Grans master Flash as comic Karen Dunbar teaches some unlikely rappers

Karen Dunbar has been entertaining the country for more than 20 years but when lockdown put a pause on the laughter she turned to her first love – music – for solace.

What began as a personal lifeline as work dried up during the pandemic has now become her main focus and it is as much of a surprise to her as it is for everyone else, because her new role is teaching community groups how to rap.

The Chewin’ The Fat star, who enjoyed a number of high-profile stage parts in Calendar Girls, Henry IV and The Tempest after her sketch show years came to an end, has set up a social enterprise called Beats Therapy and it has become her main gig.

“A couple of years before lockdown, I said I would love to do something with music in the community but I didn’t know what. During the pandemic, a friend was working with a group of female refugees and I said I’d like to work with them,” Dunbar explained.

“We got together on Zoom, and I said let’s write something, and from that came a rap. I remember shutting the laptop after the first session and feeling a real emotion and I realised there was something in it. We cut the rap with the refugees then another group asked if I would do one with them. The next thing I was working with four groups. When the world opened back up, I began to do it in-person.

“In two and a half years, I’ve done 30-odd groups – sometimes several on the go at once, which is a lot because I produce and make all the music. I’d never done that before. I had a nodding acquaintance with the GarageBand audio workstation and now I’ve had to move on to Logic Pro.

“When I started with the first group, it gave me a sense of purpose and I’m so thankful for that, but I never would have believed it would grow into what it has. It has taken on a whole new direction and it doesn’t mean I’m not still working in entertainment, but I’m doing more of the workshops than anything else and I’m really loving it. The social profit and the emotional profit is really valuable.”

In a new documentary out this week, viewers are given an insight into this unlikely fork in the road, as she works with five grans – Maggie, Susan, Wilma, Betty and Jean – from the north of Glasgow to put together a rap about their lives.

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“I can’t tell you how chuffed I am by how it’s turned out,” Dunbar said. “I love what it shows – it isn’t about me or rapping, but the spirit that is out there and the different characteristics of the women shining through.

“There is a real bond that happens among the participants, something in the shared experience and the vulnerability found in creativity. There is a universality to it as well, with kids as young as 11 and the eldest participant so far being 88. It’s a mix of women, men, old, young, Scottish and people living in Scotland.

“Instrumental in me doing all of this is Amy Rew, who is the CEO of a non-profit group called the Glasgow Girls’ Club. I was put in touch with her because I was struggling with Zoom and I was told she was good with technology, so we met and we still haven’t spoken about Zoom! She’s played a pivotal part in me discovering what it is I’m doing, and moulding the ethos of it. She’s been a big part of shaping Beats Therapy and has been a mentor to me.”

The 51-year-old, who performed a rap on a song by DopeSickFly last year, was performing in a stage production of The Importance Of Being Earnest when lockdown hit. Since theatre reopened, she hasn’t pursued any further stage roles.

“I love doing the theatre stuff – put me on a stage and I’m very happy, and the good thing about entertainment is all the different paths are usually still open,” she said. “I’m not saying I’m never doing it again but I’m so busy with the workshops now and the social enterprise stuff.

“This makes me a social entrepreneur but I have to laugh at me being called an entrepreneur of anything.

“I’m not actively pursuing theatre roles. Before I would have been looking, but now I’m too busy. I can hear myself hesitating as I say that. Do I want to say that in an interview? But it’s true, so let it be said. All the big producers will be saying, ‘We won’t be asking her’, and maybe that will be the case, but it’ll be alright. This is a huge part of my life now, and my hope and plan is to keep doing it.”

This year marks the 20th anniversary since the first series of The Karen Dunbar Show, her sketch series following the success of Chewin’ The Fat.

She said: “It’s funny, I don’t feel old or anything. It’s like the 20 years have happened outside of time. I feel I’ve had about six or seven lives and I have a few more still to come. The Karen Dunbar Show and Chewin’ The Fat were a huge part of that.”

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Having recently featured in a high-profile Women In Entertainment panel for International Women’s Day and with a home town charity show in Ayr coming up next week, Dunbar remains busy but no longer feels pressure like she once did.

“Maybe it’s something that happens when you get older, but it’s nice to be in that, ‘Ach, it’ll be fine’ mode, that lack of pressure I feel in general in life,” she added. “I still put the level of work in that needs to be done, but the ability to be more detached from the end result is one of the good things about growing older, where you think, ‘What’s the worst that could happen?’

“There was never any point in stress, but you’ve got to go through it to realise that. One of the things that used to drive me up the wall but doesn’t now is when people would say don’t worry.

“I would think, thanks for telling me that, I wouldn’t have thought about not worrying until you said don’t worry, and now that you’ve said don’t worry, I won’t worry and I’ll just switch those feelings off.

“It has to come naturally with each person. Tell the truth and see what happens.”

Karen Dunbar’s School Of Rap, BBC Scotland, Thursday, 10pm