In the last episode of our Season 01, we invited the award-winning Stand-Up Comedian Vlad Illich to choose one word that relates to his life experiences and achievements, and to our surprise, Vlad chose the word “menopause”. Now, you might ask yourself, “How could menopause relate to Vlad’s successes as a comedian?” Well, since we don’t want to spoil that for you, we’ll leave it to Vlad to tell you his story in the podcast.

During their hilarious conversation in the studio, Vlad, Paul and Yuliya embark on an intriguing journey with the word “menopause”, taking unexpected turns and stops at topics such as communism, Balkan parenthood, invisible male menopause and empty nest syndrome. Vlad shares his insight on many different issues, wrapped up in humour elegantly: from the positive meaning of the word menopause to the livelihood of cultures and languages to the art of walking on a thin rope in comedy shows. And as a special bonus, we are treated to some of Vlad’s iconic sketches that won him fame during his BBC Three’s ‘Stand up for Live Comedy’.

Following the interview with Vlad, our Language Detective Balnur investigates the etymological roots of the word “menopause” while revealing some of its weirdest and funniest alternative names.

At the end of the podcast, our producer Yuliya dives into the world of arts and culture. She highlights the way menopause is imprinted in different cultures worldwide as well as in our daily lives- from TV shows, documentaries, and musicals, to arts, books, and real-life stories- many seasoned with humour. If you don’t want to miss out on an episode, packed with insightful information, inspiration, and entertainment, then do have a listen.

This podcast is an Alpha CRC production.

Hosts: Paul Mangell, Yuliya Stancheva, Balnur Zhexeni

Producer/Writer: Yuliya Stancheva

Sound design: Alpha Studios

Sound engineers: Gerard Rodriguez and Mikosh Nanasi

Art design: David Stanley

Vocals: Stancho Stanchev

Guest: Vlad Illich

Vlad is an up-and-coming comic, actor and writer from who’s been working tirelessly on the London circuit for the last several years.

He’s been awarded four times on the circuit in different clubs such as winning the notorious King of the Gong award the Comedy Store, up to the most recent One to Watch 2020 at the well-established club Up the Creek which earned him the reputation of an outstanding newcomer and he has been signed with Blue Book Artist Management since. He is currently a finalist in Next Up’s competition Live or Die.

Vlad has appeared on BBC Three and BBC one and is developing a script. As an actor, he has trained in Scotland and Malta and loves poetry. He is currently working on his debut work-in-progress show “Hi, my name is Immigrant” which premiered on the Brighton, Cambridge and Camden Fringe and os going to be played in Edinburgh at the 2023 Fringe festival.

“Vlad is playful, charming, intelligent and very funny.” – Luke Toulson (C4, Russell Howard Good News)

“A confident, gag-packed set.” – The British Comedy Guide