Jenny Gorelick Q&A

SORRY explores why women apologise for everything while men often don’t apologise at all. Was that idea something you’d consciously noticed for years, or did it emerge through dating experiences? I spend hours agonizing over every mistake I've ever made. It's almost a daily occurrence — don't worry, I'm medicated now. Meanwhile, since the dawn of time, men have gone through their lives doing worse things and never thought about it again. Anything from ghosting to inventing fascism. That was men. Women didn't do that. And I really do mean the dawn of time. Adam and Eve. Eve takes one bite of an apple and she is personally responsible for all of human sin. She had a healthy snack! Meanwhile, if it had protein in it, Adam would have done it first. So the idea actually started in the Bible.

The show starts with app dating and slowly opens into bigger questions about gender and behaviour. Did you always know you wanted the personal stories to lead somewhere deeper? I love to joke about my dating life — if I wasn't laughing, I'd be crying. Over time I've realized that the things I most want to talk about are dating, sex, and politics. And honestly, it’s all the same. Dating and sex are inherently political. How could it not be, as a woman, when the person statistically most likely to kill you, is your boyfriend or husband. The person who is supposed to love you the most!?

And as a twenty-something (I’m 34), finding a partner has become almost a second job for me and my friends. It’s hard to ignore the biological clock or the fact that everyone is coupling up, and you don’t want to be left in the villa, single and vulnerable. Sorry, I’m watching so much Love Island.

And studies show that in the next five years, half of women between 22 and 44 will be single. So even though I started writing from a personal place, my experience is unfortunately becoming more universal.

It’s ok – the girlies and I will start a commune.

The man with the “sorry mom” tattoo who still couldn’t apologise feels almost too perfect as a metaphor. Did you immediately know he was going in the show? It's unbelievable that a man with "sorry" tattooed on his ass was unable to apologize. After I was stood up — like many women who came before me — I had a deep urge to write a tell-all personal essay. It was only later, as he continued to be an asshole about the publication of said essay, that I realized it would become part of my stage show. And once this becomes a Netflix special, I'm sure his reaction to that will end up in a movie. It's inevitable at this point. He should really just laser off the tattoo.

Dating apps seem to create endless opportunities for both comedy and existential despair. What fascinates you most about modern dating culture? I think a lot about how my grandparents met. My grandpa was set up by a friend, asked my grandma out, they got married in their early twenties and stayed married for sixty years. That's it. And honestly, asking someone out in person makes him braver than the majority of men currently in the dating pool — but to be fair, this man did serve in a war. These days, because we meet online, it's so much harder to get from a match to actually meeting in person. And then when you do meet in person, it takes about thirty seconds to know if you're actually attracted to them — because it's only in the room that you notice the real human things about someone. And likely you’re not, because it’s impossible to tell via a few prompts and pictures. So getting from a first date to a second date has become genuinely rare. The fact that anyone gets married from an app is a miracle, and frankly worth calling the American Pope about. And to stay married? Please. By giving ourselves the entire internet to choose from, we've really overcomplicated something that used to be very simple.

What’s the worst Hinge opener you’ve ever received? Here's one that is active in my app at this very moment: "You're absolutely 100 with that smile! Please protect that and let that shine in the lives you touch!" “Protect that” kind of feels like a threat. No?

Jenny Gorelick: SORRY will be at Edinburgh Fringe Festival from 3rd – 30th August 2026. For more information visit: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/jenny-gorelick-sorry