June 2026
Comedy Corner – A Bunch of Jessies – Comedy Drag with Grant F Kidd and James T Smith
Grant F Kidd and James T Smith are a formidable drag duo eking out a living in the west of Scotland theatre scene known for their comedy drag panto shows. I met them at their theatre home, the Panopticon in Glasgow city centre, on a cold spring night after they had completed their “Jessies” show tour which hit the Pavilion Theatre Glasgow, Macroberts Centre, Carnegie Hall in Dunfermline and of course a show at the Panopticon.
Both Grant and James – best friends and business partners - got the bug for the stage at an early age; Grant age 8 in Maybole, Ayrshire as part of a Youth Theatre group, and James at school age 7, when the Baldy Bain travelling theatre company selected him to “say a line or two, get a rock flung at my head then faint”. James adds that that was it for him, he knew he wanted to be on stage – “But I just wanted to do it all in a dress.”
Drag Characters
Grant and James are both Queens of the Scottish drag scene. Grant transforms spectacularly into Auntie Effie, who is a “a menopausal woman from up a close” and James as Nomi Divine – a gorgeous sliver of “a woman with ginger hair and lethal put downs tough enough to take on any punter in a Glasgow pub.”
Starting Out
After completing an HND in Acting and Performance Grant entered the theatre, via a job in Asda, working through admin, events management and in 2016, on to the Panopticon and got fully involved in their first Panto production.
For James after his BA in Dance, he landed a place as an ensemble dancer in the Pavilion’s pantomime Snow White. For our more mature readers, this show was a Juke Box musical show production with well-known Scottish entertainers Christian and Dean Park.
Production Company
It was in 2018 that Grant and James formed a working relationship due to James being cast in more Panopticon shows. Grant often worked on four to five shows per year. James was soon naturally becoming part of the Bunch of Jessies production company.
Both perform in their shows but in the background, they have other roles to fulfil. Grant is the natural but reluctant administrator of their partnership responsible for writing funding applications, marketing, admin, finance with the technical jargon to impress in funding applications. James the willing business partner full of ideas, creativity, talent and drive “I am dyslexic as fuck so if the applications for funding were up to me, we wouldn’t get anywhere! But I work hard, can make props, direct and have vision for our shows.”
Success
In 2025, Jessies won a Pride of Scotland Award Creative Arts Award. The award recognises a creative/dramatic art presentation that portrays the message of diversity and inclusion within the LGBTQI+ community.
On the back of their success at winning awards, selling out shows their hard work seems to be paying off? I ask them what they want to achieve because of it but Grant laughs. “World domination of course.” but Grant just wants their hard work to pay off, and by that they mean pay.
Ambition
“There is stuff that has went great, but it didn’t affect our following shows the way we expected it to. That was because we had to come back here (to the Panopticon), rather than go to people’s doorsteps so while it would have been nice for other stuff to come off the back of Jessies success it was like back to square one.”
James is also keen to make a living out of his talents. At present he is a nursery teacher but says “I want to keep on experiencing new things, trying new scripts through performing, and be respected for being a performer.”
It is not an unfamiliar complaint to hear about a lack of funding, and opportunity for Scottish grassroots arts and theatre – and particularly alternative or as James puts it “drag comedy theatre.”
James says “There are no drag comedy agents. I just want an agency where if I must work 365 nights a year I will, but if they just did everything else. You need to be able to do everything, whether you are good at it or not. Contacting venues, paying venues, design leaflets, write up bios, write and send out press releases, write the show, make props, rehearse the show, do the show….”
They don’t have volunteers however their team always pitch in. “The cast are great; they support us and help us out all the time. Ideally, in a year or so we want to be able to hire someone to send out of 150 press releases that no-one will respond to! To take the pressure off us.”
Don’t get the boys wrong, they are successful, driven, and enthusiastic despite their quest of making a living from performing, both realise they may have a year or two more until thing become self-sustaining.
And finally…EDINBURGH FRINGE 2026
Grant ends with a surprising “We do have an announcement….” My breath is bated. “We are taking Jessies to the Edinburgh Fringe this year!”
A Bunch of Jessies Ltd Jessies is the winner of the Creative Arts Award at the Proud Scotland Awards 2025. This powerful new play follows three unforgettable drag queens – The Jessies – and the staff of the infamous Jessie’s Bar in Scotland. Spanning from 1980 to 1995, the story dives into the highs and lows of queer life during a time of upheaval, hope and hard-won joy. Set against the backdrop of a changing world, this hilarious and deeply moving play is a celebration of resilience, love and the enduring power of community.
“We are delighted to say that we are running the show from the 7 – 15 August (inclusive) at Space[iii] Tickets are on sale at theSpaceUK Official Tickets – Edinburgh Fringe 2025”
We end our chat but not before I ask them both to select an image that reflects how they are feeling right now. James goes first and settles on the solar system. “I love the mysticism and magic of the moon. I stare at the moon all the time – I am a crazy moon person.”
Grant “I pick the sunset, but I don’t like my reason…I am ready for a break but we just have too much on. I just want a wee weekend or a week but there is always something on or to do.
James adds “We think we will get a break but we can be so tired that time off is spent resting or asleep. I am trying to fire a lot at one time, so you are writing or working, and the only date that that works means you might be rehearsing two shows or staying up to 1am making props…so there just never feels there is the time.”
I feel in a way both men are seeking the same thing just through a different lens - space - either by having a holiday or metaphorically by looking at space to help you slow down, take stock, find the peace, and wonder again outside the mayhem.
Please support Jessies this summer and tell us what you thought of the show if you have already seen it.
