We interviewed Ria Lina about her life, academic background and comedy.
Collective stupidity triumphs, as the crowd defaults to the impulses of its least intelligent member
Ria, you’re hailed as the only Filipina comedian in British stand up and by TOFA as as one of the 100 Most Influential Filipinos in the world 2025. I haven’t checked, but if true how does it feel to be your country’s sole representative and world influencer?
I didn’t think of it that way till you said it! Well, obviously I’m honoured to have been selected this year. It’s a huge responsibility, but it’s a great diaspora to be a part of. We believe in the one drop rule - if you even have one drop of Filipino blood you are one of us! So everytime we find out someone new has a connection we own them as ours. Our network and visibility is growing and I’m proud to be a part of it.
You were born in the UK but have moved around other countries for various reasons.
Yes, we moved a lot when I was a kid, but I came back to the UK for Uni and stayed ever since, but because I speak with a slight American accent (the famous international school twang) people think I’m foreign. Drives Reform voters nuts when they find out there’s nothing they can do about me. Or shut me up.
Your last full run at the Fringe was nine years ago, what were the highlights of the intervening years?
Hmm, I wouldn’t call the pandemic a ‘highlight’, but as an ex-virologist it allowed me to stretch my old science muscles and help at the same time. Since we couldn’t congregate or work as comedians I went back into science communication on the news/TV/radio to help people understand what was going on. The science was evolving so rapidly as we were learning more about the virus, but also, as the virus itself was evolving, so I fielded a lot of questions and calls from people who were just scared and needed to be able to ask things in their own way.
When the world reopened, I continued as a news pundit (which I love) in addition to doing comedy and writing. I’ve been lucky to have been able to partake in a number of shows that span both, Mock the Week, Have I Got New for You, Times Radio, News Quiz…
This year’s show is called Riabellion, because I understand you hate the world and think it’s time to rebel. Why is that?
Hate the world is a bit strong. Let’s say as a mother, I am extremely disappointed in it and I think it needs to take some time to think about what it’s done and where it’s going. I think we’re getting (gotten to?) an ugly place. We are divided when we should be together, and we are partisan on facts, which is insane in itself, and means we are not focussed on solutions. Ironically, everyone is rebelling in their own way. Identity politics is about refusing to conform and instead stand up for yourself, which is amazing, but we have to conform where it matters or nothing will work anymore and I think (some) people have forgotten that.
Your show ‘explores the idea of individuality vs conformity and intelligence vs stupidity’. How does that work out?
Well, in a crowd, individual reasoning is overridden by social cues, and the group often syncs to the loudest or most emotionally charged voice, regardless of accuracy. The result is that collective stupidity triumphs, as the crowd defaults to the impulses of its least intelligent member. And that’s what’s happening in the world on a massive scale, in the last decade we have dismissed critics in favour of customer reviews, expert scientific advice for personal opinion, and as the wealth divide widens, we find people less equipped to fight back (and by equipped I mean with education). Is this the price of being ourselves?
In what ways has autism affected your life?
This is a tricky one to answer, because I’ve never not been autistic. It’s kinda like asking a person with two legs, how has having two legs affected their life. If they lost one I could understand asking them how only having one leg has changed their life, but I was never neurotypical so I can’t say how being autistic affects me. I feel what I feel and have learned it’s more that other people sense some things (hypersensitivity). I have both incredibly tight musculature and yet am really flexible (hypermobility). I prefer logic to emotion, I hate things that don’t make sense (to me), which is quite a lot and I love sushi. Not sure that’s related though.
In contrast to being a comedian you have a BSc in Experimental Pathology, an MSc in Forensic Science and a PhD in Virology. Did you practise in those fields for any time and what openings has such an impressive academic background given you?
Before committing full time to comedy I also spent some time as an IT Forensic Investigator at the Serious Fraud Office. Which is not as glamorous as it sounds. Believe it or not, the Forensic team are the computer geeks of the fraud prevention world and the accountants are the real jocks of the place. As for openings, see above about pandemic.
You are also a prolific writer. What would you like the audience to take away from your show?
I want the audience to have a great time, first and foremost. And secondly, I’d like them to have the confidence to speak up, do things differently, or fight back against whatever injustice they see to bring the world back to sense (not necessarily what they feel though - that’s different). Let’s work together, chat more, raise our children wiser and just be more kind.
