A new theatrical collaboration between Bryony Kimmings and her partner Tim Grayburn about clinical depression, love and "being a man"

What is the project? 

Bryony Kimmings is an outrageous and fearless Performance Artist from London. Tim Grayburn is an outrageous and fearless Account Manager at a top advertising firm in London. These two humans happen to be a couple. Six months into their relationship Bryony found out that Tim had severe clinical depression. He hadn’t told anyone for 6 years. 

Kimmings is inspired by the taboos of British culture and her works promote the airing of her own laundry to oil conversations on difficult subjects. For her 2015 show she plans to tackle mental health and the stigma's that surround it, particularly when it effects men. She has asked Tim to join her and tell his real story. He kindly agreed!

1 in 4 of us will suffer from mental health issues in our lifetime and 70% of patients in the doctor's queue are there for mental health reasons. It is estimated that over half of male depression goes undiagnosed, yet suicide is the number one killer of men under 35 in the UK. So why do we find it so hard to talk openly about the subject? And how do we deal with it when it arises?

Bryony often creates work with non-artists. In 2013 she asked her 9-year-old niece to invent a feminist alternative pop star for children. They came up with Catherine Bennett who was played on Radio1, written about in every newspaper in the UK and aired on the TV across the globe. When Bryony creates something it is all encompassing and real world! It always seeks to change things. 

This summer, Bryony and Tim secretly began writing together. Carving out their story. They showed some early material at Forest Fringe in Edinburgh and people responded really well. There was laughter and lots of tears. So they decided to REALLY GO FOR IT!

The duo are looking for support to create the full length performance work, talks programme and a daily blog; all of which will promote a more open dialogue about mental health and men. 

This is Tim’s first ever foray into art, and this is proving an exciting and wonderful thing to witness onstage. Tim took the leap and left his office job this autumn. Tim and Bryony aim to make an accessible, funny AND honest show about a subject that unites us all.

Who else is backing it? 

Fake It Til You Make It has been commissioned by the Southbank Centre, Birmingham DanceXchange, Theatre Works Melbourne, Arts Victoria AND funded in part by the Arts Council and Peggy Ramsey Foundation... EVEN SO this means the duo are only some of the way to reaching their goal! 

The pair has also enlisted the support of a team of experts, activists and mental health professionals to help them on their journey. They set up a survey monkey to gather anonymous personal experiences and stories from people who have experienced clinical depression - you can continue to add to these stories by clicking here. 

The pair have also tried to keep their families as involved with the making of the work as possible as this is a big deal for everyone involved! 

Read more and support the project here.