Stephen Portlock is a writer and comedian who has written extensively for the disability press as well as for The Guardian, Independent, Church Times, Architects Journal, Erotic Review and Bizarre magazine among others.
Before his sight went seriously pear-shaped, he was a film buff and he still remains passionately committed to inclusivity in the arts both on and off stage. He has advised on various aspects of disability inclusivity, particularly where it relates to the arts.
Fiona Musgrove of Eye Matter wrote this beautiful profile piece for which I am profoundly grateful.
Stephen
Stephen, Seagull and his life with an invisible dog.
By Fiona Musgrove.
If he were an animal, what would he be and why? Initially Stephen proposed being a sexy black panther but felt it would be too conspicuous in town-life, whereas being a common dog or cat would make him dependent on” those things with long legs.”
“In fact,,” he finally admitted,” I really would like to have the freedom of a bird. Not an exotic eagle, as they are highly prized by hunters, but a squawking seagull. When I hear them, it always reminds me of the seaside and makes me smile.”
Stephen Portlock, in his early 50’s is a widower and now lives alone. His first degree was in languages and then he gained a further qualification in Journalism. In 2017 he began his stand-up career. Most of his content is over 15 rated but he gives a warning when it becomes more explicit. “I discuss my sight-loss alongside my OCD and how they impact on my everyday life,” Stephen explains. He always opens his sets holding a lead, as if blissfully unaware that his dog has scarpered. The dog in question, Hamlet, is a “Great Dane” he chuckles referencing the name of his show ‘Stephen and Hamlet, Blind and Mad.’
Stephen has been involved in a number of projects including a farce called Arsenic and Old Lace, along with an adaptation of Alice in Wonderland, written by Kate Lovell.
As well as a scattering of on-screen extra roles, he also starred in an Indie video Leave It by Bombay Bicycle Club.
“The video was actually a surprisingly nerve wracking experience, definitely more so than acting on stage. As I recall it featured a long tracking shot with different quite distinctively dressed men and women and I’m right at the end of the shot, which is to say at the end of the video. I was given the lines to learn which as I recall (and I still remember them over a decade later) were:
Don’t you go evade me now
Come see what you’ve done
I keep thinking lately how
All these feelings won.”
Stephen continues, “As the camera tracked along the sound of the guitars started getting louder and louder around me and at the appropriate prompt the (I think) man to my right tapped my foot with his. At that point I yowled out those lines as loudly as possible. Thankfully, people have said over the years that I have a pleasant singing voice so hopefully the experience wasn’t too painful for the other folks present. Even so it took a few takes getting it right as it’s hard to concentrate when the sound of crashing guitars are playing behind you. Obviously, it’s not my voice in the actual video. My support worker at work to whom I showed the video told me that my lips don’t quite sync with the overlaid lyrics but that’s not my problem – that’s the job of the editor!”
To give his career more context, Stephen was previously involved with The Venturers Drama Group of the Visually Impaired for many years and now Extant.
More recently, he has embarked on another acting role, in a ten-minute film by a group of students from the University of the Arts, based in Elephant and Castle. Filming was done over four days he explains. Stephen plays a blind, middle-aged father, also facing hearing -loss, who strengthens his relationship with his grown-up daughter through their love of painting. He appreciated the students allowing him to offer his input into the narrative of the project with its cast of three people and is looking forward to viewing the final result. Although this is not the first time Stephen has appeared on screen, he relishes each opportunity to use his skills developed at these specialised drama groups, as well as at the regular improv workshops run by Extant.
Many actors collect embarrassing stories and Stephen shared how he accidentally declared his love to another actor using her real name rather than that of her character during an intense scene. “I am also surely the only blind comedian to have ever caused a 100% audience walk out”, he muses, “I won’t say too much as I talk about it in my solo show but suffice to say that provided the audience are forewarned beforehand, which I always do now, then the offending joke in question has on many occasions brought the house down”.
Stephen has been a member of Eye Matter since 2020 when the majority of activities were online, due to the Pandemic. Over the past year he has enjoyed their in-person events such as the flamboyant Rocky Horror Show and, a few months ago, their Noodles and Comedy evening in Greenwich. He admits he has wanted to participate in more
of the Zoom sessions, but they often clash with other activities.
If you would like to find more about the work Eye Matter provides, for blind and partially sighted people, please click here: https://www.eyematter.org.uk/.
© Fiona Musgrove