By Hilary Porter

FOLLOWING last year's sell-out UK tour Ruby Wax continues performing her one-woman comedy show 'Sane New World' at venues across the UK this autumn.

The comedian, writer and mental health campaigner is at The Nuffield Theatre on Thursday September 10 and New Theatre Royal, Portsmouth on Tuesday November 24.

She has based this new show on her No. 1 Sunday Times bestselling book Sane New World: Taming the Mind, which has enjoyed worldwide success since publication in 2013.

The show promises to help us understand why we sabotage our own sanity and provides a manual on how to survive the 21st century, using Ruby’s knowledge from her recent Masters Degree in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy at Oxford University, spiked with her trademark comedy.

Ruby explains: “We are not equipped for this century, it’s too hard, too fast, and too full of fear; we just don’t have the bandwidth. Our brains can’t take so much information in a world where we’re bombarded by bad news and force-fed information. I can just about take in the weather then I’m exhausted. You open a newspaper, everyone’s dead. We’re only supposed to know what our neighbour is up to; if the woman next door to you is having sex with the man next door to her we need to know; but four doors down and it’s none of our business.”

Using her signature humour, Ruby gives audiences a tour of the brain and how to tame it: “We know so much about how the world works - but so little about our how our own minds work. It’s like having a Ferrari on top of your head but no one gave you the keys.”

She adds: "It 's about how your mind works and why you have all these negative thoughts like 'I couldn't', 'I shouldn't'. We feel all this pressure. We are not cavemen any more but we are always in a state of alarm."

I comment that this is an unusual subject for comedy and she comes back with: "That's what I studied so I took it and made a comedy show out of it- but I go off-subject too...like you can tell how crazy people are by how they decorate their bathroom. "

Asked if she found doing her masters degree rewarding she said:

"Obviously. If you're interested it's not that tough." Ruby attended Oxford University in person and asked if she enjoyed all the academic essay writing she said:

"I didn't like it at all but I was interested in the subject ."

Ruby points out that whilst the last tour had been all about mental health this one is very much about how the mind works.

Stephen Fry said of her: “Wax has an extraordinary mind, and she has bought it to bear with her trademark wit…a Ruby beyond any price.”

Ruby however feels our minds are like computers ill- equipped for the modern world's demands:"It's like having too many windows open in our world...like, should I be concerned about a beached whale in Miami."

Our obsession with social media troubles her too." It's like you are ashamed to not be on social media because you want to be part of the tribe. What's the answer? You will have to come to our show! "

After arriving in Britain from the United States in 1977, Ruby began her acting career with the Royal Shakespeare Company. She went on to write and perform in her own hugely popular television programmes for the BBC and Channel 4 and was Script Editor on all series’ of Absolutely Fabulous.

She has been awarded an OBE for her services to mental health in the Honorary British Awards to Foreign Nationals.

Ruby has campaigned tirelessly to raise awareness about mental health issues, including becoming a patron for the British Neuroscience Association and a number of charities, bringing mental health issues to the foreground in Parliament through work at the Home Office and speaking at Downing Street to raise money for neuroscience research.

She has become a leading speaker on mental issues including appearances at TEDGlobal 2012, various UK National Health Trusts, British Association of Counselling & Psychotherapy, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Women of the World Festival UK and Comic Relief.

Tickets:

Nuffield Theatre Thursday September 10: Box Office: 023 8067 1771

New Theatre Royal, Portsmouth, Tuesday November 24: Box Office: 023 9264 9000