The Scummy Mummies tell it like it really is in Horsham

For the mums, the ideal thrust on you is to be one of the yummy mummies.

Ellie Gibson and Helen Thorn join together to celebrate the actual reality. Together they are The Scummy Mummies and they bring The Scummy Mummies Show to Horsham’s Capitol on Thursday and Friday, May 5 and 6.

Becoming The Scummy Mummies in 2013, Ellie and Helen have gone on to produce an award-winning podcast, a sell-out touring comedy show, a popular book and their own range of merchandise, backed up by an ever-growing social media presence, with more than 160,000 followers on Instagram.

As Helen explains: “We met on the comedy circuit and we just fell in love on stage. I thought she was the funniest woman that I had ever seen and she apparently thought the same about me. That was in the April and in June Ellie came up with the idea of doing the podcast. It has been brilliant fun and the reaction to it has been lovely.

“When we started out everything was all very sincere and it was all about yummy mummies. Our idea was that we just wanted to talk about what really happens behind closed doors. It doesn’t matter how well prepared you are and how neat your nursery is, you are always going to end up getting covered in s*** and that’s the kind of thing that we talk about. The podcast really took off and then we decided to do the live show and that has been touring now for eight years.

“I don’t think we are spokespeople for anything but people connect with us just because we are mums and also because we are just really really good friends and they get to see the highs and lows of all that with us. We’ve both been through significant life dangers. I had a really horrific divorce and she had a really premature baby and we have shared all those experiences. For the podcast we interview people from all walks of life just to talk about things that have happened.

“When we first started it was focused a lot on the early years. That was a mindset but now we talk about experiences that we’re having as women in their 40s. I talk about my very exciting single life and getting back to dating.

“I’ve got two children a ten-year-old son and a 13 year-old-daughter and actually both our boys were born 11 days apart and they were both born by the same midwife. We didn’t know that as we didn’t meet until our boys were 18 months old.”

As for the essence of being a good mum, Helen says: “It’s about loving your children and being kind to yourself and laughing at

the things that go wrong and just trying to do your best and not taking things too seriously. Your children just want you. They don’t want a perfect you. It’s you they want and that’s great.

“During those early years the days are long but the years are short and you need some support but it’s actually also an absolute joy and I wouldn’t change anything for the world... though maybe a bit more sleep would have been nice. When people come to see our show, when people listen to our podcast, they realise that those early years can be alienating and lonely especially at the start when you are just thinking that you are doing absolutely everything wrong. And it’s just exhausting. But with the live shows hundreds of women and probably about four men get together and just have a good laugh about the ridiculousness of it all. Our shows are really good fun and I think we can really speak to the now.”

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