With the difficult times we are facing at the moment, it is the perfect time to try something new whilst you are forced to stay indoors and over the next couple of weeks we are interviewing acts that are putting on everything from projects to lessons. Today, we speak to David Ruby all about his show called How To Date A Magical Creature which can be watched on Youtube by clicking here. 

Hello David! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and three unknown facts?

I’m Cornish but grew up in Paris. My favourite thing in the world is going back to Cornwall and eating pasties and cream teas. Cream first, then jam of course.

Unknown fact #1: I used to be blonde.

Unknown fact #2: I trained as an improviser.

Unknown fact #3: I can never touch my toes. How the hell do people do it??

What is the show all about?

The show is a series of dating tips for humans on how to date magical creatures, and comes in a variety of formats. There are make-up tutorials, couples in therapy and talk show interviews.

How did the show come about?

It was inspired by a script I wrote called My Ex-Girlfriend is a Mermaid. With my then producer I was brainstorming ideas on how to raise money. We thought a Kickstarter campaign could be one route.

As we considered how to go about the campaign, I thought it would be fun to raise awareness of the projects by filming simple videos giving humans dating advice on how to date magical creatures.

I realised this was far more fun, put that script on hold and developed what has now become How To Date A Magical Creature.

How do you decide what each of the episodes are about?

The content of the episodes was very much a discussion with the comedians involved. I knew I wanted a make-up tutorial video, a couple in therapy and then an interview format, and the content itself was then discussed with the performers before we started filming.

Tell us about the characters that are in your show?

In Episode 1 we are introduced to Catriona Gunningforit, a perfectly normal single girl who happens to have a fetish for dating vampires.

In Episode 2 we meet Clive and Greg, a couple who like any other couple in the world go to therapy to work through their relationship problems. In this case though, Clive is a zombie with serious digestion problems…

Then in Episodes 3 to 6 we meet D-list celebrity journalist Toby Vanilla who has a new guest on his show every week. First he has Satan and Santa, then Medusa, then The Creepy Twins from the Shining and finally The Grim Reaper and his girlfriend Janet from Accounts Payable.

Where do you get the inspiration for your show?

The inspiration comes from my own dating life!

What are your aims for your show in 2020?

My aims for the show in 2020 are to introduce this world to comedy fans and hope they enjoy it.

How do you decide who to have as a guest on each show?

It’s important to have a ‘celebrity’ magical creature. That’s literally it. We love celebrity so if The Tooth Fairy wants to come on we’d be delighted. She’s just really hard to get hold of! And we’re still waiting on a call back from The Invisible Man. No one’s seen him in a while though…

Will there be another season of your show?

There absolutely will be. Just need to get the right celebrities lined up! I have my fingers crossed Dracula will finally say yes once the lockdown is over.

How do you all get into character for each of your shows?

The performers are fantastic and they’re brilliant at channeling the characters.

What have been your favourite episodes and why?

It’s hard to pick a favourite as they’re all my babies, and they’re all very different. The one I’m closest to is Episode 1 as that was the one we filmed first. It kicked off the whole series with a bang and of course I was lucky enough to get Susan Harrison to play that part.

What makes you different to other shows out there?

What I love about our show is we’re not trying to send a message to anyone – we’re just trying to make you laugh and enjoy yourself.

Who would be your dream guest to appear and why?

I would love to have the Loch Ness Monster appear on the show. Just think – that creature has lived through everything!

What other shows are you a fan of and why?

I’m a huge fan of Smack The Pony, Cardinal Burns and Between Two Ferns. I think those shows are on another level of comedy that’s hasn’t been seen for a long long time.

Are there any plans or have there been any live versions of your show?

The interview format had a critically-acclaimed sell-out run at the Vault Festival in 2019, but currently we’re focusing entirely on the filmed version of the show.

What advice would you give for people thinking about starting a show?

Make sure you have the right team with you who are also on board the idea and trust them to bring out the best in the project. They also want to make the best show possible!

If people want to find out more about you where can they find you on social media?

They can follow us on Instagram and Twitter with the handle @datingcreatures.

Finally, in three words why should people listen to your show?

Enjoy some laughs!