A look back at the rehearsal process and UK theatre tour of CISSIE AND ADA with an analysis of the comedy of the ‘Cissie and Ada’ characters – plus a few thoughts on the cultural history of northern comedy, the fear of the comedian, the ‘secret of comedy’, creating a well known real character on stage and working with Big Name Comedians. The article has short video extracts from the play CISSIE AND ADA throughout.