands’, hopefully that gets them out of their shells . I’ve never played DND….
K: Sounds like they’re a little overawed by your ability and talent. Offer to run some workshops so they can catch up.
Dear Kwami and Jack, I want a tiny island for national security purposes and my allies won’t give it to me. The one who owns it is being very mean. I need your advice!
K: This is all about perspective. This is hard, but it could be worse. You could be about to fight an election against a man with a bin on his head…
By Katerina Partolina Schwartz
Pepper & Salt 
Leave a comment