| Abby Howells | |
| Birth Name: | Abigail Mai Howells |
| Birth Place: | Dunedin, New Zealand |
| Alma Mater: | University of Otago (PhD, theatre studies) Victoria University of Wellington (MA, creative writing) |
| Awards: | Billy T Award (2023) |
Abigail Mai Howells is a New Zealand comedian, actor, and writer. She was the winner of the Billy T Award in 2023.
Howells was born in and grew up in Dunedin, New Zealand. She attended an all-girls high school, where she acted in school productions of The Wizard of Oz as the Cowardly Lion and in Seussical as Horton the Elephant.[1]
She received a bachelor of arts in film and media studies from the University of Otago, and a masters in creative writing (specifically screenwriting[2]) from Victoria University of Wellington's International Institute of Modern Letters in 2014. At Victoria, she wrote the screenplay Standing Up, which won the Brad McGann Award.[3]
Howells completed a PhD in theatre studies from the University of Otago; her thesis, titled "Performing Prison: How Is Life on the Inside Portrayed to the Outside World?",[4] explored how incarcerated women are portrayed in film and television.[5]
Howells was a founding member of Discharge, a female comedy collective.[6] [3] She served as head writer for the group, penning the shows What is This? Woman's Hour? (2012),[7] Benedict Cumberbatch Must Die (2014),[8] and 28 Days: A Period Piece (2015).[3]
In 2014, Howells wrote Crossbow Cat, which won the Auckland Festival's Judges' Choice and People's Choice awards, and audio play The Crash in 2015, which aired on Radio New Zealand.[9]
She presented her solo show Glocknid: Dwarf Warrior in 2014, which won the Best Newcomer Award at the 2015 Wellington International Comedy Festival.[3] [10] She portrayed Beatrix in Trick of the Light Theatre's Beards Beards Beards, which toured the United Kingdom,[11] and her play Attila the Hun was part of the 2017 Young and Hungry Festival.[3] In 2018 she performed White Men at the Dunedin Fringe Festival.[9] Howells acted in Fold by Jo Randerson in 2018, and The Bald Soprano in 2019.[12] [13]
After starting stand-up in her 20s, Howells quit comedy for seven years following sexual harassment from another comedian and bad experiences with on-stage harassment;[14] during this period she completed her PhD.[2]
Howells's show HarleQueen, inspired by her experiences as a woman in comedy, won the Director's Award at the New Zealand International Comedy Festival in 2021; she also performed the show at Edinburgh Fringe.[2] In 2023 at the NZICF, she wrote and performed La Soupco, which is "based on a screenplay Howells wrote when she was 11 years old... a post-World War II nautical-themed romance set in Spain for little reason, where the characters don't have names". For the show, Howells won the Billy T Award.[15] [16] [14] [10] [17] The New Zealand Herald wrote that La Soupco "strikes a wonderful balance between a theatrical concept and traditional stand-up".[18]
In 2024, Howells and Angella Dravid formed an improv group called The Improfessionals and performed at the NZICF.[19]
On television, Howells has appeared on 7 Days, Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee, Shortland Street, and Taskmaster New Zealand.[2] [20] [21] She also acted in the Netflix film The Royal Treatment (2022).[9]
Howells directed the second season of comedy podcast Did Titanic Sink?, hosted by Tim Batt and Carlo Ritchie. She has been a guest on Backyard Stories with Claudia Nankervis and The Worst Idea of All Time.[9]
She has cited Blackadder and Jerry Seinfeld as influences.[16], Howells is repped by Token.[9]
Howells is open about being autistic, explaining that "It takes the pressure off me a little bit. I can really relax and just be myself... I don't have to process everything I do through a 'would a 'normal' person say this?' lens."[22] [23] She is interested in the Titanic disaster.[24]
, Howells is in a relationship with Robbie Nichol.[2]